The Enemy Within: How to Stop Self-Sabotaging Your Success

Self-Sabotage.  Most people have heard this term before in their lives, but what is self-sabotage?!  According to Dictionary.com, self-sabotage is defined as "the act or habit of behaving in a way that interferes directly with one's own goals, well-being, relationships, etc., as by comfort eating, procrastination, or lashing out at others".   In other words, blowing up your entire world yourself lol. 

 Self-sabotage is way more common than people think it is.  All four of my children were active in different sports but one they all had in common, was competitive judo/jujitsu.  My dad, who is 85 years old now, used to go to a whole lot of their tournaments and he'd always tell them right before their match "Now don't go out there and beat yourself. If you lose, lose by making your opponent beat you".  He also said that a LOT to my oldest son Cody, who was also a high-school state wrestler, college wrestler, and MMA cage fighter after his college wrestling days. -Yes, the photo below is from one of his MMA fights, and yes, he's the one on top facing the camera lol.

Although Cody had an amazing overall sports career, even he admits that at times, he was guilty of "beating himself".  Guilty of "self-sabotage".  This phenomenon of self-sabotage can be so common for many different reasons.  Sometimes people self-implode because they're afraid of failure.  Sometimes it's because they're afraid of success.  It can happen if a person has low self-esteem.  Sometimes perfectionism plays into self-sabotage.  It could be, because of past experiences from childhood where a child had received negative messages from caregivers.  Cognitive dissonance, having a conflict between your personal belief and your actions, can lead to self-sabotaging behavior.  Sometimes, it's due to unconscious survival strategies.  There are just so, so many reasons why a person can consciously or unconsciously self-sabotage.   

Do you ever feel like you're a hamster stuck running on a wheel?  If you find that you have that feeling with some aspect of your life, or if you find yourself procrastinating on a task, you may be guilty of self-sabotage.  Do you engage in negative self-talk?  Frequently engaging in self-critical or pessimistic thoughts can undermine confidence and motivation.  If you avoid or "forget" responsibilities, even when they're crucial, it can be a sign of self-sabotage.

Self-sabotage can lead to career and academic setbacks.  It can strain important relationships.  It often exacerbates feelings of anxiety, depression, and low self-esteem.  The constant cycle of setting goals and failing to achieve them can lead to a sense of helplessness and self-doubt.  If you engage in self-destructive behaviors like comfort eating, substance abuse, or neglecting self-care it can cause serious physical health consequences too.  This is especially true for people suffering from chronic pain conditions such as Fibromyalgia.  Self-sabotage also leads to financial difficulties due to poor decision-making and lack of follow-through.  Overall, self-sabotage leads to a reduced quality of life.  It prevents you from reaching your full potential and enjoying a fulfilling and satisfying life.  It creates a vicious cycle of failure and disappointment that is difficult to break.  So there you are, still stuck running on that damn hamster wheel!

There are many strategies that you can use to overcome the self-sabotage cycle though.  You can build self-awareness by utilizing mindful meditation to become more aware of your thoughts and feelings without judgment.  You can journal!  Write down your thoughts and experiences daily.  Then reflect on your actions and emotions to identify recurring themes and triggers.  Set aside time regularly to reflect on your goals, dreams, achievements, and areas for improvement.  Ask yourself questions like, 'What am I avoiding/" or "Why did I react that way?".  You also can seek constructive feedback from trusted friends, family, or colleagues.  They can provide insights into behaviors that you may not even notice yourself!

Cultivate self-compassion by treating yourself with kindness.  Treat yourself with the same kindness and understanding you would offer to a friend!  When you make a mistake, remind yourself that it's OK to be imperfect.  Recognize common humanity within yourself.  Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, experiences difficulties and setbacks in life.  I think that's the biggest impact that was made within me during the filming of my episode of Dragnificent, on TLC.  There was an emotional moment of me telling a story that negatively impacted my life and self-esteem, and one of those beautiful Queens started crying.  Afterward, she and I had a conversation about how my story dredged up feelings for her, of her going through the exact same experience I had been describing.  My mind was literally exploding at that second!  I was thinking "What?!  Wait!  This beautiful, successful woman has had the exact same feelings and emotions that I've had?".  It was really a huge "Ah-Ha" moment for me.  When everything is cut & dried, no matter how rich or poor or successful or ...how stuck on a hamster wheel we are, we are ALL "just people" at the end of the day.  We all have the same feelings, emotions and fears.  We all want unconditional love and support and acceptance. We all have hopes & dreams. At that point in time, I started using a reference that I remind myself of a lot; "Every person, is a person".  It sounds simple, but really, it's not.  It's deep, yet it's so very true!  You always should try to be mindful of your negative thoughts and emotions, without letting them define you.  Practice deep breathing or gentle self-talk to soothe yourself.  You also can practice loving-kindness meditation.  Engage in meditations that focus on sending love and compassion to yourself and others.  You could also write a self-compassion letter to yourself or visualize a compassionate response to a challenging situation.

