whew! i'm still standing. or rather sitting. or am i passed out on the floor?? all i know is... i made it through the holidays and now... i'm getting ready for 2010!!

merry christmas!! i’m still standing. or rather sitting. or am i passed out on the floor? all i know is… i made it through!!

what a whirlwind holiday season this has been! most days i had no idea if i was coming or going. i was foggy brain multi-tasking which, trust me, was the scariest thing ever. i mean it. think of this… my family room had about 15 projects going on, you could not see the floor, the table tops, the chairs, the couches, it was absolute chaos in there… but for me? i was workin’ it. i had three 6-foot tables in that room, i swear when i wasn’t in there, there were little project angels helping me… (a girl can dream, right?) i have to really give it to my husband, he let me do my thang (that’s right THANG). he generally (and by generally i really mean always, can’t stand it, has no patience for it) hates clutter and if that room was not the ultimate, extreme definition of clutter, i don’t know what is… but he just soldiered on each day, for weeks, and let me work. i’m pretty sure he knew i would have lost my mind if he said something, but that, my friends, is support.

i gotta tell you, i had a lot going on before that big guy was comin’ down my chimney… i had:

• eight 12×12 scrapbook calendars to make (only 3 of which were the same) so i was designing scrapbook pages for hours!,
• 28 kids to buy for (thank goodness for amazon.com!!) – let me tell you those lightning deals on amazon saved my “you know what”,
• one 12×12 album to scan and copy to create two smaller 8×8 albums (seriously can santa bring me a 12×12 scanner next year?? scanning a page 4 times is so not fun!! can you say 26 x 4? and honestly my husband did all the scanning, what a guy!),
  
  
• two desk calendars (thankfully there’s snapfish where i went to create online) and
• two poster collage calendars (again i love snapfish!)
• christmas cards (last minute decision… snap! fish!) and
• i helped my daughter make eight custom designed tshirts (what was i thinking…. i was thinking in October… that she needed to start, which is what i told her… told her in November… told her December 1… 2… 3… you get what i’m sayin’… her beautiful brother helped me in the middle of the night to get these and the calendars done)
• in addition to her one 12×12 scrapbook calendar… (again, why do i encourage the start of all these projects? i love the feeling of frustration and stress all at the same time… it’s such a yummy feeling! and honestly (again) i didn’t really do anything but encourage/motivate/yell/yell/yell at her to get it done) but… her creations were awesome! i have to say it again… totally awesome!!!
  
  

and all this in the span of the three weeks before santa arrives… 80% of it the 5 days prior to… oh yeah, totally forgot…i also had:

• the cookies to bake, which the kids did (thank goodness for auntie cheryl who faithfully comes every year to lead the troops while i quality check the end result)
• the tree to decorate, which i did in the middle of the night one night after i just couldn’t take it anymore (the tree had been put up and the lights were on it, what was my excuse? don’t get me started… but i had to put my mom’s handmade ornaments on it.)
• i scrapbooked an album as a birthday gift for a family member (i was really happy to have done this, this one made me feel really good)
• i worked a little bit up until christmas eve, which i had meant to take off completely… because i was needed to do some things. it took more time than expected, but it was worth it.

moving on… i’m getting ready for 2010!!

now that christmas is over it’s that time of the year where everyone starts to make resolutions for the coming year and reviews the goals they did or did not achieve for the prior year. we do this as a family in my house. we set aside a day and scrapbook a page and each list our “10 most memorable moments” and “10 goals for the year” some of the goals are the same for each year, some are different – it’s not a time to be judged. my son is very good about listing smart achievable goals, he knows how to create achievable goals. i am going to learn from him this time. what a novel idea… an achievable goal! this is such a great skill he has at such a young age… he is very wise for a 17-year old. tomorrow is the day we will work on our lists and scrapbook together as a family. i hope for a drama-free day… i plan to just work at my desk with the family with tani by my side and get into my groove with positivity and God on my side… because that is how i plan to start 2010!

this will be a year of change for my family…

• my son will graduate from high school. we will find out what his next path in life will be in the spring, i am going to be brave about this, but i already miss him. my best friend’s son is leaving for the air force in february… i miss him already even though i never see him as they live a state away. he was the first baby between the two of us bff’s so i feel as though he is leaving me too.
• the company i have worked my entire adult life for, the last 24 years will be acquired by another company come the end of January. this will be a change like no other for me…
• i start my chronic pain program in january, this is supposed to change everything for me as far as my pain. the pain team says they have seen people leave this program, literally, with renewed lives. i’m excited to see how i am doing as i progress through the program.
  
  

i am thinking about my goals for the coming year, i know all of you are as well. i am wishing all of you less pain in 2010 than you had in 2009 and continued sharing and support. we hold each other up in the good times and the bad and together we will continue to make each other stronger.

thank you so much for making me a stronger and better person despite having fibromyalgia, this community of fibromites/ chronic pain people seriously ROCK! nothing can hold us down!

thank you for reading and stay cool!

