Guidance

My Sister sent me this via email. I thought it beautiful enough to post on my blog. Thank you sister of mine for being such an inspiration for me.



Dancing With God

When I meditated on the word Guidance,

I kept seeing "dance" at the end of the word.

I remember reading that doing God's will is a lot like dancing.

When two people try to lead, nothing feels right.

The movement doesn't flow with the music,

and everything is quite uncomfortable and jerky.

When one person realizes that, and lets the other lead,

both bodies begin to flow with the music.

One gives gentle cues, perhaps with a nudge to the back

or by pressing Lightly in one direction or another.

It's as if two become one body, moving beautifully.

The dance takes surrender, willingness,

and attentiveness from one person

and gentle guidance and skill from the other

My eyes drew back to the word Guidance.

When I saw "G": I thought of God, followed by "u" and "i".

"God, "u" and "i" dance."

God, you, and I dance.

As I lowered my head, I became willing to trust

that I would get guidance about my life.

Once again, I became willing to let God lead.

My prayer for you today is that God's blessings

and mercies are upon you on this day and everyday.

May you abide in God, as God abides in you.

Dance together with God, trusting God to lead

and to guide you through each season of your life.

Worth reading

I know that most of you have already read this but some might not have read it, and it has great information, so i thought it worth posting. I received this in my email, this is about the third time i have received it, and each time it sticks in my head a little more.



Crucial

Because of recent abductions

in daylight hours, refresh yourself

of these things to do

in an emergency situation...

This is for you,

and for you to share

with your wife,

your children,

everyone you know.

After reading these 9 crucial tips ,

forward them to someone you care about.

It never hurts to be careful

in this crazy world we live in.

1 . Tip from Tae Kwon Do : & lt; /FONT>

The elbow is the strongest point

on your body.

If you are close enough to use it, do!

2. Learned this from a tourist guide

in New Orleans

If a robber asks for your wallet and/or purse,

DO NOT HAND IT TO HIM .

Toss it away from you....

chances are that he is more interested

in your wallet and/or purse than you,

and he will go for the wallet/purse.

RUN LIKE MAD IN THE OTHER DIRECTION!

3. If you are ever thrown into the trunk of a car,

kick out the back tail lights and stick your arm out the hole

and start waving like crazy.

The driver won't see you, but everybody else will.

This has saved lives.


4. Women have a tendency to get into their cars

after shopping, eating, working, etc., and just sit

(doing their checkbook, or making a list, etc.

DON'T DO THIS!)

The predator will be watching you, and this

is the perfect opportunity for him to get in

on the passenger side, put a gun to your head,

and tell you where to go.

AS SOON AS YOU GET INTO YOUR CAR ,

LOCK THE DOORS AND LEAVE.

If someone

is in the car

with a gun

to your head

DO NOT DRIVE OFF,

repeat:

DO NOT DRIVE OFF!

Instead gun the engine

and speed into anything, wrecking the car.

Your Air Bag will save you.

If the person is in the back seat

they will get the worst of it .

As soon as the car crashes

bail out and run.

It is better than having them find your body

in a remote location.


5 . A few notes about getting

into your car in a parking lot,

or parking garage:

A.) Be aware:

look around you,

look into your car,

at the passenger side floor ,

and in the back seat

B.) If you are parked next to a big van,

enter your car from the passenger door .

Most serial killers attack their victims

by pulling them into their vans while the women

are attempting to get into their cars.

C.) Look at the car

parked on the driver's side of your vehicle,

and the passenger side.. If a male is sitting alone

in the seat nearest your car, you may want to walk back

into the mall, or work, and get a

guard/policeman to walk you back out.

IT IS ALWAYS BETTER TO BE SAFE THAN SORRY. (And better paranoid
than dead.)


6. ALWAYS take the elevator

instead of the stairs.

(Stairwells are horrible places to be alone

and the perfect crime spot.

This is especially true at NIGHT!)


7. If the predator has a gun

and you are not under his control,

ALWAYS RUN!

The predator will only hit you (a running target)

4 in 100 times; And even then,

it most likely WILL NOT be a vital organ.

RUN, Preferably in a zig -zag pattern!