Are you ready to break free from your cocoon, and emerge like this beautiful butterfly?  If you're tired of getting in your own way and you're ready to achieve your goals with confidence, I'm here to help!  As a Certified Master Life Coach, I'm also a Confidence Coach, Goal-Setting Coach, and Meditation Facilitator & Coach.  I specialize in helping individuals overcome self-sabotage and unlock their full potential.  You can book a free consultation by DM'ing me on my The Fibro Frog FB Page

And lastly, what's the motto been all of these years on this blog?  -"Never Give Up HOPE.  Without HOPE, you don't have anything".  You ALL have HOPE, and you also have ME in your corner!  You are never, ever alone no matter what is happening in your life.  Please never forget that.  I'm an inclusive, non-judgmental Certified Master Life Coach, Master Mindset Coach, Health & Nutrition Coach, Emotional Intelligence Coach & more!

Fibromyalgia Is AutoImmune ...NO! It's NEUROImmune! ..NO! It's AUTOIMMUNE! Part 1

 Oh my goodness.  I took it upon myself what? About 11 years ago?  Maybe 12 years ago?  To try to start learning every single bit of info about Fibromyalgia as I could.  I then in turn set out on a mission to educate every single person I could on this horrible, disgusting, vile disorder I could.  On the truth about it.  From the $hitty quality of living those of us with it have, to the dire need for more research to try to understand it and treat it.  To it being taken seriously by not only community and family members, but by others in the medical field as well!  

About the time I was diagnosed and cried, and refused to accept that I "really" had fibromyalgia, something there isn't a cure for, new reseach was saying that FMS had at first been thought of as being an autoimmune disease but that actually it wasn't classified as a "disease" at all, that it was classified as a "disorder".  That it actually wasn't autoimmune either, it was NEUROimmune.  It stimulated in the brain.  I cannot tell you HOW many times I wrote that. I talked that. I corrected people. I had people get mad at me and fight with me about it.  I was being treated by an internationally known rheumatologist at The Cleveland Clinic, and she taught me the current "how's & why's" of it being neuroimmune rather than autoimmune.  Let's now fast forward to July 1, 2021.  An article titled "Fibromyalgia Likely The Result Of Autoimmune Problems" in Science Daily science news rocked my world!

This college.  More specifically, this exact building/department of this college, has now changed it all once again.  Kings College London, department of psychology and neuroscience teamed up in collaboration with the University of Liverpool and the Karolinska Institute, to do a new study.  THIS study, led proof that FMS IS a autoimmune disease.  

"Professor Camilla Svensson, the study's primary investigator from Karolinska Institute said, "Antibodies from people with FMS living in two different countries, the UK and Sweden, gave similar results, which adds enormous strength to our findings. The next step will be to identify what factors the symptom-inducing antibodies bind to. This will help us not only in terms of developing novel treatment strategies for FMS, but also of blood-based tests for diagnosis, which are missing today."

The above quote that I've pulled straight from the Science Daily article, sounds pretty good. It lends HOPE, once again.  HOPE. There's that little four-letter word, once again.  

The premise of this study, was that they injected anitbioties from people living with Fibromyalgia (from 2 different countries) into mice.  They also injected antibioties from people that do NOT have fibromyalgia, into mice.  The mice that were injected with the antibioties from people with FMS, developed clear and concise symptoms of FMS.  Obviously, the mice injected with antibioties from people that don't have fibro did not develop those symptoms.  

Now, here's where things get really interesting to me.  The mice that had been injected with the antibioties of people living with fibro, returned to "normal" once those antibioties cleared their system.  WHAT?!  You mean if the antibioties can be cleared out of the body, we wouldn't live the life we currently have to lead?  Feeling drained of EVERY. SINGLE. OUNCE. of enegry?  Being in PAIN every single day of our lives?  The sleep disturbances, the cognitive delays. Feeling like our joints have had a vat of concrete poured into them. All of that could be GONE?  Umm ...are we finally talking that a cure may be on the horizon?!  Or even as I've b!tched, moaned, begged, and pleaded for all of these years "At least a solid, universal treatment plan that would work for EVERYONE"??!  It sounds like it may be feasible, folks.  It's too unreal for me to even be able to comprehend at this point in my life.  

Umm, yeah.  More about where/why this photo of me came about, in another post that will be on a totally different subject.  I just thought the face I was  making here was a little fitting for the way I'm currently feeling at this moment haha.  But anyway, the article goes on to talk about how this could lead to having a true blood test to diagnose fibromyalgia with in the near future, as well.  If we had THAT in hand, it would be a whole heck of a lot harder for doctors to refute the reality of FMS.  Because as I'm sure most of you have personally encountered in your own lives, there are still doctors that disbelieve, everywhere you turn.  -That still sickens me as well lol.  You can read the whole article by going to THIS LINK

Now, it's been an entire 14 months to the day, since this "new" study was published.  What is the current update to this study?  What more has been accomplished in the past 14 months since this hot news hit the press?  Dear Lord, please don't tell me "there haven't been funds to continue this research" or I swear I might have a tantrum, a full blown MELTDOWN, like my 2 and 3 year old granddaughters have been known to have on an occassion.  Or two. Lol  Will I even be able to get an update on it?  That I don't know.  What I DO know though, is that I will give it my best shot to get those answers for you guys.  For myself too, who the heck am I kidding?  I want to know every bit as badly as you all do.  Therefore, I solemnly swear that I will reach out to every single person  listed in this article asking for an udate to the study.  -Every person listed in it, that I'm able to find an email contact for anyway haha.  That means that I just added another *goal* to my to-do list for tomorrow.  I have to dig for some email contacts for another area of my life, so I'll just tack these on. 

