Since Fibromyalgia has been my side kick officially for the past 25 years, I will speak out about it.  For the first 13 years I was in denial.  It wasn’t until the government declared me having fibromyalgia as a disability did I even begin to accept it.  In fact I still don’t want to accept it.

The course of my life changed dramatically simply because I was at the wrong place at the wrong time when a Brown Recluse Spider decided to bite me in 1986.  I spent 3 days in the hospital with an IV of antibiotics and taking sitz baths to rid my body of the poison.  I never was the same after this incident.  That is when I first experienced Brain Fog.

Then there was a bad car accident on the Dallas North Tollway in 1988 where it was a 5 car pile up.  I received whip lash.  Of the 18 Trigger Points 6 of them are in the neck and shoulder area.  That wasn’t all.

After the car accident I developed Pneumonia where I ended up in the hospital for 10 days.  It was a long road to recovery.

Fibromyalgia was waiting in the wings for me.  It was never one thing that caused me to get fibromyalgia.  You can see it was a combination of things.  Top that off with finding out 9 years ago that I have severe Sleep Apnea and it is a recipe for a challenging life of pain, brain fog and fatigue.

Should I quit on myself?  There is no cure for fibromyalgia.  They still are far from it.  My answer is ‘NO’.  I spent 5 years being very ill but I would never give up.

Today what has helped me the most is establishing a set of nine habits I do each day every day that assist me in taking care of myself, my family, and my home and garden.

I found that I needed to create ‘consistency’ in a non consistent illness that is affected by so many factors making it difficult to find a cure.

Fibromyalgia Is A High Maintenance Illness

If I am to have any type of quality of life, I am going to have to pay attention to my fibromyalgia.  I cannot simply wish it away.  I have tried.  It doesn’t work.  Instead it is a combination of eating healthy foods, non gluten, mild exercise and good sleeping habits.  All of these are challenging in this fast pace society.

Other Areas Of My Life Must Be Simple

For years I have tried to manage my fibromyalgia and do what regular people do.  About 3 years ago I realized that I was going to have to create a way that would work for me.  That means simple, simple, simple.  I usually eat off of paper plates on my bad days, wear soft cotton clothing and nothing binding, and removing the clutter in my home has helped tremendously.  No longer do I feel like I am swimming in quick sand.

Marilyn’s Way Dance Till You FLY! Series

After trying several systems and taking the good from them,  mixing in with my experience and education, I created a system called Dance Till You FLY! It is a very basic system that anyone can do with the option to do more at taking care of yourself, your family and your home and garden.  My purpose is simply inviting you to try it and hope to help you with it.

On Mondays I will be explaining how I developed Dance Till You FLY! and invite you to join me if you are interested in looking for a better way for your life.

I hope this year Fibromyalgia Awareness Day will get the attention it so deserves.  If you are not afflicted with it, chances are you have a friend or family member who does.  I hope my experience and how Fibromyalgia showed up on my doorstep will help you better understand this illness.