JayCS’s Fibro Blog

[JayCS]

Day 7 of working again, Sunday - not bad

Sleep: 9h20 - shd’ve been more to get my avg. up, but hope to properly target bedtime at 8:30 now. The ‘kite’-image didn’t help tonight, nor did letting knees fall, but the twisting saved night showering.
Work: 3h+ yesterday, another 2h+ today, that’s 25+h this week. Think/Hope next week will be less stressful. But considering: Much easier, this home office working and also save commuting.
Activities: Singing 1.5h, break after. Table tennis was a bit better today, again thought I cd’ve done 8x, but pretty shattered when I came home after 6x, so had to rest a lot. A short brisk walk later was no problem.
Treatments: Still not much necessary at the moment, just a normal cold shower at daytime. But 4x2.5h/w is enough… !
Did too much other things before starting to work, so I had to do 3h in one go, now my back is aching, hope evening exercises will help. And ate too late, at 8 (wot a rhyme), sleep at 9:30… Try better to tomorrow…

[JayCS]

Day 8 of working again, Monday - weird: not good, not bad

Sleep: Reflux again, later sour/acid burp Eating too late? (8:15) or too much dairy, or both? Praps sugared dairy: 200ml vanilla goat yoghurt and 250ml natural cow yoghurt with added agave sirup is what I had in the evening.
Work: After 3h in the evening, I only went on, in case needed, but mostly did other things.
Treatment: A “RESET”-treatment she’s not tried on me before -

surprising, strange/interesting results: listening closely close to my body....:

Consisted mainly of holding parts of my head, slight movements similar to craniosacral osteopathy, and me opening and closing my mouth for about 3-5mins. for each new position.
Just looked it up:
R.E.S.E.T., it targets the TMJ, was originally kinesiological, thought up by an Australian…
During it, I was pretty relaxed, but rather less than her other treatments. Because I had to lie on my back for 80 mins. my soft palate kept making funny noises or pushing out air. She thought I was nodding off, wasn’t tho.
Getting up was much more difficult than usual, she had to twist me up, I could hardly help.
When I was up tho, my legs and knees were not at all stiff, however my arms, elbows and neck, the other way round from usual. Short stingy nerve-type pains in my left calf. Walking around I felt as if I’d been oiled (remember the tin man meme… ;-)). But on my bike I had only 75% energy, less than before, and was short of breath. Despite the oiled feeling which was keeping on.
Getting home after 15 mins (decided not to get grocery yet) I became very tired and had to lie down.
Now my underarms are hurting trying to type. Have to lie down. Back skin itchy. Right thigh stinging.
But I’ll try to play table tennis, altho it’s cold and drizzling.
At the moment I have the feeling it’s reset the knee-tendon stiffness to oiled, but reset a lot of good things of her acupressure back to bad… Hope the acupressure on Thursday will set that right.
Managed 6x table tennis, the burning-feverishness in my arms got too much and I was really exhausted afterwards.

Activities: 6x table tennis (due to exhaustion after the “resetting”).
Video meeting with friends for 2h (5-7) was OK. But didn’t manage much else. Ate fairly early, bed earlier.

[JayCS]

Day 9 of working again, Tuesday - Ache 3h(?), sleep till 9

Sleep: Stomach & gut OK. I’ve just realized there’s a deep pain when I’ve been sleeping, which isn’t too bad too tolerate, but is probably the reason for tossing and turning and groaning which shows up when my wife sleeps next to me for a while. After she did it the other night she reminded me not to take any consideration, just to turn when I need to, so the pains don’t get to much. It’s also probably the reason for having the urge to move when I wake up every 1-2 hours. Been doing my swinging exercise tonight every time, as well as just standing, till my body feels better. So longer = 2h sleep stints, but longer breaks = 20’ too. Sleep quality feels fairly OK. What I’m trying tonight is doing a body scan / autogenic training for my whole body all at once, to get the kite feeling of having my attention strained, but then relaxing my muscles to not strain outside only inside. Seems to have worked to get back to sleep quickly 3x already, despite the 20’-breaks. Also sending ‘love and peace’ to all parts of my body (inspired by having prayed before). And added the speed-self-hypnosis feeling in my head. I’ve increased standard sleep amount to 10h as from this week.

