Food Choices with Fibro VI

While it might be appealing to battle FM symptoms like fatigue with a balanced dose of cola drinks, chocolate, tea or coffee, but caffeine can impede with your capability to get the relaxing and restorative sleep that we require. This is a big issue in diminishing painful FM symptoms. The journal, Arthritis & Rheumatism, also advises that sleep difficulties might in fact play a vital role in FM development. If you enjoy drinking caffeinated drinks or highly caffeinated foods, ingest them through the first half of the day merely to abate sleep issues.

Caffeine in its many forms, Pop, chocolate, energy drinks, Coffee/Tea/ Hot Chocolate

Again, because of the Coke products that I like this is another Achilles heel. Fortunately I have recently found Coca-Cola flavored Tic Tacs it actually taste like Coke. They don”t have the high amount of sugar or caffeine which is a good thing but it also does not have the fluid and hydrating aspects to help keep my body hydrated (yes, I know there’s also salt & stuff in there)

Chronic Illness Bingo leads to Acceptance

This is kinda like the get to know style of bingo, but it’s just for you. Check off what applies to you.

I originally just posted this on my regular social media, but choose to write about here.. The reason I do is the reaction of a friend of mine, Susan.

Late last year she was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis. Now, she has been struggling with acceptance that her life he’s been permanently altered through no fault of her own. Recently she say the post on my social media of my bingo card (see below) & noticed that she checked the few spaces I had empty. She then got curious & looked at the rest of the card noticing that she actually checked a majority of the boxes aswell.

This was her “Ah-ha” type moment. And realized “I have a chronic illness.” I think this realization, and acceptance of the hard truth has actually be a relief for her. She’s realized that there are limits and she has to learn where her limits are. But she’s no longer stuck and is able to move forward.

While I’m not happy that my post gobsmacked her in the face with the truth, I am glad she’s got the acceptance and is moving forward.

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See where my 3 bingo lines are. How full isUis your card? I know someone who actually checks each box. 😦

Fibromyalgia Pain at Night

Fibromyalgia Pain at Night – 10 Tips for Better Sleep
WebMD Feature By Jeanie Lerche Davis

Do you toss and turn at night because of fibromyalgia pain or discomfort?

“People with fibromyalgia tend to have very disturbed sleep,” says Doris Cope, MD, director of Pain Management at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. “Even if they sleep 10 hours a night, they still feel fatigued, don’t feel rested.”

Research shows that with fibromyalgia, there is an automatic arousal in the brain during sleep. Frequent disruptions prevent the important restorative processes from occurring. Growth hormone is mostly produced during sleep. Without restorative sleep and the surge of growth hormone, muscles don’t heal and neurotransmitters (like the mood chemical serotonin) are not replenished. The lack of a good night’s sleep makes people with fibromyalgia wake up feeling tired and fatigued.

The result: The body can’t recuperate from the day’s stresses — all of which overwhelms the system, creating a great sensitivity to pain. Widespread pain, sleep problems, anxiety, depression, fatigue, and memory difficulties are all symptoms of fibromyalgia.

Insomnia takes many forms — trouble falling asleep, waking up often during the night, having trouble going back to sleep, and waking up too early in the morning. Smoothing out those sleep problems — and helping people get the deep sleep their bodies need — helps fibromyalgia pain improve significantly, research shows.

Medications can help enhance sleep and relieve pain. But doctors also advocate lifestyle changes to help sleep come naturally.

Tips to Get Better Sleep With Fibromyalgia

Creating a comfort zone at home is key to better sleep, whether you have fibromyalgia or not. It’s all about easing into bedtime feeling relaxed — and staying relaxed so you sleep through the night.

These 10 tips can help people sleep better:

* Enjoy a soothing (warm) bath in the evening.
* Brush your body with a loofah or long-handled brush in the bath.
* Ease painful tender points with a self-massage device (like a tennis ball).
* Do yoga and stretching exercises to relax.
* Listen to calming music.
* Meditate to tame intrusive thoughts and tension.
* Sleep in a darkened room. Try an eye mask if necessary.
* Keep the room as quiet as possible (or use a white-noise machine).
* Make sure the room temperature is comfortable.
* Avoid foods that contain caffeine, including teas, colas, and chocolate.

Therapies to Treat Insomnia When You Have Fibromyalgia

If you’re still having sleep problems, several therapies can help, including biofeedback, relaxation training, stress reduction, and cognitive therapy. A psychologist who specializes in sleep disorders can discuss these therapies with you.

The therapies help people handle stress better, which helps control fibromyalgia episodes, Cope says. “Fibromyalgia comes and goes,” she tells WebMD. “When you’re stressed out, that’s when it’s worse.” That’s when you’re most likely to have insomnia, too.

Medications can also help ease fibromyalgia pain at night, or directly treat insomnia. Medications to ease fibromyalgia at night include antidepressants, anticonvulsants, prescription pain relievers, and sleep aids.

No one therapy will control fibromyalgia pain 100%, Cope adds.

“Medications help some. Exercise helps some. Stress reduction helps some. Cognitive behavior therapy helps some… If you can get restful sleep, you’re going to function better when you’re awake.”

Source: WebMD

Brain Fog

Brain Fog
By Kristy Bassett

Brain fog is possibly one of the most frustrating symptoms I have, not being able to think clearly can lead to major problems. It can not only be embarrassing not being able to think clearly, it can be dangerous.

The first thing to learn when you suffer brain fog is to never participate in any activities where you could be a danger to yourself or to others while it’s there. For me this has meant avoiding cooking and driving when the brain fog is a problem, this may be unavoidable at times, but where possible stick to this rule!