Stay tuned, my Fibro-Froggies!!  I'm praying I have more info for you, in next weeks blog post.  Keep your fingers crossed and remember to "Never give up HOPE.  Because without HOPE, you don't have anything".  

Hemiplegic Migraine, Multiple Sclerosis, and Life

 Hey there Fibro-Froggies!  I've had a long hiatus, but I'm back!  I'll be posting as I used to, trying to educate the general population about living life with Fibromyalgia and other chronic pain & fatigue issues. Advocating for more research to try to find a cure, or a solid universal treatment plan that works for EVERYONE, and to try and help others that live with chronic pain conditions navigate this thing called "life".  Over the last few years life has taken many twists and turns for me, with many peaks and valleys.  Living with chronic pain conditions, we all ride the roller coaster of life.  Sometimes we laugh and have fun, but more days than not, we just wish we could hop off this roller coaster that we're stuck on.

A few years ago, I started experiencing some new symptoms.  The first time it happened, it was around midnight. I was sitting at my computer talking through PM on FB with a friend. They worked 2nd shift and had just gotten off work and asked me if I wanted to meet them at a restaurant to grab a bite to eat.  I was trying to tell them that I would like to, but that I had already taken my night time sleep meds.  I typed it out and hit enter.  The response back was "Huh?" ...I thought "what the heck?!  How could they not understand what I just said?  I looked up to read what I had put, to see how I could possibly write it any clearer.  When I looked up to read it I was dazed!!  What was showing on the screen was something to the effect of "aooxxxazzzoiejk".  I said right out loud ...."WTF?!  THAT isn't what I typed out!" and I typed again, telling them I'd like to, but that I had already just taken my nighttime sleep  medicine.  I hit enter and looked at the screen.  Once again I just had a random string of letters that didn't spell anything.  To say I was scared at that point, was an understatement!  I immediately thought "Am I having a stroke?!".  My youngest daughter was living with me at the time and her bedroom was upstairs, as was my computer and craft room that I was in.  I jumped up and went to take a step to go to her to ask if I was having a stroke or not, and I was super off balance.  I couldn't really walk.  I yelled for her and she came running in.  When she came in she immediately said "What's wrong with your face?"  I told her "I don't know, what IS wrong with my face?"  Courtney told me that both of my eyes were drooping. She was able to make out what I was saying, but my speech was slurred and I've been told I wasn't making sense all of the time.  I got the point across of what had happened with me trying to type and she looked at it.  She helped me get downstairs and I made her take me into the bathroom where I had a mirror.  I looked to make sure that both of my eyes were drooping, and not just one. -Which would be an indication of a stroke.  I then stuck my tongue out in front of the mirror to see if it deviated to one side or another.  It did not.  Whew.  I was pretty sure at that point that it was NOT a storke!  -Thank Gawd for me having a medical background lol.  I still was scared shitless though.  By the time this all had been done, I was coming out of whatever had happened.  She helped me get from the bathroom to my bed and I laid down.  I'll tell ya though, I didn't sleep. I kept laying there thinking that I was going to die. I really, truly, thought I was on my way out lol.  

When the sun finally came up, I too was up.  I still was literally in tears, scared shitless about what had happened. I knew my parents were early risers and my mom had an aide that would be there at 8am, so I threw on clothes and off to my parents house I raced.  I walked in, and loudly announced "I think I MAY have had a stroke last night.  Although it was both of my eyes that were drooping not just one, and my tongue didn't deviate to one side or another.  So honestly it doesn't fit a stroke but it has to be something serious.  I think I may be dying"!!  I along with my moms aide both were on google on our phones, and I then told everyone, "yeah, see I don't fit the catagories that it was a stroke, but everything else sure seemed like it was".  As soon as my doctors office opened I called for an emergency appointment and they got me right in.  

First off, I love my doctor.  If she would ever up and leave the community, I would up & leave with her. I swear I'd make it happen haha.  She is one of the very FEW doctors that believe in Fibromyalgia and knows the significance of living with it.  Like she gets it sooooo much, that I'm sure either she has it herself, or someone in her family that she's very close to has it.  Anyway, when she walked into my room, she could tell how scared I was.  She told straight up "Ok, this definitely wasn't a stroke because it 100% wouldn't affect both of your eyes.  She told me if she had to guess, she would say I either had myasynthia gravis, or MS.  Ummm ....excuse me but myo-what??!  She ordered an MRI of my brain.  One with contrast and one without.  Guess what?  The scans came back completely NORMAL!  How?!  What the heck had happened to me?  She told me upon follow up, "Let's just hope it was a fluke and never happens again".  Ok.  Let's hope.  

