Holiday Arthritis Survival Guide

People, Parties, Plans and Pains

Ask your Doctor... Don't you just wish for a moment every time you hear those commercials, if you are like me, you want to heave a book at the t.v.

Why? Because if you have RA, CPPD, Fibromyalgia, or any other chronic disease, asking your Doctor doesn't usually give you much peace of mind.

My or your Doctor might say... this is what you have, there is no known cause or known cure. Or you might hear you can take this or that, it may help but they do not exactly know why. Many times, you wonder why you go at all?

But as for that elusive Holiday Survival Guide for those living in pain and the fatigue that goes with the whole package, there is none that I can see out there. 

Inherently, for the completely able bodied, the Holidays are crazy. People coming to visit, rooms to clean, laundry to do, menus to prepare, food to be shopped and if you have kids or a spouse then you have more to do. 

In other words, the Holidays can be stressful for the most able bodied. And it is. Every been to a family gathering, lot's of food and wine and its not like a Norman Rockwell painting? Yea, well that is most families anyway. 

However, the fact that if you are like me, you don't know what in the Helena Montana you are going to feel like when you wake up. This places added stress if you have a long list of things to do, which can be overwhelming to say the least. And when you are up? Maybe it takes a good two hours to get the old bones moving.

Stress my friends, is arthritis's natural enemy. All ready, you feel like you can hardly move but you have all these things to do. Then, those two friends show up at the door, Guilt and Anxiety, just to make the party even more fun. Sound familiar?

I don't think I am alone in this fight against these auto immune diseases. But if you are like me, you feel that way a lot. I have friends that don't have a clue, no matter how many times you tell them (see also, till your blue in the face). 

How can you and I 

survive the Holidays?

1. Set reasonable goals.

2. Set expectations with family and friends. If things go to late for you, bow out. For me when I crash from fatigue trying to keep up with everyone it can get ugly.

3. Pace yourself.

4. Get plenty of rest, eat properly and don't drink too much eggnog. 

5. Exercise, stretch, do Yoga.... MOVE!

6. Rely on others to help. Shopping, babysitting, whatever...if you ask they may come.

7. Be appreciative and thankful for those people and all you have in life.

8. Smile often.

9. At functions, try to focus on others lives and to get your mind off your pains.

10. Do what you can do, no more. The best thing to keep the stress down is to just know when to throw up the white flag and say, I can't push myself any further. 

I hope you all have a Safe and Happy Holiday

Bart Connors Szczarba