2/2/18
Collected here and there, from Facebook, from my own head….
“The challenge with chronic head pain is that it is invisible. If you tell people you really hurt, then you are complaining. We are disbelieved simply because we are women, and dismissed as having a ‘women’s disease.’ If we don’t tell people about our pain, then we are responsible for them not understanding we have a debilitating condition.”
–by Lisa Jacobson (3/16/16)
Quote of the Day:
“Chronic pain sufferers need some relief. We’re not doing it to get high. We’re taking medication so we can actually get out of bed, brush our teeth, and get dressed for the day. Many of us can’t even do those things daily. Taking prescribed pain medication (not abusing it) is a much better alternative to severe depression and contemplating suicide, which is a very real and sad truth. Chronic pain patients deserve to have some quality of life.” —Anonymous
Life is too short for unnecessary drama. Which most of it is!
Doctors say he/she will never get better. A nap won’t help, and they are not lazy. They are on meds because they struggle with pain, fatigue, and many other symptoms. They have something going on inside their body that they cannot just “think positively and it will go away.” If that were the case, they would be free of these heavy burdens that they are plagued with every single day. It’s not the same as your cold or body aches or latest bug going around. The most frustrating part is people look at him/her and say “but you look great,” or “no one would ever know you’re sick,” while their body is attacking itself on the inside. They are as sorry as you when they miss events and hopes one day more people will understand their daily struggles so they do not feel so isolated. This disease affects them physically, mentally, and emotionally. They need our support, not our judgment. Please ask him/her how to educate yourself and others more about chronic health issues. Knowledge is power, and you never know when you, yourself, may need these superpowers. Please do this, in honor of someone who is fighting Cushings Disease, Autoimmune Hepatitis, Lyme Disease, Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome, Autonomic Dysfunction, Hypothyroidism, Cancer, Arthritis, Neuropathy, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Lupus, MS, Diabetes, Fibromyalgia, Mitochondrial Disease, Degenerative Disk Disease, Depression, PTSD, and any other invisible chronic illness/condition/disease. This is the kindest type of support you can show a family member, friend, acquaintance, or even someone you have heard a friend speak about! [Unlike the post I copied this from, I am NOT asking you to copy and paste it on your own Timeline. All I ask is for your understanding and compassion for those you know who are suffering. Their pain is real!]
Quote of the Day:
“It may feel like you’re not working, but trust me, you are. Having a chronic illness is a full-time job.” —Unknown but true
Quote of the Day:
“It’s not that we take too many OTCs… it’s that we are in pain—and nothing is helping us.” —Susan Jillian-Smith
Quote of the Day (from an anonymous fellow pain sufferer). Not my words but very well expresses how it is for us!
“Pain day 2. I need to eat food to take pills, but I need to take pills to get to the store to buy food. I need clothes for the week and I can neither sort nor lift nor the endless bend, unbend. And sure, I ask! My pals aren’t shy at [empathy]. I don’t fault them for not dropping everything to come help me find my sweater—I mean… it’s just. I don’t think people really understand what ‘If you need anything just ask’ means. They mean well, I guess. Yet anytime I try to take someone up on it, I wind up feeling like I’ve asked too much and that I’m not worth helping. I know better but feels, ya dig?
“All I want is some yogurt so I can hawk down this handful of pills, so I can start my day writing lists of things I can’t get done.”
There’s a very fine line between self-pity and self-care.
Quote of the Day:
“I don’t want to live like this forever…. I’m so envious of those who don’t live with chronic pain.” —Unnamed
One goal I want to accomplish in my lifetime is… to become pain-free before I die. For a LONG time!
The best day of the year is… the day I wake up pain-free.
Both when I’m trying to go to sleep and when I first wake up but don’t get out of bed right away. Once out of bed, I have to look at the clock and calendar on my computer or phone to verify what day it is!
If you had to choose between chronic depression and chronic pain, which would it be? And why?
If I were to stop eating everything that someone somewhere said is “bad” I’d have nothing to eat except lettuce. And now e.coli!
Heated neck wrap (given to me by my daughter). For a brief moment of slightly less pain. Or maybe just distraction. But I’m using it every night.
Quote of the Day:
“Wishing everyone a migraine-free Thanksgiving; and if not, I wish you meds, quiet, and a dark room.” —Anonymous
