Things I’m Doing For My Health Right Now

I’m a huge advocate of being proactive when it comes to your health, so I today I’m sharing some of the ways I’m doing this right now.

Lately, I’ve had the feeling that no matter what I do for my health, it feels kind of futile. That’s one of the sucky things about being chronically ill—you can do all the right things, and still be, well, chronically ill. Plus, I’ve been dealing with the cold weather (one of my triggers), health set backs, and—oh joy—new symptoms. It’s frustrating and ironic when your health is one of the things keeping you from being proactive about your health.

Thus, this blog post. I thought it would be helpful to record the ways I can be proactive about my health, and how these actions do help, even if just in a small way.

Some of the items on my list may look a little random, or not the kind of things you would associate with “health.” Most of these things aren’t specific to helping any one health condition, like my dysautonomia, fibromyalgia, asthma, autoimmune disease, ME/CFS, etc. But I’ve been trying to pay attention to what is zapping my energy or causing me stress. Viewing a problem as an opportunity to improve my health helps in two ways: 1) this helps me clarify a goal (less energy output or stress) and 2) this helps motivate me to make positive changes (by reminding me that this is important to my overall wellbeing). This clarity and motivation is enough to break through my brain fog and exhaustion so that I’m able to work on my health.

My hope is that this post will help you take a look at what you’re doing for your own wellness, or inspire you to think of new ways you can include more self care in your life. And when you make that list, I hope your reaction is similar to mine: I might be limited in what I can do for my health right now, but I’m doing the best I can.

Note: This blog post is meant for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. I am not a health care provider, and what I share is based on my personal experiences.  Always talk to your doctor when making changes to your treatment or before trying something new.

This post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a portion of sales, at no additional cost to you, if you click through and make a purchase. All recommendations are my own. Thank you for supporting my blog through your purchase! 

Blogging less

You may have noticed that I’m posting every other week rather than weekly. I made the decision because I needed to take the pressure off myself so that blogging was more fun for me. My plan is to get some posts written and in the queue, and then look at blogging  more often once I have some “buffer” posts set up. I want to continue to blog because I want to, not because I feel like I have to.

Setting new but reasonable blogging and writing goals

I don’t want to overstretch myself when setting writing goals, but I also don’t want to let my chronic illness keep me from trying different things. I want to accomplish new things and expand my writing and blogging horizons. My hope is that by blogging less for awhile, I can try some different ways of promoting my blog and  work on creative writing. I’m still thinking about what exactly this looks like, but already the thought of trying new things makes me feel more excited about writing this year.

Journaling

I picked up my journal towards the end of December—and realized I hadn’t written in it since August! I’ve missed this tool for helping me process my thoughts and feelings, as well as a way to record what I’m thankful for. I recently read a great blog post about adding space in our journals for praising God, and I love that idea.

Switching to natural period products

I’ve been wanting to do this for years to get away from products containing dyes, chemicals, and bleach. But up until now, I had been disappointed in the quality of other products I’ve tried. Thanks to this post from A Chronic Voice, I found these on Amazon (and these and these). I’ve been impressed with how much more comfortable and effective they are, plus I think they’re less expensive than what I was buying.

Getting a different perspective

I’ve made a couple appointments with my naturopathic oncologist, who I hadn’t seen in quite some time after having my thyroidectomy and radioactive iodine treatment due to cancer a little over three years ago. Sometimes you have to view things from a different angle, and since I seem to excel at stumping my other specialists, I decided it was time to give something else a try. So far, nothing earth-shattering, but it’s helped to bring another eye to my ongoing post-thyroid treatment, plus confirm that my diet is super healthy. (Yay, gold star for me! It feels good to confirm I am doing things right, even if a gold star feels like the only payoff.) Talking with this doctor has also helped clarify my health goals, and I’ll share more about the helpful chart my doctor had me create for that purpose, in an upcoming post.

Unsubscribing from organizations’ mailing lists and email lists

I have such limited energy, and I realized what a time waster it was to have to sort through mail, rip open envelopes, and then dispose of all those papers with my personal contact information. I made a few calls to get unsubscribed from mailing lists, and it’s been helpful to have fewer envelopes to sort through each month. I get enough mail from my doctors and insurance! I also unsubscribed from some email lists so its easier to go through my inbox.

PS Here’s another way I’ve been cutting digital clutter, on my e-reader.

This stretch

I deal with ongoing pain due to fibromyalgia, and while visits to my massage therapist and chiropractor help some, the benefit goes away all too quickly, so it’s helpful whenever I can learn ways to help myself between appointments. This has helped my tailbone pain, which ironically makes just sitting or walking very painful. After talking with one of my health care providers, I confirmed it was okay for me to modify this stretch using a small rolled sock because I couldn’t tolerate the pressure of using a ball. I’ve learned its always helpful to talk to a professional about options for modifying stretches or treatment to see if that makes them possible for me to try.

Looking at the frequency of treatments

Massage, chiropractic, osteopathic manipulation and acupuncture are some of the few things I’ve found to help fibromyalgia and my other health conditions. I’m taking some time to pause and consider: do I need to try these treatments more often so that they help more? Do I need to stop some for awhile if I increase others?