Let's fast forward about 6 months.  All was still good and I was "normal".  You know, OUR normal.  The NORMAL that those of us with fibro and other chronic pain conditions have.  -No more weird face drooping.  No more weird random strings of letters when I try to type.  Then one night, it was late.  -Because you know, with fibro my insomnia is one of my biggest comorbidities.  It is just awful!  Anyway, the time had come that I had moved in with my parents to start helping take care of them medically and help them around the house.  I'm an only child, I have medical POA of them both, and unfortunately their health was (IS) declining.  Way more rapidly than I would like for sure.  So it just made sense that I move in with them, to make thins easier on all of us.  Well, they were having trouble sleeping that night too and they were up in the living room.  I got up to walk out there and tell them something.  It's been so long ago, that I don't even remember what I was trying to tell them. But anyway I walked out there said whatever it was I had wanted to say and my dad looked at me and said "What?"...I said "what do you mean what?  I said .....x.xxxx".  I again was met with "Amy, I can't understand you.  You're not making any sense".  At this point I was starting to get mad.  I said it all again, very loudly thinking that where they're getting hard of hearing they just couldn't hear me.  My dad again very loudly told me "I don't know what you're saying.  Are you drunk or on drugs or what?" ...what in the HELL did he mean?  I could hear myself talking. I could hear the words plain as day.  What was wrong with my dad that HE couldn't understand me?  I went to take a step and I lost my balance and stumbled into their grandfather clock.  I couldn't understand what was going on.  He just kept telling me that I must be a closet alcoholic or on drugs or something and if I needed help, I should get help.  He said that he could tell by my face, that I was on something because my eyes looked so funny. OH MY GAWD was I infuriated lol.  My mom said to let her help me get to bed, so I did.  I woke up the next morning and I was still pissed off lol. Like seriously pissed off.  When I walked out to the living room my dad brought it up again and I just kept defending myself that I had not had a sip of alcohol (I take way too many prescriptions these days to mix alcohol into it all).  I wasn't on any drugs besides those prescribed to me.  When he brought up my eyes being funny again, it finally hit me!  I said wait a minute were my eyes drooping?!  My mom said "YES!! That's it excactly!  Your eyes looked really funny and that's why. They were drooping"!!  I said "Oh my gosh!  It's happened again.  You know, remember 6 months ago when I came over here early in the morning and had thought I may have had a stroke?  THAT is what was going on last night too!".  This is a really long story already, so I'll suffice it to say I was referred by my GP to a neurologist.  I made an appointment with the one my mom uses, because I already knew him, from taking my ma to her appointments.  I had another episode of this same thing happening again, just a few weeks later while waiting on my appointment with neuro.  

The neuro was a younger guy who really listened to me about my history.  He was great!  He told me though, that there was no way it was myasynthia gravis.  He explained why not, but I have this thing called fibro fog, and I honestly don't remember why it didn't fit the myasynthia gravis catagory.  He said that he thought I have either hemiplegic migraines or MS.  I told him no, I couldn't have MS because I'd already had 2 mri's on my brain and I didn't have any lesions. I told him one had been done without contrast, so then my GP had ordered one with contrast and all was good.  I then told him that it couldn't be SHM (sporadic hemiplegic migraine) because I never have had a headache at all when this happened. He started shaking his head. He said that with SHM, it's a very rare migraine and that it's way different than a "typical migraine".  He said I didn't have to have a headache with it.  He also said he wanted a new mri of my brain, but also wanted one of my neck and my spine. He said that MS doesn't always show in the brain. That it sometimes hides in your neck or spine.  Hmm ....ok, I scheduled the MRI's.  They couldn't get me in for them, for close to a month.  2 or 3 days before my MRI appointment, our whole house caught covid.  So, I had to call and cancel them, telling them we were all in quarantine for covid.  Instead of rescheduling me right then, they told me just to call them back to reschedule once I was recovered.  MISTAKE!!  In my usual fashion, I kept forgetting to do it.  

Fast forward to now.  I still haven't had the MRI's.  This has been somewhere close to 2  years ago.  To my knowledge, I haven't had any more episodes like I had in the past.  BUT, I've recently developed some new symptoms.  Symptoms worrisome enough to me, that I was going to call the neuro and get another appointment, knowing that the MRI's would need to be rescheduled.  Recently, and mostly at night. I will have random body jerks.  Or twitches. I'm not sure exactly how to describe it.  I'll be sitting here at my desk and sometimes my finger will jerk.  Sometimes my whole arm from the shoulder will jerk.  Last night my entire right side jerked. It's so weird, ya'll!  Let's just say as MY luck would have it, right when I was getting ready to call the great neuro Dr. Patti, my mom and I both received letters in the mail from the practice saying that Dr. Patti was leaving and would no longer be our doctor, but that the rest of the staff was still there to serve our needs.  UGH!!  I am horrible about going to see a new doctor.  I honestly feel like I've been traumatized in the past from mean, rude doctors bascially telling me I'm faking. Telling me that fibro isn't real.  Basically telling me I'm nothing but a fake.  I've left so many doctor offices and ER departments in tears, that the thought of going to see a brand new doctor that I don't know, causes me more anxiety than I care to share.  I know I'm going to have to though. But I'm still procrastinating picking up the phone and making that call.  I know that some of  you can relate to every word I've just said.  -And THAT is what sickens me.  It truly makes me sick that we are treated like that.  