8. As women, we are always trying

to be sympathetic:

STOP

It may get you raped, or killed.

Ted Bundy, the serial killer, was a good-looking,

well educated man, who ALWAYS played

on the sympathies of unsuspecting women.

He walked with a cane, or a limp, and often

asked "for help" into his vehicle o r with his vehicle,

which is when he abducted
his next victim.

9. Another Safety Point:



Someone just told me that her friend heard

a crying baby on her porch the night before last,

and she called the police because it was late

and she thought it was weird. The police told her

"Whatever you do, DO NOT

open the door."

The lady then said that it sounded like the baby

had crawled near a window, and she was worried

that it would crawl to the street and get run over.

The policeman said, "We already have a unit on the way,

whatever you do, DO NOT open the door."

He told her that they think a serial killer

has a baby's cry recorded and uses it to coax

women out of their homes thinking that someone

dropped off a baby He said they have not verified it,

but have had several calls by women saying that

they hear baby's cries outside their doors

when they're home alone at night.

Please pass this on and DO NOT open the door

for a crying baby ----

This e-mail should probably be taken seriously because

the Crying Baby theory was mentioned on

America 's Most Wanted this past Saturday when they profiled
the serial killer in Louisiana


I'd like you to forward this to all the women you know.
It may save a life. A candle is not dimmed by lighting another
candle.




Send this to any woman you know that may need
to be reminded that the world we live in has a lot of crazies in it
and it's better to be safe than sorry..

Everyone should take 5 minutes to read this. It may save your life
or love one's life.

Link Loving 2008

J.D.'s SOAP BOX tagged me
I have randomly selected 5 of you below to be tagged and I hope that you will similarly publish this post in your blog. You will have to tag 5 other bloggers and just keep adding on to the list. (Do not replace, just keep on adding! Yes we hope it will be a long list!) It’s real easy!
Tag others and see your Technorati Authority increase exponentially.

The benefits of Viral Linking:- One of the fastest ways to see your technorati authority explode!- Increase your Google PageRank fast- Attract large volume of new traffic to your site- Build your community. - Make new friends!
Add your blog url at the end of the list... The Strategist Notebook/Link Addiction/Ardour of the Heart/ When Life Becomes a Book/The Malaysian Life/ Yogatta.com/What goes under the sun/ Roshidan’s Cyber Station/Sasha says/Arts of Physics/And the legend lives/My View, My Life/ A Simple Life/What Women REALLY Think/Not Much More Than This/Jayedee/Jenn/Beth/ Christie/Marla/Cailin/Simone/FlipFlopMom/Katrina/Gill's Jottings/Work of the Poet/ Wakela/Modern Day Goddess/Livin With Me/Are We There Yet??/The Erstwhile Librarian /Lynne's Little Corner of the World/Violetlady At Home/Bits And Pieces/ JD's Soap Box/Mysti's Spiritual blog/ You are next...

I add:
Tart from Advetures of a Jungle Tart
Hope from The wanderings and Ponderings of a Brilliant Mind
Mark from Lord of the Idiots!
Deb from Dr. Deb
Wolfbaby from Dreaming and Believing

Made me smile

How can you not smile at this? Toooooooo cute!

Only God really knows or understands.

(Do not listen to the song if you offend easily please.)


Today will be day number four of detoxing. I knew i would have more pain, so that is not a shock. I have struggled dealing with the pain. Mornings seem to be worse. Today trying to get out of bed my body hurt everywhere. I struggled to bend over to pick up my little lily angel.

Trying to get downstairs was a push for me. Pain starting from feet all the way up to my head. Pouring coffee caused more pain to shoot up through my hands, causing me almost to drop the pot.

Hopefully as i stretch, and work through my day the pain will lesson.

I am so tired that at times i have a hard time keeping my eyes open. When i sleep it is a feeling of being drugged. I struggle to wake up, it feels like coming out of a fog. It takes a while for me to figure out what time it is , or where exactly i am.

I think to myself why am i having to deal with all the pain? I have been dealing with pain in one form or another all my life it seems. I guess Only God knows why.

The positive side is that for about a year now i have had huge bruises on my thighs that would never go away. They are now fading since i have been on the program. This is a huge deal! It means that the program is working. I just need to stick with it and not give up. My body is working hard at getting rid of the toxins at healing itself.