So what can be done? Unfortunately there are no miracle cures to lift the fog, but it can be managed. It’s worth investigating what is causing the fog in the first place.
Possible causes:

poor sleep

autoimmune disorders

hormonal imbalance

chronic fatigue/fibromyalgia

pain medication or the pain itself

allergies

iron deficiency and other nutritional deficiencies

blood sugar drops

dehydration

If you are able to pinpoint the cause, it may be possible to treat it simply. For others, the cause may not yet be known, or if it is known there may not be any more that can be done about it.

Managing Brain Fog:

Try to avoid activities that are beyond your capacity, if possible rest is advisable

Caffeine: If there is no choice but to be able to function, it is the one time where stimulants such as tea or coffee may be a good idea to get through. This shouldn’t be a routine, but can be a crutch if necessary. Remember that once the caffeine has worn off you will likely feel worse than you did before the caffeine consumption. Warning: regular caffeine consumption is not recommended for those with fatigue.

Supplements: MAY help if there is a deficiency to improve energy: the most beneficial to energy are B vitamins, iron and coq10.

Manage your pain: (if this is the reason) as well as you can

Make notes as reminders: if you have to remember a lot of things in a day, it may be handy to write a list on a notepad to carry around with you, so things can be ticked off and not missed

Set reminders: this can be in a calendar, or diary, or through a computer program, whatever is going to be something you check often. Reminders can be for events such as a birthday, or when a bill is due as an example.

Take regular time outs: even if you are busy, it’s possible to take 5mins to shut your eyes, or do some stretches. This can help clear your head and stay focused; if your mind isn’t well focused the last thing you want is to overwhelm it.

Be sensible with your activities: Finally tackling some great written work may not be the best idea at these times, reading can be a good idea, but keep it something you can easily focus on, don’t add to frustrations just because you’ve always wondered if Dickens really is that good.

Work when you’re at your best: If it’s possible, try and work at the best time of day for you. Some people may find that the brain fog is worse earlier or later in the day.

Eat regular meals: avoid high sugar meals when you eat. A sugar spike means your sugar will drop. You don’t have to be diabetic to have sugar spikes and drops.

Avoid known allergens: both environmental and food allergies.

Drink plenty of water

Avoid chemical exposure: If you are chemical sensitive, be sure to avoid chemical exposures from creams, cleaning products, etc. Those with chemical sensitivities may find exposure triggers brain fog

Open a window if in the car: I cannot actually explain this, but even being a passenger in a car has been a trigger for brain fog for me personally, opening the window a touch can help this.

Deep breathing: It could help to clear your head just to do some simple deep breathing, it helps to swing your arms above your head as you breath in, and slowly lower them as you breath out, the action will help open the diaphragm and allow for deeper breathing.

Exercise: This recommendation comes with a warning, for some people with certain conditions this could be a very bad idea. If the fog is a side effect of extreme fatigue, physical activity could make it worse, in these cases rest is what’s needed. For others a short walk may clear the head.

It may be helpful to keep a diary; this is helpful to monitor any symptoms. Keeping a record of when the brain fog occurs can help identify possible triggers. It also allows you to identify what makes it worse and what makes it better. A little trial and error of techniques to manage it such as those mentioned above will be needed to find what works best for you.

Source: The Recovery Room – http://www.recoveryroom.com.au

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My own comments:I agree with most of What Kristy has said..

Pace yourself at all times, and rest as needed. Rest is taking at least fifteen minutes to relax, preferably laying down with your eyes closed, otherwise you are not truly giving your body a break.

Water is awesome – it helps clean the toxins out of your body, a natural flush so to speak. 8- 8oz glasses of water. Myself I can stomach that much straight water.. I half juice with water when I can.. Makes it easier.. But not too much cuz juice can be high in sugar & calories.. An alternative to crystal light or other 0 Calorie powder if you can tolerate the sugar substitute.

Skip the caffeine.. In addition to the crashes & everything Kristy mentions there is also the fact that if you drink too late (& how late is too late depends on the caffeine & sugar content) it will keep you up and be detrimental to your sleep..

Eating regularly is my biggest problem. The recommendation is three small meals a day with three snack in between.. This allows your sugar levels to be more consistent over the day that sparatic eating, as well as the simple 3 squares a day. You are also less likely to snack. If you are going to snack, try & make it veggies.. Keep pealed carrots & celery in the fridge and have a stock of fresh fruit around. I usually avoid raw veggies, ignore the fruit & go for cookies. I do find it easier to make salads at night with dinner than a 2nd veggie because I keep a greens salad mix in the fridge that is ready to go & you can add more if you want; cucumber, radish, pepper, apples, celery, or cheese are options here. Just a tip to make things a bit easier.

Reminders are necessary for me.. We’ve tried also of different plans and tricks to help with this. We’ve used a white board. We’ve used an automated to-do list on the web. We’ve used an online calendar, as well as a local (on my pc) calendar – this helps keep my appointments organized as well as birthdays/anniversaries, but not daily stuff around the house. We tried post-its, and notebooks but I’d loose them or start a new book/list. I currently have a written to-do list that we re-evaluate daily or every other day to keep me on track, to adjust for pain & fatigue, and to prioritize tasks.

Avoid allergens – I think this is a no brainer.. gets tested if you haven’t already. I have my environmental testing done.. need to get my food testing done.

Exercise, in my opinion is necessary, despite what Kristy says. I try to do yoga & aqua fit regularly.. I agree that some are not able to do that much, so even a walk around the block, or one of those exercise videos specifically for Fibromites. I have one and it’s all based in a chair. There is also chair-based yoga in some areas that are available, usually for seniors.

Kelli