IT'S 5 O'CLOCK SOMEWHERE UPDATE

So..........

moderate drinking eases Fibromyalgia.

Gee, ya think???

They needed a study for this??

I published this post a couple of years ago but another study has surfaced and maybe it's time for me to dust this one off again. I guess it's been shown that people that drink have less trouble with the symptoms of Fibromyalgia and a better quality of life. Now, I'm not Einstein but I don't think you have to be a Mensa candidate to figure this one out.

Moderate drinking is categorized as more than three but less than seven drinks a week. Okay, so if I knock down a few after dinner I guess I'll be able to handle the pain in a more ladylike fashion. Here's the trouble......

I have NO tolerance for alcohol.

This started after I had my daughter. In college my girlfriend and I used to win shot contests and still be standing straight. Something happened to my body after I had Danielle. I get buzzed really, really fast.

Buzzed?
I've been known to drunk dial after one.

It doesn't help that I really don't like the taste of liquor. I have to hide it in fru-fru drinks like Mudslides or Pina Coladas or, if I was back in the old college days, Everclear 151 and fruit punch. If I can't taste it and the rest of the drink tastes good I'm in trouble. I forget the stuff is in there.

So, back to the study.

Who wastes time with this??

Of course, if you're half lit you're going to be able to tolerate the pain that bombards our bodies. It's interesting that some of the patients reported that they also cannot tolerate alcohol so that is why they abstain. Also, there are medications that absolutely should NOT be taken while drinking. 

If you're in a lot of pain and take opioids, you should DEFINITELY NOT resort to moderate drinking to relieve symptoms. People with Fibromyalgia have low GABA levels (gamma-aminobutyric acid). GABA slows down the activity of the nerve cells in the brain. Alcohol increases the action of the GABA receptor. This may be a reason that the pain volume is turned way up in people with Fibromyalgia. Low GABA, high pain, huh?

Like I said.....if you're half lit......who cares??

Of the 2200 people (and over 57% of them were women) who participated in the study it was founds that they had lower BMI (I guess if you drink you don't eat) lower unemployment and higher education. (You can tell that from a margarita?) At least the U.S. researchers said it was the wrong approach to take for dealing with pain.

They urged people not to start drinking to relieve pain.

They couldn't figure out why the alcohol helped with the pain.

They actually studied this???

I have to stop writing....

my margarita is waiting for me.

After one of them I won't even be able to spell margarita.

They call this "an alternative experience."

I'm still shaking my head.......

Here's the link......you've got to read it.  Study on Drinking

I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU JUST SAID THAT!

In these times of not wanting to offend.

In these times of political correctness.

I thought I'd add a few things

that you shouldn't say to chronic patients.

1. You don't look sick.

No, I don't look sick. If I looked like I felt I'd scare dogs and little children but thanks for telling me that I should look sick if I want to be taken seriously.

2. You should exercise more - you'd feel better.

I guess it would be o.k. if I fell asleep on the treadmill. I especially like it the next day when I can't move any part of my body due to the pain of the glorious exercise I did the day before. I understand that you have to move but you can't overdo it.

3. Everybody gets tired.

Yes, everyone does get tired but not to the point where you fall asleep after being awake for an hour.

4. You just need to have a better attitude.

Gee, I thought I did have a good attitude. If my attitude reflected the pain it might kill you.

5. It can't be that bad.

In the same vein no, it can't be that bad. I'll just take a baseball bat and beat the crap out of you and see how you feel the next day. Live like that for years and then tell me it can't be that bad.

6. I wish I had time to take a nap too.

Yep, I'm just a whining little princess who naps and eats bon-bon's all day and pretends to be sick. Hmmmm.....great idea!!!

7. If you'd just get out more.

I love being locked in my ivory tower. I definitely should get out more. That makes me feel SO much better now. So, what happens? I get out and it takes me a few days to recover.

8. You're just depressed.

Well, what tipped you off to that one? If you live with chronic pain and fatigue don't you think you might get a tad depressed? It's not where I want to live, trust me.

9. Oh come on, just get tough.

If you only knew how tough we really are to function and deal with this illness. Fibromyalgia isn't for sissies.

and my favorite...................

10. It's all in your head.

You're absolutely right. It is all in our heads. It's called a problem with the central nervous system.

Thanks for listening and feel free to add more in the comments!!

WHICH HIGHWAY AM I ON?

Ok.

I've heard it before.

I may be a tad opinionated.

A tad.

Where is the fine line that is forever blurred between feeling absolutely lazy and the laziness that depression absolutely brings? What is the difference between tenacity and stupidity and why can't I recognize the difference? Why do I long to control the wrong things and let the right things go? Where is the recognition of "this is very doable" and "I shouldn't touch this with a ten foot pole?" This is all very good except that I continually want to touch the things that I shouldn't touch with a ten foot pole.

Let's try a 6" ruler.
That's the story of my life.

As I got older I started trying to see if I could be still and not constantly butt my head against the brick wall titled "things I cannot change." I've come to the conclusion that it does no good. There was a story, I think in Pulp Fiction, about the scorpion and the frog. I heard it from my best friend and we always refer to it and say, "you can't change someones nature." The scorpion wants to hitch a ride on the back of the frog across the stream. Frog says, "no, you'll sting me." The scorpion eventually reassures the frog that it won't happen so the frog relents. What happens? The scorpion stings the frog. When the frog asks why? The scorpion replies, "it's my nature."

There it is.

I think it's in my very DNA to fight city hall. 

