Tag Archives: psoriasis

Keeping My Chronic Illnesses Happy While Fighting an Infection

Chronic Life, Health issues March 26, 2019 Leave a comment

Keeping my chronic illnesses happy while fighting an infection

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Keeping My Chronic Illnesses Happy While Fighting an Infection

If you are like me, every illness and injury that you experience comes with a side dish of unwanted flares from your chronic illnesses.  That has been my story for as long as I can remember… Until now….

For the first time in my entire chronic life, I have been able to keep my chronic illnesses from completely freaking out while I am recovering from an infection that is unrelated to fibromyalgia, psoriatic arthritis, psoriasis, degenerative disc disease, and abdominal adhesions.

How can this be?

In today’s very short post I am sharing how I am doing it…..

*Disclosure: This post includes affiliate links. Meaning that at no additional cost to you, I receive a commission when you make a purchase through my links. The proceeds earned fund the giveaways I host in my Facebook groups.

Listen and obey

If I have learned anything about my body and living with multiple chronic illnesses, it is that I have to listen to my body’s demands.

If it wants to sleep, I sleep.  To help me sleep comfortably, not just for the moment, but to wake up with less pain I use a foam wedge, neck, full body, and knee pillow.  When using the full body pillow, I use the knee pillow for my ankles.  I literally hurts to have any part of my legs or feet to touch each other when I sleep, especially when I am running a fever.

Lying in bed for extended periods of time increases pain in my sacrum and spine.  To avoid any unnecessary pain, I run PEMF treatments on those areas with my Oska Pulse.

When fighting an illness outside of my chronic ones, I throw my regular schedule out the window.  I do not force myself to do more than I can handle, before I am ready to do it.

Stay ahead of the game

Besides allowing my body the rest and sleep that it requires, I make sure to address pain issues before they become a problem.

Dehydration only makes the situation worse, so I force myself to drink plenty of water.

To help keep my muscles relaxed I use Good Night Lotion on my legs and feet.  I alternate between  BioCBD+ topical oil and Earthley’s Arnica Salve to relieve pain from my temples down to my toes.

When I have the energy, I take a bath with hemp bath bombs for extra comfort.

To stay ahead of nausea, I vape my favorite cannabis strains with my new dry herb vaporizer (review coming soon).

The most important thing I do is to not stress out about the time my body needs to heal.  Stress is a huge trigger for most of my chronic illnesses.  By remaining calm and accepting that my life isn’t going to fall apart in the days my body needs to heal, I prevent further complications from the symptoms that stress triggers.

I may not have gotten ahead on the projects that I had hoped to over the past few days, but I have caught up on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, General Hospital, and Coronation Street.  I watch them all on HULU where I never have to worry about setting a DVR and am able to watch my favorite shows without commercials.  Click here if you want to try HULU for FREE for two weeks.

With each passing day I can feel myself getting better and stronger…

In the meantime, how do you keep your chronic illnesses calm while healing from an infection or injury?

 

 

 

The Disabled Diva’s Weekly Recap March 11-15, 2019

Chronic Life, diet, fibromyalgia, Health issues, Home Life, psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, Weekly Recaps March 15, 2019 Leave a comment

The Disabled Diva's Weekly Recap March 11-15 Pictured, sunglasses on green grass next to a dandelion.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Weekly Recap March 11-15, 2019

Chronic Life: Does the waiting ever end?

How Charlie’s Angels Prepared Me to Live with a Chronic Illness

The Disabled Diva’s Top Ten Travel Tips

Spring Clean Your Chronic Life: Disinfect Your Diet

Are your spring break vacation expectations realistic?

Spring Clean: Spruce up your view!

*Disclosure: This post includes affiliate links. Meaning that at no additional cost to you, I receive a commission when you make a purchase through my links. The proceeds earned fund the giveaways I host in my Facebook groups.

Ending soon!

If you have psoriatic arthritis or psoriasis, or you are or may become a caregiver to someone who does, would you please spare five minutes of your time to take WEGOHealth’s survey that will benefit the psoriatic disease community?  Participants will be entered into a drawing to win one of two $50 Amazon gift cards!  Click here to take the survey.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chronic Life: Does the waiting ever end?

adhesions, Chronic Life, fibromyalgia, Health issues, lifestyle, motivation, psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis March 13, 2019 Leave a comment

 

chronic life does the waiting ever end

 

 

 

 

 

 

#CHRONICLIFE

Does the waiting ever end?

