Week from Hades

Since being diagnosed I have thought it through many times, and sometimes think that since I'm not in the pain that I read about here,  rheumy must be wrong.

I have had two weeks from hell, and I am beginning to see the light and believe.  Not a good thing, yet it has opened my eyes.

My parents are elderly, and have been very ill the last two weeks. I have had to run them to appointments, buy their groceries, clean their house and generally try to make arrangements for the things that need to be put into place to help them - in addtition to working all day at a job I can barely tolerate.  I feel like I've been running non-stop. 

It seems my body is now telling me that enough is enough.  The achiness that had receded is back... as well as the headaches. Now, I'm having pain when I breathe, like I've strained muscles in my back and ribs.  I'm lucky that motrin seems to help me so far. I am going to look around, but I think that the rib pain is normal for fibro?

Just wanted to say that maybe the rheumy was right after all.  Darn. ;)  I was hoping denial was the way to go.  ;)

Have you gone through this? Any ideas on how to keep everything on an even keel until the stress dies down? Do you have ideas on how to balance life a little bit better?  I'm hoping I'll have the time and energy to take an indoor walk tonight. That should be a start.

The experiance of going through a flare can jerk you out of denial in a hurry. Early on I did the denial route too. I didn't want to believe I could no longer act like I was Wonder Woman.

Learning to pace yourself is one of the hardest things when you are used to being an active person. Somedays you will feel better than others and tempted to do more than you should. I do this more than I should but sometimes it is worth it to me. Recently I spent two weeks visiting family who live far away. I overdid and knew I would pay the price.

Eating healthy, getting enough sleep ( alot of us suffer from insomnia) and excercising help but doesn't guarantee you from flaring. Learning to live with this illness comes with alot oftrial and error.

Meds work differantly for all of us. I take Savella 50mgs 2x daily and use a muscle relaxer,Cyclobenzaprine for flares. I do relaxation therapy ( deep breathing exercises and meditation) daily and that helps with stress.

Attitude plays a big part of how you deal with illness. Initially I had a very hard time dealing with my illnesses, asking Why me? Everyday I would host my own pity party and feel bad. After the days turned into weeks I knew I had to stop grieving and start living again. I try to be positive and that helps me. I still have days when I ask why me?... but I have stopped dwelling on that question.

Taking one day at a time works for me!

Hugs, Robin

I agree with the above posts. Pace yourself, even if you are feeling good. It is so easy to over do. I do meditation too. It helps relieve stress. You clear your mind of everything and we all need that.

I hope that you feel better soon.

Hugs, Karen