Ok, other than my parents who took me in after I got disabled & housebound, etc, here are some things that keep me GOING. Whether it is acts or material things, here is a how to ten for me...
1. My house rabbit, Chai. She is my little nurse. Jumps on my bed to check on me, jumps up & frolics often, & fills me with joy when I have none.
2. My iPod. When waiting at various doctor waiting rooms, blocking out everything & letting dad be my ears is crucial. Sitting in uncomfortable chairs & smelling the various scents of people & their vices-smoke, too much perfume...my brain's pain center goes into overdrive. Closing my eyes & turning up my music with my body folded into myself gets me through.
3. My iPad (no, I'm not an Apple spokesperson!) keeps me connected to the outside world. My Flickr pic project, blogging, Facebook, twitter, not to mention losing myself & trying to focus on games, Netflix, entertainment, etc. I count my blessed stars daily for this magic machine that isn't too heavy for my weak body to carry!
4. My cheap not smart cell phone camera. To not document this illness would mean the end of me.
5. My new baby Kindle. After not being able to hold books open & read, ebooks got me back to reading. I used to read 3-6 books a week, then one for 5 years. Since getting my kindle in mid-February I've read 3 books already!
6. Art. I do all of it through painting apps on my iPad as I can't stand the paint fumes or hold brushes, etc, I can paint again with oils, watercolors, etc. :)
7. As a vegetarian, I eat Amy's organic veggie/vegan meals once a day. Also Lean Cuisine veggie meals, & the veggie Kashi meals. They save me-I microwave them & as I can't stand for more than 3-5 mins I can sit & wait. I so miss cooking properly, but I count my blessings that these products are available. (no pic but Chai bunny's a veggie eater too!)
8. Little surprises...at times like this one, when looking down, crying, the blown glass light fixture reflected in my iPod at my neuro office, are always a little extra I live for...
9. Pills, from pain meds to magnesium to ice packs & heating pads. A necessary evil.
10. My doctors. They understand me-they know me-they honestly care. I don't know what I will do without them when we move. How will I ever find them again? My sadness at the thought.
Amy's is the best. Ever since I developed fibromyalgia and began treating it with diet and exercise, I found myself, as I've said a million times, a vegan. When I was diagnosed as a celiac, which my doctor said was exacerbating the fibromyalgia, I out gluten out, too. What I realized is that a gluten-free vegan diet meant working with very basic foods. In order to make my meals delicious and interesting, they would each take at least an hour of preparation, plus cooking time. Well, that means spending a good portion of my day just cooking! When I don't have the time, Amy's makes my life easy and yummy. So expensive, though.
ReplyDeleteI know, right??! Whenever they are on sale dad stocks up...he does all the shopping
ReplyDeleteHi. I've been following NellieVaughn for a while and noticed your blog. I look forward to getting to know each other better. Best wishes. Jeff.
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