Fibromyalgia is a chronic condition that causes pain in various parts of your body. For most patients with this condition, their daily pain is mild, but on some days, the pain can flare up and be harder to deal with. For patients in Walker, Michigan, it can often be a challenge to understand how to best recover from a fibromyalgia flare-up. Here are three fibromyalgia flare-up recovery tips that can help:
1. Make a flare-up plan
One of the best tips that can help speed up your fibromyalgia flare-up recovery is to make a plan. When a flare-up hits, your body uses more energy to deal with your pain. This can lead to severe fatigue and greater mental stress. Don’t wait until you’re dealing with increased pain to figure out how to develop your recovery plan. Instead, take some time when you’re not dealing with a flare-up to consider what coping strategies work best for you. Then, make a plan that includes these strategies so that you’ll know what to do during your next flare-up.
2. Spend your energy wisely
Since your body is working harder to manage pain during a flare-up, it’s common to feel particularly worn out after one. For this reason, spending what energy you do have wisely can help you more effectively recover from a fibromyalgia flare-up.
It may help if you think about energy like money in a bank account. When you’ve had a flare-up, it’s like you just bought a Rolex watch, so you’ll probably have only a little money left in your energy bank. This means that people recovering from a flare-up should try to spend energy on essential tasks only. For example, you can save your energy for cooking meals and leave cleaning up the dishes for the next day. Sitting on a stool while cooking and taking breaks while the food is cooking can also help you conserve your post-flare-up energy. Or, if you’re feeling too tired — consider takeout for dinner.
3. Ask for help
If you’re in fibromyalgia flare-up recovery mode, you should consider asking your family and friends for help. For instance, you could ask a family member to help with chores around the house. You could also ask a friend if they’d be willing to help you fix meals or run errands while you’re recovering. Online grocery ordering and delivery could also be an option to consider.
For many people, asking for help can make them feel like they’re a burden to others, but the odds are good that your friends and family care about you and will want to help. Also, having another person around while you’re recovering can be helpful in other ways. After all, if you’re talking to someone, you probably won’t be dwelling on your recent flare-up and the fatigue it has caused.
Find help with fibromyalgia flare-up recovery in Walker, MI
Fibromyalgia treatment is just one of the many services you’ll find at the Advent Physical Therapy clinic in Walker. Our team can build you an individualized treatment plan designed to address your symptoms, and such a plan typically includes therapy techniques like:
- Manual therapy
- Therapeutic exercise
- Targeted stretches
- Instrument assisted soft tissue mobilization (IASTM)
- Trigger point therapy
Don’t wait until your next flare-up to get help. Contact our team today for more information or to schedule an initial appointment.