Treatment: Getting to the bus in pouring rain and wind fluttering my rain cape in my face (10’ by bike), was very uncomfortable, and dangerous twice, cdn’t see cars coming (also tiredness). But I did my love-&-peace-whole-body-scan-self-hypnosis-relaxation (L&PWBSSHR ;o) ), that seems to have helped. Managed to get an earlier bus back, only 30’ there (2x30’ bus, 2x10’ cycling =1h50; if I don’t manage: 2h20). Clearer head, some energy back, but arms & at the moment esp. shoulders still heavy.

Activities Too rainy for table tennis. Should at least do a workout Further recordings for singing lessons, enough rest in between.

Work 1h. Feels a bit too much at the mo, I think the next few days will be OK tho.

Feeling slightly feverish in my arms altho I’m trying to go to bed before 9 for the first time.

[JayCS]

Day 10 of working again, Wednesday - good (3h of Ache), but sleep till 9…

Sleep: Managed 10h again (+2h), till 9, waddling around every 1-2h, after for the first time managing to get to bed at 9 . Realized that any movement reveals the Ache again. So keeping still too long often hurts until I’m asleep again and moving does too. Getting up after the 10h was fairly easy apart from the normal stiffness (& of course waddling) and I was pretty awake pretty quickly, cold showering was helpful. But it’s always hard to tell whether I’ve had enough sleep yet… never a feeling of “Yeay, wide awake and raring to go, jump out of bed, here I come, like it used to be years ago”. Inside I may be raring to go, but my body… Pics & Memes that visualize our condition #4…
Sleeping for 10h and till 9 is not really compatible with working - I can manage that now bc of home office.

Activities: Table tennis first thing, got to go to work after for an hour, but after 6 or we think 8 games I’m so hurting that I have lie down first. Lost most table tennis despite it being dry, but have been losing again much more since working the last 10 days. And I want to go to my grandchild later, oh dear. And I’d cold showered just before. Just resting for 30 mins seems to have been enough tho…

Work: The way to work and starting there was difficult, but after I’d done a few things without pressuring I felt better and driving home I had full energy again.

Activities 2: Then 2.5h with granddaughter was fine too. All outside, so didn’t have to worry about mask, yes or no. Good rest and working a bit more.

[JayCS]

Day 11 of working again, Thursday - good? - not really

Sleep: Started at 9 again. First break after 3h! (Bc of going to work?). Heartburn either from 500ml cow natural yoghurt at 3 or from 250 ml vanilla soy yoghurt at 7? - uncomfy after both.
Not much deep-ache tonight. I’m just wondering if this deep-ache is similar to normal or more like bad sore muscles.
Activities: Table tennis 6x left me tired and needing break.
Treatment: TCM/Acupressure. Her new ideas for sleeping: a) using breathing to change my lower back instead of doing exercises (like last night). b) try doing the back exercises in my head instead of really. c) Try ginseng. Told her that the RESET on Monday didn’t work out well, positive the feeling oiled, praps less tooth/jaw ache, but negative: less energy, less breath, arm-ache. But I’m said I’d prefer her to decide, she said we’ll let it sink in till Monday and decide together. I’m thinking not to do it again.
Work: Not too much, OK, had prepared yesterday evening.
Gut: Trying vanilla cashew yoghurt with agave sirup added, to compare to vanilla cow yoghurt whilst eating earlier in the evening: Not good. Used Gastritol on it yesterday and today, to stop heartburn/reflux blowing up. Now minus agave sirup. Back on psyllium at the mo for the IBSD. Curly kale seems to produce too much air to han’'dle.