Last night, my Ma was sitting in my office with me.  She has a recliner in here, and my computer desk chair is the ONLY piece of furniture in this house that I can sit in half way comfortably for longer than 5-10 minutes.  I have a large computer monitor so I stream tv in here on my computer and that is how I watch tv.  She saw the large jerk the right side of my body made, so all day today she's been on me to call the neuro for an apppointment with someone.  Whoever they decide to pawn me off on.  It's now 4:46pm and I haven't picked up the phone yet.  Not today.  TODAY, I'm reconnecting with my fibro froggies out there and letting you all know, that I'm back.  I'm back for good, too!  I know that my one little voice probably won't help a bit in the grand scheme of things when it comes to education and advocacy on living with chronic illnesses, but if I don't try to spread awareness, try to educate and advocate for all of us living with these nightmare illnesses, and try to advocate for research, then I can't complain when a doctor treats me like I'm crazy when I present with my symptoms. I can't complain that there isn't a cure, and I also can't complain when someone blessed enough to NOT live with a chronic pain and fatigue illness, doesn't understand where I'm coming from.  It's going to take a LOT of voices for true changes to made concerning the stigma, and for more research to be done.  And maybe ....just maybe my voice will be the one that adds to the pile of others, that give the push that's needed on these fronts.  

If I know that any of my words have touched even ONE person, or helped ONE person understand that the life we live is truly a life trapped in HELL, then every word I've typed will be worth it.  If I make ONE person feel like they aren't alone in this fight, then it's worth it.  Even though I've been MIA from this site, I still have been living my life with this blog's motto in mind.  -Never Give Up Hope!!  -Without HOPE, you don't have anything!!  I'm also am willing to once again accept interview requests, to write guest author posts, magazine articles, and life-coach.  I am once again offering seminars on how how to live with chronic pain, AND corporate seminars to educate department heads on how to accommodate workers that have chronic pain conditons.  With just a little education, employee retention and productivity can both be upped!  Also feel free to contact me if you're looking for a key-note speaker, or any type of public speaking engagement.  I'm a nationally certified clinical medical assistant who can life coach on topics involving divorce, living with chronic pain, and motivate those who want to lose weight employing basic nutritional goals with light to moderate exercise.  I've lost over 100 pounds, myself with a full RNY Gastric Bypass, and employing light exercise (we all know how hard it is to motivate ourselves to exercise when we live with chronic pain!),  I am here for you, to help motivate you and show you that you can still navigate this thing called "life" when you have chronic illnesses.  It's hard, and as before I will NEVER fluff my blog and say that anything is easy to do when you're a fibro frog or have ANY other  chronic pain illness.  

The biggest thing to remember my friends, is to Never Give up HOPE!!

A Dose Of Cuteness

Meet Max.  Max is my mom's new Shi-poo baby.  Max likes to dig holes.  In the mud.  All the time.  This little guy is a mess, but an oh-so adorable mess!  If you're having a bad day, hopefully his muddy little mug will make you smile.

It's All In Our Heads

So what makes my blog a little different from others out there, is that I always keep it real.  I don't hold back and tell it like it is.  That's why I'm telling you all, Fibromyalgia is all in our heads.  Ok, ok, I know that at least a few people reading this immediately jumped to conclusions and probably started getting pissed when they just read that lol.  I don't mean it in the way that one jumping to conclusions would think.  I'm not saying it's made up or fake, I live with it on the daily.  I know how real it is.  Our pain though, is signals that reach different parts of the brain, then the brain tells us that we hurt in a certain area.

There was a new study published in Scientific Reports on January 10, 2018 that addresses the brain activity in patients with Fibromyalgia.  The study looks at explosive synchronization (ES) as the reason.  What is ES?  Well, you've got me.  I completely understand all of the scientific talk in this study don't really understand it at all.  Even googling ES and wanting to rip my hair out while gouging out my eyes reading for about an hour, I still don't really understand it.  The conclusion is that "we suggest that this could serve as a novel theoretical framework and quantitative approach to modulating chronic pain through the conversion of an ES brain network to a non-ES network using brain stimulation methods."   

This was a small, phase II study conducted at the University of Michigan. Although the study had it's limitations, it gives HOPE that maybe some day a cure will be found.  I'm just thankful that no matter how limited, some research was done.  We need so, so much more research.  If you've been a follower of my blog/facebook page for very long, you know that the lack of money and research into this uncurable monster we live with absolutely infuriates me!  

You can read this study in full, by clicking HERE

At the beginning of every year I always say "Maybe this will be the year that our cure is found."  Well folks, maybe 2018 will be the year that our cure is found.  We can only HOPE and pray.  Yes, HOPE is still my favorite word.  Without HOPE, we don't have anything.  

Love & Gentle Butterfly Hugs To You All

Sharing Correct Information About Fibromyalgia

I just saw this going around facebook:

"Fibromyalgia (= a muscle disease)

I am asking everyone to post for 1 hour as your status. I'm pretty sure I know which of my friends want to do this.
If you know someone who has fibromyalgia.. my hope is that in 2017 a cure will be found. Do you want this message posts for (at least) 1 hours? For those who have fought or are fighting with fibromyalgia. 🙏🎗Copy and paste do not share! Xoxo"

While I'm happy that the word about Fibromyalgia is trying to be spread to create awareness, it makes me sad when misinformation is being shared.  Fibromyalgia is not a muscle disease. In fact, it isn't a "disease" of ANY sort.  It's a actually a "syndrome", and it's neuroimmune rather than autoimmune although many people feed into the misconception that it's an autoimmune disease. Click the previous link to read more about neuroimmune syndromes.  

