We know we have pain, we know people who don't have pain can't understand fully the depths to which it reaches. Instead of complaining about all the things we have to rearrange, suffer through, plan for and deal with..I have decided to put it in the form of a list that's easy for people to read. And those of you who don't suffer I ask, can you deal with this?
- Changes in eating patterns, too much or too little. Weight gain and weight loss. New food sensitivities causing stomach pain, headaches, rash, muscle pain. Never knowing if what you are eating will make you worse.
- Changes in sleep patterns. Never being able to fall asleep at night no matter what you try. Being tired all day long no matter what you try.
- Lack of sleep impairing your judgement and mental focus.
- Major differences in daily life include:
- Cooking and Cleaning.
- Talking on the phone
- Driving
- Showering: Even water hurts your skin, holding your head back to wash your hair can be impossible.
- Going to the bathroom
- Carrying heavy laundry baskets
- Pushing heavy carriages in the store
- Reaching for things or stretching causes a charlie horse, muscle cramps, or muscle spasms.
- Bending over to tie shoes or put socks on hurts or pulls muscles
- Having muscle pain that never ends day in and day out. Sometimes so severe it cripples you and confines you to the bed, couch, or house. You cry, you ache, and beg and plead and pray for it to end and it never does.
- Trying to find a doctor educated enough to help you rather throe meds at you. Or worse have to go from one to another because they don't believe you at all.
- Unable to sit for long periods of time. Playing on the floor or doing homework with children, hobbies, even watching tv becomes a painful task
- Unable to stand for long periods of time.
- Unable to walk around for long periods of time.
- Work becomes compromised.
- Relationships become strained.
- Day trips, vacations, live shows, walking around the mall, even grocery shopping have to be limited and planned.
- Constantly trying new medications that don't work. When you find one that does work and you start to feel better and have relief it stops working and you have to go back to try something new.
- Forgetting things in mid sentence, people names or where you were driving to.
- Taking one pill for pain, another because that makes you nauseas, another because that makes you tired, and another because that one causes headaches and ...really do I need to go on?
- More prone to injury and illness, and slower recovery time afterwards.
- Symptoms get worse, then better, then worse and there is no predictability to it other than being unpredictable
- Never being able to get treatments that may help because they are too expensive and insurance doesn't cover it.
- Exercise habits change. Your body can no longer do what you want it to. You push and push because you have the drive and determination and then suffer for 3 days afterwards because it causes your body to flare. Some days you can run a mile, and some days just getting up the stairs gets you winded and causes back pain.
- Bright light and loud sounds hurts your eyes and head
- Pulling muscles at random times for no reason. Getting bruises easily even when you don't remember bumping into anything.
- Feeling good and doing things you have neglected, only to be in severe pain because of it.
- Being in relentless pain, your body is on fire, and no one can even see it on the outside.
- Knowing there is no cure and no treatment
- Psychological distress
- Stress
- Depression
- Frustration
- Guilt
- Impaired memory
- Anxiety
- Headaches/migraines
- Digestive disorders
- Muscle aches, pain and stiffness and burning
- Weakened immune system
- Too tired or too painful to enjoy sexual relations
- Being misunderstood
- Financial devastation
- Lack of interest in things or people
- Heightened sensitivity to light, sound, taste and textures.
So I am going to ask you again. Can you deal with this?
