celebrate good times come on!

i was given some good advice this week by someone who is instrumental in helping me regain my health as she is helping me with my pacing. i have at last figured out my baseline and have less severe symptoms when i have only short bursts of activity (10-20 min) followed by lots of rest.

i was bemoaning about the fact this seems to work well until i use more energy than this by doing things i have to do including going to the post office to pay bills, food shopping, and getting to medical appointments. i have nobody to help me with these, and that can often get me down. even things i want to do like going to my allotment or meeting a friend for a coffee can end up being a major challenge and also leave me completely gubbed (shattered) and fit for nothing. however as i have often said i feel very lucky that i am not one of the 25% cfs/me sufferers who are housebound, i have no idea how i would manage at all then....

stephanie suggested that when i manage to do any of the above it should be a cause for celebration. i guess she is correct. if i cant avoid doing things that exhaust me i may as well celebrate the fact that my body worked well enough to get me out of bed and outside no matter how much of a challenge it was or even the repercussions.

it reminded me of a meditation on the MBCT course i was on called the gratitude bodyscan. it was very powerful as it made me remember all the amazing places where my tired, aching legs had taken me in the past and all the wonderful things i had done with my now weary arms! yup my body had been good to me so i should be kind to it in return.

oops ive done it again.

once again i have been neglecting this little blog. it's just it would be so easy to just use it to moan, moan, moan about the unfairness of living with cfs/me/fibro and although that is the reality, it's not what the aim of this blog is about. it's about showing how there are ways to manage symptoms better and keep a positive mind no matter how bad things are.

there are always going to be up's and down's on the road to recovery from any chronic illness and negative feelings are a part of that, especially as you can feel the world is against you and it is all to easy to give up hope. right now i am spending my time trying to count my blessings for what i have, not what has been taken away from me, and concentrate on how i can somehow one day use my experience to help other sufferers through this debilitating illness. i am finding out how to manage my illness as best i can, and to try and do this with kindness towards myself.

new posts soon along with some guest blogs from some very inspiring people.