Misconceptions as the one above, are what we need to dispell as a community of sufferers.  Misinformation is why the awareness of fibromyalgia is so important.  We need to share, share, share to make others aware of what we go through, but we need to be diligent in making sure that what we share is the correct information.    ❤🍀"

Daily Little Accomplishments

This is a sponsored post for Self Care Catalysts.  I have been compensated through the Chronic Illness Bloggers network.  All opinions remain my own and I was in no way influenced by the company.

Do you ever have those days where every little thing you try to do seems almost impossible?  Those days when it's hard just to even crawl out of bed?  I know that with Fibromyalgia, I sure do!  Sometimes, it seems as if it's an effort even to eat.

When a person is in a fibro flare, even the smallest ordinary daily task can feel as if it's almost impossible to accomplish.  What many don't realize though, is that all of those little, ordinary tasks that we do, are in fact accomplishments that deserve to be celebrated.  

For some reason, it seems to be human nature to be hard on ourselves.  Those of us suffering from Fibromyalgia and other like illnesses, tend to be even harder on ourselves than healthy people are.  We feel guilty about those things that we don't accomplish in a day, when in all honesty, we should be celebrating those tasks that we do accomplish.

Most people these days, have a dishwasher.  I'm not lucky enough to have that privilege.  I can tell you that standing to do dishes, is one of the hardest tasks for me to do.  It causes an enormous amount of pain in my back, shoulders, and arms.  The only way I can accomplish doing them, is to do them in sections.  I'm usually able to manage washing the silverware and cups, then I have to sit and rest for 15-20 minutes.  I then head back to the kitchen, and wash as much as I can before the pain becomes too much, then I sit and rest again for another 15-20 minutes.  I repeat this process, until all of the dishes are done.  I used to beat myself up that it'd take me a couple of hours to complete a task, that would take a normal person 10 or 15 minutes total to do.  I've learned though, that instead of beating myself up over the amount of time it takes me to do the dishes, to instead congratulate myself and celebrate the fact that at least I did get the dishes done!  

I joke around with my friends and family all of the time, asking them if I should do my hair and make up for the day, or if I should just go around looking homeless.  Let me tell ya, folks ...most a lot of days, I go around looking homeless lol.  Between the muscular pain of fibro on top of osteoarthritis throughout my body, doing my hair is one heck of a chore!  The struggle is real. The arthritis is so bad in the joints where my arms hook onto my shoulders, that I really have a limited range of motion.  On the rare days that I actually muster up the energy to straighten or curl my hair, I definitely look at that as an accomplishment.  I feel proud of myself when I look into the mirror.  At first, I'd just be all grumpy and say to myself "Why are you proud that you did your hair?" I mean, most people do their hair every single day whether they're leaving their house or not.  Well, I had to stop and realize that I'm not like most people.  I have several debilitating illnesses.  The fact that I did my hair, truly is something that I should be proud of.  I shouldn't cheat myself out of the joy of my accomplishment.  Instead, I should be celebrating it because it truly is an accomplishment!

The next time that you're completely exhausted, and/or in pain, and you manage to even get out of the bed that day, recognize the amount of effort it took.  If you actually get out of your pj's and into real clothes, celebrate your accomplishment!  The little things that you do, truly are accomplishments and deserve a medal.  Absolutely nothing that you do, is too little to be proud of and celebrate.  If you're having a bad day and being too hard on yourself, go to Self Care Catalysts and read their website or design your own self-care program!  Embrace who you are, make the most of it, and celebrate every accomplishment you do no matter how small it may seem to someone else! Know that I am proud of you, and I'm handing you a blue ribbon because in my book, you're a first place winner!

Another Quick Easy Recipe - Pork Fried Rice

So for the past two Tuesdays, I've been in a pain and fatigue flare and have gone to a couple of my quick, easy recipes.  I shared last Tuesday's with you, so figured I'd share tonight's as well!  Tonight, I made pork fried rice.

Pork Fried Rice

3 cups uncooked instant rice

1 bag of frozen peas/carrots mix, thawed

1 package pork stew meat (or about 4 large pork chops that you cut up)

1 medium onion, chopped

1/3 cup soy sauce

2 Tbls sesame oil

2 eggs

Cook the rice and set aside.  Put your oil (recipe calls for sesame oil but I usually use olive oil instead as a personal preferance) in a large wok-type skillet and heat it up.  Add your meat and season it however you like.  I use garlic, Morton's Season-All, and black pepper.  Stir fry the meat over medium-high heat until done.  Push the meat to the side.  Bust the eggs into the skillet and quickly scramble them, then push aside. Add your vegetables, and stir fry until hot, then push them to the side.  Add your rice, and fry it.  Mix everything together, then add the soy sauce and mix it up well, frying until everything is good & hot.

That's it!  it's super quick & easy  ....and most of all, it's delicious!!  It makes a LOT and there's always left overs that reheat very well.  My family eats off of this for a few days!  Also if you prefer chicken, just substitue the pork with cut up chicken breast.  Sometimes I do pork, and sometimes I do chicken.  

If you try this recipe out, please come back and leave me a comment letting me know what you think of it!