Pain: It’s so hard to judge how good these days are. I’m sleeping 10h, but I’m yawning and painfully stiff a lot of the day, not doing much, but don’t really feel I’ve got the energy to do anything extra like grocery shopping. I’m managing table tennis 6x, but without power, with quite some pain afterwards, losing, and resting a lot after, seems to be deteriorating. Probably have to go down to 4x again. Worked a lot last week, but not this or next week. That’s not what I call good…

[JayCS]

Day 12 of working again, Friday - more self-discipline? - not yet…

Sleep: 9-8, 10h.
Treatment: autohemotherapy/ozone “injections”. Could move pretty quickly directly after, even jog a bit. But Headache for 6h after the ozone? 'll have to tell/ask them… I drank a bit too little (bus rides etc.) but not that little.
Activities: Table tennis: 6x was over the limit for myofascial torso ache, relaxed more while playing, won most again, so must have more energy than the last days. A bit of rest was OK. Groceries: OK.
Work: OK, about 2h online without contacts.
Gut: OK. Slightly bloated, very slight esophagus-burn after lunch. Dairy yoghurt without vanilla or agave syrup at 8 was OK tho.
Pain: Stiff, arms ache a lot of the time, energy 85%, breath better again.

[JayCS]

Day 13 of working again, Saturday - more self-discipline at night!..

Unrest from 2-4. Tried all tricks - exercises in head, breathing, twisting, doing real exercises: no help. So only a longer 1h-break did the trick. Cold showering wd’ve been similarly effective, but I’m trying to find alternatives and that break was OK for me. If I’d’ve needed a 2nd one, I’d’ve cold showered. This again shows that neither acupressure nor ozone is helping here yet. In the break I looked up (Levodopa + (non-US )Benserazide) for RLS which my rehab-psychiatrist prescribed and decided there are way too many adverse effects similar to amitriptyline, to which I prefer the restlessness by far. Only thing I’m still thinking about is taking an extremely small dose, something I shd maybe’ve thought about with other meds, but then I never really wanted to take any of them, so I’m glad they didn’t work out that way.

Restex

Levodopa or L-dopa increases dopamin. Benserazide prevents this happening outside the brain, reducing side effects like nausea.

Main pains at night at the moment are both elbows and wrists, use arnica cream on there. Seems to have got more regular since the RESET-treatment on Monday, but the main problem is cocking the elbows for a good sleep position.
Not quite 10h sleep tonight, but an avg of 9h50 this week. Let’s see if energy remains…
Activities: Table tennis 8x, won 7, so: Yes, the energy is back. Despite wearing a mask for most of the time. I think more sleep and reduced work this week helped. - Went on to get groceries after, which was a bit too much, but a half hour break did the trick.
Then we met 2 others at the grave of lost friend and talked quite a lot, way over an hour in the cold, doing yoga to keep warm, plus cycling 20mins there and back, and that was just too much, even resting an hour with an electric blanket was enough. Not pain, just tired, fatigue, feverish.
Just stumbled upon a great, fast paced, and humorous “crash course” on managing fibromyalgia, a 40’-“master class” on youtube by a fibromite, Rachel Lynch of FibroIreland, from 2018. If it’s too fast for you, put the speed on 0,75. :

Understanding how to manage fibromyalgia - Rachel Lynch

[JayCS]

Day 14 of working again, Sunday - self-discipline at night, still tired at day :-/

Sleep: 9:10-8:30: 11h20-55=10h25. New tricks: After trying my super-twists to save doing exercises for my lower back, I used the cobra-position for 2mins, only in early morning did I have to take a “rest from sleeping”.
Answering Napping turns into 3-4 hours of sleeping. Does this happen with you too?, I reflected: My average sleep had increased from 8.5 to 9h/n, but working 15h/w still took my energy down to 50%*, which came back to 90% for 3 weeks in the prolonged Christmas break. Now in home office I’m trying to keep the energy up by sleeping 10h/n, which is working, and my energy is higher, but I still often get very tired. Since I need from about 9-9 to get the 10h of sleep this is only possible in home office. Now I’m trying to get the breaks at night down so I can get up at or before 8. And wondering whether the long sleeping is worth it - but at the moment I’m thinking having energy is more important than feeling awake…
(*Is it true that my energy was down to 50%?)
Activities: Singing 1.5h good, but tiring. Table tennis 7x, good compromise, pretty much with energy, despite tiredness. Video church services involved peopling/socializing again. like yesterday, that was pretty tough, had to take breaks.
Work: OK, pretty unmotivated tho, having trouble focusing, after I lost the good ideas a few nights ago, bc I didn’t want to get up to write them down.
Pain: Quite OK, tiredness (yawning a lot this last week) & sort of exhaustion, but didn’t have to rest after table tennis. Wondering whether I’m resting too much or “wrongly”. But at least I’m avoiding flaring, by doing the least necessary.
The tooth/jaw pain has continually decreased in this week after the RESET-treatment on Monday, but energy & arms have also needed a longer time to recover, only the breath was better the last few days.
Gut: Good, despite bloaty foods again (psyllium to be safe, helped I think).

