When you live with chronic migraine or any type of chronic pain it can be mentally and physically exhausting sometimes and you will have good days and bad ones. Chronic pain flares are unpredictable and often you will sense when a flare might be coming on but won’t truly know exactly when your symptoms will start flaring or how long it will last. I talk a lot about how bad pain days affect me because I have more bad days than good ones and it’s important for people to know all the good and bad things about chronic pain because it’s invisible and often people have a hard time understanding they cannot see. On bad pain days sometimes I have to try to be productive but I can do more on a good ones because I am not dizzy and have more energy to get stuff done. In this post I am going to talk about how my varies on a good days and things I do when my pain is on the lower end.
Don’t overdo it- When you have chronic pain and are having a good day it can be easy to take advantage of that and want to do double the amount of work because you never know when your next good days will be but I can’t stress enough how important it is not to overdo it. On good pain days like today, I am able to write multiple blog posts but I usually don’t because overworking yourself can cause another flare. . When you have chronic pain it is frustrating to have to put everything on hold when your body decides it doesn’t want to function today because you do get very behind when your energy is low but you’re not helping yourself by working a fourteen-hour day. If you live with chronic pain and are having a good day I recommended you get things done that you couldn’t days prior but don’t overdo it and try to write a month’s worth of blog posts in a single day because self-care is just as important on good days as it is on bad ones.
Write a blog post I am writing a blog post on Sunday which is usually my day off because I feel remarkably well and I don’t know how long I will feel well because, for all I know, I could be feeling terrible by this afternoon. As a disabled blogger who has been online for several years, I can write multiple blog posts in a day if I wanted to because blogging is like second nature to me now but I usually don’t to avoid burnout. On a bad migraine day, I am watching a whole lot of Netflix and doing a whole lot of nothing because I don’t force myself to write a blog post when I am not in the mood to do so. I am able to write a blog post when I am not feeling well but I typically don’t unless I am working with a brand and have no choice because the quality tends to not be as good. On a good pain I don’t always share the post immediately but I do try to write at least one because you never know how you will feel on your next posting day and it can never hurt to be prepared.
I eat healthy- On bad pain days my nutrition is not the greatest because I don’t have the energy to make a big meal and sometimes I grab things for convenience but it isn’t necessarily healthy. I don’t generally skip meals during a migraine attack because not fueling your body at all will make pain worse but I also won’t go out of my way to make a salad when I don’t have energy. On good days I am not usually craving all the carbs like I would on bad ones and I take advantage of that and make a healthy meal. Healthy eating can help prevent flares but if you are having a bad pain day a lot of the time you won’t make healthy choices and often you will find yourself eating macaroni and cheese because it brings you comfort which I don’t think is a bad thing to do sometimes but when you have chronic pain it’s more than something you do occasionally because bad pain flare can happen several days a week. I have gotten better with recognizing when I have a true craving and when it’s bad pain that is telling me I need to eat more carbs but I still sometimes don’t have the best nutrition. Weight gain can be a problem for people with chronic pain because you don’t have the energy to make healthy meals and there isn’t real solution for this which is the reason I try to be healthier on days I have more energy because you never know if tomorrow will be different. Healthy eating can help improve pain but that is a lot easier said than done because when your in the middle of flare you don’t have the energy to make a meal. I don’t always make super healthy meals on good days and it depends what options I have but if it’s a choice I typically will be more inclined to eat healthier when I am well.
I do my exercise routine– When you live with chronic migraine or any type of chronic pain it is often recommended that you move your body but it can be difficult to motivate yourself to exercise because exercise can also trigger flares if done wrong. . Exercise is not a good recommendation for everyone who lives with chronic pain or chronic illness because depending on what medical condition you have it can make it worse. If you live with migraine doctors often recommend you do some exercise because movement can help lessen the severity and frequency of attacks.. When I am having a bad day I am not usually exercising because sometimes it’s the smarter choice not to. I have specific days that I like to exercise but depending on what my pain levels are I am not always able to stick to it and sometimes when I am in a flare it can be a week before I get back to exercising. Exercise is important for people with migraine but it can be hard to get it in because not every day is a good day and it’s always a good idea to take advantage of all the days you are feeling better. I do not exercise on bad days because my exercise routine is all weight-lifting and would worsen a flare but I do exercise on good ones even if I wasn’t planning on it because you know when your next attack will be or how long you’ll be down for.
I do my bowel regimen- I do not have bowel movements every single day because my bowels do not work properly and I don’t have to have them daily because it’s a much longer process and my doctors hasn’t told me that it needs to be done day On Sunday’s I almost always do my bowel regimen but depending on how I am feeling sometimes I will put it off days because there is nothing worse than having to shower while being dizzy. I have having bowel movements because sometimes it doesn’t work which can make me sick or just feel awful for who knows how long but it’s necessary for everyone even if you don’t like it. Some days I have no choice and have to do my bowel regimen on bad day but I would much rather do it on a good day because I tend to rush things on bad days and things tend to go a lot smoother when I have less stress. I almost always will do my bowel regimen on a good days if I am due for it because I enjoy my showers more and it’s more likely that it will work when you aren’t overly anxious.
When you live with chronic pain sometimes the bad days outweigh the good ones but it’s important that you take advantage of your good days because you never know if it will be a month before your next good day. Self-care is especially important on bad days but it’s also important to take care of yourself on the good ones because focusing on self-care can help lower your stress level and possibly prevent or delay the next flare. On good days I do different things than I would on bad ones because I have more energy but I don’t overdo or blame myself when my body doesn’t want to function. I hope I am feeling well for a while but it’s highly unlikely because you usually only get one really good day once every few weeks and that is the best-case scenario. Take advantage of your good days but don’t beat yourself up over the bad ones and rest your body to recover faster. It is frustrating to have to slow down during a bad pain flare but sometimes it’s necessary for better days and you’re being lazy for watching Netflix when you’re not feeling good and it’s self-care. How do you celebrate good days?
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