Pasta Salad

Living with a chronic illness, we all have those days where we just don't feel like cooking.  I'm sure all of you can say that you've had days where you've skipped eating, due to pain and fatigue.  I can remember many times in the past, where I've sat here hungry, but would rather just starve to death & die than to get up and go cook food to eat haha.  If you're anything like me, you're always looking for new recipes that are quick & easy!  Here's a recipe of mine that's quick, easy, and will last you a couple of days.  -I just made it again today!

Pasta Salad

Cook one box of Rainbow pasta, el dente and place it in a large bowl.  Dump in one bag of mini-pepperoni, or if you can't find them cut about 1/2 of a large package of regular sized pepperoni into 1/4's and add them to the bowl.  Chop up a little fresh broccoli and cauliflower and add it. Add around 1/4 bag of thin carrot sticks. Put in about 1/2 jar of sliced green olives.  Add a small container of grape tomatoes.  Dump in a bag of co-jack cheese cubes.  Add 1 bottle of Italian Dressing, and mix it all up then refrigerate it for a few hours until it's good and cold, then serve!  

Tonight, mine is missing the carrots because I had a fibro-fog moment at the grocery store and forgot to get them.  It's also missing the tomatoes because my daughter doesn't like them and asked me to leave them out.  Sometimes if I have them on hand, I'll also add some mild banana pepper rings to it.

Minus the cooking time for the pasta, the rest only takes about 10 minutes to put together so it makes a quick, easy dish that you can eat on for a few days!  Not only is it easy for me to make, but it's a family favorite in my house!  

I hope that this is helpful to some of you, and that you enjoy it as much as we do!

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& Put One Foot InFront Of The Other.

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Because I Am A Spoonie.

This shirt is available in a women's t-shirt, a men's t-shirt, or a unisex tank top with multiple color choices available!  The wording is printed on the back of the shirt and front is plain.  Proudly let the world know that you're a Spoonie!  Place your order, by clicking HERE!!

Adolescent Fibromyalgia Research Study Enrolling Today

Thank you for being a reader of The Fibro Frog. I am writing to share some information about a clinical research study that may be of interest to you. Research studies contribute greatly to the overall progress in understanding and treating diseases and The Fibro Frog supports that mission.

Adolescent Fibromyalgia Research Study Enrolling Today

Does your child suffer from widespread, unexplained body pain that impacts their daily routine?

If so, local research study doctors are studying an investigational medication to see if it can help manage symptoms associated with juvenile fibromyalgia in adolescents.

If your child is between 13 and 17 years of age, and has juvenile fibromyalgia or is experiencing unexplained aching, stiffness, fatigue, or trouble sleeping, he or she may be eligible to participate in a clinical research study.

• No-cost investigational study drug
• No-cost study-related care from a local physician

Visit www.FibroStudy.info anytime, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

WWW.FibroStudy.info

   

Sincerely,

Amy Mullholand

Founder of The Fibro Frog

A Catch 22

One of the most frustrating things about living with Fibromyalgia, is all of the catch-22's that come along with it.  My current dilemma is one that I know all of you with fibro, have faced as well.  When you're in a pain and fatigue flare, you seriously cannot do much of anything.  House work is out.  When housework is out, you end up with everything piling up into a whole ton of work.  Like, a pile of laundry:

and a sink full of dishes:

When we start coming out of a flare, we have so much work to do, to try and catch up.  But ....when we do that work, we end up pushing ourselves to get it all done, and then we find ourselves right back into flare mode again.  

It's such a never-ending process that is beyond frustrating.  This is where I've found myself for the past month.  My flare the past week has been horrible.  Fatigue like I haven't felt in some time.  Pain that even occurs while trying to sleep. Causing me to toss and turn the entire night as laying in one spot longer then about 20 minutes causes pressure point pain.  Hips scream in pain.  Arms, shoulders and neck screams in pain.

Once the flare ends, I'll be stuck picking up the slack that I can't control during this flare.  So I'm sure, I'll be right back in another flare within a day or two of this one ending.  I know every single one of you with fibro can relate.  I'm venting for all of us with this post!  I'm hoping to come up with some tips and ideas to make our lives easier and hopefully break this catch-22 cycle we're all stuck in!

The Joy Of Cooking

Before fibromyalgia and all of my spinal and arthritis conditions, I loved to cook!  I never loved the clean-up afterwards, but cooking brought me such joy.  So much joy, that I even used to own a little "eatery".  I call it an "eatery" because it was inside of a mall, not a real restaurant.

As all of my conditions have worsened over the years, it's become so hard for me to really cook.  The pain is excruciating.  Some days, it brings me to tears to stand long enough to even fry an egg.  Therefore, I don't do a lot of real cooking anymore.  This truly makes me sad.  As I'm sure most of you know, fibro steals so much of our happiness.  Even the small things that people take for granted, such as cooking, are taken away.

I am SO proud, because I cooked a meal tonight.  A good meal.  I zested lemons, and chopped potatoes, and prepared 2 whole chickens.  I made lemon-pepper chicken, chunked potatoes, baby carrots, and fresh grean beans.  I had real, alive, eating, breathing people over for supper!  My daughter and her boyfriend, my son and his fiance, and a 12 year old boy who's parents are good friends of the family was hanging out with me today.  

