Yesterday was one of those wonderful “bad” fibromyalgia days. A day when the pain is intense and all over. And, of course, it was a day I couldn’t afford to just lay around and do nothing and wait for the pain to end. So, what do you do? I’ve learned there are a few things I can do to help me get through these days without writing them off as total losses.

Pare Down the To-do List

The first thing I do when I wake up in enough pain that I just want to bury my head in the pillows and not come out until it goes away is to review my to-do list. Anything that doesn’t absolutely have to be done today comes off. There are always things on my to-do list that are there to move one of my goals ahead. However, when moving is hard work, they aren’t going to get done or at the very least aren’t going to get done well so I’m better off just moving them to tomorrow and adjusting. I try to build enough time into any projects, assignments or goals to be able to take a day off for pain without it affecting the final completion deadline.

Cancel What You Can

When I have pain over level 7, I know that nobody really wants to have to deal with me. If I have appointments scheduled away from home, I’m going to need someone to take me. On top of the pain making me crabby, I don’t think as well or react as quickly when I’m in that much pain so driving really isn’t safe. If no one is available to take me, there really isn’t a choice. The appointments must be rescheduled. This can get very expensive if places have appointment cancelation fees. When I’m setting an appointment with someplace that has these fees, I try to set it for a time that I know someone will be available to take me.

Ask for Help

For a long time, this was the thing I had the most trouble with. I know that my husband and kids have their own list of things that they want to accomplish each day. So, I hate to ask them to take on my stuff too. I have learned however that they are always willing to help out. They’ve been around me long enough to know that I won’t ask unless I just can’t do it myself.

Give Yourself Grace

I have to constantly remind myself that its ok to not be perfect. I pride myself on always giving everything my best. When pain causes me to delay things or not do them as well, as usual, I have to step back and give myself some grace. I have to remind myself that I did the best I could do under the circumstances.

What things do you do to help you get through your bad days? Let me know in the comments below or send me an email at janet@alifeofbalance.com. I love to hear from each of you.

Want other information to help you manage your life while dealing with a chronic illness? Check out Chronic Illness and How to Adjust Life to Deal with Them and Goal Setting With a Chronic Illness.