~ My life with Fibromyalgia and Fatigue ~
I am 36 and for the past three years I have lived with a condition called Fibromyalgia and Chronic fatigue. I hate it with so much passion, I feel like it has robbed me of so much. I am learning to live with it, to focus on managing it rather than fight it! Fighting it only adds to the exhaustion. I used to be a fit & healthy woman who was always on the go. My life had order to it and I was always organised. The real changing point was when I found out I was expecting our fifth child back in 2014. Right from the beginning, this pregnancy was different. The sickness was horrendous and continued right up until the day our little girl came into the world. Around 27 weeks, I developed nasty little infection in the womb which went by the name 'chorioamnionitis' which caused sepsis in both myself and Anna. As a result of this, Anna was born via emergency section at 29 weeks. I spent 11 days in hospital. By the grace of God both recovered from this and as the months went by Anna gained her strength and was well enough to come home by her due date.
How does this effect our children?
First of all, my family means everything to me and we still do lots of things together. I am all about making memories! Children need that in their lives as much as they need to see their mama being strong! When I'm having a bad day, my Husband takes over. John will always take the younger kids out and about with him while running errands. He has also went on days out with the kids without me! Its hard missing out on the fun stuff but I have accepted that its got to be this way for the sake of the kids. Our biggest challenge is not having a car and for me public transport only adds to the exhaustion As of this week, husband is back on the road taking driving lessons again so fingers crossed we will have a car soon.
Something I cherish is reading stories to my younger kids. Those moments to me are so special to me. They are so calm and the way they get so engrossed in the story is just beautiful. Annas little face lights up when we get all her figurines out. Playing with Anna and her little figurines is another special time. She has a collection of little figures range from paw patrol to little animals or Peppa pig mixed with sylvanian families. Its amazing to sit with her and help her imagination take over. The game always has to start with "Hi. wanna go to the park?"
Messy time is a favourite of Ava and Annas. They both love getting creative with lego, playdoh or the arts and crafts materials. Making things is so good for them as it gets their brains working hard and it is fantastic for developing their fine and gross motor skills. I find it relaxing too for some reason also seeing them learn and grow in confidence inspires me so much. Ava and James are the kind of kids who can make the most fascinating things with lego infact, I love that James still enjoys lego. We are lucky enough to live next to a beautiful pond which is home to swans and ducks. Its litterally on our doorstep and John is always taking the kids out on walks through the woods. Everyday we can go down and feed the Ducks or take a lovely walk around the woods which is so relaxing anytime of the year. We also have several not to forget we are lucky to near to a few play parks so the kids get to spend a good bit of time and them too. As for my two teenage daughters Melanie and Nicole, they are never in these days! They are always out with friends and enjoy a very healthy social life. Both of them are also doing so well at school. My oldest daughter has three university interviews coming up with the hope to study primary school teaching. It makes me so proud to see her do so well in her life. My son James loves his consoles and he prefers to relax after school. He finds School all too much and by the time he come home he is both physically and mentally drained. He enjoys days out and going to places like jumpstation as it helps him get all that energy out but that is costing us a small fortune so we are investing in a big trampoline for him in a few weeks.
Living with a chronic illness does not have to mean less time with your family its about finding a balance your in life, one that means your looking after your body and getting plenty rest during the day even if that means an hours nap here and there.
As time passed, I felt as if I was just stuck in this bubble, like I had not recovered and I was suffering constant pain and it was all over my body. My feet and ankles were always swollen and the tiredness was overwhelming which was making life so hard. I just felt as though I had not recovered, blood tests showed inflammation in my bloods so they thought it was a post Rheumatoid infection so I was told to rest and given more antibiotics to help clear it up. Months past by but still I was getting all this pain, stiffness and flu like symptoms.
With Fibromyalgia your body experiences different levels of pain all over your body at different times. I suffer migraines, stiffness the joints, facial pain, hip and joint pains then there is the brain fog which makes your feel like you are almost in a daze, I feel like I can't remember things and focusing and concentration levels are so poor. After a year my GP diagnosed me with Fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue, I was really upset as there is no known cure for this and it only gets worse over the years.
Three years on and things are more positive. I had to change my mindset. I reached a point where I was either going to sink or swim. I have my children to think of and also John, my Husband who is just the kindest soul Ive ever known. John supports me in every way. He has given up so much in order to help care for me and for this I am so thankful. John will wash and dry my hair when my arms and neck hurt too much. He cooks all our meals and cleans the house. He knows I've always loved a clean, organised & tidy home. I thank the Lord every day for bringing John into my life and for the love that he gives me.
I wake up every single morning in pain and some mornings its so overwhelming when I wake up with a dull and burning sensation running from my hips down both of my legs. I often wake with my shoulder blades and neck aching to the point I literally struggle to turn myself around in bed. Once the pain relief works it can be close to 9.30am and by then I am so tired that I need to drink copious amounts of coffee to get through the morning! I like to hide this side of things from the kids as best I can and keep life as normal as possible for them.
