The aches, the pains, the fatigue, the stress – fibromyalgia tries hard to demand all of your attention and consume your life. With these tips from Horizon Rehab, you can structure fibromyalgia around your life, and not the other way around.
- Keep a pain diary. Whether you’ve just been diagnosed or you’ve managed Fibromyalgia for years, writing down a record of different pain and its triggers can help you spot trends to avoid in the future and brainstorm solutions in the short term. Journaling can also be a cathartic way of releasing accompanying emotions.
- Boost Activity. It may seem counterintuitive to move when your body is aching, but light exercise helps prevent muscular atrophy, as well as promote a flood of feel-good serotonin throughout your body. Simply add movement to your daily routine – park farther away in the parking lot, walk your dog an extra lap, and channel energy into household chores like vacuuming and mopping.
- Join a support group. Sharing fears, frustrations, and moments of celebration with others experiencing similar situations can help you feel grounded, and support groups allow you to learn about others’ coping strategies, medications, and knowledge of the subject.
- Eat purposefully. The right fuel in your body can help compensate for pain and weakness related to the disease. Foods rich in protein and potassium help muscles grow and function efficiently, and limiting intake of processed or fried foods and refined sugars will help prevent energy crashes and grogginess.
- Make modifications at work. Continuing at your job after your diagnosis not only helps keep your mind distracted from chronic pain, it also allows you maintain independence and confidence in your abilities. Talk with your employer about changes that will help you be most productive, like undertaking a flexible schedule that lets you come in later or taking a nap over the lunch hour to regain energy.
- Take time to focus on your holistic health. Focusing on your physical needs so frequently often means you forget to feed your mental, emotional, and spiritual needs as well. Set aside time each week to do something that makes you feel more like you, and give yourself permission to relax and enjoy them. Is it spending time searching for and preparing a new recipe? Have you always wanted to try a new instrument? Find your niche and feed it.
It’s a bumpy road, but the trained physicians at Horizon Rehab are here to walk with you and your fibromyalgia every step of the way. Give us a call to set up an appointment to discuss further adaptations for a happier, healthier you.