[rosebud74]

Thank you so much JayCS for this video managing fibro. Very interesting. First time ever that fibro has been really spelt out in this way. I am very much on my own regards this illness. Rhematologist said I have got this illness learn to cope with it and has refused to see me. My GP said he is unable to help me. I dont think he knows anything about fibro. It is not so easy in England to change Rhematologist as you have to go through your GP to get a referal. The surgery I am at now are really lovely people so I would not want to change to another practice.

[JayCS]

Day 15 of working again, Monday - self-discipline at night, but long dozing :-/ plus SHOCK

Sleep 9:25-8:30, 11h05-1h10=9h55, dozed quite a bit, tho. Problem was getting to sleep again after having written something down for work out of fear of forgetting it again this time.
Work Online was good, going there in the afternoon too. The SHOCK was getting a mail that I would have to be at work before 8 on Thursdays after the lockdown, means getting up at 6:30, 2-3 hours earlier. Wondering whether to wait and think about it before I react, I decided that that was wrong last time, so I answered saying I don’t see any possibility of managing that. When I went there (for another reason), my boss took me aside and said: There isn’t any possibility of them changing it (which I understand), suggesting I take a taxi instead of bike & train, to save 30 mins and suggested that I may have to then consider early retirement. Which is true, but I think too early. It’s just I was sure they’d be able to make allowance for me being severely disabled and in occupational rehab to not have to come that early… In the talk she also said she’d think about it, the idea that I’d compensate for the 30-60’ in home office isn’t completely off the stove yet, something I’d suggested in my answer. I replied I’ll be thinking about tweaking my sleep further. My wife very much dislikes the idea of me going to bed at 7. A bit feverish on the way home at 7, and fairly tired, but OK.
Activities I meant to compensate for lack of table tennis with a workout but the shock stopped that.
Treatment TCM/acupressure - this time (again) with a metal gadget that turns on your skin and causes great pain at bumpy and rough parts which show the muscles / fascies / tissue aren’t OK. Felt much better all over afterwards, except arms, which she hadn’t worked on, ‘just’ legs inside and out, belly, neck and shoulders.
Pain: Quite OK. Stil hardly any tooth/jaw problems. Energy & breath good.
Gut: Good, despite not eating enough at midday (which often happens, lack of self-discipline there).

[JayCS]

Day 16 of working again, Tuesday - slept better

Sleep 9:20-7:55, 10h35-30=10h05. One idea I’m thinking about is how @Polkadotbeans_fibro sleeps 3-4h in the afternoon and 7h at night. That’d let my wife have her peace in the afternoons after work and leave us time in the evenings. Altho - I have to get up earlier first… See if it works. I’d have to see where I fit acupressure in, which is at 1-3 2x, let alone ozone and then acupuncture 2h, up to now in the mornings… Another is this experience again last night: going to work leads to sleeping thru better! (Despite the shock.) Now I’ve immediately tried out the nap/sleep idea at 3, needed 20’ to get to sleep, then pretty deep sleep, 45’ altogether, “rude” waking, feverish, but fit after. Hmm, let’s see what the night’s like now.
Work “Lazy”, somehow it just feels too much, but it isn’t really, I’m where I shd be.
Activities table tennis 3:3, Ache, but quickly OK after, without special treatment. Singing and preparing for it was good. Short phone call, short cycle-walk with my wife and then walk with a good old friend. But the walk was too much, shd’ve taken the bike.
Treatment ozone #5. OK. The headache on Friday might have come from it, she says. Drink more.
Pain: Quite OK.
Gut: Good.
Not getting enough done, I feel. Have to reduce/postpone less important things…But actually - there’s not any real pressure. Like at work, everything’s flowing quite OK. So “not getting enough done” = “resting & enjoying myself enough”!

