Wishbone has a great thread of "Pain free?" which coincided with something I'd been thinking about recently.
Tami, a dear friend, has fibromyalgia. She got it in her 20's after she became a licensed physical therapist. She is very bright, good at finding new therapies, and smart at self-care (something I am not good at).
Tami is always telling me I need to take better care of myself. She very intelligently put it this way:
Just do one thing, one thing that makes you feel better. Maybe it will make you feel 5% better. Then do 2 things and now you doubled it to 10%. Do 4 things and you feel 20% better. Try it. Start with 1.
She's right. Sweeping changes are exciting but intimidating and we tend to put them off. But surely we can do 1 little thing to start this? Right?
Will you share your tip of what you may do to feel better, just 5%?
Blythe - I do better when I don't eat grains. I'm going to give them up for 1 month and briefly chart daily my response.
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Lovely idea. Well if we are talking about food the only thing I have noticed that makes a difference is tomatoes. I used to eat a lot, now I dont have any and I think ... think it makes a difference. The other thing is making a concious effort to be greatful for what I can do and try not to concentrate and get frustrated or down about what I cant do. Thats my 5% plus. 🙂
I haven’t noticed any food elimination makes a difference to how I feel sadly but I wish it did.
Thanks for the hug ArtistBlythe. I just get through each day as best I can. Meds make me feel better when they work but I’ve never been in remission so there’s always something to bring me down if I do try to make myself feel better.
Oh, Kittyj, that is tough. I'm so sorry. Constant pain is draining. People don't understand the toll it takes on us.
Do you have any hobbies you take pleasure in? Reading, painting, photo editing, music?
Technology has been a friend to us in our journey. I edit photos and create things on the web instead of physically going places as I once did in my profession. There is so much of the world at our fingertips now. I feel fortunate for this.
I hope you find something to give you pleasure, Kittyj. Warm hug.
I try to find hobbies but it’s difficult. I used to paint and draw, knit, crochet, sewing, I made stained glass windows and loved photography but can do none of that now. My house is full of crafts stuff that I’ve tried out and found it causes me too many problems. I do read a lot with a kindle though.
I’m glad you have found something you can do that gives you pleasure. 🤗
I’m trying everything I can. I began as a skeptic but nothing to lose right? So I’ve changed my diet and there’s been a big difference after about 6weeks (less than the meds take for results). Gluten free, dairy free and no nightshades. At first it seemed like some kind of prison, but 2 months in I can honestly say I’m feeling the best I have in months. Also learning to meditate- try the insight timer app; and some exercise when possible; swimming and knitting. Yes knitting is exercise for my hands. Love to hear from others.
Hi, yes potatoes are nightshades and I’ve been excluding them. To begin with, I missed my spuds the most, my nickname is spuddy because of my love for potatoes. I’ve substituted sweet potatoes. After about 4wks I’m not missing the potatoes much. Mostly it’s cases of food envy when I’m eating out. The gluten free path is a learning curve. I’m in Sydney so not sure you’ll have the same brands available? But I’ve found excellent range of alternatives at Aldi and also Woolworths supermarkets. Just read the ingredients as some gluten free products are not very natural. The idea with changing diet is to soothe and heal the gut. So natural and unprocessed is better. Best wishes, Wendy
I was doing well, my stomach was healing I was able to have a lot of more foods, than normal but I went for it on mothers day and have paid for it since,even with my stomach
so need to put myself back to square one to heal my stomach again
Ever since I read your post I've been wondering...what are nightshades? I wear my nightshades to bed over my eyes. They are pink, silk with an elastic band that wraps around my head.
I couldn't really imagine potatoe slices all night. Ckl
What a super idea, my 5% today is to not drink alcohol. A glass does ease my mental state on an evening but I’m worried it affects my inflammation levels. We’ll see what happens ! 😊
I love the contributions! Like you, I do enjoy a glass of wine, really Champagne being my favorite! A few glasses a year is about it but savoring it adds to the pleasure. I guess? Ckl.
Beautiful post. I commit to walking 4 miles a week, as ankles allow. I first thought 5, but RA is teaching (*cough*forcing*cough*) me to scale down and be flexible about expectations and commitments. Judging that mileage as "too low" teaches me that I'm still working on that lesson!
I'm glad you like this thread. I appreciate the ideas and inspiration.
4 miles a week is a good way to approach walking. If you don't feel so hot 1 day, you cut it short and conversely on good days. You can pass on feeling guilty if you don't meet your daily goal.
I'm familiar with lessons and having to repeat them. Over and over and over, I repeat some! Ckl.
Good luck to your 4-5 miles with no I'll effe ts to ankles!
Btw, do you wrap your ankles or do anything special?
If 'do better' means 'less pain' in your Q, my go to for less pain is the Dmards and prednisone I take. Prednisone is very quick to squash pain. The side effects are not so great, however. For me, food is just that - food. I eat nutrient-dense food and leave nothing out. This is for a healthy body. Food is not illness causing and it is not illness curing for me.
I have to say, though, I don't like dill weed. But that's only an herb not a meal.😃
A hot shower feels great on the neck and shoulders for the time I am in it. Planting and growing vegetables is very rewarding for me. Finding the wild asparagus on my property is awesome - good to eat too. I just popped the breast out of a ruffed grouse that broke its neck when it fell out of a tree onto my roof so will be having that for supper. Now, classical music for me, gospel music also is a real pleasure to listen to. The music for the Nutcracker and Swan Lake ballets, I love. Piano especially if it is good. There is so much to enjoy and help distract from the pain of RA. None of this works at all, though, if I am in too much pain. Meds first.😊🍗🌿
I'm on the 4th floor of a block of flats, getting coats / hats on , going down in the lift and making my way outside are just a lot of effort on a cold / wet day, just to sit out side for a few minutes. Then back in and up the lift again ... phew ...when you don't feel great !
It's such a shame as I have lived in a house with a garden all my life, moved to the city as part of my pre retirement plans 4 years ago and became unwell with RD 2 years later. The flat isn't really suitable or me now, but I'm not well enough to move just now. I will if I can get stabilised on biologics.
My 5% is my dogs and cats , through the highs and lows of the past 16 years one of them has walked the mile with me . They’ve given me a reason when at times I saw none . Humility has arrived at my door and blessed am I every morning even if I don’t always feel it 🌷🤗
Music is a 5% I need to use more. I truly love music of all genres including opera.
I really love music of the 70's tho. It's so much fun to dance to many of those bands. That was such a great time with the Eagles, Elton John, really, where do you start and stop?
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Just another little add on
Your support really helped!
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Are these symptoms part of your RD?
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