The reason I posted this song today is simple really, parts of it i relate with. It also fits my mood. It shows the state of my mind today I think. This song is not for everyone. Some might be offended with some of the words, so please do not listen to it unless you are prepared.

Words to song Only God knows


Only God Knows Why
by Kid Rock

I've been sittin' here Tryin' to find myself
I get behind myself I need to rewind myself
Lookin' for the payback Listen for the playback
They say that every man bleeds just like me

And I feel like number one Yet I'm last in line
I watch my youngest son And it helps to pass the time
I take too many pills It helps to ease the pain
I made a couple of dollar bills still I feel the same

Everybody knows my name They say it way out loud
A lot of folks fuck with me It's hard to hang out in crowds
I guess that's the price you pay To be some big shot like I am
Outstretched hands and one night stands Still I can't find love

And when your walls come tumbling down
I will always be around
And when your walls come tumbling down
I will always be around

People don't know bout the things I say and do
They don't understand about the shit that I've been through
It's been so long since I've been home
I've been gone, I've been gone far way too long

Maybe I forgot all the things I've missed
Oh somehow I know there's more to life than this
I said it too many times And I still stand firm
You get what you put in And people get what they deserve

Still I ain't seen mine No I ain't seen mine
I've been giving just ain't been gettin'
I've been walking that there line
So I think I'll keep on walking With my head held high
I'll keep moving on and only God knows why

Only God.....Only God
Only God knows why
Only God....knows....why, why, why oh only God knows why

Take me to the river eh
Wont you Take me to the river, hey hey heyeah

Finding ways to stay positive

*Picture taken by my husband.


A new day is starting. I am up early, and was looking around for something positive to put up on my post. I find that if i read, listen or do positive things such as take walks at the ocean, or paint, it helps me get through the detoxing.

So each day i want to do at least one positive thing that helps clear the mind, and allow me to push forward. Since today is to cold to go to the ocean, my positive thing for the day is reading things that uplift the spirit and later i shall paint.


An uplifting quote:

It is not good for all our wishes to be filled; through sickness we recognize the value of health; through evil, the value of good; through hunger, the value of food; through exertion, the value of rest.
- Greek Proverb


A quote that made me smile:

Life expectancy would grow by leaps and bounds if green vegetables smelled as good as bacon.
- Doug Larson

The Start in getting rid of toxins in my body

Well today was the first day of my new program. I wasn't going to write in my blog at first, because i am having problems focusing. I feel like i am in a daze. I figured though i should , because it will help me keep track of how i am doing. It will allow me to look back and see if i have had any improvements or not. Please forgive me if my writing is a little off tonight.

I still need to buy the sauna,( I order it tomorrow ) but i was able to start the other part of program. I started my day out with some juice that had a special formula called PaleoCleanse Powder & Amion D-Tox in it. I also am now on two other new things. The first is Magnesium. I tried this before but for some reason had to go off of it. I forget exactly why, we figured we would give it another try, so we re added it to my diet along with something called Kaprex. Kaprex is supposed to give Joint Relief. I have never been on that before, so we shall see how my body responds to it.

This new program i am to eliminate all gluten-containing grains, and dairy from my diet during the detoxification process. I am also to follow a whole-food, macronutrient-balanced diet. I am not sure where i am going to get organic fresh veggies and fruits, as well free range organic lean animal proteins which i am also to be eating. This area is not that great for finding those kinds of foods. I guess i will do the best i can.

Today i felt a response right away to the new diet. I instantly had irritable bowel syndrome, as well as a feeling of fatigue. I felt more in a fog then normal. I also have a headache, and my stomach feels swollen.

I think this is normal, the stuff is trying to work in my system. We shall see how tomorrow goes.

That is about it for today, i hope everyone has a blessed evening.

The private thoughts of a lady dealing with pain

These are my private thoughts while dealing with fibromyalgia, lead poisoning, and a bleeding disorder.


Depressions sets in. Feelings of hopelessness overwhelms me. Tiredness takes over, and before you know it days have passed.

