Last Thursday’s post flowed like a raging river, as I knew exactly what I wanted to write about as soon as I broke up with my Fitbit. This week, inspiration wasn’t as easy to come by until Tuesday night when I was in way too much pain (i.e. the knot/trigger point in my right shoulder blade was radiating pain up into my neck and down into my lower back, while my sciatica was started to get a little whiny again) to even think about putting together dinner (i.e. cut, peel and roast a butternut squash with accompanying protein and green veggie side dish). Plus, I was just totally wiped out. Having a chronic autoimmune disease means that at least twice a month, I feel like complete garbage — sometimes this feeling lasts only a day or two, sometimes longer.
Thankfully, Taylor offered to bring the girls out for dinner so that I could take some time to relax. I made myself a quick salad topped with a chicken burger for my own dinner and then I took a bath. The two boxes of bath bombs that Taylor had given me for past birthdays had been staring at me long enough. Two cups of lavender Epsom salts and one Balance bath bomb later, I was up to my ears in warm, effervescing water and enjoying a rerun of Cupcake Wars on Sling. It was absolutely what Dr. Teal had ordered. After finishing my bath, I spent 15 minutes completing Day #7 of Yoga with Kassandra’s 30 Day Evening Yoga Challenge.
I had forgotten that the Bubbly Belle bath bombs had little messages tucked inside until the one from my Balance bomb started emerging from the bomb’s center. It was a pleasant surprise not only receiving my little forgotten fortune, but also reaffirming a message that I clearly needed to hear — “I am becoming a better version of myself one day at a time.”
As I mentioned last week, lately I have been struggling with a lot of joint pain, muscular pain and just a feeling of general malaise. Before fate decided to bestow this little bath time revelation on me, I had already made the conscious decision to revamp my workout routine to one that is more mindful, intuitive and enjoyable. In fact, next week, I’ll be starting Autumn Calabrese’s 4 Weeks for Everybody Workout Program, in addition to her 4 Week Gut Protocol, as I’m determined to prove to myself that scaling back my workouts and making a concerted effort to figure out which foods are triggering my joint and muscle pain (i.e. inflammation) will do me a world of good. Receiving some extra reinforcement from my Balance bomb certainly helped alleviate both my mental and physical reservations.
Not to sound too cliche, but I’m sick and tired of feeling sick and tired. I miss those days when I felt more like the Energizer Bunny than a lump on a log. I’m really hoping that figuring out ALL of my triggers will bring me some long-term relief. I’ve already cut out alcohol, processed sugars and gluten. This Tuesday, I added dairy and caffeine to the list.
My workouts this week have been much more gentle and forgiving, as well. For the last few weeks, my cardio of choice has been rebounding on my JumpSport. This week, I also opted out of all upper body workouts to give my shoulder pain some time to heal and instead focused on Moms Into Fitness Lower Body Barre workouts, foam rolling with Lauren Roxburgh and yoga (I’m currently working on my 200-Hour Yoga Teacher Training & Certification with YogaRenew).
And, guess what? This morning, I woke up pain-free!
So, maybe there really is something to making those oh-so-hard changes. As someone who loves a good, predictable routine (and life), I’m realizing that taking the time to become a better version of myself may be the most beneficial lesson that I could learn, as well as, share with others who may or may not suffer from chronic pain and inflammation. Way back when, this blog served as a place where I could document my journey with a high-risk NAIT pregnancy. Ten years later, I’m excited to see where my journey with chronic disease will bring me, as well as (hopefully!) countless others who may also struggle in silence.
On a brighter note, today marks one week until St. Patrick’s Day. Our resident Leprechaun left his annual note, pot for gold and a couple of gold coins outside of the girls’ bedrooms this morning. It looks like it will be an exciting week of hunting for treasure for our Irish lassies!
Happy Thursday, DTT Readers!
Deep Thought Thursdays 