Author: Cynthia, My Inspired Fibro Life

Wife. Mom. Fibrowarrior. Joy seeker. Picture taker. Coffee drinker. Blogging about living with fibromyalgia and finding inspiration in every day life. Welcome to My Inspired Fibro Life.

A Good Laugh and a Long Sleep

There’s an Irish proverb that goes, “A good laugh and a long sleep are the best cures in the doctor’s book.”

It’s no secret that we live in a world of always-on, information overload. I started this post earlier this week while I was out of town for work, as I was caught up in a self-imposed state of sleep deprivation. Easy to do because: 1) I don’t sleep well when not in my own bed and 2) I am not receiving the evil eye from my husband for spending too much time on my phone or tablet. But yet thanks to our ‘smart’ devices, our attention span is now worse than a goldfish. Smart devices making us dumb and taking us away from precious sleep, both directly and indirectly. So what can we do?

Continue reading “A Good Laugh and a Long Sleep”

Fibromyalgia – A Real Pain in the Neck

Ten of the eighteen trigger points common with FMS are concentrated in the neck and shoulders, making neck pain a normal occurrence for fibro-sufferers.

I once spent over a year trying to diagnose some symptoms I was having. Living with fibromyalgia, it is sometimes difficult to differentiate FMS aches and pains from something different. I have never been one to go to the doctor much, and do believe we know our bodies best and we must be diligent in finding what works for ourselves. So when I know something is really wrong, it is up to me to find the right doctor to work with me for a diagnosis.

Continue reading “Fibromyalgia – A Real Pain in the Neck”

I Am No Longer Superwoman

“Done is better than perfect,” according to Sheryl Sandberg in her book Lean In (one of many unread books on my list. More on that another time). It’s a philosophy I have tried to adopt this past year, as I have come to these realizations:

  • I am no longer Superwoman
  • I can’t do everything
  • The things I do manage to do are far from perfect

For a Type A perfectionist, that was a bitter pill to swallow. These realizations come after my years of suffering from Fibromyalgia. I find as I get older it is harder to recover from a “flare” and I really need to make myself a priority if I am going to minimize the number and lengths of flares and remain pain-free.

Continue reading “I Am No Longer Superwoman”

Fibromyalgia Awareness Day

Your Voice Matters

For those of us who live with fibromyalgia, we are painfully aware of it every day. But May 12 has been designated to educate others. The theme this year is “Your Voice Matters” to call attention to the fact that everyone has a say in education, awareness, and making changes to help those who suffer from chronic pain. fibro3

What it Is

As I described in an earlier post, extreme fatigue, sleeping issues, and that “I-just-got-run-over-by-a-Mack-truck” feeling are the most prevalent symptoms for me.  Other common symptoms of fibromyalgia include:
  • Constant dull ache on both sides of the body and above and below the waist
  • Tension headaches
  • Inability to concentrate on tasks
  • Irritable bowel syndrome
  • Depression

Fibromyalgia is the second most ailment affecting the musculoskeletal system after osteoporosis.  Source: http://www.ecarediary.com/Blog2713

Sounds great, huh?  Lucky me, as I have both!  Diagnosed with Fibromyalgia in 2000 and with Osteoporosis in 2015. I know and live with chronic pain, but try my best not to let it get me down or slow me down. And then there are all of the other weird ailments that get lumped in with this condition, for lack of any other explanation. Here’s a list of 100 Symptoms of Fibromyalgia. I have probably had most of them at one point.
fibro2

More Reading

So in the spirit of helping with awareness, here are a few other websites and bloggers I follow that write about life with fibromyalgia:

fibro1

My Voice Matters

Hopefully I have provided *a little* awareness on this “invisible” condition. So the next time I seem a little grumpy or am moving slowly, it’s probably because when I crawled out of bed and kicked fibromyalgia in the butt that morning, it kicked back.

Do you have any good resources for fibromyaglia or coping with chronic pain to share?

Cheers!

Cynthia

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