Looking around and realizing nothing has been accomplished. Panic happens, and starts to become overwhelming. I take in deep breaths, trying to work through the pain and panic.

I try hard to calm down and begin telling myself that its not my fault I hurt.

Looking in the mirror I see someone I no longer know. I see a lady with dark circles under her eyes. My body looks unattractive in my eyes. I see that my hair needs to be cut, but I pull it back in a pony tail, because I know that the pain wont let me drive. I do not have the energy to leave my house and find a place that gives a decent hair cut anyway. I notice the small bruises that just popped out of no where on my body. My skin looks to white,i know i need sunshine, but nothing i can do about that, because it is raining outside, so no sun today.

I try to smile back at the lady I no longer know, and tell myself that someday the pain will end. Then I realize I really have lost my mind because I am talking to myself.

Pain reminds me that I am to tired to care that I sound crazy. I laugh and think who cares really if i lost my mind.... lol

Pain ravishes the soul, making it hard to care about much.

The phone rings, but i do not want to answer it, because it hurts to talk. I know others love me, and want to know i am ok. My voice however wont work with my mind, so i do not answer. Even if i had a voice today i have nothing positive to say.

I think , maybe tomorrow I can call them back and tell them sorry, that i still care, and love them.

Silent tears appear, I wipe them away.

Looking back into the mirror, I put on a smile, and hope that the pain is only obvious to me. Knowing that life goes on, and feeling sorry for oneself accomplishes nothing.

Days are passing me by so I better get a life. Pain reminds me that it will never go away. It is always just there. I tell myself to stop feeling sorry for myself. Others have it worse.

Pain shoots up my feet and legs. Pain hits the chest, running down the arms. I try to relax, knowing if i tense up it will be worse. Pain pounds at the neck and makes one see strange and have blurred vision. Energy is totally drained out of the soul, and body.

Pain will be there to greet me in the morning. So I need to just get over it.

I remind myself that i am very blessed, that it could be so much worse. I am breathing, and alive. Pain at least makes me feel. Feeling is a good thing. Better feeling pain, then nothing at all.

I remind myself that i have a plan. That maybe this round of detoxing, and new devices will help me be healthy. I try not to cry again, because i know detoxing means more pain, more fatigue, more depression. It is a chance though of feeling better in the end. I need the toxins out of my body, so i best deal!

Turning from the mirror i pray that others can not see that i have been crying. That maybe just maybe the lady that i just saw will look different to others.

I am alive, so life is good.

Pulling out my paints, canvas, and brushes I start to paint in hopes that i will disappear in the picture only i can see.
Where there is no pain, only my dreams.

New plan of action in dealing with my health issues

I had a doctors appointment yesterday. We came up with a new plan to tackle my many medical issues. He suggested that i buy an infrared sauna, go on a detoxing or cleansing program again to get rid of all the bad chemicals out of my system, and start a new vitamin and healthy eating program.

I had never heard of infrared saunas before. He told me some about it, but i went on line and looked up more info. I thought i would share it here on my blog. I found it rather interesting truthfully. We are thinking of buying the portable sauna first. Which i show below. My husband is thinking of then building me a sauna to cut down some of the costs.



If anyone has one of these saunas and uses it on a regular basis i would love to hear if you feel better or not.


What is infrared?

Infrared (IR) radiation is electromagnetic radiation of a wavelength longer than that of visible light, but shorter than that of radio waves. The radiation penetrates the body and heats through a process called conversion, instead of heating the air around you.

Infrared saunas

An infrared sauna is usually a wooden box, or small wooden room, containing several infrared heaters. In a warm environment, an infrared sauna could be open air and still heat the users in the same manner, since the heaters don't rely on the air being hot, but only hot enough such that the body doesn't cool down without sweating. All the same, normally the units are contained in a room, allowing the air to heat and in effect simulating the feel of a traditional sauna. In other words, the sauna box creates the atmosphere of the sauna while the heaters provide the actual infrared therapy.

In an infrared sauna, the infrared heater produces radiant energy, which is the same as the heat from the sun, only without the harmful ultraviolet rays. Most of these heaters draw on technology developed in 1965 by Dr. Tadashi Ishikawa, a member of the Research and Development Department of Fuji Medical.

