brain fog

So I reported recently that I have made great progress combating my apathy and depression by getting off meds known to have a side effect of apathy, and by finding out my brain was oxygen-starved from undiagnosed sleep apnea. But I still have fibromyalgia, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), cPTSD, and I am still overspending myself as a 24/7 caregiver to my husband… so I still have daily struggles. I know that if I am not very careful, I could lose my progress and return to an unhealthy state where I am “frozen” hiding in my Nest all the time again.

Here are some things I have been doing to keep myself from slipping back into depression and inactivity.

- 30-minutes of sun lamp therapy within the first hour after waking (makes a huge difference for me regarding how alert I am and how energetic I feel)

- Taking a shower no less than every other day early in the day—even when I don’t want to (This is HUGE for me and I use it to mindfully transition from sleepy to awake by focusing on how wonderful the warm water feels on different parts of me.)

- Eating protein, fruits and vegetables for breakfast BEFORE having coffee, dairy, sugar or grains (I hard-boil eggs 18 at a time so they are easy to grab in the morning, and I put them in a bowl with 2 tablespoons of basil/kale/cashew pesto from Trader Joe’s, with a small handful of raw almonds and a piece of fruit on the side. If I feel hungry later before lunch I have a small bowl of healthy grains, like meulsi. This helps a lot to provide energy

- Never skipping morning meds and trying to take meds at the same times every day to better regulate my body/brain chemistry.

- Less screen time and more looking out of the windows. I have my face in a screen a LOT as a way to escape, so I really need to ask myself what else I could be doing when I am tempted to scroll on my phone. So I look around the room to find one small task to do instead, like straightening or dusting—something that will help me move forward toward a happier, healthier life. On days this is especially difficult, I make deals with myself that I can justify some screen time after I accomplish a task.

There are lots more of these small habits that end up having a powerful positive impact on me over time. I have them on a note on my phone so I don’t forget any. Please share some of your strategies too.

#apathy #Anxiety #GeneralizedAnxietyDisorder #Depression #ComplexPosttraumaticStressDisorder #Fibromyalgia #ChronicFatigue #SleepApnea #PTSD #BrainFog

It’s Thursday and a new episode of Creative Copes Podcast has been released on all listening platforms. This is episode is a deep dive into being diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. Go have a listen on your favorite app and let us know what you think!
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linktr.ee/creativecopes
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#Podcast #creativecopes #Fibromyalgia #ChronicMigraineSyndrome #ChronicVestibularMigraine #Migraine #BrainFog #Anxiety #MyalgicEncephalomyelitis #ChronicHeadaches #ChronicIllness #ChronicPain #ChronicMigraines #ChronicFatigue

In a precedent miniSode to our deep dive into Fibromyalgia we talked about Brain Fog as a symptom of chronic illness and have disabling it can be. Please Go listen and tell us what you think:

creativecopes.wixsite.com/podcast/episodes/episode/428d599d/...

And stay tuned on your favorite listening platform as we release the deep dive into Fibromyalgia this Thursday 3/30-23.

#BrainFog #FibroFog #ChronicFatigue #Fibromyalgia #ChronicVestibularMigraine #ChronicMigraineSyndrome #Migraine #FMS #MyalgicEncephalomyelitis #CrohnsDisease #Endometriosis #Anxiety #PanicDisorder #ChronicHeadaches #ChronicIllness #ChronicMigraines #ChronicPain #creativecopes #SpinalCordInjury #Whiplash

The cognitive function struggles when your #RareDisease causes brain fog and #neurodivergent disorders poses difficulty in remembering can be extremely frustrating. But don’t see this as a personal flaw - you are not to blame #neurodivergentzebra

The next time your neurological and physical conditions are contending for your brain power, imagine each one as two cartoon characters. Next, visualize them playing tug of war for your brain. Let them play their silly game and imagine yourself walking right past them. This will send those characters a visual message that you’re not going to give them any more of your time or energy.

Back in the physical world, consider keeping a notebook or to-do list handy so that, as those random tasks come up you can immediately write them down - checking them off later on is oh-so satisfying! You got this 💪

#Neurodiversity #neurodivergence #ADHD #PTSD #OCD #executivefunctiondeficit #BrainFog #EhlersDanlosSyndrome #EDS #RareDisease #Anxiety #PanicDisorder

This is exactly what I, and countless others, do everyday - we put up a ‘public persona’ to hide what we’re truly going through. We pretend that we aren’t: in #AGONY or #depressed or #exhausted or #anxious . We pretend because we are #scared of how others would treat us if they really know what we were going through. The thing is though, by pretending we are something we’re not, we are giving ourselves more #Stress but also denying someone the opportunity to help us deal with the things that are really going on in our lives.
#itsokaynottobeokay #itsoktoneedhelp #ChronicIllness #chronicillnessawareness #ChronicPain #chronicpainawareness #mentalhealthmatters #MentalHealth #MensMentalHealth #CollegeMentalHealth #MentalHealthAwareness #Disability #IntellectualDisability #DevelopmentalDisability #InvisibleDisability #disabilityawareness #invisibleillnessawareness #FunctionalNeurologicalDisorder #FND #FNDAwareness #JointHypermobilitySyndrome #ChronicMigraineSyndrome #ChronicVestibularMigraine #HemiplegicMigraine #Migraine #BipolarDepression #ChronicDepression #Depression #ChronicFatigue #Anxiety #SensoryProcessingDisorder #BrainFog #PanicAttacks #PanicDisorder #notalone #BeYourself