Essentially Samantha

 Story time. Living with an invisible illness such as Fibromyalgia is very difficult. The public does not understand the suffering from an illness they cannot see. Medical professionals think it is all in our heads because there are no tests for Fibromyalgia. Friends and relatives grow exhausted at plans that keep being rearranged due to fluctuating pain or fatigue levels "But you were fine yesterday?" is something we hear a lot. Yes, I may have been fine yesterday; that is because I hid my pain level, and today I am paying the price. Fibromyalgia is a lifelong chronic condition. It is characterised by long-term, widespread chronic pain, which can be severe in nature and chronic fatigue. Brain fog, IBS, Lack of sleep, and dizziness are just some of the various symptoms. There is no cure. Treatment is multidisciplinary and experimental. There are no specific tests for Fibromyalgia. The practitioner treating you asks you to do a pain diagram over a specific period of time to de...

  Overnight, I recognised that my throat was burning, not like heartburn, but like drinking a spirit and the hot warmth that spreads throughout, type of burn. My thyroid has always been dodgy, and recently I had an abnormal result, which meant I had to decrease my Levothyroxine. The other day, I felt so fatigued in town that I had to get a taxi back home. Then, whilst I was cooking chicken, I felt like I was going to faint. I have now bought a manual wheelchair. This should do me until I can afford an electric wheelchair. So I walked to the GP this morning, who checked my thyroid and agreed to run a blood test to see if anything is going on. I am being tested for Hashimoto's and Graves' disease, also. GP also said she thinks I have a virus, and she is running a full blood panel. I am having the blood test this Saturday. If my blood tests come back as normal, then it looks like my Fibromyalgia is worsening. I have discussed with Barry that we need the electric wheelchair asap, b...

 It's 5am. The sun is shining with an orange-red glow on my net curtains, I had to capture it for you. I grabbed a coffee with collagen in it. Without the collagen my joints really hurt. Then I headed outside to water my herbs and get the washing in.  Its hot out there already in this heatwave we have been experiencing. Yes its been great for getting outdoor work done, but it is exhausting as there is little breeze and my fibromyalgia plays up big time in the heat. Not to mention I could go toxic on Lithium. Can't recommend this book enough! Really good read if you want to do any type of writing. There are no secrets or rules. You have to want to write like you not someone else. I have found this book invaluable. When I sit down and take a painkiller if my back is hurting too much, I read this book. It helps. With fibromyalgia, it can flare at any point. I had to catch a taxi home the other day as it felt like wading through waist-high wet sand with blood pouring out of the so...