An infrared sauna uses a specific type of heater that creates infrared waves that heat your body directly, instead of just by the air. The temperature in them is much cooler, at around 110 to 130 °F (43 to 54 °C). The amount of sweat that results from each is comparable, though many people report that the lower temperatures in an infrared sauna allow the user to stay inside longer, resulting in longer sauna sessions and therefore more overall sweating.

The infrared sauna – its health improvement role and health benefits are enormous.

As the skin is the largest organ of the body and a major eliminative channel it’s a pity but in most people, it is inactive, congested and toxic. For example such factors as sun exposure, use of synthetic clothing, bathing in chlorinated water and exposure to hundreds of chemicals as a result the skin is heavily damaged.

Weight loss Also taking in consideration that excessive sympathetic nervous system activity and emotions such as fear, anger and guilt cause blood to be withdrawn from the skin, contributing to inactivity of the skin. All these sound rather depressing, but fortunately we can restore our state of mind and body by means of infrared saunas as they provide many of the benefits including enhanced circulation and oxidation of the tissues. Visiting far infrared saunas regularly can help lower elevated blood pressure and improve the elasticity of the arteries.

IR saunas are also most helpful for cardiovascular rehabilitation, weight loss, arthritis, allergies, skin conditions and chemical sensitivity. The sweating process while in the sauna gently and safely helps eliminate all heavy metals and toxic chemicals. As lots of medical professors state that bio-accumulated toxic load in the human body is responsible for all disease not attributable to bacteria or virus.

There are two facts medical studies prove: 1) most toxins can be eliminated through the skin, relieving the burden on the kidneys and liver; 2) sweating increases dramatically in most people after several months of infra-red sauna use. An infrared sauna is a wooden box with several infrared heaters that works by means of heaters that emit infrared radiation without heating the air; a heater produces this radiant energy, that is similar to the heat from the sun is a completely safe form of naturally occurring energy.

So as a result the IR sauna box creates the atmosphere of the home sauna while the infrared heaters create the actual heating effect. The advantage of the infrared radiation is that it heats the skin directly without warming the air. Infrared radiant heat is safe and beneficial as the heat penetrates more than 1.5 inches into the body thus healing and stimulating tissues. Using portable saunas allows you to achieve health benefits and beauty of the body, as well you can easily do away with stress and fatigue.

Give me a break!

I am sitting here just stunned.

I just watched Dr. Phil with my husband. We both sat there through out the show thinking oh this is a crock! Its B.S. !!

The show was on a teen growing up in a household where the parents yelled a lot.

Ok... I sat and watched and thought yes the mother is out of control. I also thought there is more to this story. The teen was just as awful as the parent.

Yes Parents are the adults and yes they should be the ones in control. I do not have any complaint there.

What i do have a complaint on is what was said by doctor Phil's wife. She was asked by her husband (Dr. Phil) if she ever once yelled at their sons. Her response was NO!!!! According to her, she never once has ever raised her voice at her sons. That in her eyes they are perfect little angles, and she would never have dreamed of yelling or even raising her voice at them.

OHHHHH Give me a break!!! What parent has not yelled at their child? Am i totally being unreasonable here in thinking that if you are a parent you will yell?? Parents are human after all. I am not talking about the kind of yelling where the parents are calling their child names. I am talking about simply yelling. For instance I have yelled at my sons to stop messing around, or they will break something! I have yelled at them when they have scared me out of my wits. I have yelled at them when i am so tired, and they have done nothing all day but give me a headache.

According to the show, and them i am an awful mom! I have yelled at my sons, i have raised my voice, and yes i have even lost my sanity doing such!

I love my sons. I adore them. Yes i am proud of them as well. I to care about how they will turn out. I however have lost my patience with them at times through out the years, and flat out yelled.

Does that mean I am an awful mom? Should i have all along not once yelled, or raised my voice at them even a little bit?

For the most part i am a quiet person, and rather patient truthfully. I was accused of not being able to be heard before i had my sons. People told me all the time to speak up. That I was to soft spoken.

When i had my first born son, i found my voice that is for sure.

