Living with a chronic illness is like dealing with the weather - you have some general predictions about what your days will bring, and every now and then a big storm rolls in. When I'm dealing with crummy weather what gets me through those nor' easters, hurricanes, tornado watches, blizzards and drenching rains is knowing the storm will pass. I just need to take care of myself as the nasty weather pounds down around me. That's true with my health issues as well. Not every ache and pain will last forever. The fog will lift, my tired will subside and my vision will clear. It may not all happen at the same time and it may not happen quickly - but I know that it will clear up, at least for a little while.
My lack of control over the fibro gets frustrating. I think that if I get to bed at a reasonable hour, take my meds and supplements, don't do too much on a single day I'll get a reprieve - a sunny day. Nope. Doesn't happen that way. One of the challenges of this condition is that you never know when a good day will come or a bad day will strike. There's a bumper sticker that reads - "If you don't like our weather - wait a few hours, it will change". My days can be like that, too. For a few hours I feel well, then I crash. Or I crash for half a day and the other half I feel human. My health forecast is "partly healthy with a chance of pain", or "storm hits with a vengeance". My "all clear, not a cloud in the sky" days are few, but each one is a gift and a treasure.
When it rains, I carry an umbrella, when it snows I wear my warmest coast and snuggly boots and when a hurricane is about to hit, I hunker down. I adapt to the weather in a matter-of-fact way and I have to adapt to my physical condition that way, as well. I can't control fibro any more than I can control the weather. What I can control is how I react to my symptoms when they hit. I can keep a positive can-do attitude and stay focused on the fact that symptoms come and go and if I can hang in there, I'll eventually feel a bit better.
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