Living with one or multiple chronic illnesses involves a LOT of waiting.  We wait for doctor appointments, test results, pain relief, cures, diagnoses, people to understand, and so much more….  But does it ever end?  There is no simple answer for this question.

My chronic illnesses which include but are not limited to, fibromyalgia, psoriatic arthritis, psoriasis, degenerative disc disease, abdominal adhesions (from endometriosis and surgical scarring), and coccydynia, have all forced waiting periods into my life when I would have rather not been sitting around waiting.  The problem with all the waiting that has to be done is that waiting then becomes a way of life.  However, as I discovered after the first 12 years after my first diagnosis, there are some things that we shouldn’t be waiting for, like living.

*Disclosure: This post includes affiliate links. Meaning that at no additional cost to you, I receive a commission when you make a purchase through my links. The proceeds earned fund the giveaways I host in my Facebook groups.

What are you waiting for?

My early chronic years were spent waiting for answers, test results, and most of all pain relief.  Even though I heard my doctor say “There isn’t a cure, but we can treat the symptoms”, I wasn’t able to accept that I would never be 100% pain free.  I kept waiting for that unattainable dream of waking up without pain and being able to do whatever I wanted.

Although I had no choice but to wait for test results, to recover from surgeries, and for treatments to begin to working, my life was meant to be lived.  Waiting to live caused me to miss out on a lot.  I missed out on many opportunities to grow as an individual, to spend with others, to make memories with my family, and so much more.

In my eBook Make Pain Your Bitch: How to Dominate Your Chronic Life, I share how to live a good life despite your chronic illnesses.  My life didn’t change overnight, it took time, patience, and hard work to create a life that I am passionate about.  Nor did I wait until my pain level became manageable, no I began carving out my new life while flat on my ass in one of the darkest periods of my chronic life.

Chronic pain or any new twists or turns that my chronic illnesses want to take will never hold me back again.  Why? Because I won’t let them.  If my body won’t let me do things one way, I will find another.  If I have learned one thing throughout 20 years of living with my chronic illnesses it is that life should never be put on hold, no matter what I am waiting for.

Waiting room meditations. Buy book

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why are you waiting?

I vividly remember the day in 2013 when I realized that I had been waiting to live.  That I had done nothing with my life since my symptoms began disrupting it.  That, when you think about it, I had lost over a decade of my life.  The heartbreaking part was that I was also raising children who were watching me wait.  Existing was the last thing I wanted my kids to do.

When I realized that I had been waiting to live, I had to ask myself why I did it.  The answer came easily, I was waiting to be healed, even though I knew that would never happen.  Why did I wait so long for something I knew would never occur?  Because, being healed would make what I wanted to do so much easier…….  Friends, that hit me like a ton of bricks….. I wanted life to be easy.

Life isn’t easy for anyone, even those who aren’t chronically ill have their challenges.  Reaching my goals would never be easy or pain free, but instead they would require a lot of hard work and sacrifice.

Take a chance, don’t let the unknown diagnosis or unexpected flare stop you from creating a life that is filled with passion and purpose.

Girl, Stop Apologizing: A Shame-Free Plan for Embracing and Achieving Your Goals

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What can be done while waiting?

I will be the first to confess that it is extremely difficult to think about the future while waiting on a medical test result or diagnosis.  If you are like me, your mind goes to all the worst case scenarios and not one of them includes a future you can bare to think about.  But we can’t allow the unknown to control our destiny.

Instead of continuing to allow my life to abruptly come to a halt, I began looking at alternative ways to make my dreams come true.  If a particular diagnosis is going to dictate that I can’t do something the way I have, I begin looking for other ways to continue what I am doing.  For example, working from bed doesn’t mean that I am working less than if I traveled to an office every day.  Nor does using a mobility aid make spending the day at Disneyland any less special than when I am on foot.

Currently, I am experiencing a flare up from abdominal adhesions.  Thankfully, my pain management plan is keeping pain from my other chronic illnesses under control, because combined my pain level would be off the charts.  However, the abdominal pain I am experiencing is forcing me to do things a little differently.  Here is how I continue to live while waiting for relief…..