I can not think of one parent, even with the most perfect kids (if there is such a thing), that have not yelled. Only perfect child i ever heard of was Jesus. Dr. Phil's son's must also be such. They after all are perfect.) Rolling my eyes.

Umm come on now, be real. When they made these comments, I totally lost respect for both of them.

If you are a parent have you ever yelled at your child? Or raised your voice?

If you are not a parent, were you ever yelled at as a child?

Do you consider yourself a bad parent, or think your parents as such for yelling?

Feeling unappreciated

I am Grumpy today, annoyed and irritated. In fact i just want to cry.

I am having these feelings, because i am constantly sick and try to keep a positive attitude about being such.

I am annoyed because i work hard at being positive, and no one really knows i am sick.

I am irritated because i go out of my way to make my family feel loved and they have no clue how sick i am feeling.

I am ticked off because when i am feeling sick i still go out of my way to make my family dinner, and i get comments like Chicken again? Or comments like why didn't you make this with that or... the worse, i am not hungry, when only half an hour prior i was told i am starving and asked when is dinner?

I am grumpy when i go out of my way to be a good mom, when all i want is someone to mother me when i am feeling like crap.

I am rather annoyed at the moment that my husband had the gall to complain about the butter being left out and having to deal with a soft messy butter wrapper, when i did not have to cook at all! I could have said fend for yourself, i feel awful and did not want to cook! So deal with the little bit of a mess that i left out after cooking.

I am wanting to cry because i woke sick again, and will most likely go out of my way to fix dinner for my family, and not hear a positive word about me doing so.

I want to cry because my house is a mess, and i do not want to clean it up, but hate living in a mess. It makes me feel worse. So chances are good i will clean, and put a positive face on.



Maybe i should tell them to find a maid. At least they get a pay check.

Living in the moment

“One day at a time--this is enough. Do not look back and grieve over the past for it is gone; and do not be troubled about the future, for it has not yet come. Live in the present, and make it so beautiful it will be worth remembering.”

Let's get moving!

"The positive thinker sees the invisible, feels the intangible, and achieves the impossible."
Author Unknown

Time for me to make my goals a reality.

More to come......

I am in a fibro fog

Lately i have had several people close to me ask about Fibromyalgia. I have explained it before in my blog, but thought i would do so again. I pretty much experience it all. Winter months are harder for me, mainly because of all the weather pressure changes. Some days are worse then others,. Most days though are pain days in one way or another. It seems to be never ending.

Today I have had another bad day dealing with headaches, pain all over, light and noise bother me, throat hurting, jaw pain, and i feel like i am in a fog. (what i call fibro fog) I am pretty emotional. Everything seems to set me off into tears, or irritates me. I have tried hard to stay away from people because i do not want to say or do something i will later regret. I am tired, irritable and flat out exhausted.

I hope the below info helps those that do not understand Fibromyalgia.



What is Fibromyalgia

Symptoms

The primary symptoms of fibromyalgia include widespread musculoskeletal pain, severe fatigue, and disturbed sleep. Fibromyalgia means pain in the muscles, ligaments, and tendons – the soft fibrous tissues in the body.


* Pain - The pain of fibromyalgia has no boundaries. People describe the pain as deep muscular aching, throbbing, shooting, and stabbing. Intense burning may also be present. Quite often, the pain and stiffness are worse in the morning and you may hurt more in muscle groups that are used repetitively.

* Fatigue - This symptom can be mild in some fibromyalgia patients and yet incapacitating in others. The fatigue has been described as "brain fatigue" in which patients feel totally drained of energy. Many patients depict this situation by saying that they feel as though their arms and legs are tied to concrete blocks, and they have difficulty concentrating, e.g., brain fog.

* Sleep disorder - Most fibromyalgia patients have an associated sleep disorder called the alpha-EEG anomaly. This condition was uncovered in a sleep lab with the aid of a machine that recorded the brain waves of patients during sleep. Researchers found that the majority of fibromyalgia patients could fall asleep without much trouble, but their deep level (or stage 4) sleep was constantly interrupted by bursts of awake-like brain activity. Patients appeared to spend the night with one foot in sleep and the other one out of it.