Why have I always felt feverish after an afternoon nap or getting up at night, long before fibro…? - This is the same feverish-feeling I have when overdoing it… Not hot or cold, sort of hot-cold at the same time, mainly in the arms, but also legs and face (I think)

[JayCS]

Day 17 of working again, Wednesday - good sleep, nap & pico-yoga…

Sleep: Wow, after napping 45’ yesterday I only had 3 sleep breaks tonight, and could get up at 6. Howzat for a quick solution. Let’s see if it’s just chance!
And quite a few other new ideas which work for me…:

Better sleep - 30 wakers & stoppers

Working on my sleep even more now, I’ve just had a spree of ideas, which seem to work: Firstly I’m surprised, not sure yet, but taking an afternoon nap of 45’ has been followed by a very good night’s sleep with only 3 short breaks. More sure about these, to do in bed while trying to get (back) to sleep: Feeling hot: not changing blankets (too much effort), just turning them, cold side in, as much as nec… Restlessness, esp. from the lower back: Cobra-position as long as it takes, but that ta…

Work: I’ve earned allowing myself to procrastinate again. Working only “just in time”.
Whoops, suddenly got in the mood to…
Activities: Table tennis lost 1:3, but energy was good… Middle back is a bit daft after having stood the whole morning, which is quite understandable. Sweated a lot, altho it’s snowy - very abnormal nowadays (I mean the sweating :-). Used to be normal, and came back after TCM/acupressure targetted it). Thinking about going to grandchild, but sleep’ll come first… And I really am dead tired, wd’ve normally ignored it, but maybe that’s my future…
Treatment: Only the anti-stiffness-stuff. But what effect! I was walking smoothly with energy and without stiffness in the grocery store - Combination of sleep & pico-yoga?
Pain: Quite good, not lying down much, standing at my standing table, but moving quite a bit. Shd do more real yoga instead of stints of my pico-yoga (Better sleep - 30 wakers & stoppers - #2 by JayCS) in between.
Gut: Good.

[Freedom]

Man JayCS, I’m never playing table tennis with you! You would probably hit the ball so hard that it would put a hole right through the paddle!

[JayCS]

Day 18 of working again, Thursday - unrestful sleep, but pico-yoga is still the stiffness-hack, & more coming

Sleep: Might’ve been OK, but cdn’t get the unrest away after my wife’d been with me which made me take in a sleep position which I cdn’t get rid of quickly… so got up too long and had hours of dozing to try to get back… but got up at 7 at least (6 is the aim) with a tally of 9h10 (incl. the dozing, as ever).
Afternoon nap today only took 30’…
Treament: OK, pico-yoga or harlequin-dance? or in-out-twist? Whatever, it’s helping before getting up, it’s making me a little less stiff altogether, praps that can lead to more energy, after washing my hair to the front, I did a back bend, any tendon-stiffness I feel I now immediately look for an anti-twist that will take it.
Activities Got lots to do today, work, table tennis, GP, acupressure, sleep, oh dear, and I’m not really on my way… Ah, it worked out, focus on work. Rain prevented table tennis & grandchild. Nap was short, so I suddenly had lots of time, enough for everything.
Treatment: Trigger pointing on my arms, pneumoatron on my back: Good, just a bit left in arms and nape of neck, but feels great for a start.
Looking for gifs that demonstrate my new in-out-twist, may be a yoga position I don’t know yet. It’s combined with one that’s called “blade” in my yoga book, but I also can’t find it on the web, so it’s probably different in English.

These are similar movements… but what I mean is both feet/legs and both arms outwards at the same time, plus inwards… and only 5-10 seconds… it’s still doing the trick…

This is the movement I’ll be aiming at next…

[AussieMom]

LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL!!!ROFL!!!HAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!
Whew! I needed that! You can’t look at those video clips without smiling
Thanks, JCS!!!
Daughter is going through about her 7th breakup with this guy and hubby is anxious from worrying over her and I’m anxious from worrying over hubby…Will this NEVER end? I’ve told him I will NOT become as emotional over it this time, and I WON’T. Will I be supportive - YES. But make myself sick (or sick-er) - NO. (Just thought I’d share why the smile you gave meant so much today.)

