Finding Joy with Fibromyalgia

Four simple steps to finding joy

Living with chronic condition like Fibromyalgia can be anything but joyful most days of the week. You are in pain, tired, and can be experiencing a myriad of other symptoms at any one time. And you often feel alone.

Then there’s the fact that you usually have to explain to people just what the heck Fibromyalgia Syndrome is and the fact that there is no good understanding of what causes it, thus there’s no cure as of yet. This alone can spin you into a life of social separation and loneliness.


It is widely believed that artist Frida Kahlo also would have been diagnosed with Fibromyalgia, if there had been that diagnosis during her time. Her art depicts chronic pain and her diaries reflect a life filled with physical and emotional pain. Yet, she continued to do what she loved, which was to paint, and toward the end of her life she turned her attention to capturing everyday existence.

“I used to think I was the strangest person in the world but then I thought there are so many people in the world, there must be someone just like me who feels bizarre and flawed in the same ways I do. I would imagine her, and imagine that she must be out there thinking of me, too. Well, I hope that if you are out there and read this and know that, yes, it’s true I’m here, and I’m just as strange as you.”
Frida Kahlo

The Two Fridas, by Frida Kahlo. Image captured at the Dallas Museum of Art, March 17, 2017.
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10 Things to Help You Combat Stress

April is Stress Awareness Month

April is Stress Awareness Month. Is it a coincidence that it coincides with one of the major stressors in American’s lives? (Tax Day) We all face every day stressors such as our commute, our jobs, paying bills, raising kids. But then there are those other things that compound and have longer lasting effects on you. Perhaps you have finals coming up or a work deadline or family troubles or maybe you’re battling a chronic condition or illness. Or perhaps you have a combination of many stressors in your life.

Stress can be positive – it’s what activates your fight or flight mechanism, or helps you to meet a deadline – or negative. It’s the negative stress that has a detrimental impact on your health and can show up in many ways – over/under eating, not sleeping, acne, physical ailments like stomach or heart issues, and flares of chronic conditions like fibromyalgia. Learning to cope with these burdens so that they don’t build up can make a huge difference in your health.

Photo by energepic.com on Pexels.com

It has been linked to a wide range of health issues, including mood, sleep, and appetite problems — and yes, even heart disease.

Wellness Magazine
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Winter Round-Up

Spring is here, but there is still some winter in the air!

Technically it is spring, although with the cold front that arrived in Texas yesterday, it doesn’t feel like it. (We even had a fire last night.) But as it has been lately, I am a day late and a dollar short…. I just chalk it up to my crazy life these days.

In the months since posting my Fall Round-Up, a lot has changed for me. My mother had a stroke and my father entered hospice care, so there’s new stressors and changes going on with my family. I have been making monthly trips to Portland to help care for them. In between trips, I celebrated my 26th wedding anniversary by getting seven epidural steroid injections in my back for three bulging discs. (Ouch!) All the while dealing with family, fibromyalgia, a full-time job, and trying to keep up this blog. I do the best I can and I don’t beat myself up for what I can’t do.

Grace, not perfection. ~ Emily Ley

The holidays are long over and I am looking ahead to warmer days, spring flowers, and sunshine. But there is definitely still some winter in the air! In case you missed something, here is a round-up of my posts for the past few months – some on Fibromyalgia and others to inspire you to live your best life!

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10 Things to Inspire You This Month

10 ways to unplug and recharge

Lately I have had a difficult time writing new blog posts. I am feeling overwhelmed, exhausted, had a flare-up of my fibromyalgia, and am just lacking the creative inspiration and desire to research and write a post. And that’s OK by me.

We all face times of uncertainty in our lives. We all need to take a step back at times and do less. For this month, I am giving you 10 ways to unplug and recharge. And the great thing is this list applies to those with or without a chronic illness, so I hope this gives you some ideas to find time for YOU.

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