When I first ‘met’ the author of this book, I was fascinated by her ability to bring forth so much expertise in the twitter world about my illnesses – check her out at @diamondie.  Over time, I learned that she had written a book to fill in the gap on treatments for Fibromyalgia and CFS/ME (a subject I jump all over!).

• Scaly winter skin and the amount of moisturizer it takes to prevent the situation!
• The fact that two more hard drives have crashed around this place…(we must be really wicked on hard drives…).
• Having late night snack ribs stuck in my teeth with no dental floss to be found!
• Not conversing with my friend Leslie for wayyy too long!
• That I lost my TMJ mouth guard somewhere around this house!
• Bills, bills, bills.
• Being reliant on Celexa to have a remotely stable mood .
• Not knowing whether or not to buy Goo Goo Dolls tickets or Melissa Etheridge tickets!!! Torn.
• Panic attacks at night :/

My latest and greatest of the Interwebs!

A skill I think we all need to improve!
http://rowdykittens.com/2010/11/the-art-of-listening/

How to talk to family and close friends about what you are going through with Chronic Illness, written by my favorite Toni Bernhard!
http://livingbetteronline.blogspot.com/2010/10/when-chronic-illness-strikes.html

Advice on how to move on by any given predicament…
http://www.charadestyle.com/2010/11/how-to-get-over-it.html

This appeals to the neat freak in me!
http://thingsorganizedneatly.tumblr.com/

Women should spend more time praising the strength of other women!
http://whitehottruth.com/white-hot/in-praise-of-women-few-enemies-mostly-witnesses/

Lessons learned by Positively Present.
http://www.positivelypresent.com/2010/08/27-lessons.html

101 ways to make your day better than usual!
http://hubpages.com/hub/101-Ways-To-Have-A-Great-Day

Keep fresh on staying interesting and creative!
http://thoughtwrestling.com/blog/23-ways-interesting-creative/

I hope you liked these links everyone!  Let they entertain, amuse, and hopefully enlighten!

xoxo,
Annie

Emma Stone: (on trusting your gut) I rely on my instincts and intuition, and I feel it’s so imperative for people to follow not the path but their path.

• Getting dressed up. I love nice fabrics, painted nails, makeup, color combinations, and all that noise. Makes me feel more alive .
• The show Divine Design is my new obsession.
• Listening to more music again…I missed it…
• That Kim’s MRI came back clear!! Yay!
• My mom’s latest carrot and raisin muffins! They are soooooooooo good that I can’t wait to get more! Yum.
• The new Donkey Kong for the Wii is super fun!
• I have a total girl crush on Emma Stone!
• The Futurama Christmas episode!

It hasn’t been a very good couple of days.

Yesterday, I was advised that tests were going to come to a close, as at this point they are now finding false positives.

It was implied that I simply wasn’t trying hard enough, and that my attitude simply just didn’t align with one who could cope with being constantly in pain.

He also said I needed to cut my medications, and yet couldn’t come up with medications to cut.

I was not impressed.

I then got a flu shot, and saw my gastroenterologist who gave me more gastroparesis treatment (Motilium).

A few hours later, I got horribly dizzy and vomited.

I went to acupuncture this morning and 21 needles were inserted.  I left in more pain than I had when I went in…not quite sure that’s how this process is meant to go.  I now have the worst muscle aches in potentially ever (the nurse called to check on me and the doctor then said that this is a side effect that I simply wasn’t warned about…).

I’ve spent a lot of time in bed.  I wanted to review a great book: Reviving the Broken Marionette: Treatments for CFS/ME and Fibromyalgia by Maija Haavisto, but I just haven’t had the strength.  It’s coming soon!

Hope everyone is well!

xoxo,
Annie

I have been playing a lot of television and movies in the background lately, in order to pretend I have company around the home (yes, I am that lame!).

Half Nelson:

This was a really touching movie that I just revisited.  It’s true, Shareeka Epps is really the star of this movie, as she steals every scene she shows her face.  Ryan Gosling plays a crack addicted professor, who really means the best, despite his drug habit.  Really makes you revisit one’s views of addiction, as it is never as black and white as it seems.  Drey (his student) and Dan (Ryan Gosling) develop an unlikely but emotionally satisfying friendship once she discovers his secret.  I recommend.

Reality Bites:

I LOVED this film.  It definitely will go into the must-watch on a regular basis pile!  It really describes how University sets you up to believe that life will deliver these great things, only to have individuals fall apart when they are trying to find work in a difficult, low-end market.  So snarky, so amazing, so loveable.

