Remission??

[sjbrown]

Has anyone been able to get their Fibro "under control" or know if its possible for it go go into some kind of remission??

Sabrina

 

[sunkacola]

I have experienced periods of time that were relatively, or almost, pain-free, and I have had whole days that were pain free. I have not experienced a total remission for any appreciable length of time.

However, I would say that it is becoming less of a burden than it has been in the past, as I am managing it better. I personally don't think that it can really ever be "under control", because we can't actually be in charge of it and what it does. But that is just my opinion, and if anyone disagrees with me I'd like to hear.

 

[sjbrown]

Thanks It seems like each person is different and their management of it pretty individual. It's just such a random condition. The symptoms seem to come and go with no rhyme or reason.

 

[sunkacola]

Usually it is not quite random. If you pay attention, maybe even keep a log of your activities, feelings, and pain levels, you will find out what makes it worse and what makes it better. There is some degree of randomness, but I have found by paying attention I have learned a lot about how to manage it just by what I do and keeping stress to a minimum. Part of keeping the stress down is working to have a positive outlook in spite of it. Like, I am not going to allow it to ruin my life!

 

[Jellybean]

Usually it is not quite random. If you pay attention, maybe even keep a log of your activities, feelings, and pain levels, you will find out what makes it worse and what makes it better. There is some degree of randomness, but I have found by paying attention I have learned a lot about how to manage it just by what I do and keeping stress to a minimum. Part of keeping the stress down is working to have a positive outlook in spite of it. Like, I am not going to allow it to ruin my life!

My hat’s off to you, .

 

[Jellybean]

My hat’s off to you, Suncacola. Your attitude is inspiring.

 

[sjbrown]

Yes my hats off to you!! WE need inspiration like this!! I try to not let it get me down. Some days its hard but groups like this make it easier. WE can share the ups and downs

Sabrina

 

[Jellybean]

Yes my hats off to you!! WE need inspiration like this!! I try to not let it get me down. Some days its hard but groups like this make it easier. WE can share the ups and downs

Sabrina

Hi Sabrina, you are right. I’m fairly recently diagnosed and am taking Lyrica. The only side effect I’ve had is blurry eyesight and that concerns me.

 

[sjbrown]

Hi Sabrina, you are right. I’m fairly recently diagnosed and am taking Lyrica. The only side effect I’ve had is blurry eyesight and that concerns me.

Yeah I am not a fan of the idea of having to take meds but I guess I at least need to try. I have to wait until a weekend so i can see ho they affect me. I try to not miss any more time from work then I absolutely have to.

 

[sunkacola]

Yes my hats off to you!! WE need inspiration like this!! I try to not let it get me down. Some days its hard but groups like this make it easier. WE can share the ups and downs

Sabrina

thanks, and thanks to jellybean as well. We all can improve our lot in life, each and every one of us, just by how we approach things. I will not be ruled by fear, will not be defined by Fibro, and will always remember to be grateful for all that I have, which for all of us here is, according to statistics, vastly more than the majority of people in the world have. Remembering how lucky I am just to have cold clean water available to drink any time I want goes a long way against any inclination to feel sorry about the hard things I face. Not to diminish our difficulties, but putting it into perspective helps me a lot.

 

[CJSkippy]

It may be harder some days than others to stay positive, especially when first diagnosed or after years of pain, but none the less, it does help. I find petting my dogs helps keep my stress at bay too. I know that if I over do it working in my garden or anything like that, I will pay for it with a couple of days being pretty much down. So I try and pace myself. Needless to say I have a lot of weeds. I had to let those things go and not let it bother me so much.

I was off all meds for a few years, but started Cymbalta. (sp?). So far, I have not noticed any changes except I seem sleepier during the day.

 

[sjbrown]

Yeah I try VERY hard to stay as positive as I can. It can be tough at times dealing with this new "normal". I too have had to let things go and accept my new limitations. I think that is the hardest part of this is having to take every day as it comes and dealing with it.

 

[sunkacola]

CJSkippy, Cymbalta did nothing for me. But give it a little while, as it helps some folks.

sjbrown, one thing that helped me when I was working to accept every day as it comes was thinking of it in terms of the teaching of many of the great spiritual leaders, who have been quoted as saying to take each day as it comes and live in the moment rather than dwelling on the past or worrying about the future. Each moment is all we ever really have. When I start to get bogged down, I have learned to look around me like this:

OK, I am in my own little house. Over there are my beloved animals and they are happy I am here. I have enough to eat today and as far as I know will have enough to eat for the rest of the week and month. I have a few people in the world who care about me. I am not a slave or a refugee. I have clean water to drink, and am not outdoors at the mercy of the weather. I have a stove, a refrigerator, and a real bed. So, in this moment, even if I am in pain and cannot do what I would prefer to be doing today, today is really not so bad.

That perspective helps me a lot. I hope it might be helpful to you as well.

 

[sjbrown]

Sunkacola - I try to do that every day and most days I can but I think we all have those days where we just want to be mad at the world even for just a few minutes LOL I have my emotional moments. But yes focusing on all the good things is very helpful for sure.

 

[sunkacola]

sjbrown, believe me I have my moments, too! I keep them to myself, unless I choose to vent on this forum where we all understand. Sometimes things come to a head and you can't feel good about life for a short time, and gotta be mad or whatever, and I do that too. I try really hard to go do something physical to blow that off me, but there are times even that doesn't work out. Keeping those times to the most minimum I possibly can is the thing, I think.