Fibro And Fabulous ™

There is a Frenzy that starts tomorrow and it lasts through the entire month of April. The play writing community just loves it, but Mathew Broderick-- uh, not so much. April is the time to dust of your pencils, pens, paper, or that lap top you use as an expensive paper weight, and write to your hearts content... Or at least 100 pages of a screen play.

You might be wondering why I'm even talking about this today because it has nothing to do with fibro. And you'd be right, writing has little to do with fibro, but it has everything to do with feeling fabulous. I know that not everyone out there in the reader world is a writer, but we all have things we like to do.

Some of us like to garden, read, practice yoga, or go bike riding. Whatever you enjoy doing in your spare time is the topic for today. Now, some of you are probably saying to yourself right now as you read this, yeah, you're crazy Kim if you think I have any spare time. I know you are thinking that so don…

Every so often I get an email from someone who suggests a particular subject matter for my blogs. They usually will contain not only the idea, but a product that they happen to sell and, of course, would love a plug from me. I don't mind these emails too much because I used to work in retail management for eighteen years and I know what it's like to have to sell a quota.

I also know what it's like when a boss wants you to think "outside the box" and surf the internet for the next way to sell that gem of a product. Selling is a hard job, and at times, customer service is a thankless one too.

But the hardest thing today is to try and sell yourself and your product to a perfect stranger via email, because, frankly, most people won't give it a second thought when they hit the spam button.

An email sent to me today from a gal by the name of Kirsten, caught my attention, though. It had nothing to do with the actual product, or even her introduction that made this …

Flares are a major part of what we deal with when it comes to having Fibromyalgia. They can last anywhere from one day to months depending on what we do, eat, or sometimes our body reacts to the change in temperature.

Most people look forward to the season change, and I admit that I used to too, but since being diagnosed, I look at them with a bit of dread sometimes too. You see, my flares tend to worsen when the temperatures are warm in the day and really cold at night. Twenty degree changes reek havoc on my joints and can make me very tired. There are days when I just want my favorite pair of sweat pants, sweat shirt, turtle neck, and robe, and that's about it. But sometimes, you can't stay in bed. Sometimes you have important things to do like a parent-teacher conference, or you need to go to work.

So how can one feel fabulous on days like these? It's not easy-- I can tell you that much. But there are a few things that get me by on the bad days. One is my kids. …

This may sound like it's a bit off topic, but hear me out and then you'll know why it applies to fibro. I was listening to NPR and the Today show this morning and found some interesting admissions about the state of the world today on both shows.

Now, I know that listening to the news can be hazardous to my health and cause me a lot of undue stress, but do you know that going to the doctor for "routine" tests could also be hazardous to your health too? The Today show had a topic this morning about the testing for certain cancers. The segment went into saying that even though these screening for cancers can pick up a tumor, a doctor can't tell if the tumor is deadly or not. Having said that, they also don't know if they are "over treating" the cancer because of this finding.

I must say that I am by no means telling any of you to stop getting physicals or tests that may help save your life, but I am cautioning you as to what I see as something capit…

Something that never ceases to amaze me is how misunderstood we sufferers can be. It's something that we have all dealt with from time to time, but really, should we have to in today's day and age?

I have always been an advocate of living life to its fullest. I don't think anyone should sit on the sidelines and let wonderful things slip through their grasp just because they are scared, depressed, sick, or just plain feeling stuck in life. Lots of things can be wonderful excuses for us NOT to live our fullest lives, but when you come down to thinking about it, those excuses really are just ways for us to stop trying.

I remember when I was a first semester freshman in college and I got my grades. I was always a good student, but college was different and my grades truly showed that because I did awful. I failed my first semester miserably and I remember feeling like I let everyone down. I even felt guilty that my parents were footing the tuition for a failure. I had a …

I came across a really funny news story about an hour or two ago and it was interesting enough to me to share. The story is about playing Barry Manilow's music in a strip mall so the teenagers will stay out.

What I found funny was the fact that the teenagers found the music choice to be out of date. I grew up with Barry. I remember the long hair, bell bottoms, and shells he wore while singing Mandy. I was just a little thing when Mandy came out, but it wasn't that long ago.

The thing that isn't funny about the article is the reason why the mall decided to go with easy listening music. They chose it because it can calm one's mind. They figure that the teens won't hang around spray painting their names onto the store fronts if Can't Smile Without You is playing.

Now, teens are teens, and I really find it hard to believe that Barry will stop them from coming to the mall. But what may happen is that some of the adults will feel good enough to stay and shop. S…