Just every now and again, I take it into my head to do a post relating to the condition Fibromyalgia. This is something which I am all too familiar with, but am at once grateful for the opportunities it has presented me with and resentful of the problems it has caused.
During my travels, whilst investigating this annoying medical condition I encountered
Alternative Anna or
Silverleaf as she is known on Twitter. Either way, she has been a useful contact for someone approaching a complete change in their lifestyle and career pathways. Checking in every now and again to catch up on what she's been up to has reassured me that this unfortunate condition is indeed not a figment of my imagination rather something real!
On the days when I have no energy and my interest levels have zeroed out Anna is always a source of inspiration. Perhaps this is because like me she just gets on with it as well as she can, and when she can't, she can't! This has been well documented and like I said it has often reassured me that the feelings and the pain I endure is not psychosomatic, imaginary, or anything else but real!
Recently Anna started to put her polymer clay jewellery up for sale on her
ETSY shop. This is lovely, and I would probably buy some if I hadn't started doing much the same thing myself. She is also selling the most delightful little knitted hedgehogs, the proceeds of which she is donating to hedgehog rescue charities.
My first sight of these adorable little creatures was on her blog. She had posted a
tutorial, which to be honest at first sight didn't impress me terribly. This is probably why I don't knit much; apparently I lack the imagination to envisage the finished product - anyway, I continued to scroll down and found this!
Isn't it just gorgeous? Well it is if you love hedgehogs, so there! This of course could have something to do with the fact that I have a thing about hedgehogs as my photo of the Paris campsite in 2006 will show!
This little guy was our only visitor on Bastille Day and he only called in to complain that we had blocked his run with our windbreak. Thankfully we were able to appease him as he helped himself to our left-overs which had been waiting for me to tidy them up following our rushed evening meal. Sadly our guided tour around Paris and fireworks display from the Seinne took precedence over the washing up...
At this stage in the post you're probably wondering what this has to do with
Fibromyalgia. Apart from the fact that our trip to France was taken before my medications had been sorted out, the fact that I was constantly in a lot of pain, suffering with chronic insomnia and surviving on five hours sleep with the aid of a table absolutely nothing!
I am thankful that this routine has since changed for the better. If I take all my medications on time and go to bed at a reasonable hour I now dream and have restorative sleep which allows me to wake at a reasonable hour feeling refreshed.
Sadly, this is not naturally induced and I often find myself in a position whereby it's not possible to stick to this routine and then suffer the consequences, which is where people like Anna come in. They remind me that I'm not okay. Anna makes me realise that I am not alone and that it is okay for someone who looks okay, like I do, to feel crappy the way I do so much of the time.
I sit and look around my home at the end of what used to be my working day and wonder what the hell I've done with my time, but reading Anna's
blog reminds me that I'm not okay and it is okay for me to feel like this. Thank You!
Polly Pierce