  • I accept assistance
  • Allow for a flexible schedule
  • Use mobility aids
  • Cancel or turn down anything that will derail me from what most needs my attention and energy
  • Practice patience with myself and body
  • Listen to my body and give it what it demands
  • Breathe: I allow myself to enjoy small moments and to be okay with living differently than my friends and family.
  • I forgive myself for not being the perfect, pain free, super woman I wish I were.

What are you currently waiting for? Why and what can you do in the meantime?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chronic life Does the waiting ever end

How Charlie’s Angels Prepared Me to Live with a Chronic Illness

adhesions, Chronic Life, fibromyalgia, Health issues, lifestyle, mental-health, motivation, pain relief, psoriatic arthritis March 11, 2019 Leave a comment

Pictured Charlie's Angels. Title: How charlie's angels prepared me to live with a chronic illness

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How Charlie’s Angels Prepared Me to Live with a Chronic Illness

I may have been born in the late 60’s, but I am a child of the 70’s!

One of my favorite television shows of the seventies was Charlie’s Angels.  Not only did I never miss an episode, the following day I would make my friends act them out with me! For those of you who are not familiar with this show, Charlie had a private detective agency and he hired three sexy women that he called angels.  The original angels were Farrah Fawcett as Jill Munroe, Kate Jackson as Sabrina Duncan, and Jaclyn Smith as Kelly Garrett.  They were badass women kicking butt and uncovering mysteries.

I wanted to be an Angel, Jill in particular because, well, hello that hair!!!!!

Little did I know that a show about beautiful, strong, and intelligent women would also give me the “know how” I would need to surviving life with not just one, but multiple chronic illnesses!

*Disclosure: This post includes affiliate links. Meaning that at no additional cost to you, I receive a commission when you make a purchase through my links. The proceeds earned fund the giveaways I host in my Facebook groups.

Look for clues

When I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia, psoriatic arthritis, psoriasis, degenerative disc disease, coccydynia, and endometriosis, I had no clue that each chronic illness would lead to a life of searching….

Searching for what you ask? What not would be easier to answer, but whether you have one chronic illness or a slew of them, the life of the chronically ill is spent searching for ways to relieve pain, new symptoms, reoccurrence of old symptoms, side-effects, and treatments. The chronically ill spend a lot of time investigating their bodies, the fluids that come out of them, their mental status, abilities and disabilities.

Thankfully Charlie’s Angels taught me to never give up and that there is always an explanation.  My doctors may have given up, but I will never give up searching for the source of my chronic illnesses.

Trust my instincts

Like any good detective, I have learned to trust my instincts.  I received my first chronic illness diagnosis in 2001 and since then I have had countless tests come back and show nothing wrong when I went in with a complaint of pain.  Thanks to my Angel training I knew not to accept that answer and kept pushing the issue and presenting new clues to my doctors.  In several cases, tests showed absolutely nothing wrong with me, but surgeries revealed the truth.  The findings of each surgery proved and validated my complaints by being something that no test could have ever revealed.

Trusting my instincts has saved my life countless times and will until I am no longer able to speak for myself.  I can never stress enough how important it is to be your own advocate!

Know when to fight

Like a well trained private eye, I know how to protect myself.  While I may not be punching or handcuffing my enemies, I have to fight to receive the care I deserve and need.  I have learned when fighting a doctor about a diagnosis or test is worth my time or not.  Sometimes my energy is better spent finding a new physician.

I have also learned to listen to my body.  It will let me know if the situation is urgent or if it can wait a little longer.  This instinct also helps me get through life.  I have learned what levels of pain and exhaustion can be pushed through and what cannot.

Teamwork works

Living alone, void of any assistance from others when you have a chronic illness is possible, but it’s not realistic.  Whether you are married or not, it is best to have a team.

First you need a medical team that is working together and not against each other.  They and you, need to be on the same page about treatment of the disease and pain.