[Via http://myfoggybrain.wordpress.com]

This Time

Today, I will keep stress at bay.  I will focus on my health and well-being even though I  woke up to being so stiff and tired and my only thought is staying warm and having my cup of coffee that I know should be caffeine free.  I am happy that perfection is not what I’m going to strive for.  Browsed some very good blogs on Fibromyalgia and exercise.  I have signed up at another exercise establishment and I’m already wanting to quit.  Of course, I recognize I really started out fast and now I’m paying for it which leads to extra soreness and stiffness which leads to numbness and tingling which leads to anger which leads to depression.  Yea, I’ve seen this cycle before.  This time I will temper my desire to exercise like a prize-fighter with some compassion for my body.  I can strive for every other day instead of everyday.

[Via http://ranjk.wordpress.com]

holidays and fancy ladies

I’m on holidays – woot!

I can’t believe how much better I feel just having -less stuff- to do each day/week/minute. We had such a fun day yesterday and last night I went to bed smiling! Not moaning or crying or stressing or worrying. I felt happy! Okay, so today I am fighting off yet another virus but at least without work or study or the girls school stuff, I can just look after myself and eat well and get better quicker – this is the plan:)

Yesterday we played fancy ladies. For me, this mostly meant painting my nails and even that turned out not to be as much fun as I had imagined. I was onto the second coat of Revlons creme brulee while watching the Paris news on SBS when it all went horribly wrong. We were speaking French, well parroting it I guess. We were probably saying ‘ten dead in horror pile-up in Toulouse today’ or something, but it was all about the accent and sounding fancy. I touched something then bumped something then grabbed something and just like that my nails were ruined! Had to clean the whole sodding lot off and settle for a bit of clear topcoat, more my style anyway:) Titch had purple sparkle polish -very fancy! And Lil had purple sparkle too but apparently she is too old to play fancy so she was a ‘funky lady’. Titch went all out with her outfit - Purple and green summer dress with a pale green shrug, pink sparkle shoes with diamontes, a wide fuchsia ribbon which doubled as a sash/neckscarf throughout the day, and my big black and white striped beach hat with an enormous emu feather poking out the side!!!

And when it came to dining out at lunch time? Fancy and Funky wanted meat pies and sausage rolls. Not quite what I had in mind for a girls day out but I bit my tongue, drank my thickshake and tried to avoid eye damage from the ever bobbing emu feather. The ladies got some new summer clothes and shoes before returning home to eat watermelon and play lego all afternoon. Bliss:)

Today we went to the library and stocked up on books and dvd’s to stay home and flomp about with. I have done the entire washing-folding-putting away x4  fiasco and even managed to keep the kitchen clean, make a proper lunch and home-made ice blocks for the girls. I am exhausted! but determined to get through the day without napping. The insomnia is still with me and I hope to beat it (with a stick if necessary) these holidays.

Eat well, Sleep well, Stress less, is the goal.

Au revoir m:)

[Via http://littleweirdy.wordpress.com]

A Very Promising Supplement for Fibromyalgia, D Ribose

Research shows Ribose supplementation is a beneficial addition to a comprehensive treatment program for fibromyalgia.1,2,3,4  Ribose is necessary for the production of ATP.  ATP is a chemical produced by you body that is responsible for the energy produced by your cells.  Ribose has been shown to decrease symptoms associated with fibromyalgia.

1. Gebhart B, Jorgenson JA. 2004. Benefit of ribose in a patient with fibromyalgia. Pharmacotherapy. Nov;24(11):1646-8.
2. Park, J.H., P. Phothiamat, C.T. Oates, M. Hernanz-Schulman, and N. J. Olsen. 1998. Use of P-31 magnetic resonance spectroscopy to detect metabolic abnormalities in muscles of patients with fibromyalgia. Arth Rheum 41(3):406-413.
3. Bengtsson A., K. G. Henriksson, and J. Larson. 1986. Reduced high-energy phosphate levels in the painful muscles of patients with primary fibromyalgia. Arthritis Rheum. 29:817-821.
4. Teitelbaum JE, Johnson C, St Cyr J. 2006. The use of D-ribose in chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia: a pilot study. J Altern Complement Med. Nov;12(9):857-62.

[Via http://drbradshook.com]

Your Muscles, a Common Cause of Pain and Confusion in Fibromyalgia

The most common misconception about fibromyalgia is that it is a myofascial  (muscle pain) problem.  The research shows us that fibromyalgia is a problem with the way your brain processes pain signals.1,2,3  How the brain becomes dysfunctional in its ability to normally process pain, is a topic for another post, but I’ll tell you in one word, stress.  To make improvements with fibromyalgia, you have to fix the problem with the abnormal processing pain signals in the brain, not just treat the muscle pain.  With that said, muscle pain is often concomitant with fibromyalgia, and should also be addressed.  Before we jump into discussing muscles, fascia, and connective tissue pain, let’s cover some foundational basics so we are on the same page when talking about this topic.