The Dharma Bums:

I was recommended this book by my lovely friend Sarah, and it was not a disappointment.  I have a great interest in Buddhism, and this book just instilled even more of these wonderful thoughts into my head.  I’m not sure I want to live out of a pack on the side of a mountain (not conducive for the chronically ill haha…), but the idea is beautiful.  Smith and Japhy are both highly likable characters, and Jack Kerouac just rocks my socks.
Zach Galifinakis Live:

I REALLY wanted to like this.  I found it boring, I found him offensive, and just overly blah.  Maybe I was just in the wrong mood.  I normally like his comedy, but he just seemed like a drunken buffoon in this one.

Did you love any of these?  Hate them?  What have you watched/read/listened to this past week?

xoxo,
Annie

Surviving the holidays can be a tricky task when you are chronically ill.  It can take a little more planning and preparation than it would for the general public, but it is possible to pull off the holiday you want!  Adequate resting time is one of the most crucial aspects of this process.

A Little Advice:

1. Pick a budget to stay within – chronically ill individuals pay large amounts of money for doctors, prescriptions, physiotherapy and the like, so it is perfectly acceptable to let people know that you are having money difficulties and need to stay in a certain range.
2. Write a list of who you need to buy/make presents for, and the items you are planning (brainfog can manage to steal these things away!).
3. Try to buy throughout the year, in order to take the pressure off of last minute shopping and jam-packed malls.
4. If you have the room, get the holiday decorations up a little earlier, so you don’t have to worry about them last minute, and can take your sweet time .
5. If you are the hostess of the entire holiday event, but too tired too cook extravagantly – come up with a list of extra special (but still easy) meals to make (or buy!).
6. During family gatherings, be sure to take a minute to lay down and catch a nap if it is what you need.  Make sure not to overdo anything!  People who care about you will not mind this.
7. Try to have fun and relax!  Make sure you have the proper medication with you, as well as anything else you need to get by (iPod, notebook, inhalers, etc…).
8. Make up a new tradition that works well for you with your chronic illness!  This is my favorite thing to do every year!  Last year’s tradition was mass amounts of paper snowflakes!
9. Try to work on Christmas cards and letters for keeping in touch with people – it’s an easy thing to do from home, without having to spend much money!
10. If you manage to have a mega flare and miss some people during the Christmas season, it’s always fun to make care packages for them later when they don’t expect them!

• The fact that my stimulants seem to be working less and less!  It’s remarkable that mj works better for me for energy than any type of actual stimulant…  It’s even weirder that it does the same for my beautiful friend Kim!
• Reruns on television!
• Freezing cold feet and hands from now until the Summer again!
• I miss sunshine.
• My hard drive in my new computer is all spastic.
• My perfect ice blue metallic nail polish chips sooooo easily!
• Doctor appointments that are scheduled at 8 a.m.

All in all, I’m having a good week and enjoying myself in my few spare minutes!  Planning new treatments and lifestyles all of the time .

These are a sample of some of my favorite finds in Internet-land this week!

The best collaborations with MAC makeup of all time!! I wish I had all of these collections, because they are stunning .
http://www.collegefashion.net/beauty-and-hair/the-7-best-mac-cosmetics-collaborations-of-all-time/

Buildings that look like the products that they sell!
http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/74157

I think we all know one of these people in our lives…
http://privilegedenyingdude.tumblr.com/

A dramatic eagle clip!
http://thedailywh.at/post/1603364595/dramatic-animal-of-the-day-dramatic-eagle

A comic about being too obsessed with a zombie invasion!
http://www.shoeboxblog.com/?p=21527

The 25 most powerful women of the past century.
http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/0,28757,2029774,00.html

I have always loved Hyperbole and a Half and this is no exception!!!
http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com/2010/11/dogs-dont-understand-basic-concepts.html

An optical illusion for your brain – keep it exercised!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKCSBkdEUXQ&feature=channel

Sarah Wilson talks about walking meditation (not that I can walk that much!)
http://www.sarahwilson.com.au/2010/11/sunday-life-walking-meditation-have-you-tried-it/

Advice all of us can take!
http://artofminimalism.com/how-to-live-perfectly-content-in-the-here-and-now/

I hope these provide some distraction from one’s day!  Be sure to send me anything you’ve found of interest!!

xoxo,
Annie