In the middle of making this delicious meal, I was in so much pain I was fighting back tears.  Part way through the preperations I wildly wonderded what in the heck I'd been thinking, to undertake this task!  When the timer went off, I had to have my son take it out of the oven, and there's no way I could've ever carried the platter to the table so my daughter graciously did that task for me.

I hate to say it, but I was in so much pain that I wasn't even hungry.  Still, I forced myself to eat a little and indulge in the victory over fibro tonight.  I may still be sitting here hurting so badly that a handful of vicodin sounds like an amazing dessert  ....but I did it!  I beat fibro today!  I did something that I used to love to do, and I enjoyed it with my family!

**Disclaimer -the "vicodin" reference was thrown in to try to be funny, as I don't take any narcotics for my fibro at all.  I've refused them since diagnosis because I know that fibro is something I'm going to have to live with for the rest of my life and I don't want to become addicted to narcs.  I also realize that once I take one kind for so long, they'll stop working and there's only so many drugs out there.  I don't want to be in my 60's or 70's and in double the pain I'm in now, with nothing left to take because my body has built up a tolerance to all of the pain killers out there.  Some days (like tonight for instance haha) I wonder if the time has come to start taking something for pain, but alas I just pop a diclofenac 2x a day, grin, and bear it.  :)

On A Budget This Holiday Season? Win A Giftcard

If you're like me, you're on a pretty tight budget that the holidays play havoc with.  Now through November 25, 2015 Giant Eagle is giving you a way to triple dip the savings!

This is a sponsored post by Tatu Digital Media, but all of the thoughts expressed are purely mine.

 I would suggest purchasing Giant Eagle gift cards now, and using them in place of cash while doing your holiday shopping this year.  Here's 3 ways that you can triple dip the savings doing this:

1.  Special Offer:  You will get a $10 coupon good on your next order, for every $100 you spend on select gift cards at Giant Eagle.

2.  Earn fuelperks! on everyday gift card purchases to save you money at the pump.  $ .10 fuelperks! are earned for every $50 you spend on gift cards.

3.  If you use your favorite rewards credit cards when you buy gift cards, you'll be earning points, miles, or cash back!

The participating gift card partners for this offer include:
Visa Gift
Sears
Best Buy
Google
Fandango
JC Penney

*Your $10 coupon will print at the register when you check out.  Also, some credit cards may have reward limits on their use at a grocery store.  You can see store for more details of this promotion.

If you'd do the math for this promotion, for every $100 you spend on the participating gift cards you could earn a $10 coupon + you could earn $6 back if you earn 6% back on credit card grocery store purchases + if you get 15 gallons of gas and use the $ .20 off fuelperks! you'd earn, that would save you $3.  That's a total of $19 in savings on a $100 gift card purchase!  So if you have a Giant Eagle near you, I'd definitely recommend that you take advantage of this opportunity between now and November 25, 2015!

Now, here's a chance for one of my readers to win a $50 giveaway!  Who could use this, at this time of the year?  I know I sure could! Good luck to all of my Fibro Froggies.  I truly hope one of you win!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Save Money With Giant Eagle Gift Cards

With the holiday season quickly approaching, who isn't looking to save money?  Giant Eagle offers gift cards for over 150 major retailers.  They have a reward program for buying gift cards, in the form of fuelperks.  For every $50 you spend in gift cards, you receive fuel perks.  Now through November 18, 2015 you earn $ .20 fuel perks for every $50 you spend on six select retailer gift cards!  You can check them out HERE.  

This is a sponsored post by Tatu Digital Media, but all of the thoughts contained are strictly my own.  I wouldn't recommend something to my froggies if I didn't think it was a good idea.  

If you're like me, you like to have actual presents to wrap and put under the tree.  That isn't a problem either using gift cards from Giant Eagle.  Just purchase your gift cards, then use them to order your presents online.  With all of my illnesses, I love online shopping.  I can sit here and shop in my pj's.  I don't have to go out in the weather, and even if it's a high pain and fatigue day, I can still get my shopping done!  I don't have to spend gas to go to the store, fight the crowds, or spend time standing in long lines which causes me extreme pain and zaps every bit of my energy.

 You can even double dip your savings by using your favorite rewards credit card to purchase, you can earn points, miles or a percentage back on your purchase. Some credit cards even offer increased rewards for purchases made at grocery. For example, the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express offers 3% cash back on groceries, and the Blue Cash Preferred® Card offers a whopping 6% cash back! Capital One QuicksilverOne®, AMEX EveryDay® and Citi® Hilton HHonors credit cards also offer increased rewards for grocery purchases. 

Now, here’s the math:

$3 in fuel rewards on a 15 gallon tank ($.20 x 15) +$6 back if you earn 6% cash back on credit card grocery purchases =$9 in savings on a $50 gift card, or 18%!!!!

Let's face it, we all feel the price of gas.  We have to drive no matter what.  If we can get our shopping done and save money while doing it, why not?  You can quickly accumulate fuelperks and cash back to keep more money in your pocket by just shopping Giant Eagle gift cards.  A quick, easy savings account so to speak!   Make sure you check out all of the gift cards that Giant Eagle has to offer!   Living on a fixed income, I'm all about saving money any way that I can!