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Establish a Good Working Relationship with Your Doctor One of the most important things as a fibro sufferer is establish a open good working relationship with your doctor. Having a strong confidence and trust in your doctor is the key to making life a little bit easier to cope with having fibro. You need to be able to trust they will be paying attention to the symptoms of even the small stupid things that for anyone else it wouldn't matter for. Once you have that confidence you will find it easier to follow the doctor's instructions, which will put you back on the road to having a normal life (so to speak). Listen To Your Body If you have fibro, your first thought here is "ya right, like I can ignore it". But there is more to it than that. It is rare to find two people with Fibro that will be able to describe thier symptoms exactly to the T. Because of the different ways our body reacts to different things we have to listen to the warnings we do get, and the things that may aggrevate any symptoms more. With Fibro we have to respond to feeling overtired, overstressed, hungry, thirsty, or feeling a need to be alone, just to name a few things. If you can learn to predict what your body many need in some situations, you can avoid some unpleasantries. De-Stress As Much As Possible Don't take on more than you can handle. This means learning to say no when you're putting too much on your plate. Don't expect too much from yourself such as giving yourself unrealistic deadlines, pace yourself and don't push yourself to get something done, take your time. Make sure to give yourself down time; give yourself rest and relaxation time. 'You' time is very important especially for sleeping, exercising, eating right, and things that generally make you feel good. Most important, Don't expect perfection from yourself. It's okay for things to be clean without being spotless. Sleep Sleep and Sleep Figure out what your body requires for sleep and give it to it. Not just rest, REM sleep. This is the stage of sleep that your body has it's chance to heal and prepare you for the day that lays ahead of you tomorrow. Establish a bed time routine. Staying up all hours of the night, then sleeping all day is not healthy for anyone, but especially for Fibro. Some can get by on 6 hours sleep, but that's what it is exactly ... getting by. This is NOT an option for anyone who suffers from Fibro. Consider a good 8 hours. Personally I function best on 10 hours to have a full satisfying day. Don't Be Afriad To Ask For Help From personal experience I can tell you it is very hard to admit you need help, nevermind ask for it. There are many reasons for this, some are symply afraid this will make them look weak, some are embarrassed to tell others what they need, whether it's just a simply task or time off work. Personally, I felt like it wasn't fair to burden anyone else. Don't be afraid to admit when your feeling overwhelmed, or feeling exhausted and let people know when they can help you to get through it. Avoid Overdoing It On Good Days I am the worst on this one. So even bringing this one up makes me a bit of a hypocrite in a sense. When you're used to feeling bad, and often feel like you're being held back from doing the things you want to do, having a good day makes it very hard to exercise restraint. Try to remember that tomorrow is when what you do today is going to effect you. The bottom line ... if you want fewer bad days; pace yourself as much as possible on your good days. Maintain A Positive Attitude Not always an easy task ... believe me I know. When you're feeling your worst, and your on the 3rd or 4th day in a row of constant pain it is hard to convince yourself that tomorrow is going to be a better day, that you will have some relief from the pain. Find the little things that give you hope, or will even distract you from the pain ... even if it's only for a few minutes. Cope With Depression Fibro can cause you to become depressed, or Fibro and depression can simply go together somehow, biochemically. If you are experiencing depression and the usual things that normally cheer you up don't come close any more, see a therapist and get some help. The road to getting your life back after months and months of pain and feeling scared from not knowing what is going on with you. Even if you don't think you are depressed, talking to someone about how you are feeling is important. Work With Family and Friends In the middle of all the pain, confusion, and discomfort, it can be difficult to take a step back and realize that your friends and family are being deeply affected by what you are going through. It is important that you keep them informed and don't push them away. It is also important to keep in mind that fibromyalgia is nobody's fault. It just exists. Make sure you that they know it, and what they can do to make things easier for. They need you to keep them in the loop as allow them to support you as much as you need them. Work Or Not To Work Going back to listening to your body and not overwhelming yourself. If you are finding you are having a hard time getting the hang of learning to live with Fibromyalgia, you may need to make changes. If you are working, you may need to consider giving up your job. It doesn't necessarily mean forever, perhaps only a few months, perhaps a few years. Maybe you can just lighten your work load or make some simple changes such as taking more breaks or asking for a more comfortable chair. There are many things you can do for work today from working from home to changing your line of work. Like it or not, you have to put your health first now. |
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