Thanksgiving

First of all, on a non-health related topic, to me Thanksgiving is a religious holiday, a time not just for family and food, but also a time of gratitude towards God.  I have a lot to be thankful for over the last couple years.  My mother is now out of pain and resting with Jesus.  My new stepmother and her family are a pretty cool bunch of people.  I am very close to getting my dream farm (planning to close in January.)  My health has improved greatly.  Thank-you God.

My friends are less religious, but I still enjoy cooking for them, so I hold a "Turkey is on Sale" dinner near Thanksgiving for them most years.  (It's not Thanksgiving to me, but it is to some of them.)  Between all the prep for Thursday (just a few dishes and a lot of cleaning) and Saturday (the whole dinner), I was on my feet for large parts of four days.  I went to bed with sore feet each night.  The first couple mornings I woke up refreshed and ready to do it again.  Saturday morning the daily abuse had caught up to me and I was sore to begin with.  I'd work a half hour and rest a half hour until the guests arrived and the pace of food prep sped up.  It went well, but I was pretty much just in the mood to direct my guests rather than be a good hostess by the time dinner was served.  I wasn't so sore as to be grumpy though.  I went to bed an hour early, and got a good night's sleep.  Today one foot seems recovered, but the other is still sore.  Note, I didn't take any of my fibromyalgia medication, my improved sleep quality seems to be enough to help fix me up at night.

One thing that was a bit disappointing about Thanksgiving is that pigging out is not nearly as fun as it used to be.  My stomach has shrunk, and I tend more towards the filling fatty and fibrous foods instead of the fluffy carbs, so I was full before I finished my first plate at both dinners.  Took my time chatting and picking until I cleaned my plate (like my Mommy taught me.)  Seconds had no appeal for me, although I did manage a bit of pie with real cream a few hours later...  I guess it will be easier to not gain weight over the holidays if I can't undo a month of dieting in one day any more...  I suppose that's another thing to be thankful for!

Sleeping?

I often characterize Fibromyalgia as a sleeping disorder.  The doctor that diagnosed me explained that Fibromyalgia patients don't get enough fourth stage sleep, which in turn does not allow their muscles the proper amount of rebuilding time at night.  The medication I (now only occasionally) take helps me sleep deeper and longer, and allows my muscles more time to heal during my sleep.

The last few days a strange thing has been happening.  I have woken up and been alert after 8 hours of sleep, about a half hour before my alarm clock, an hour before I normally get out of bed.  Was my hip adjustment that helpful?  Or is this just an odd phase brought on by the changing of the clocks and a couple early morning appointments?  If this continues, will I still have Fibromyalgia flare-ups when I overdo or get emotional, or will my body have a better mechanism for keeping up with other stresses?

Still Adapting - Hips

Last month I had a rather drastic and quick adaptation to my knees.  Yesterday, I was clambering around in the back of the tuck herding loose groceries towards the tailgate.  As I got myself down, I was feeling grateful for my improved flexibility and balance.  Then about on the second load of bringing groceries in from the car, my "good" hip started complaining in a whole new way.  Felt like a pinched nerve or something.  I let hubby take my last armful so I could hobble into the house without extra encumbrance.  In about 15 minutes later, it passed, and then later in the evening my "bad" side took up the cause.  It also eased in a little while, and I got a good massage in before bed in the evening.

Today the "bad" hip started up again, although not as strange a pain this time, more like it was just under some odd stress.  I tried rocking away to take the weight off it, and it screamed, so I leaned more weight over on it and it felt almost normal.  I always used to lean to the right, now with this adjustment to my hip I'm standing straight up (so says the pendulum) although I feel like I'm leaning to the left.  It will take time to get used to this...

Long Weeked

My latest test of my new health was the Rhinebeck fiber festival.

First came the 5 hour drive in hubby's slightly sporty car with uncomfortable sporty seats.  I struggled with some back pain at first, but after the first couple hours I found a combination of posture and stretching that seemed to do the trick, and the deep fog in the last hour of the trip became my only major problem.

Then I got to my cousin's house, and we stayed up late into the night trading crafts.  I decided if I was going to spend the next two days walking I should stop playing with her spinning wheel before I felt sore, but I probably spent an hour at it.  I fell into bed and slept lightly (as I usually do when traveling), but the mattress was nice and firm, and I'd brought my flat pillow-substitute towel, so I was pretty comfy and well rested for the amount of time I slept.

Off to the fiber festival, from about 10 AM to 3 PM we walked through all the vendor booths.  I got a couple sitting breaks, but the only long one was at lunch.  After lunch I did a little Tai Chi to align my hips and knees, which made walking a bit easier than it had been.

I was pretty beat a 3 PM, when we got back to my cousin's I actually took my meds for a change, we played with our new toys while supper cooked and then I fell into bed at 9 PM.

Sunday morning I woke up refreshed from my 9 hours of soundly drugged rest.  There was a little soreness in the muscles from the day before, but it was not as bad as I expected, and it felt good to keep moving and stretching those muscles.  I decided I was good to go for a second day of it.

My shoes had gotten damp and not quite dried by morning, so I threw on some wool socks to keep my feet toasty in the mild autumn morning chill.  I was starting to have issues with my feet, that immediately resolved when things warmed up and I took the thick socks off...  (I feel like the princess sleeping on the pea sometimes.)  We had more sitting time on the second day, as we watched a silly leaping lama show as well as finding a table for lunch.  I was spared having to be the wet blanket two days in a row by my cousin's husband who needed to get some sleep before his night shift, and I was in fine shape to do the drive home.

The drive home was much more pleasant than the drive out, with the exception of the political commentators beating a dead horse.  (I probably vote the same way they do, but for Pete's sake there are much more important things to discuss than the president's unwise echoing of the poor wording in a question.)

Sunday night I stayed up too late washing all my travel clothes and playing with my new toys, which left me tired today, but I have only mild soreness, and had no night cramps.  Perhaps tonight I can get hubby to take me to the track and hot tub...

Overall I'd call it a success, with room for further improvement.  Next year I'd like to be able to go from open to close without begging for a bit of sit-down time.