* Irritable Bowel Syndrome - Constipation, diarrhea, frequent abdominal pain, abdominal gas, and nausea represent symptoms frequently found in roughly 40 to 70% of fibromyalgia patients. Acid reflux or gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) also occurs with the same high frequency.

* Chronic headaches - Recurrent migraine or tension-type headaches are seen in about 70% of fibromyalgia patients and can pose a major problem in coping for this patient group.

* Temporomandibular Joint Dysfunction Syndrome - This syndrome, sometimes referred to as TMJ or TMD, causes tremendous jaw-related face and head pain in one-quarter of fibromyalgia patients. However, a 1997 published report indicated that close to 75% of fibromyalgia patients have a varying degree of jaw discomfort. Typically, the problems are related to the muscles and ligaments surrounding the jaw joint and not necessarily the joint itself.

* Other common symptoms - Premenstrual syndrome and painful periods, chest pain, morning stiffness, cognitive or memory impairment, numbness and tingling sensations, muscle twitching, irritable bladder, the feeling of swollen extremities, skin sensitivities, dry eyes and mouth, dizziness, and impaired coordination can occur. Fibromyalgia patients are often sensitive to odors, loud noises, bright lights, and sometimes even the medications they are prescribed.

* Aggravating factors - Changes in weather, cold or drafty environments, infections, allergies, hormonal fluctuations (premenstrual and menopausal states), stress, depression, anxiety and over-exertion may all contribute to fibromyalgia symptom flare-ups.

Seeing red

Ever had a headache so bad all you see is red? Off and on all evening i have tried to get rid of this headache. Nothing is working. I feel nauseous.

It is going to be one of those nights.

I am so sick of feeling sick!

Sheesh

A day of hope

I normally have written a post on my Birthday. This year though I ended up not in the mood to blog. :) I had a wonderful birthday this year. It was quiet. I spent it at home, but not feeling alone at all. I was surrounded in spirit by friends and family who love me.

It started out with snow in the air, and me putting a meal together in my crock pot. It was a perfect day for something hot and hearty. My husband did offer to take me out to dinner, but truthfully i really just wanted to spend my birthday not having to go anywhere. Smelling the meal cooking in the crock pot, i put on a huge pot of coffee, started the fireplace, and went and put on cozy comfy clothing. It started relaxing, and ended such. :) The perfect day in my mind.

My friends and family all made my day special. I received some very special gifts and spent time talking with everyone. I truly felt loved. My friend Tart sent me a gorgeous African violet. Thank you so much Tart! It came just in time truthfully because the day after my birthday i caught a small case of the flu. I was feeling so sick, and the plant added cheer to my life. I instantly felt better. Thank you again sweet Tart.

So here i am today , several days after my birthday, and i am feeling a whole lot better. I am in a painting mood, so i think it is time to get out all my painting stuff and start another mural. This one i had kind of drawn out a plan several months ago, but never got started on it. I had decided to wait until after Christmas. This mural will be a grape vine with grapes and leaves draping around my archway kitchen door way. It will have a whole lot of details, and i am looking forward to painting it.

I am almost afraid of saying out loud today that i am feeling good today, because i have had so many days of late not feeling such. I am afraid that i will jinx myself. In truth though today i woke feeling no pain, and able to think. How wonderful is that? It is one reason i want to pull out all my painting stuff and get started!

I am feeling not only wonderful physically at the moment, but am feeling such spiritually. I am off to start my day very positive. I have lots of hopes and dreams i want to set forth and implement. I am feeling rather blessed! It could be because i have had such a wonderful start to my year, or it could be because of the African violet i received yesterday, making me think of spring, and brightness, or it could be because i am blessed with so many wonderful people in my life now. Whatever it is, I am just going to go and enjoy my day.


A quote for the day: If you do not hope, you will not find what is beyond your hopes.
St. Clement of Alexandra

**I knew if i said anything it would jinx me. Several hours after writing this i came down with the start of a headache, stomach pains, and my chest hurting. I was like what is that? I then decided to look at weather. Weather is changing from really cold to warming up. Winds are pushing a warm front in. I always knew that the weather pressure has something to do with pain levels. I think i now totally believe the weather pressure is what impacts my fibro. Or maybe it is still a little bit of the flu? Maybe a little bit of both. Who knows.**