Prepare

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Planning The Year Ahead

As my body is currently out of order, I have decided to put my brain to work. Planning and preparation are key to success. There are two sayings that I have lived by for as long as I can remember, “preparation prevents poor performance” and “fail to prepare, prepare to fail”. These sayings are bitter sweet when you have unpredictable health conditions that fluctuate from hour to hour! Not knowing what you will face each time you wake is exhausting in itself, so anything that can be done in advance to help your day run a little bit more smoothly. My number one focus next year is me. Am focusing on my health from the inside out. Starting with my gut health because what goes on in the gut has an affect on the whole body. Everything from brain fog to inflammation can come from bad gut health. If the gut is not causing the issue then it certainly is a factor that compounds the issue. Getting my gut healthy is not only important to me because of my autoimmune but because I know it holds the key to me achieving a better quality of life.

As much as people go on about diets, I choose a way of life because if I stumble and fall along my journey then I can stand back up and carry on. Diets for me tend to evoke the thoughts of deprivation, hunger, tasteless bland food and unhappiness. My choice to embrace a certain way of eating make this become a way of life rather than a temporary fix. The temporary fix of a “diet: will more than likely cause me to slip back further than I was each time I start. Embracing the way of life enables me to plan and focus. I can take control of my food and the way it is sourced, cooked and then eaten knowing full well what exactly is on my fork.

Buying local organic food is the second must on my list right underneath my main goal for next year and that is to grow more of my own food. This way I can reduce my carbon footprint as I am not travelling to shop and not buying food that has its own carbon foot print just to get on the shelves of the supermarket. The gargantuan task of preparation, planning and designing a garden to enable maximum yield and more importantly, accessibility for myself has been paramount for success. My health conditions make planning sometimes fall by the wayside as I am unable to complete tasks on given days. So to help with the unpredictability I have to prepare for the eventuality that I will be ill and devise a fail safe so the work I can complete doesn’t get ruined by the work I am unable to do.

Exercise is part of the plan and the main chunk of my goal setting. But as with the garden, I must prepare and implement a fail safe into my plan so I don’t loose instead of gain. Good nutrition will help my gut, fuel my body and help me find the energy to exercise. The exercise and good food will help me gain strength and achieve my goals. What are your plans?
#preperation #Prepare #actionplan #study #autoimmune #ChronicFatigue #ChronicPain #InvisibleDisability #InvisibleIllness #Fibromyalgia #guthealth

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Daylight Saving Time Reminder

If you’re living in the following areas, it’s time to adjust your clocks, pump, meter, CGM, lancet and smoke alarms:

🔸Bahamas
🔸 Bermuda
🔸Canada, except Yukon, most of Saskatchewan, and parts of British Columbia (northeast), Nunavut (Southampton Island),
Ontario (Atikokan) and Quebec (Le Golfe-du-Saint-Laurent)
🔸Greenland: Thule Air Base
🔸Haiti
🔸Mexico: Baja California, and municipalities within 20 km of the U.S. border except in Sonora
Saint Pierre and Miquelon
🔸Turks and Caicos Islands
🔸United States, except Arizona (without Navajo Nation), Hawaii and U.S. territories
Cuba

#Diabetes #DiabetesType2 #DiabetesType1 #ChronicIllness #AutoimmuneDisease #Safety #Prepare

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How to prepare?

This is for folks with EDS, hyper mobility syndrome, or similar conditions.

I have my appointment with my PCP on Monday (11/16) morning. I’ve been keeping a log of my pain and numbness as suggested by them for my back pain. I think I’m going to transfer it to my computer and print it out so it can go in my chart. Since I started the log the symptoms have expanded from primarily back pain to whole body pain and extremity numbness. I also have weakness and hyper mobility in multiple joints that’s causing problems (falls or near falls, dropping stuff, etc.)

I found out yesterday (11/9) that my mom lied to me about not having any hyper mobility as an adult. I told her I was concerned about mine after my wrist gave out at work causing me to drop a 30lb box into my chest and she retorted with “I deal with it everyday you just have to get over it.”

It’s already been documented that she doesn’t have any problems so they “ruled out” EDS but now this comes about. How do I correct this info without looking like I’m lying? I just want answers and tools to cope. I know there isn’t a cure, but having a diagnosis would make me feel valid in my struggle. I would be able to ignore my mom when she says I’m imagining everything.

I go to PT, a chiropractor, use an ankle brace, limit strenuous activity (most of the time), ordered a wrist brace with thumb spica (its enroute last I checked), document the more troublesome symptoms (it would be pages long if I documented everything), attempting to eliminate gluten (not so successful so far).

What else can I do to prove what I’m dealing with is real? A diagnosis would help if/when I decide to apply for disability again because sadly it would be one more thing to add to the list of problems.

I guess this kinda turned into a rant/vent, so if you made it this far thank you! My question still stands though, what else can I do to prepare for this long awaited appointment?

#EhlersDanlosSyndrome (?) #Undiagnosed #Hypermobility #appointment #Prepare #Anxiety #Depression #Comorbidities

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What can you do every week to prepare for the week ahead? #52SmallThings

Keep up with this week’s self-care challenge by identifying one small thing you can regularly do to feel prepared.

#MentalHealth #ChronicIllness #Parenting #RareDisease #Disability #Autism #PlanAhead #Prepare

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What’s something you can do that your future self will thank you for? #52SmallThings

Build off of week 7’s self-love challenge and tell us what your present self can do for your future self. Maybe it’s something small (like brushing your teeth before bed) or a little bit bigger (like putting some extra money into your savings). Because sometimes thinking about where we want to be — even if we’re not there yet — can help us prioritize what you have going on in our lives.

#MentalHealth #ChronicIllness #Parenting #RareDisease #Disability #Autism #PlanAhead #Prepare

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What are your go-to time-saving hacks? #52SmallThings

Share the tips and tricks that make things like cooking, cleaning or practicing personal hygiene less time-consuming. Because part of preparing ahead (this week’s self-care challenge!) is knowing how to plan for the amount of time certain activities will take you.

Scroll through the comments for hacks that might be helpful in your own life!

#MentalHealth #ChronicIllness #Parenting #RareDisease #Disability #Autism #PlanAhead #Prepare #Lifehacks

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What’s on your to-do list for tomorrow? #52SmallThings

Is there anything on that list you can prepare for ahead of time? Maybe packing your lunch at night allows you to sleep in a little longer, ordering your prescriptions saves you time at the pharmacy or setting a reminder on your phone makes sure you remember a task on your list.

#MentalHealth #ChronicIllness #Parenting #RareDisease #Disability #Autism #PlanAhead #todolist #Prepare

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What can you do today that will make you feel more ready for tomorrow? #52SmallThings

This week’s self-care task is all about planning ahead. Take the challenge and tell us something present you can do for future you.

#MentalHealth #ChronicIllness #Parenting #RareDisease #Disability #Autism #PlanAhead #Prepare

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Getting Ready for Doctor Appointment

#Prepare for Dr. Appt
Take a book, Kindle, phone with games, puzzle book etc. One of the germiest things magazines in waiting room. Just think how many people's hands (sick - unwashed) have touched those magazines. Yuk!

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