No, don't worry my dear Fibro friends, it's not exercise! I promise I will not tell you to exercise in this post.
HOWEVER, please humor me by reading about my day, it didn't start out well and I was losing hope....quickly...
To make a long story short, my morning was a mixture of sweating, aches, frustration and well, Fibro and perimenopause. Not a great way to start the day. I thought I needed a trip to church. So, after showering, I decided to make myself feel better, by looking better. However, as I went to try to apply makeup, the sweat pouring off my face made this a bit difficult.
Now, I was feeling lousy and on the road to looking that way. I usually reserve makeup for church days or special outings (the latter of which I don't do very often).
Next mistake was using a blow dryer to style my hair which added heat to an already "sweaty" situation.
Then I realized the hair I had just dried was already wet and stuck to my neck and back. I had to dry it again.
By the time I arrived at church, I had had so many horrible thoughts and was so angry at .... the world(?) that I couldn't even go in to sit with my mom for fear I'd lash out at her with my frustration, sweat and general fury .
No, my friends, I was feeling my "midlife" like I hadn't in quite some time. I sat in a rocking chair in the main lobby listening to the mass through "speakers".
Maybe this is a good time to tell you about the subject of the homily/sermon. It was "putting God first" in our lives. Well, I had such guilt over how I felt for the past hour or so with my sweating, makeup, hair and trying to get dressed with a wet body fiasco, I wasn't feeling very "Christian" and I certainly wasn't putting God first.
I went home and was still sweating. I changed into shorts and a tshirt and my church clothes were soaked. I growled in frustration.
Then I became depressed. Normally I enjoy my Sunday. Even though they include laundry, I do a newspaper puzzle (Sudoku) and making a large pasta dinner, I seem to be inspired for the upcoming week. Well not today.
Today, the entire world was caving in on me. In addition to all of this, I forgot to take the medication that helps with my extreme fatigue and I felt extremely weak and depressed. I wanted nothing more than to lie down on the bed and sleep.
But I had piles of laundry facing me, as much as I didn't want to do them, they would not do themselves and no one else was helping, that's for sure.
So, by God's grace, I pulled myself out of the chair where I write this and got to work separating laundry and got the first load started.
The next thing I know, I'm feeling better.
NOW, I promised you that I was NOT going to tell you to exercise. But if the fatigue, pain and weakness of Fibro have really gotten you down, the only thing I was is that you.......MOVE. Don't run, play tennis or go windsurfing, just get up from your bed, chair or couch and throw in a load of laundry.
Or, if that's not something you have to do, go to the kitchen and start dinner. Think of something "out of the box" that appeals to you.
Whatever you do, instead of sitting or laying down ALL day, take frequent "get up and move" breaks. That way, you will not feel so paralyzed and you'll be distracted from your own misery for a while.
Trust me, I was feeling so low about myself, my life, my spouse's unemployment situation, along with financial situation and such, that I thought NOTHING could shake this awful feeling I was having, but as soon as I got up and started doing what I had to do, or making what I wanted to make for dinner, I started to and continued to feel better.
Try it. It DOES work. Don't fall into the trap of the bed, couch or chair. The more you move, the better you'll feel and you will certainly begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel of darkness.
Depression is a demon and we can destroy it!!! Start now and you won't believe the results!!
Blessings......
Mo M.
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