Then you need your personal team.  You need someone that you can confide in, because trust me there are going to be days when you just need to vent your fears without terrifying your spouse/partner.  My husband is a fantastic team member that I don’t ever want to be without.  He has witnessed the horrific treatment from surgeons and has been there for me at the absolute worst moments of my illnesses.  Other teammates that are beneficial are folks to help with transportation, provide an occasional meal, or to tidy up your home when you are at your worst.   No matter what, you need someone in your life to make you laugh, because without laughter we are only left with sorrow.

Be sure to train one or more of your team to be your patient advocate.  You may not always be alert enough to express your requests or needs.  Having someone who can speak for you when you are unable is invaluable!!!

Thanks to the skills I learned from Charlie’s Angels, I continue to fight pain, solve symptom mysteries, and refuse to give up!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Disabled Diva’s Blog Weekend Recap March 4, 2019

Chronic Life, eczema, exercise, fibromyalgia, Health issues, lifestyle, mental-health, pain relief, Product Picks, psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, Weekly Recaps March 8, 2019 Leave a comment

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Disabled Diva’s Blog Weekend Recap!

March 4-8, 2019

Tears: I hold them back, until pain pushes them out

Spring Clean Your Chronic Life

Mobility Aids: Everybody uses them

What I have learned from using PEMF daily for two years!

*Disclosure: This post includes affiliate links. Meaning that at no additional cost to you, I receive a commission when you make a purchase through my links. The proceeds earned fund the giveaways I host in my Facebook groups.

Hey psoriatic arthritis buddies or caregivers!!!

Could you please spare a few minutes to take a survey that will help create beneficial programs for the psoriatic disease community?
Click here to take survey
Thank you!

 

 

 

Spring Clean: Spruce up your view!

Chronic Life, mental-health March 6, 2019 Leave a comment

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What does spring cleaning mean to you?

For some it may be a time to put away their winter gear and start pulling out their outdoor stuff.  Others may think of it as a time to go through the house and garage gathering items no longer needed or used and then donating them to charity.  Of course there is the traditional thought of spring cleaning which is to give your home a full no inch, nook, or cranny missed cleaning.

Today I am going to present you with a spring cleaning idea that you may not have thought of…….

Sprucing up your view!

Here are three views that you should consider sprucing up this spring!

*Disclosure: This post includes affiliate links. Meaning that at no additional cost to you, I receive a commission when you make a purchase through my links. The proceeds earned fund the giveaways I host in my Facebook groups.

Outdoors

What do you see when you look out the window near where you spend most of your time?  If you see trash, abandoned or inoperable vehicles, or anything that doesn’t make you feel good to look at, it is time for a change.  Moving is one option, but not always the best, easiest, or affordable.

So what can you do to change your view?  Hang curtains with a print that brings you joy, but don’t cover the entire window.  Instead of hanging the rod at the top of the window, hang it halfway.  That way you will still get the natural light your body and mind both need, without having to look out on a scene that makes you cringe.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another option is to rearrange your furniture so that it gives you another angle to look out that window.  By moving my bed from one wall to another in a former home, I swapped my view of a traffic light for one of a beautiful tree filled with flowers in the spring.

Indoors

If your chronic pain from chronic illnesses such as fibromyalgia, psoriatic arthritis, lupus, or MS is high, you probably spend most of your time in you bedroom or in the living area.  I know that is where my time is spent when my pain is not being managed well or when I am recovering from an injury.

Look around the room/area that you spend the most of your time in.  Does it make you feel anxious, agitated, angry, or annoyed?  It shouldn’t.  The place you spend the majority of your time in should be a place that makes you happy, that calms you, that provides comfort and peace.  If that doesn’t sound like the area that you spend the most of you time in, it is time for a change!

First, clean it up!  Avoid having piles of items that need to be put away.  If you really can’t keep up with putting things away, use pretty baskets to collect and store the items in until you can.

Second, make it comfortable! Do you have somewhere comfortable to sit?  Could you use some new bedding? If the area is dull and dreary looking, brighten it up with vibrant colors and prints.

Last but not least, give yourself something to look at! Whether it be a piece of artwork or real/artificial flowers, find something to have on your walls or shelves that brings you joy.

Mental

Now time for the view we would rather not think about….. our view on living with our chronic illness(es).  How do you view your life?  Do you think it sucks, is miserable, or not worth living?  It is time to get some help.  I am not saying that you have to be positive all the time, I am not.  But, the difference between having a bad moment and life is that with a bad life you can’t find things to be thankful for, to like, or enjoy.  The thing is, life with a painful chronic illness can include joy.