It comes down to medical issues as well. I'm not one of those people that thinks the right diet cures everything. I do believe in modern medicine. While I like to use oils and supplements, I don't think they are the end-all, be-all of medicine. I have gotten advice to end thyroid medication and go on holistic supplements. While I think that's great for some, I also think that it's dangerous. Not every medication is a conspiracy of "big pharma." I think you have to weigh the risks and benefits but it's a conversation between you and a physician who's been trained; not between you and people on social media. Having said that, I've been prescribed all sorts of things that I'm not going to take. Steroids, antidepressants and statin drugs.....well, I'm just too afraid to take them. I know that if I have any adverse reaction whatsoever, well, I'm done. 

Do I think I know better than the doctor? 

No, I don't.

What I know is my personality.

So where is the middle ground?

Do I have any?

If history tells me anything.

No, I don't.

THE FOG IS ROLLING IN

I haven't been up to writing.

The weather has changed.

I don't know which direction to go.

I guess east is nice.

I went to the painting class last night and I had a great time. I didn't buy anything although I wanted to go back to this place A LOT.  I'm just glad there wasn't anything to buy otherwise I would have come home with a lot of paint and canvas.

Thank goodness for little miracles.

Having said that, it must be the fog or writers block or something. I have drafts started that I just couldn't complete. It's scary when you look up and have to open up the databanks and desperately search for the thought you were trying to process. It's scary when you look at a page of words and wonder if you can comprehend complex sentences ever again. It's scary when you walk into a room and can't remember why you went in there in the first place. 

It's very scary when you arrive at your destination and wonder how you got there. You wonder if the insomnia is shrinking your brain cells. Restorative sleep is hard to get with Fibromyalgia but it's that refreshing rest that helps manage the Fibro fog. I find that it helps to break up tasks or reading into small blocks. That way when the fog envelops your brain you don't give in to the stress of losing it. 

I didn't sleep at all last night. I finally got to sleep at 12:30 and by 2:00 I was up and unable to go back to sleep. I'd shut my eyes but it wasn't happening. It was alpha wave intrusion at it's finest. Finally at 6:00 a.m. I finally closed my eyes and woke up at 9:30.  I hate not being able to sleep. It causes so much more pain during the day.

What is prescribed as behavioral modifications for the treatment of insomnia doesn't seem to me to be particularly helpful to someone with Fibromyalgia. I understand what the intent is but for me it just wouldn't work. Actually, it would make it worse. For example, let's just take no TV, phone or computer while lying in bed. Ok, let me think about this. If I'm in a great deal of pain and I'm in bed that means I have nothing to distract me. All I will do is be in bed and have nothing to think about but the pain. 

Nope, that won't work. 

So, today I'm just going to take it easy and try to remember that "this too shall pass."

As I look outside.......

I see rain clouds.

Well, isn't that just great.

KNITTING, STAINED GLASS AND PLANTING, OH MY!

I love hobbies.

I've tried many of them.

Just don't ask how many I still have.

I was told I need a hobby. Hobbies are good for therapy and they keep your hands busy. They're calming and can relieve stress. Lets see.........I think I'll start out with knitting. Good place to start. My cousin, who got me in and out of more trouble than I can think of, called me. "Hey, Rose, I'm starting a knitting class...want to go?"

Being the amiable person that I am I replied, "Sure."

OK, most people go to the class and purchase needles and yarn. No big deal, right? I got the bag, I got circular needles, I got two types of knitting needles and I bought angora yarn. I didn't want to knit a plain old sweater. I was going to knit a masterpiece. Mel and I decided we could start making sweaters and then selling them. Hey, I was ALL in for that one.

When I got home I showed my husband everything and told him how excited I was to start the class. He looked at me with a slightly raised and arched eyebrow and said,

"I'll give you $500.00 if you finish that sweater."

Well, I knew I had that 500 in the bag. I told him, "no problem." Let me ask you, do you think I EVER got that 500?

Let's move on to stained glass. I have to say one thing about my ex-husband. He may have been a lot of things but he was patient with me. When I told him I wanted to take a stained glass class he just looked at me and said okay and then walked away shaking his head. As I look back he was probably wondering how much this little adventure was going to cost him. If you read about the knitting you know the outcome. I still have some of the knives that I bought for that class. The glorious window remains a vision.

Probably my crowning glory is the garden. Now I love plants and flowers. I loved walking out in our yard and smelling all the jasmine and seeing the lush greenery. It was gorgeous. I can do the planting and the admiring. Maintenance, however, is a different story.

I bought bags AND BAGS of soil. I wanted beautiful little rows of tomatoes and onions. I wanted green peppers and rows of potatoes. With each row planted I would proudly tell my husband how much money we were going to save and how good it would be for us. God Bless Him, every time I mentioned it he just looked at me and walked away shaking his head.

We could have gone to Europe on what I spent on that fictitious garden. Do you think the veggies ever made it to the table? I'll bet you answered correctly.

My latest was beading. My girlfriend asked me to join her. I knew what was going to happen and I still went with her. I told her what was going to happen, and I STILL went with her. Yep, it did happen again. I am the proud owner of a beading bag and tons of beads and a bracelet that looks like a three year old did it.

After all this, I've come to the conclusion that hobbies are not my forte. I've also concluded that I am the idea man. I can visualize it, I can put it together. I'll direct the picture but someone else needs to do the physical work and maintenance. In the event I still want to attempt something creative, I should stick to solitary pursuits that don't involve ANYTHING artsy-craftsy. I tried scrapbooks and the pictures are still in one place but I have a TON of paper and materials to make the largest scrapbook in history. QVC has to love me. I just don't seem to learn.

After all of this my daughter calls me.

For the "outlaws" birthday we're going to a painting class.

"You in, Mom?"

Be afraid, be very afraid.

Maybe I should try biofeedback.