Trying new skin care

I went through to make sure I really was using the most natural skin care products possible (I’m planning to share my favorites in an upcoming post). I was disappointed to discover that despite aiming to use natural products for many years, some chemicals were still lurking in the ingredients. My body is so sensitive that I react to most things (oh the joys of acne and eczema and fibromyalgia). Plus, I’ve been doing more reading about chemicals since I had thyroid cancer, and its disturbing how much out there is unregulated or know to be linked to endocrine disruption, cancer, and more. I don’t feel a major difference, but it feels good to know I’ve cut potential toxins from my daily routine.

This article touches on this topic as it relates to makeup and beauty: The New Toxic Beauty Documentary Asks: Are Skin-Care Products the New Cigarettes? I haven’t watched the documentary yet but plan to.

Getting rid of cheap jewelry

Similarly, I’ve been thinking of the way my skin is sensitive to jewelry. I’ve always had to wear hypoallergenic earrings due to allergic reactions. But I haven’t always been as careful with other jewelry, and I’ve decided to start getting rid of any suspect pieces. I’ve only just started this, but I’m looking forward to being more confident of the pieces I wear, plus reducing clutter by getting rid of the stuff I don’t wear anyway.

PS Here are my tips for decluttering when you have no energy.

Joining a prayer group

I can’t even remember the last time I was part of an “in person” Bible study, and my last study via phone ended about a year ago. Chronic illness can be incredibly isolating. (In January, I literally had four social interactions that weren’t with my family that I live with or at a doctors’ appointment: Two birthday parties, I stopped by briefly to see my grandma, and my brother came over to watch movies. Many people with chronic illness struggle even to see friends and family that much, and I’ve had many months where I’ve gotten to visit with people much less.) It’s been so helpful to connect with a couple friends regularly via phone to dive into deep things that are on our hearts and be more intentional about prayer and spiritual growth. Accountability is always a good thing!

Pausing before I post

This l blog post from Not Just Tired has reminders about celebrating our good days, and one of her caveats about sharing to social media reminded me of one of my own helpful practices. I’ll often wait to post about something fun I was able to go do—that way in the days afterward when my body is recovering and I’m struggling with the aftermath, I’m not bombarded with messages like “you must be feeling better!” That’s so discouraging when doing something for an hour makes me feel worse for days! Waiting to post helps me to have perspective when I get comments from people who don’t understand; plus, by then I’ve recovered some and I’m ready to look back at the photos or memories with gratitude instead of regret.

Protecting my immune system

I have been super careful to check with people before meeting up to ensure they’re not sick. This may seem excessive to healthy people, but it’s vital for those of us who are chronically ill. My last cold turned immediately into bronchitis, and it took three weeks for all the fluid to get out of my lungs. My doctors have repeatedly urged me to avoid exposure to colds, viruses, or the flu because they’re concerned that could put me in the hospital. When you have a compromised immune system, you have to protect yourself. I already have most of the symptoms of the flu each day, plus a lot of other symptoms. The last things I need is to be completely miserable with a cold on top of that! For the most part, people have been very understanding. Regardless, it’s been helpful to remind myself that I don’t need anyone’s permission or approval to prioritize my health.

The arrival of the coronavirus in the United States has further emphasized the need for everyone (even/especially healthy people) to take common-sense precautions against spreading germs, if only for the sake of those of us who have underlying health conditions and suppressed immune systems.

And to better understand what “just a cold” means for someone with chronic illness, check out this great article on The Mighty.

This ties into the next point…

Being really honest with people about the severity of my health

This one is hard because I hate causing those I love to worry. I often find it more stressful to upset my family and friends by passing along bad health news than I do to receive that news myself. But people were more understanding when I explained that I was immunosuppressed due to a medication I was taking. But since (thankfully) getting off those meds, people don’t seem to understand that I’m still immunosuppressed at all times due to the multiple systems in my body that are not functioning, including my immune system. So I’ve started sharing with people that several doctors have told me that if I catch the flu, I could end up in the hospital, or worse. The simple fact of the matter is that catching a cold, virus, or the flu could be deadly to me. I had tried explaining it in vague terms (it’s dangerous for me to get sick) but realized I needed to be more clear because people couldn’t comprehend how something they could fight off easily could be so much worse for someone chronically ill like me. When those of us who are chronically ill say that we have to take all available measures to avoid colds, viruses, and the flu, we are not exaggerating or being dramatic: we are following doctor’s orders.

Make time for creativity

It always bears repeating—it’s so important to make time for creative pursuits. I’ve been making some cards lately, and one of my goals this year is to work on catching up on my photo albums. I think I’m about four years behind, which was about when I started to become more seriously ill. I’m not putting pressure on myself to get all caught up—I just want to take the time to preserve good memories and enjoy a hobby I’ve always loved.

What are you doing for your health lately? Have you taken time recently to evaluate small changes that could positively impact your health?
I’d love to hear what you’re trying in the comments.

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