I have said this before and I will say it again, there is no shame in seeing a therapist!!! Too many people think they can handle everything on their own, but they are wrong.  Therapy has been an important part of my dealing with past abuse and my chronic illnesses.  If your insurance provider doesn’t provide adequate mental health coverage, is expensive, or you just don’t have the physical strength to go out to see a therapist, I highly recommend Online-Therapy.com. Their therapist provide the therapy you need when and where you need it most.

Other tips to help clean up how you view your life includes, but is not limited to, the following:

  • End each day listing what you WERE able to do
  • Create realistic plans, not plans that require you to be 100%
  • Be gracious to your body for what it can do
  • If you must focus on what you can’t do, do it only to find a new way to perform that task or activity.  Find an alternative solution.
  • Practice showing yourself compassion

Therapy when you need it, where you want it…. ****** Save 20% when you click here to enroll.

 

 

 

 

Which of your views needs sprucing up?

 

Tears: I hold them back, until pain pushes them out

Chronic Life, Health issues March 4, 2019 Comments: 2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tears: I hold them back, until pain pushes them out

If you see me crying, know that you are witnessing pain that I hope you never have to feel.

Whether it is one single tear rolling down my cheek or many pouring out of my eyes, they still represent the kind of pain you secretly wish upon the most wickedest of people.

Types of tears

Mourning

Living with chronic pain from illnesses such as fibromyalgia, psoriatic arthritis, endometriosis, abdominal adhesions, degenerative disc disease, and coccydynia forced me to change my life. Like most other chronically ill people, I had to say good-bye to my old life. We literally bury our old lives. We don’t move on, instead we start anew, which is terrifying in a body that is riddled with diseases we know nothing about.

*Disclosure: This post includes affiliate links. Meaning that at no additional cost to you, I receive a commission when you make a purchase through my links. The proceeds earned fund the giveaways I host in my Facebook groups.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fear

It doesn’t matter what type of disease a person has, it could be an autoimmune, neurological, or parasitic disease and each person will fear what the future holds for them.  How long until they can’t walk?  How fast will their disease progress?  What if a cure is never found? Will I ever find pain relief?  How can I afford to live?  Who will take care of me?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Frustration

With every chronic illness comes frustration.  We are frustrated by many things such as but not limited to: not being able to do what we could before becoming sick, having our friends, family, and even doctors doubt our pain and illness, over the cost of care and medications that rarely help, from trying to be stronger than you are……

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Physical pain

Even with the best pain management plan, chronic pain is always there.  Even when I managed to bring my daily pain level down to 0-3, I was devastated by the pain I experienced from my car accident last year and later the fall I took while on my morning walk.  When I fell, the pain pushed the tears out of my eyes.  I had no idea I was even crying until my daughter noticed.  People who have lived in pain as long as I have don’t cry for no reason. Nor do we cry over minor pain.  So if someone who has lived with pain for 20 years starts crying because of a pain, it is serious.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Because I live with multiple chronic illnesses, I was shocked to be able to reduce the pain from all of them for as long as I did.  Unfortunately, the damage that I have sustained in my abdomen (problems with endometriosis and adhesions began in 2003) are continually presenting themselves and the worst part is there is nothing I can do to stop it.  Whenever I think I have calmed the storm that is taking place inside my belly, it comes back and laughs in my face. I am trying to be strong, I am trying to not allow it to disrupt my life, I am trying to hide from my family just how bad it is, but I am failing…… the tears that I keep whisking away give it all away……..

I am not going to tell you to hold back your tears.  Nor am I going to tell you to spend the rest of your life crying.  What I am going to tell you is this:  Trust your instincts! Fight for your body! Don’t give up and try everything.  Thankfully I do have a great pain management plan that is keeping all my other chronic illnesses happy at the moment. I honestly do not believe that I could go on if they were all flaring at the moment.  Find what works for you, even if it means doing what I did which was trying things that aren’t considered the norm in our healthcare system.

Never be ashamed of your tears.  They talk when your mouth can’t bring forth the words you need to say.

 

Therapy when you need it, where you want it…. ****** Save 20% when you click here to enroll.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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