A gut reaction . . .

From Psychology Today, Nov 2011

Have you ever noticed the gut rules?   The gut is our second brain and from my perspective my gut demands so much attention that it is coming in first place as a brain goes.  Psychology Today published an article in November 2011 titled "Your Backup Brain" by Dan Hurley.  This article can be accessed at http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/201110/your-backup-brain.  This article discusses the enteric nervous system being a mind-body connection that is considered to be a branch of the autonomic nervous system, which actively communicates with the brain in our head.  The gut "sends signals north to the brain that directly affect feelings of sadness or stress, even influence memory, learning, and decision-making.  It relies on, and in many cases manufactures more than 30 neurotransmitters, including serotonin, that are identical to those in the brain.  What's more, tinkering with the second brain in our gut has lately been shown to be a potent tool for achieving relief from major depression."  (Psychology Today, Nov 2011)  The gut actually affects our emotions and that's why we feed it comfort food.  Food influences our mood and behavior.  The bacteria in the gut actually communicate with the brain in our head so when we are stressed our gut influences us to eat high fat foods.  "From birth on, there is constant cross talk between gut bacteria and the brain.  During infancy, that communication plays a significant role in shaping how the brain is wired.  It affects not only anxiety but also memory, creating changes in both the amygdala, the brain's center regulator of fear, and the hippocampus, the region deep in the brain that is essential for memory and learning."  (Psychology Today, Nov 2011)  That may be where the fibro fog and other cognitive difficulties related to fibromyalgia come from.

When considering that bit of information it is no wonder we have so many issues with fibromyalgia when our gut is messed up and not functioning as it should.  No wonder the neurotransmitters are in short supply and our nutrition isn't what it should be.  Our gut has an awesome responsibility to nourish our bodies and keep us in tip top shape, so if the gut isn't working well then we aren't working well.  My gut is to the point that it rebels no matter what I put in it and it can't take too much food at one time.  My day actually revolves around taking good care of my gut.  My gut is overloaded with sensory information and it sends me signals that something isn't right and other alarms that are disporportionate to the situation at hand.  That's when my first brain takes over and serious self-talk calms the storm that is brewing.

 Fibromyalgia is such a complex disorder and that complicates treatment, because one medication to treat one symptom can interact with another medication.  For example, I take Reglan to get my gut working better, which interacts with ropinirol for the Willis-Ekbom Disease symptoms.  The two don't mix well and Reglan counteracts ropinirol so my symptoms are worsened.  Fibromyalgia isn't a simple problem to manage.

So as I fight this war, I take good care of my gut because when push comes to shove the gut rules!  I think I'll eat some comfort food tonight . . .   Blessings to you and your second brain.

It's Just a Day . . .

Do you see the pain I feel

                  in my face or in my eyes?

Do you believe that this is real

                  or feel I'm living behind a lie?

 

When I cry do you hear?
                   . . . do you listen when I talk?
Do you understand my fear?

                   . . . or am I just someone to mock?

 

Does anyone out there even know

                 what each day I face could be?

I can't stay but I don't go

                  sometimes it's hell just being me.

 

So I walk away head held high

                  back held straight and strong.

It's the way that I get by

                  lasting only as the day is long.

 

So here we go

                         another day

                                              I don't know

                                                                    what's left to say . . .

My good friend, Tracy, wrote this poem.  She is a strong, accomplished and beautiful woman with a delightful sense of humor.   Tracy loves gardening, and her wonderful dane puppy, Jagger, and she is enthusiastic about life.  I treasure her friendship more than she will ever know!  Tracy has had fibromyalgia for 18 years.

Change is inevitable . . . fear and anxiety are optional

If there is anything I know for sure it's the reality that change is inevitable.  We live in a dynamic world that keeps changing at an ever faster pace.  Our own bodies are dynamic and change throughout the day; some of those changes are visible as decades go by.  We also feel the change in our bodies, especially when a chronic illness comes knocking.  As people age there is a tendency to feel more vulnerable, which is frequently expressed with fear, anxiety and depression.  People that suffer from a chronic illness are also prone to developing fear, anxiety and depression, and people with fibromyalgia are no exception.  Living with those feelings of vulnerability and the accompanying fears are difficult to cope with every day and can be debilitating.

I have experienced these emotions throughout the decades of my life during times of significant change.  Those times gave me an opportunity to examine my own perceptions about the events that had immersed me in a dark and scary place.  But I have learned that if I don't like a situation I have three choices:  I can either accept the situation as it is, I can alter or change my participation in the situation or I can change my perception of the situation.  That is the only control I have in the whole world; control over myself.

When I think of all the changes in my life it is apparent to me that many of those changes orignally presented themselves as a larger than life negative challenge.  Most of the life challenges and changes