Fascia is a connective tissue just below the skin, which wraps organs, muscles, bones and nervea covering your entire body like a swimsuit below your skin.  Muscles connect to bones via tendons.  Your skeleton is able to move through the shortening and lengthening of your muscles, which are controlled by your nervous system.  Fascia, tendons and ligaments hold the skeleton together and give it support even when the muscles are relaxed.  Fascia, is also very complex in its structure and function, and is involved in the transfer of energy and loads through the entire musculoskeletal system.4  Now, all of these tissues can be injured, and will scar.  Many times, you will hear scarring of these tissues referred to as adhesions.  An adhesion of fascia, refers to a scar that causes two adjacent layers to stick together because of tissue damage.  The tissue will “adhere” to adjacent layers as it heals because of the chemical and “inflammatory soup” that makes the tissue layers sticky.  When these tissues scar and adhere to one another, they can become a source of movement dysfunction and pain.5  Adhesions and trigger points, can cause decreased range of motion and require increased energy expenditure of up to 300 percent, as compared to someone without these problems.5  Does it make sense that if you have increased energy requirements just to move your body, that you may fatigue much faster than someone without these problems?  To better understand what scarring in these tissues is like, picture gristle in a piece of meat.  The healed scar tissue or adhesion, is different from the original tissue, and as a result, muscle, ligament, and fascia movement can be impaired, cause pain, and easily become reinjured.

The reason fibromyalgia is commonly thought of as a muscle problem by many practitioners, is because in most cases, patients come in complaining of muscle pain.   Fibromyalgia diagnosis is also based on having at least 11 of 18 tender points at specific locations on the body.  I personally think that your symptoms and history are more important in the diagnosis of fibromyalgia than testing the tender points.  Unless the your muscles were injured at some point, or have been under high levels of mechanical stress, like from performing repetitive tasks at work, poor ergonomics when standing or sitting, lifting with poor form, or from poor posture, then your muscles should not hurt.  There are some exceptions for muscle pain, like lactic acid build up, but in large part, your muscles shouldn’t hurt on a regular basis.  With fibromyalgia patients, the fact is that the normal sensory information being sent from the nerves throughout your body to your brain, are being interpreted in an abnormal way.  This loss of normal interpretation of pain signals means that fibromyalgia patients often feel full body pain, or pain that moves around to different areas.  Most doctors don’t know that this is the problem, and they only focus on treating (muscle pain) with medications, and fail to address what is usually the major problem, abnormal pain processing in the brain.  Currently, there are no medications to treat the brain for abnormal pain processing.  Our treatment, using Brain Based Therapy (BBT) targets areas of the brain that have a decreased impulse or rate of firing.  BBT works on strengthening neural networks and increasing firing of the brain’s weak areas.  The treatments work because of neural plasticity, and the brain’s ability to “rewire” and strengthen weak neural networks. This type of treatment has been successful clinically, in the treatment of fibromyalgia and many chronic pain conditions.  These therapies were pioneered by the country’s leading chiropractic neurologist, Frederick Robert Carrick, DC, PhD, DACAN, DABCN, DACNB, DAAPM, FRCPN, FACCN, FAAFN, FEAC (Neurology), FACFN, FABVR, FABES, FABCDD, FICC.

1 Burgmer M, Pogatzki-Zahn E, Gaubitz M, Stüber C, Wessoleck E, Heuft G, Pfleiderer B. “Fibromyalgia unique temporal brain activation during experimental pain: a controlled fMRI Study.” J Neural Transm. (2009) Jan;2(1):26-40.

2 McCabe CS, Cohen H, Hall J, Lewis J, Rodham K, Harris N. “Somatosensory conflicts in complex regional pain syndrome type 1 and fibromyalgia syndrome.” Curr Rheumatol Rep. (2009) Dec;11(6):461-5.

3. Chervin RD, Teodorescu M, Kushwaha R, Deline AM, Brucksch CB, Ribbens-Grimm C, Ruzicka DL, Stein PK, Clauw DJ, Crofford LJ. 2009. Objective measures of disordered sleep in fibromyalgia. J Rheumatol. Sep;36(9):2009-16.

4. Vleeming A, Pool-Goudzwaard AL, Stoeckart R, van Wingerden JP, Snijders CJ. (1995) The posterior layer of the thoracolumbar fascia. Its function in load transfer from spine to legs. Spine. Apr 1;20(7):753-8.

5.Greenman, P.E. 1996. Principles of Manual Medicine. Second Edition. Baltimore: Williams & Wilkins.

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