Saturday, July 31, 2010

Sunshine and Happiness

I may be sick.  I may not be able to get out of it.  Somehow, I am more or less coming to terms with all of this.  I don't think it ever becomes fully adjusted to as a lifestyle choice, but one has to do what they have to do.


I am back on all of my meds (and never went remotely cold turkey!!), and my body and brain are slightly more comfortable but they still aren't working.  Countdown until next doctor's appointment is on.


Until then, I purchased all of Gala Darling's podcasts/writings to read/listen to, as I think she is so fantastic! I can't wait to have the energy to go through them all.  


On top of that, I'm doing my best to create lists of easy to make foods so that I can try and take care of myself once I move back into my Charlottetown apartment.  


I am trying to listen to my body more (although it is sometimes impossible to understand!), and working on bringing some new med ideas to the doctors' appointments in the upcoming month.


What is helping me to get by?
Have any of you tried to do a med cutback and failed??  Any stories you'd like to tell!  Any pick me up articles you want to direct me too?  I love the support!

xoxo,
Annie

7 comments:

Migrainista said...

I just started a med cut back. Don't yet know how it will go, but I'm not optimistic.

Reformed Anon. Girl in Pain said...

most of my meds are "necessary for the continuation of life" meds so I can't ever go off them, I've been on some of them since I was 4, 10 and 12. I can't tell you how frustrating it is to know my life is only sustained by expensive stoopid pharmaceuticals. but I'm thankful that they were invented, if I'd been born in a different era, I'd be dead.

I do frequently stop taking my narcotics for a bit, sometimes they work and some times they don't so going off of them for a bit isn't much more painful than taking them during a flare and having them be uneffective. I find if I stop and detox from my narcotics that they work better and I can remain on a lower dose instead of climbing. occasionally I do take a double dose if it's been a particularly bad pain day or if I am planning on having a life and leaving my house.

Med withdrawls can be very dangerous depending what you are taking, I would talk to your doctor about it first, maybe there is an easier way or that you should wean down on one at a time if you are on more than one. I went to school to learn about pharmacology (after all I'm surrounded by drugs in my day-to-day existence so it was a familiar topic for me to study lol) and some meds are downright dangerous to go off of without close supervision.
I hope you are doing better and are more comfortable and I enjoy reading your blog and seeing your tweets (ChroniclyRandom here)
God bless
REformed anon girl

Anonymous said...

yeah.... went off my meds on may 11th and now need to go back on...

Toni said...

I wish you wouldn't think of it as having failed. Some of us need to be on meds to be able to lead any kind of decent life. I take two meds that help me get better quality sleep. I'm sure I'm dependent on them but I don't care. They improve the quality of my life during the day and that's enough reason for me to take them.

So, I don't think it's a question of being on meds. It's a question of being on the right ones at the right dose. And for that, you need a doctor who's willing to work with you and try different things. I hope so much that you can find a doctor like that, Annie.

phylor said...

Some meds might be necessary to attain a level of quality of life.

If you could find a good doctor to work with, you might be able to tweak your meds so that you take a smaller dose, or less often, or perhaps not at all. "Downsizing" your meds is a big task, and the detox might go better if you had a good relationship with a doctor.

I've gone through withdrawal from narcotic/opiate pain meds, and it's not a pretty sight! I take a "mantainance" dose to keep the shakeys, sniffles, yawns, etc. (and pain) at bay.

You were brave to try to detox, and you certainly aren't a failure!

Offbeat Follies said...

When I was a teenager I stupidly tried to live a med-free life (without telling anyone of course) Well, of course, I wound up in the ER with arrhythmia as expected. I never did that (deliberately) again =/

Sue Jackson said...

I've never tried going off meds - they're my lifeline!! They fix my sleep, calm down my allergies, give me more energy, and basically allow me to function.

For some awesome inspiration and really helpful tips on living with CFS, take a look at a new book from Toni, a frequent CFS blog visitor - I just reviewed it on my blog. It's a wonderful book and sounds like it fits perfectly with your current mood of revitalization!

Sue