[JayCS]

Day 19 of working again, Friday - not quite enough sleep?

Sleep: Well after only 30’ yesterday afternoon, I again only got 8h45 tonight, so 9h15, bc I got up a bit earlier again so it can fall into the new rhythm easier, if it is able to at all. Felt squeamy & hungry from about 4 on, a hot water bottle helped, I think it’s the gut, and it’s relieved now. Or is it from sleeping less? Or rainy weather? - but I can’t influence that (much*) anyway (* by changing tricks). At least today is warm shower day, to not spoil yesterday’s trigger pointing.
Work: Yesterday I got a letter saying I’ll have to get checked by my public health officer if I really am fit for work, seeing as my rehab-doc has put/left the rehab down on 40% for further 3 months. He’s always been on my side, but I need to give him good ideas how he explain to my employer why he doesn’t have to doubt my fitness. To gain time I will this time not contact him myself, like I did the last 2 times, maybe he’ll do something similar, who knows. Then I will argue that I’m now feeling much better now altho working more, than in Nov/Dec when I had to go to work more, first due to home office and not having to wear a mask, 2nd because I had more energy via more sleep over the break, which I’m managing to harness now, also via sleep, treatments and tricks. Now I just need more time for new treatments to work, and to play for time for mask-time to be reduced or removed, plus the summer-warmth, plus cryotherapy helping more in the summer, plus 3-4 new treatments helping more. Also I’m thinking I could find a way to work differently, using the experience of home office: Talking a lot less at work. I’ve done that once before, because the people I was talking could concentrate better, so I have a repertoire of techniques from the past. Also quite a few people prefer not talking so much, it’s just hard to get the Schnabbelschnuten to keep their mouths shut (can’t find a translation for that cute one ), but as I said I know how to do that.
Nap: Nap-length & deepness cd be influenced by what time I start and what I do before. Wednesday I slept long, it was 1. when later it was shorter. And I do get tired by 1, like @Polkadotbeans_fibro. But now, after table tennis I’m tired too, let’s see, altho it’s 4! - yup, over an hour, that seems fitting. Didn’t feel like sleep, but I felt better for it and was feverish-tired before. Perhaps I should take a nap every time I feel feverish, seeing as that traditionally has meant I am tired…?

Activities: Yesterday worked out well: Rain called table tennis and grandchild off (again didn’t manage workout instead ), the doc’s office was too full, so I’m checking there every day now (3 mins. to get there). So everything worked out well and I cd develop a few new ideas for work.
Table tennis: Won 6:2, Ache after the 7th game. Let’s see what a nap will do.

Treatment: Realized that leaving my laptop at home helps darting to the bus if nec. And I always have enough to do in my pda, bc I (can) usually ignore it now, self-discipline for the important things is working, and this blog helps too. Also just realized that doing my out-in-twist also works great before going up any stairs. Ozone was OK, took a bit long, but no problem. Took the time till the next bus to have a chat with another patient who had asked the medic if sore eyes and dry mouth can come from meds - she meant blood pressure meds, it turns out - which made me think about how to reduce my 5 cardiovascular meds more and that at least I have less headaches now I’ve one pill less. I told her about sicca & that I think my blood pressure meds aren’t a problem. Just looked up that beta blocker and ACE-inhibitors do. As far as I can see, mine can be combined with the latter, but aren’t them themselves. However, one of mine, lercanidipine, can cause a lot, of which I have tiredness, diarrhea, gut problems, muscle pain, more urine, exhaustibility (and the occasional headache), whilst the other is OK. Enough having to take a statine, I want out… I think I’m gonna take the herbal one I’ve got again (roseroot) and try to take it down further, so I can get away from more of 'em…

Tricks, no: Hacks Difficulty sitting at the table did the cat/cow-back exercise: All others are still working fabulously, esp. the Simultaneous Double (Leg) Twist (as said above: helps before going up stairs). (My mother does yoga, but doesn’t know this as a yoga exercise.) Just realized what I do to decrease p-pain is the cat exercise (rounding back).

