Acupuncture has been one of my go-to treatments for chronic pain for a good six or seven years, but it doesn't come cheap. Even with insurance, it adds up to have a treatment on a regular basis (and don't even get me started on the expense of massages, but I fork over for those too… Continue reading Acupressure Mats: Torture Devices, Pain Relievers, or Both?
One of the best ideas I've come across about managing chronic pain/chronic illness is the Not To Do List. I read about it in one of Toni Bernhardt's books about living well with chronic conditions, but I can't remember which one. (You can view all her books here. They are all lovely.) The gist of… Continue reading Revisiting the NOT To Do List
Recently, my husband and I took an R&R long weekend at a cabin in the countryside about an hour from home. I was sitting on the screened porch one morning, sipping tea and listening to the birds. A pasture area lay off beyond the trees. The air smelled fresh after the rain the night before.… Continue reading Stress, Suffering, Pain, and Release
So, life has been challenging this summer. My back has not been playing nice, which means my house is a disaster, my productivity has been dismal, and my blog neglected. But, I just finished six weeks of aquatic physical therapy, and my body is feeling so much better. Of course, then my husband gave me… Continue reading Aquatic Physical Therapy is My New BFF
This week, I let myself hope that my extended time on muscle relaxers and additional back pain was coming to an end. I let myself hope that last week, too, and it didn't work out. But this week felt different. During the day on Monday I felt really good with only half a muscle relaxer… Continue reading The Insidiousness of Hope
To my mother-in-law, who I know reads my blog, feel free to stop reading now. 😉 One of the least talked about (on the surface, although you can find stuff if you search for it) is how much of an impact chronic back pain has on your sex life. We all hear about how sex… Continue reading Let’s Talk About Sex … and Chronic Back Pain
So I am entering week three of a major back flare up. This one is unlike any I've had before. It makes it near impossible to sit for long periods of time. At one point, I thought I was getting better, as I could sit longer with a heating pad, but it appears to have… Continue reading Pain and Depression and Meds and Hanging On
I've been doing a good deal of learning lately. Right now, I am slowly working my way through Pema Chödrön's No Time to Lose. It struck me that I have a habit of escaping into my fantasy life when I am having bad pain days. For sure, this is a coping method to try to… Continue reading Fantasy Life
I have had low- and mid-back issues since I was a teenager. Several years ago, a doctor helped me figure out that it all started when I was in a serious car accident when I was four. The accelerator in our car stuck. My mom was driving on a dirt road and drove into an… Continue reading B is for Back Pain and Learning to Live with (and around) It #AtoZChallenge
It's been another rough week. When my stomach and back issues both flare at the same time, I have a lot of trouble dealing, which in turn flares my depression. This was the first time I've had serious suicidal thoughts in about six weeks. Today is a bit better of a day. I took some… Continue reading Random Musings on Chronic Pain, Acute Flare-ups, and Quality of Life
Suicidal Tulip 