Happy Thanksgiving!!

Hoping all for a safe and wonderful Thanksgiving!!

Multiple Sclerosis for Dummies....FREE!!!!

Get your copy of "Multiple Sclerosis for Dummies" for free!! Check out MS Active Source or you can give them a call and speak with an Activesouce Coordinator at 1-800-456-2255. Just call and ask for the book like I did and you get very quickly. There is also information about medication, diet, exercise...pretty much anything you need to know about MS.
Much love!
Jenn

Invisible Illness and perceptions...

Invisible illness is one that the person looks perfectly fine on the outside but has an illness that at times can be debilitating. People who do not have this do not understand limitations one has. I, myself, do not look ill. To look at me, you would not know that I use a shower chair, have chronic pain, debilitating fatigue or difficulty with cognition. To look at me you would not know that I have to calculate everything I do. EVERYTHING! From when to take a shower vs. going to the store. Making dinner vs. washing dishes. Vacuuming vs. laundry. These simple tasks cannot be done one after another. It's shower, rest, store. Dinner, have kids do dishes. Vacuuming, rest, load of laundry in, rest, fold clothes, rest.
Going out to dinner is also a challenge. I have to plan the showering and resting and then going to dinner. At dinner, I have to decide what I want to eat. Simple decisions are difficult. Conversations are a challenge at times. I have to really concentrate on what the other person is saying. If there is a lot of background noise (people talking, kids yelling, music playing) this is all very unnerving. Too much noise actually hurts me physically. Makes my skin irritated. Makes my muscles ache. Makes me irritable. Literally, gets on my nerves.  Now, here comes my dinner. Eat, rest, eat, rest. Damn, why did I just drop my fork? Ok, now why can't I hold my fork??  How do you hold a fork again? Great now I have to concentrate on holding a fork. I'm tired now. I'm ready to go home. I slowly get up from my chair while holding on to it because I might fall. I should have just stayed home.
No one truly sees what having an invisible illness does to a person. People need to get past their "you don't look sick" attitude and realize that you don't have to look sick to be sick. Educate yourself. Or just ask your loved one what it does feel like. Trust me, they will tell you.
So people, stop with the dirty looks when I get out of the car in a handicap spot. Stop with the dirty looks when you see me in the electric scooter in the grocery store. Trust me, I had to swallow my pride and already feel bad enough having to drive that thing! And don't stop and stand right in front of me. Because I am so, so tempted to run you over! ;0)
Jenn

Attack of the shower chair!!!

As you may have read from previous posts, I hate showering. Well, evidently, the shower hates me! I'm having a crappy, painful day so I thought I would take a hot shower, get my jammies on, take my meds with a muscle relaxer and get in bed. What a wonderful plan!! So, I get into the shower. Turn up the hot water which I normally don't do because heat increases my fatigue. I didn't care because I was going to bed. Barely any hot water??? Very strange but whatever it was warmer than usual. As I proceed to wash, I am sitting on my shower chair. Now,  I know there is 1 screw missing from the legs. No big deal.  I felt leaning and leaning! Crap! Then I had to figure how to get up before I completely break the darn thing. Before the shower curtain comes crashing down on my head. Then Fire and Rescue would have to come and see me naked. I know a few of the paramedics. I wouldn't want them seeing that lol The shower chair is missing 2 screws and the third is about to fall out. OMG! Really! Look, I don't ask for much in life and my shower chair is turning on me! All I wanted was to complete my wonderful plan, but it does leaving me wondering, where the other screw went and why was the third one loose? Hmm...God has a great sense of humor!
Jenn

Great app to track chronic pain!

I love apps!! I have found that when I am at the doctors, I have a difficult time explaining my symptoms, pain and the bad days. I found this really neat app called Chronic Pain Tracker . The "lite" version is free but of coarse the full version is $9.99. I can type in what I am feeling, type of pain, location, what the weather is like outside, how I slept, depression, etc...

It also gives great reports that you can take to the doctors with you.

Very colorful. Easy to add descriptions. Track "as needed" medications. Color in where the pain is.

   Also has a "general comment" section that you can type in anything you want. You choose what you want in your diary. If you do not have depression, you don't have to add it.

You can even generate PDF and HTML summaries to take to your doctor too. You can choose, 1 day, last week, 2 weeks, 4 weeks...you get the picture.

I really like it. Takes a minute to figure how to navigate but love the features...and I only have the "lite" version.
Have a good day!!
Jenn