[JayCS]

Day 20 of working again, Saturday - A week of naps, slightly less sleep, still energy

Sleep: While I didn’t manage getting to bed 9 this week and often forgot back exercises before, so yukky lower back sometimes, napping’s been OK, and I’ve managed an avg. of 9h40, in the napping part of the week 9h20, altho getting up earlier.
Nap : 2, 40’, end with long tremor in right hand (seizure-style?) and slight headache (blood pressure? 124/62 71, wanted to cold shower after anyway…). If that was seizures-related, then it’d mean that the RESET-therapy Monday before last didn’t help, bc that’s what it targeted at. Cold shower got rid of the headache.
Work : Looking forward to it today. But first writing. OK, work didn’t work…
Activities: Table tennis 4:4, used too much energy, so decreased, no breakdown, but OK,
1h walk/me on bike with a friend, very cold, then short meet/eat. Song writing.
Treatment: Nothing apart from a bit of twisting… :
Hacks: Realized I’ve been doing the arm & leg twisting singly a lot of the time at table tennis, but not together and not yet before getting up to prevent stiffness. The latter I did only in the mornings, doing back exercises, as @AussieMom thankfully pointed out. Feel I haven’t put my point across enough to others that this new kind of double-twist has another quality?

Started getting tired & feverish at 7, managed to go to bed before 9, when I’d gotten very feverish - but if I start trying consequently to sleep whenever getting tired or feverish, - wd I’ve had to go to bed at 7 or 8, then??

[JayCS]

Day 21 of working again, Sunday - idea/inspiration overload

Sleep: Tonight I had lots of ideas, luckily I’d tried placing my pda next to my bed instead of banning it, so I cd write them down or record them instead of implementng them and getting out of my sleep-drowse-state. Also got hungry, due more to not eating enough than to using essential oils to keep my nose free . And like regularly use 2 tops over my t-shirt in case I get too cold at night

• 3 ideas I’ve put under ‘hacks’.
• joking - for forum-use: my fibro-misses -Mrs(.) -mams, -mums, vs. my fibro-mates (spoaken wiv moy broudest ‘arlow Coackney accen’ so it sounds like ‘fibromites’)
• trill-idea and slightly displacing the bass for the song I’m working on.
• is the cortex in my speech centre which is not only causing the occasional focal seizures, but has blessed me with becoming perfectly bilingual and someone who sometimes has difficulty thinking straight ahead, but also giving me inspirations, creative/lateral thinking, thinking outside the box, taking the red pill which helps me find out about the illusion provided by the Matrix. Phrase reminding of Uri Geller: Do not think it is the spoon that bends… that is impossible. Rather think: “You are the spoon!” Also making me long-winded…

Nap: As soon as I get feverish…? There’s a few things making the naps hard: What I usually do at that time, like acupressure 2x/w 1-3. Mme Army Boots above me throwing things on the floor and stamping around… So apart from ear plugs I have to put my top duvet double over my ear. Ideas in my head resulting from what I’ve just been doing all morning, work or play. But still been quite good.
1h good sleep at 3, after table tennis, altho I was tired at 2 starting out for it.
Tired again at 7.

Work: well no, too much very necessary fibro-research…

Activities: Song , Table tennis 4:2, no problems & service

Treatment: None. Stood too long, was OK. 10x1’ yoga for my back. It’s weeks since I’ve done breath-holding, one cold shower a day is enough, energy is still there for table tennis and cycling.

Hacks:

• further developed the double twist for use without energy: Lie on front, twist head on way, the other leg and arm the other, then use the weight of the unused leg on the other’s heel to twist it further without energy.
• added a few ideas to ‘yesterday’ about the double twisting.
• also realized that my back exercises stretch my leg-muscles, but not as well or as quickly as the double twisting. Also of course I can do the double twisting for 6’’ every time I get up at night, without waking me up much (does a bit, but at the same time increases stability & speed getting out and back). So they are by far not as handy. OTOH they of course don’t do enough for my back. cat/cow lying down is a quick help for night, as I’ve said.
• If I forget my back exercises before sleeping, it’s important to do the halved version the first time I wake up , because the lower back often becomes a problem by then (halved: everything 4x4, instead of 2x4x4, I’m a musician, so I “count”/feel in rhythm).

