Medication vs Meditation
Recap
Soooo, what have we learnt up to now? (Hopefully you’ve read the first blogs, if not why not?!) We know that Fibro causes widespread pain and has a sh*t load of symptoms (over 200 actually, but one thing at a time). Pain is caused by brain signals getting confused in the central nervous system and being sent out as pain signals. We also know that there is no cure, no one thing that makes you better. However, there are treatments available to help manage symptoms and associated illnesses.
Let’s talk treatment
Treating Fibro is a bit like firefighting, you’re putting out little fires everywhere. Taking one tablet for one thing, another for second thing, a third for a side effect of the first thing, not forgetting your associated illness like IBS, tablet for that, anxiety, tablet for that, something to sleep through the night, endless paracetamol and ibuprofen - it goes on and on. Add in a few vitamins and you’re starting to rattle when you walk. And most of these medications come with their own hosts of side effects that can have as much impact on your life as Fibro itself, especially when it comes to things like work; headaches, feeling sleepy, weight gain, mood changes, dizziness are hard to cope with. I have an alarm that goes off 6 times a day to remind me to take various medication, try explaining that one at work without outing yourself.
Pills, pills, pills
It's a full time job trying to manage your illness, organising your medication takes up a good chunk of time on its own. Dishing tablets out into daily dispensers, ordering prescriptions, remembering to order repeat prescriptions, picking up the prescription - remember Fibro fog? And what happens if you can’t take medication? A lot of these pills are not safe when you are trying to conceive, some people are allergic, there’s addiction, side effects or you might not be able to physically swallow tablets. Which is a very real thing trust me, 3 people in my family are like this (you know who you are). Gave my Mum a paracetamol once when she was visiting, it was like watching a seagull trying to swallow a whole sausage roll – traumatising. You could get a medical marijuana licence but 1) It costs a fortune and 2) You can’t go to work smelling like Dr Dre. (Side note: I don’t have much knowledge about medical marijuana and am not knocking anyone who does use it, I think this is a discussion in itself for another blog!). So what are your options: take medication and fingers crossed for no side effects; don’t take medication and probably not be able to work; take medical marijuana and probably not be able to work? We’ll save the stigma attached to being off work with an invisible illness for another day. ‘If you can go out for a drink, you can go to work’ – jog on.
It's all in the head
So what other options are there apart from medication? Think about it this way, if your brain is full of bad signals causing pain, flood it with good signals, mood boosting signals, endorphins. So how do we do this without medication - it’s all in the head right? The mind is a powerful tool, it can make us feel really bad at times but also really, really good if we treat it the right way. There’s nothing like a natural high. Mindfulness is a great way to boost endorphins; meditation, breathwork, exercise, cold showers and self-care are all in my daily routine:
· Meditation – if you’re sat there saying, ‘It’s not for me’, you’ve more than likely not tried it. You don’t have to sit on the floor giving it ‘Ommmmmmmm’ over and over (you can if you want like). You can just meditate for a minute if you want, it will still help. Headspace is my app of choice because it guides you all the way through, there are beginners courses, daily meditations, 1 minute meditation and sleep guides. But there are endless apps, give it a try, you literally have nothing to lose.
· Cold showers – I started doing this at the beginning of the pandemic, I’m religious about this now. It is sooooooo good for your mental health, it disrupts brain signals and produces endorphins. What more could you want?! Start with 15 seconds and build your way up. I am up to two minutes every day now. I have stepped it up and been swimming in the sea throughout the winter.
· Breathwork – Google Wim Hoff, I’ve done the workshop he’s amazing. This links in with cold showers.
· Exercise – is the last thing you feel like doing when you’re in pain and tired. But exercise comes in many forms, you don’t need to be sweating like f*ck from a HIIT class to be exercising. A specialist said to me once, ‘You get tired from doing nothing’, meaning the more you move, the more you build up your stamina and will in turn have more energy. To put it into perspective, walking burns exactly the same amount of calories as running does, you just cover the ground faster when you’re running. I would recommend walking, yoga or swimming for someone with Fibro. You don’t want to hurt yourself so go slow. YouTube is free and has anything you could ever want on there, Fibro inspired stretching is a good place to start.
· Selfcare – I love a shower (I’m a water baby) and skincare, in the words of my Grandma Joan – cleanse, tone and moisturise! I try and do at least these two things if I am having a really bad day. A face mask, washing your hair, getting ready for the day - even if you’re not going anywhere, fresh clothes, a bit of mascara, even cleaning your teeth will make you feel better. Pyjama paralysis is a term usually used to describe patients who have a prolonged stay in hospital and are on bed rest. But I think I suffered from this at the beginning of my diagnosis, I lost all notion to care about what I looked like, dressed like, felt like. Staying in your pyjamas reinforces the thought that you are unwell. It’s as much about mental state as physical. It’s all too easy to stay in our pyjamas all day, especially after the dreaded Covid (and that’s OK sometimes) but it does nothing for your mental health.
Take control
Maybe a more holistic approach needs to be taken to treating people with Fibromyalgia, looking at the person as a whole and taking into consideration not just physical but mental health & emotional wellbeing. Plus external factors such as lifestyle, work and diet instead of firefighting symptoms like pain as and when you have them.
This is just the reality of trying to function day to day and it’s bespoke, what works for me might not work for you. I am lucky that I’ve found a treatment plan that works for me at the moment, it’s not been a quick fix, things can change and it’s taken over 4 years. It’s a mixture of the above (minus the medical marijuana) and it’s taken a lot of trial and error to get to the point where I feel like I have things under control. What I will say is, it’s YOUR treatment for YOUR body. You decide what feels right for you, if you’re not happy with your treatment, talk to your doctor, see a different doctor! Try something new, take control of your own health care. You are the only person who knows your body and knows how it feels. Don’t let anyone tell you different!
If you’re trying any of the above please, please, please pace yourself and speak to your doctor if you’re unsure about anything. Start small and build yourself up. 5 minutes of walking is better than 0 minutes of walking. As I’ve said before I am not a medical professional and am not claiming to be one. This is all my personal experience 😊
What is pyjama paralysis? - NHS England » 70 days to end pyjama paralysis