Adriene, That Pain, and Yoga

Self care for some nurses is wanting.  I am a case in point.  If you come to me and describe certain symptoms I am likely to tell you that you should see your doctor.  When I experience a problem  I have a consistent plan of action.

1.  Ignore as long as possible and wait to see if the problem goes away. (This step may take weeks)
2. Consider carefully all steps not requiring medical care and implement accordingly.
3. When it dawns that no this problem will not go away without some kind of intervention, then activate the result of step two.
4. When it is obvious that your friends are sick and tired of your whining and sniveling, go to a doctor and shut up. ** The shutting up will occur, the doctors visit rarely.

Several weeks, dare I say months?  No, several weeks ago I developed headaches, something very unusual for me and on occasion dizziness.  I noticed it when I moved my head, and on waking the pain would be at the resting point in my head.

It must be my brain I thought.  But then not to long ago I took notice that the pain was not just IN my head but in my neck and shoulders.  I was unable to turn my head right or left to any degree.

So one morning after someone had mentioned Yoga in another conversation it came to me that perhaps I should try some exercises and I googled my symptoms and the word exercises.

Naturally a plethora of remedies popped up, most of them on YouTube.  I watched a few and realized there were no Downward Facing Dogs in my immediate future but then I found Adriene.  Fibromyalgia precludes some types of exercise but this particular exercise seemed made to measure.

You can sit on a mat or in a chair, and there are days I do one or the other. The first time I thought, ‘Oh Oh, I can’t do any of these.’  It seemed nothing stretched the way it should.  But Adriene says, ‘Listen to your body.’  So I did.  If nothing was going to stretch at least I could strive to get into the starting position.

Well guess what?  That very first day, I got up, got on with  my day, and found myself in awe that I could move so well and so comfortably.

I have done it every morning on rising without fail (no I did miss one day and was quite miserable with pain for the day), but otherwise for a week, I have felt wonderful.  I make note of my discomfort on waking, where in my head or neck it is, just in case I ultimately do see a doc but my quality of life is wonderful.

So please meet Adriene!

I Marked A Wonderful Day Pakulaked With Fun

I Marked A Wonderful Day Pakulaked With Fun

Did you notice what I did there?  Thanks to Mark…Pakulak of course..who allowed me to do a guest post on his golden site I got to meet and find and subscribe to some major A listers and I had a ball!  Thank you redriverpak.wordpress.com!

Now here comes the tricky part….we absolutely must give Mark his 2 millionth hit on March 15th.  That’s the date I chose and the prize is to be adored by him for one week..and yes his wife is fine with this.  So here is the plan….I’ll watch his stats and if he has not reached it by the Ides of March we must, all do us click ourselves silly.  I am beginning to think he will hit it before The Ides HOWEVER if we miss that one we will do it for the 3 million mark.  I love it when a plan comes together! ( As Hannibal, no not Lecter but the other one on A team says).

I have had some great things happen in my life but I gotta say…this was special!,

Mark..I am glad your surgery has been approved and would like to offer free nursing care for that month..but no I do not do poop patrol..but will be happy to direct!!

The First Real Snow Storm

The First Real Snow Storm

Yup, you got it right. Today March twenty-third.  I live nestled in South Western Ontario, surrounded by the great lakes.  All winter vicious snow storms have raged to the west of us, to the south of us – well you get the idea – and for some reason my twin cities have escaped anything major.  I was starting to feel a little guilty about it.  I didn’t even have to travel far to encounter one.  Maybe an hour either way at most.

Yesterday crocuses..or is it croci…were peeking up.  Spring is here!  Why we even had an official start to spring.  Then last night the snow started and it did not stop.  It fell all day and at times I could see nothing but white all flying horizontally.

How lucky I was.  Did not have to go out for anything.  Schools closed.  Almost no traffic that I could see.  Stayed snuggy.  Drank coffee and racked my brain for inspiration.  Perfect day to write something.  Now it is nine thirty p.m. and I have cabin fever.  I achieved nothing either creative or physical.

Now I sit here thinking that might have been my last chance this year to walk in a storm. I love walking in the falling snow.  Everything is so quiet and it takes me back to being a young child.  Young enough that my mother dressed me in snowsuit, woolen hat, and mitts and heavy boots, then plunked me outside.  Back then young children were just plunked outside.  How we entertained ourselves was up to us.  No such thing as play groups or play dates.  It was a young family neighborhood so it was likely that others were plunked at the same time.

What did we do you ask?  Well we ate snow, waddled around, made attempts at snowmen and angels.  My dad made us a rink in the back yard every winter. When we got older we skated.  There were lots of boys on our street and they played with my two brothers. I always had a crush on one of them.  They played hockey and cowboys and Indians on the ice.  I always wanted to play but they made me be the nurse.  That meant I had to stand by the clothesline stand and wait in case one of them got injured…which they never did.

My brother who is closest to my age loved hockey.  You could not drag him out of bed in the morning for school, it was torturous, but come Saturday morning he got up at five, packed up a huge sack of equipment and hauled it to our auditorium.  On foot, alone.  The aud was about three miles away.  Just to play hockey.  I think he was about nine.  I could never figure that one out.  

My family, especially him are hockey fans.  My sister in law who is equally addicted thinks I cannot be a true member.  I developed my dislike at a young age because back then there was one TV set and come Saturday it was Hockey Night in Canada.  It was the worst night of the week!

Well my brother still loves hockey even after all these years.  I found better things to do with my Saturday nights and the family unit remains intact.  In fact all my sibs are good friends, probably because not one of them expects me to watch hockey.  Every now and then I throw a spanner in the works.  I will actually read something about someone in the sport and toss it casually into conversation.  By the looks they give me I reckon they believe I have lost my mind or an alien has taken me over.  It’s worth it just to see the looks on their faces!