STRESS, can we control it? | Arthritis Information
Hi all, it seems we all agree stress is a 'trigger' for this awful stuff, so how do we control it? Can we feel the tension building? Do we know what tightens our bodies so that we begin to 'know' it is coming? How do people deal with stress that don't have this awful disease? Big stress factors: Death of a loved one or friend, Other health problems, Moving seems to be big, Other people in our families who are sick.
You all may have a list to add. Please share your experiences with stress factors.
sarah
Stress is really hard to control. If I could stop worrying that would help. I do feel less stress since I started the Cymbalta because it makes me feel less anxious. Remembering to do things that you really enjoy helps. When I write, it is a great stress reliever. Talking to friends and family on the phone helps. Getting some time outside. Reading. A good movie.
Yoga is supposed to be a great stress reliever. My PT helps me. Making a list of things to do and then limiting how many I'm going to even attempt in a day helps. I also have a set time for no more things for today. Delibrate resting is important.
Learning to say no to unnecessary or things that stress me. Getting stressful people out of my life or having only minimal exposure to them. If something is really stressing me, hitting it head on with even part of a solution helps reduce the stress of it. If I can resolve it completely then I really feel myself relax.
Dear deanna, thanks so much. Those are good ideas. Friday an art friend, from one of my classes, died in a car wreck. I Could feel my body starting to stress out and the medication I'd been taking didn't seem to be helping me much. Saturday: I had a lot of stiffness, sunday I was thinking about today to take the mtx and call the doctor about more Remicade. (found out the insurance will not pay!)
I tried not to get stressed as she was 70 and on her way to our art group to do what she enjoyed. It was sad, though.
Sarah
I worry about everything. That is my job, lol. My husband keeps telling me
that I have no control over what is going to happen and all the worrying is
not going to change things. That is true but it seems like I'm always in
worry mode. I cannot get out of that. I wish there was a magical answer for
how to change my ways. I'm sure it affects my RA as well. Some people say
excercise is a great stress releiver but I have never felt the endorphins.
Maybe it is because I quit before I get to that point. My daughter does yoga
and pilates and swears by it but I'm not sure my body can bend in all those
directions. I think we just need to have time in the day to do things that we
truly enjoy and that help us relax naturally. A good book, sewing, taking a
walk, whatever we can do. You can't really control all the situations that cause you stress, just the way you react to it. Death of a friend, losing a job, kids moving out, I think we have a misguided impression that we can control our lives and then stuff happens. When I finally got past that terrible flare that knocked me out last Jan., I thought real hard about what happened and how long I'd been building up to, so next time I can pay better attention to what's happening. DD graduated from HS, we had 10 people come for her graduation, just me & another woman were doing all the work in the office that usually 4 people did and the whole time I was becoming more and more miserable, but I couldn't take any time off. When I finally asked my boss for time off, I crawled into bed and couldn't get out for 2 weeks, it took me 2 months to get back to work, that was really stupid. Deanna is right, it's important to take care of yourself and taking positive steps to relieve the stress is probably one of the best things you can do. Let's see, I'm working on my resume because the place I worked is probably going out of business, although the owners won't be honest with us and my unemployment is running out. We have some big payments coming up and I don't know how we'll pay them. Oldest DD is going abroad for college and we won't see her for a whole year, okay, okay, okay some things you can change and some you just have to deal with.
Deidre
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