Life is difficult with this condition but having routine and getting the right amounts of sleep can make the world of difference. I do try and eat as healthy as possible and take an few supplements.
CO-Q10 and & magnesium malate have made a difference to my energy levels. The Vitamin D is to compensate for not getting out very often. I have read that Turmeric is also a great supplement for Fybromialgia patients due to its natural anti-inflammatory properties. This would eliminate the need for regular ibuprofen. Taking Ibuprofen on a regular basis is not ideal as a recent study found it to raise the risk of stroke and heart attacks by 20% especially the older we get. so am going incorporate turmeric into diet more.
- CO-Q10
- Magnesium Malate
- Iron
- Vitimin D, C
CO-Q10 and & magnesium malate have made a difference to my energy levels. The Vitamin D is to compensate for not getting out very often. I have read that Turmeric is also a great supplement for Fybromialgia patients due to its natural anti-inflammatory properties. This would eliminate the need for regular ibuprofen. Taking Ibuprofen on a regular basis is not ideal as a recent study found it to raise the risk of stroke and heart attacks by 20% especially the older we get. so am going incorporate turmeric into diet more.
How does this effect our children?
First of all, my family means everything to me and we still do lots of things together. I am all about making memories! Children need that in their lives as much as they need to see their mama being strong! When I'm having a bad day, my Husband takes over. John will always take the younger kids out and about with him while running errands. He has also went on days out with the kids without me! Its hard missing out on the fun stuff but I have accepted that its got to be this way for the sake of the kids. Our biggest challenge is not having a car and for me public transport only adds to the exhaustion As of this week, husband is back on the road taking driving lessons again so fingers crossed we will have a car soon.
Something I cherish is reading stories to my younger kids. Those moments to me are so special to me. They are so calm and the way they get so engrossed in the story is just beautiful. Annas little face lights up when we get all her figurines out. Playing with Anna and her little figurines is another special time. She has a collection of little figures range from paw patrol to little animals or Peppa pig mixed with sylvanian families. Its amazing to sit with her and help her imagination take over. The game always has to start with "Hi. wanna go to the park?"
Messy time is a favourite of Ava and Annas. They both love getting creative with lego, playdoh or the arts and crafts materials. Making things is so good for them as it gets their brains working hard and it is fantastic for developing their fine and gross motor skills. I find it relaxing too for some reason also seeing them learn and grow in confidence inspires me so much. Ava and James are the kind of kids who can make the most fascinating things with lego infact, I love that James still enjoys lego. We are lucky enough to live next to a beautiful pond which is home to swans and ducks. Its litterally on our doorstep and John is always taking the kids out on walks through the woods. Everyday we can go down and feed the Ducks or take a lovely walk around the woods which is so relaxing anytime of the year. We also have several not to forget we are lucky to near to a few play parks so the kids get to spend a good bit of time and them too. As for my two teenage daughters Melanie and Nicole, they are never in these days! They are always out with friends and enjoy a very healthy social life. Both of them are also doing so well at school. My oldest daughter has three university interviews coming up with the hope to study primary school teaching. It makes me so proud to see her do so well in her life. My son James loves his consoles and he prefers to relax after school. He finds School all too much and by the time he come home he is both physically and mentally drained. He enjoys days out and going to places like jumpstation as it helps him get all that energy out but that is costing us a small fortune so we are investing in a big trampoline for him in a few weeks.
Living with a chronic illness does not have to mean less time with your family its about finding a balance your in life, one that means your looking after your body and getting plenty rest during the day even if that means an hours nap here and there.
Pain is something we all have to live with at some point in our lives, just in different ways. Some of us suffer physical pain others, emotional pain or with mental pain. It is a part of our lives and whether we like it or not it is down to you how you choose to manage and live with it.
Be strong and never give into to it. Choose to accept it but research as much as you can on fibromyalgia and even join some support groups online where you can chat with other men and women who have this or other chronic conditions. One thing I cannot stress enough is to avoid STRESS itself, studies have shown that people who live with constant stress and anxiety are more likely to suffer from chronic pains and tiredness. Stress on a constant basis is just not good for us.
Be strong and never give into to it. Choose to accept it but research as much as you can on fibromyalgia and even join some support groups online where you can chat with other men and women who have this or other chronic conditions. One thing I cannot stress enough is to avoid STRESS itself, studies have shown that people who live with constant stress and anxiety are more likely to suffer from chronic pains and tiredness. Stress on a constant basis is just not good for us.
We are looking forward to our first family holiday abroad this year, I have always put it off but with my new mindset and positive outlook on life I am not letting this condition control my life. My faith in God gives me my strength to get through everyday and I feel his presence in my life guiding me and showing me the way so I am forever thankful and blessed be his name Forever ...Amen
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