Be your own best friend

If you have fibromyalgia there will be times when you need to focus on your own needs first.

Think of the advice that you are given when you board a plane, “In the case of a lack of cabin pressure, an oxygen mask will drop. Secure your own mask first before helping a child or another passenger with theirs.” There is a very good reason for that advice. If you don’t follow it, you could pass out from lack of oxygen before anyone’s mask is on. You need to keep your own oxygen supply flowing in order to be of use to yourself and others.

If you are battling fibromyalgia, you need to keep yourself as well as possible for your own sake as well as for the sake of others.

Don’t let anyone convince you to eat poorly, skip sleep, or anything else that threatens your well being.

If someone insists that the reason you feel poorly is because you haven’t had enough exercise, don’t argue with them. When they preach their philosophy of more is always better, don’t make it your mission to convince them that moderation is the best for you. Don’t let them bully you into doing more than you know is wise. Be very nice about it. Listen to their reasoning and smile. Then quit when you know that you have reached your upper limit of exertion.

When my big brother visited and wanted me to join him in a NASCAR simulator, I really wished the prospect excited me like it would have before I had fibromyalgia. I could have said, “Do you have any idea what all that jarring around would do to my body? I’m not even going to mention the fallout from the stress if it is the slightest bit scary or even just exhilarating.” Instead, I just smiled and said “Go ahead, I’d rather watch you.” Later he actually mentioned that he understood me turning it down, since I had fibromyalgia. I am always surprised, even overjoyed, when I find that someone has actually listened to me and is aware of what I’m going through.

Be your own best friend. Look out for and defend yourself. Nobody else needs to know the reasons for your decisions. Sometimes other people will understand, but your best friend will always understand.

I’m not suggesting you clean out your bank account to buy yourself expensive jewelry. I am suggesting that you guard your own health as nobody else is capable of doing.

If you are cruising through the sky, experience trouble, and an oxygen mask drops in front of you, it is an outward sign that you need to think of your own welfare first. If you are cruising through your life, experience trouble, and fibromyalgia’s pain and symptoms drop into your body, it is an inward sign that you need to think of your own welfare first.

If you have fibromyalgia, you can no longer afford to cut any corners where your health and well being are concerned. You can benefit from being your own best friend. Care for yourself. Nurture yourself. With fibromyalgia, you need to put yourself first in order to be strong enough to also care for others.