Apart from men-memes Pics & Memes that visualize our condition - #54 by JayCS
I looked for new studies on fibro (Review Jan 2021: No effectiveness proven for most therapies for fibromyalgia)
esp. the lessening gender difference claimed in the wikipedias… Males - My Fibro-mates :-) - ratio, differences etc and
symptom differences Males - My Fibro-mates :-) - ratio, differences etc - #2 by JayCS

Considerable pain after holding in too long…

[JayCS]

2021-02-01, Day 22 of working again, Monday - getting places, hardly needing rest

Sleep : 10-7:10 = 9h10-1h, +15:20-16:20 yesterday = +1h, 9h10. Good!

• Sleeping when I’m tired/feverish more and not more/longer feels like quality and more natural. In the bathroom sleep break at 6:50 I was very tired, but sleeping again I was soon awake again at 7:10 and felt it was right to get up then, which was no problem, I felt awake & with energy. Dozing till I got the 10h together w’d’ve been too much.
• Going to bed late & being up for 45’ once was caused by my research-hyperactive-flash, & worth it.
• Strangely I got to sleep very quickly after each break, even the 45’ one. 3 possible causes: I’m concentrating on relaxing my jaw every time, superseding my kite-flying-image, then autogenic training My sleep-rhythm is more natural (for me!) The blood-ozone-enrichening
• My tooth-jaw-muscle ached a few times again, like yesterday (that’s why relaxing was perfect). And my right thigh hurt about 6x, left one praps 1x, about in the, fairly close to the bone was the main pain point. Both is something for acupressure later on, RESET for the “tooth” & pneumatron or the vibration gadget for the thighs. I’m wondering what it is that’s got the thighs going again. I didn’t rest once yesterday, sat twisting on my bar stool Looking there now, the bar stool ends a bit above the pain areas, but the edge of it is under the legs, not to the side, like the pain. Mattress But I still have the lambskin under my thighs in bed, which compensates for the hollow in my straw mattress which still has the soft topper on it. And I’d several times tried sleeping on my wife’s softer mattresses, which didn’t make a difference… Or just plain lying down Don’t think my acupressurist can help, otherwise she’d’ve suggested something before, but we are often in a dialogue, maybe she’s never thought about that
  Aside: Witnessed a wonderful scene together yesterday - a (red) squirrel found my white lambskin lying on a balcony chair directly in front of the balcony door, and seemed to enjoy it, whilst looking for the food / rests we put out for birds and them. It looked straight at us, a bit cheeky. We preferred to enjoy the moment, rather than capture it. Before it started away, faster even than me, when I’m not stiff. Looked “at us” exactly like this, very red, very white, long ears, black shiny eyes, praps a bit bigger eyes:
  

Nap: 'd have to be after 3. Table tennis. Wasn’t tired after either. Still not that tired at 7, so worked out well.
Work: 2 days off for everyone, so I’ll be able to catch up on what I was going to do yesterday.
Activities : Black ice… be carefulllll with that… Table tennis 6:2
Treatment: Trigger pointing centred on the thighs (& backside), pneumatron on my back & thighs. My legs felt so oiled that that they seemed to running in front of me, sliding away. Unfortunately while playing table tennis they after-hurt quite strongly, left and right.
Hacks:…

Side-note at 8: My wife suggested taking a weekly ‘dialogue’-time again (6x15’ monologues in which each describes their soul landscape to the significant other), which I think is great.
Side-note 9-11: Black ice, everyone’s slip-sliding all over the place, bike and electric scooter slip-overs in front of our houses every 20 mins, no-one seems too hurt yet, sirens non-stop. I’ve scattered granulated lava stone (environmentally safe) on the pavement in front of our houses (which I’ll sweep back together again and collect afterwards.) Hmm, how’m I gonna get to acupressure - my mate suggests calling a taxi. I’ll wait till 2 hours ahead. Praps the communal gritters’ll’ve got thru everywhere by then. Reminds me of the double muscle rupture I got 3 years ago by slipping over 3x on my bike. Don’t need that again.

[AussieMom]

Yikes! Be careful out there with the black ice - That’s never fun! I love the squirrel pic, JSC, and that you take time to enjoy life’s simple (and sweetest) pleasures!