Thursday, March 3, 2011

Stretching...It's Worth It

Lately, my most therapeutic action towards my illness has got to be stretching.

My muscles are just full of knots.  There is no place you can touch on my body that doesn't elicit some sort of pain.

Stretching is a way of giving myself a massage, as I can't afford to have them done by professionals. It may hurt a little, but it relaxes my wound up muscles, and let's me have a moment of distraction from the nonstop pain.

I don't really have a system.

I have a very comfortable exercise mat, and will pop on an iPod or pull the mat in front of the television, simply letting my body do what it wants to do.  

Sitting too long or laying too long leaves me stiff as a board, so brief stretching periods a few times a day seems to make life a little more bearable.

(Image from WeHeartIt)

What is the most effective treatment you are using?  Diet, exercise, medication, art?  

xoxo,
Annie

6 comments:

ZzirF said...

I like stretching too when I can. I've just managed to score 5 free physio sessions where I will be asking for cranio-sacral massage.

Unknown said...

I've never considered stretching though I will definitely be giving it a go. I've found that making sure I go to bed and getting up has really helped my energy levels.

Jessica said...

Yoga, ice & pain pills!

Ms.F. said...

Yoga/stretching, hot baths, heating pads and very gentle hot oil massages by hubby do it for me. Also, don't know what your state laws or personal views are, but medical marijuana has helped me through some of the roughest days without causing the liver damage that morphine, vicodin etc lead to.

Meg said...

Thanks for the reminder that I need to actually be active in lessening my pain. My back and shoulder pain was so much better when I was doing yoga, and now I'm almost back to the point where I don't feel capable of relaxing those muscles. To-do: stretch 'em out.

Anonymous said...

Hi Annie,
I've been thinking about trying to get some stretching into my days as well but I'm just so worried about it contributing negatively that I keep putting it off. One of my thoughts was to find a yoga instructor who could come to me.