LIVING WITH FIBRO

Don't get me wrong, I love the drug Lyrica.  But, the ads on TV bug me.  This very attractive middle-aged woman talks about how some days her pain is so bad she has to force herself to leave the house.

My reality is some days if I get dressed its a red letter day.

Then there is the famous fibro fog.  This is where basically you brain stops functioning in a way that supports daily chores, names, dates, children's names and anything else you need to recall rather quickly.

EX:  I've been setting at my computer for two days trying to refill a medication through my online prescription company.  Then it hit me I had had it filled at the local Wal-Mart.  Two days.

One of the other aspects of this wonderful disease is the inability to concentrate.  You can't even do it looking at the orange juice can.  This is really bad for a writer.  Our editor's don't really understand that getting three sentences in a row written in one twenty-four hour period as making good progress on a manuscript.  

If you are trying to get a book read so you can write a review that was due last Tuesday and are only half-way through the book the review site owner is send you frantic e-mails saying, "What do you mean you read three pages today, and you remember most of it?"

So, If I see you out in public or at a writers conference and I don't know your name without your name tag, don't be offended. 

Murmur, "Poor thing" as I'm walking away, and I'll know you understand. 

TO SLEEP PERCHANCE TO DREAM

Do you sleep well?

 

If you need to lose weight you probably don't sleep well.

 

Studies have shown that getting enough good sleep will help you lose weight.

 

How do you get good sleep?

 

1.  Exercise

            I'm not talking going to the gym and doing an hour of aerobics here.  Get out of your chair, go outside and walk for five minutes.  If you do this several times a day you will feel better and sleep better.

 

2.  Don't Eat A Heavy Meal At Night

            I'm not saying don't eat after a certain time.  That just makes you crazy and want to eat everything in sight after the proscribed time.  Eating heavy meals at night can interfere with your sleep cycles.

 

3.  Don't Nap During The Day

            Or, if you must nap keep it to a thirty minute power nap or sleep for an hour and a half.  The longer nap lets you get through one complete sleep cycle.  This way you won't wake up with that feeling of being hungover.

 

4. No Distracting Noises

            If you are like me you need some background noise to go to sleep.  All that silence is unnerving.  The experts say not to do this, but I do it anyway.  I have my television on a channel that I can tune out, but still hear the noise.  I set the volume as low as I can and still hear it.  

            If the light from the television bothers you get a sleep mask.  They are cheap and available at most department stores.

 

5.  Sleep Study

            Get a sleep study done.  I had one done recently and found out that I stopped breathing two hundred and fifty-eight times that night.  That’s not good.

            I now sleep with a c-pap machine.  It has taken some getting used to, but I’m sleeping so much better.

 

6.  Make Love or Cuddle

            As far as I know there are no studies that say sex helps you sleep, but getting all warm and cozy with your loved one will at least feel good even if it doesn’t help you sleep.

 

Don’t let the lack of good sleep continue to wear down your life.  Find out why you don’t sleep well and work at fixing the problem.

Debbie is now stepping down from her lofty soapbox.

 

GET MOVING

Today I bought walking poles at Wal-Mart for $20.00.

Like most writers I'm overweight. No, that's wrong. I'm not overwieght, pleasingly plump, chunky, or fat. I'm obese. God, I hate that word. It sounds like I don't care about myself, and I'm just a lump of fat sitting watching soaps and eating all the wrong foods every minute of the day.

It's not true.

I try to eat healthy and usually eat 2 to three meals a day with one snack. I allow myself 1 real Dr Pepper and the rest are diet.

My problem is moving. I have several health problems that limit my life.

Today has been a good day. The sun is out. It's not overly warm, but warm enough to get out and walk.

That's just what I did with the walking poles. My back sidewalk is about 75 feet long. I used the poles and went up and down the sidewalk 5 times.

Yes, I had to stop at each end and rest a few seconds. Yes, I had a hard time breathing. But, if I don't get rid of this weight I'm going to end up in a wheelchair with an oxygen tank. At 54 that is not viable option.

So, do you want to get moving? Join me each day in moving and let me know how much you moved. You can also bitch about how hard it was, how much you hate it, and then be proud of one more day of moving.

GOOD NEWS

After several tests that involved big machines and IV's the doctors tell me my heart is in good shape for a 50 something who is obese. That is really good news as heart disease runs in my family.

Now, comes the hard part, getting rid of the weight. I've tried diets, change of life plans, home delivery of the food plans and just plain old starving. I can't stick with any of it. So, my next option is the lapband. I'll be looking into this this week. It is non-invasive and reversable.

I'll let you know what happens.