I started thinking about this topic recently, about how there are certain things about living with chronic pain that those around us will never understand. That a healthy person just can't (sometimes won't) understand. As I thought about what came to my own mind, I asked the question … [Read more...]
Extra Spoons and Inspiration
These posts contain little tips and inspiration to help you gain an "extra spoon" or two. Many with invisible illness call themselves "spoonies" in reference to The Spoon Theory by Christine Miserandino. The idea is that we equate our energy levels to spoons, when our energy levels are low, we need spoons. These posts are meant to help you increase your energy (whether mental or physical), and therefore your spoons.
Sunday Inspiration: The Opportunity Costs of Life
Brainless Blogger Nikki made a great point on her blog this last week: "I know there is a price to be paid for everything I do. I have always thought about in terms of cost and benefit terms. There will be consequences but there will be benefits. There have been times were the cost was high but the … [Read more...]
Sunday Inspiration: Stop Ruminating
Rumination is a state that many of us find ourselves in when we are sick. What is rumination? Ruminating a psychological state of focusing on our distress, on the negatives of our situation. Recently one of my favorite authors and bloggers, Toni Bernhard posted a great article about this and about … [Read more...]
Sunday Inspiration: Choose to Be Positive and Grateful
Choose to be positive and grateful The source of this week's inspiration comes from Marc and Angel Hack Life. This is a great blog full of inspiration that you should be reading every day. Their post on 4 Things You Must Give Up to Move Forward contained one particular piece of advice that I … [Read more...]
4 Interesting Tricks to Help You Sleep
The joy of Fibromyalgia and Insomnia is that I am always looking for a trick to help me sleep. I've tried counting sheep, I've optimized my sleep hygiene, I take warm epson salt baths, and the magic answer still eludes me. In my search I've come across some very interesting tricks for sleep, that … [Read more...]
What is failure?
My inspiration this week came from my friend Jessica at No One Gets Flowers For Chronic Pain and her post on Famous Failures. She shares that she does not agree with the term "failure". We are taught this word at such a young age even before we are given exams and quizzes that are either: pass … [Read more...]
Do you use your illness as an excuse?
I have a confession, I've used my illness as an excuse a time or two. I've said I had a migraine to get out of something or to leave something early. We've had an event or two that neither of us really wanted to attend, so I developed a migraine after we got there to give us an early out. On the … [Read more...]
Sunday Inspiration: Chronic Illness and Friendships
Chronic Marriage is one of my favorite blogs to follow. It's one of only two (that I know of) that focus on what it's like to deal with chronic illness within a marriage. Not long ago she shared a post about "Why Friendships are Important to Your Marriage". There were a couple of statements she made … [Read more...]
Learn to Control Your Pain and Flares
At this point anyone with a chronic illness knows that stress increases their flares (or likelihood of a flare). But, are you creating your own flares, and the stress that creates them? You could be controlling both the stress and the flares. I know it's hard to imagine that we actually have any … [Read more...]
The Delicate Balance of Being Enough
This guest post on Turning Straw Into Gold, along with the post from Toni Bernhard, that she referred to, really got me thinking about the balance beam that we walk with chronic illness. We play a constant game that I'm going to call - The Delicate Balance of Being Enough. When you live with a … [Read more...]
