Dealing with chronic pain from fibromyalgia flare-ups is never easy during flare-ups. Creating strategies to prevent or minimize painful flare-ups is easy to do. Meditation is my front line strategy.
When I am in a very painful flare-up not even Vicodin may take away the pain. It will lessen the pain, but not take it away. So what do you do? First you don't wait until the pain becomes so severe that not even an opiate based drug will help you. But how do you know you're headed for that bad a flare-up? If you've had fibromyalgia for a while you just know. But this is not what this article is about.
How do you prevent severe flare-ups? You do this through diet and exercise and meditation. Yes I know you were hoping for something that can be done to you instead of you doing something for yourself.
The most important thing you can do for yourself is meditate. You don't have to learn how to sit (I can't sit in a crossed legged position) and find a mantra to repeat over and over. The only thing you need to do to mediate is find the time to do it.
I suggest you do this before you go to sleep to ease you into falling asleep, which as you know presents another problem we have due to fibromyalgia. The point isn't so much when you do this, but that you incorporate this into your daily routine. Start out sitting for a few minutes and build up to 15 to 30 minutes a day.
You'll find at first that you feel you have little patience, but if you stick with the practice you will be amply rewarded. Listen to your breath and concentrate on your breathing. When ever you become aware that your mind has wondered, bring yourself back to concentrating on your breathing.
Flare ups occur due to too much physical activity, not enough sleep, and anything you find stressful. Meditation will help you keep your stress levels down.
Exercise is great and there are many mornings I can walk with the best of them but there are many more mornings I just can't do more than go around the block. So I go home and remember not to beat myself up over what fibromyalgia has taken from me and I sit down, close my eyes and start my meditation by silently enumerating all the things in my life I am grateful for and then I listen to my breath and I grow calm. And what could have been the beginning of a much worse flare up no longer is.
You will find more strategies for coping with fibromyalgia and chronic pain:
http://www.livingwithfibromyalgiatoday.com
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