Dealing with people......

Do you ever get tired of dealing with people? You either have people ignoring you and your illness or you have people that are oblivious and say stupid things like, "well you look good", I just want to kick them in the teeth. Really what do you say to something like that? I am from the South, so in my sweet southern voice I usually say something like "well I may look ok on the outside (which I probably don't because I don't have any make up on and my hair is not fixed), if only you could feel what I feel like on the inside, I'm in a lot of pain most of the time. If only they would walk a day in our shoes, how that would change things. Wow, I can think of many people I would choose to walk in my shoes, that really is something that makes you say hmmmmmmmmmm.......... People are ignorant, some people really don't realize what they are saying but there are those that do and it's those people that infuriate me to no end! Compassion, tenderness and kindness towards sick people, these are things some people do not have. People go on with their lives and they forget about the friend that used to be on the church pew, used to go shopping with them, used to go out to eat with them... they forget and when you do see them they say they have been thinking about you and I am sure they have but is that enough? Do we need more? YES!! We need friends that will come drag our butts out of the house for lunch or shopping or a cup of coffee. We need to be pushed, nudged, shoved, etc. because sometimes its all we can do to get up and take a shower. We need our friends as much as we need a good doctor. Just because we can't keep up like we use to doesn't mean write us off completely, we're just at a slower pace now ;) We could also use your help around our house, most of us can't keep house like we once could and it's very frustrating for us, so any help is appreciated! I guess what it really boils down to is this, we as the patient need to be honest about our health condition and ask for help! If we don't talk about it or ask for help then people won't know and won't know how to help.

Medication

Medication...... It's so very important, it's something we must take every single day of our life in order to get out of bed and function. I realize for some of us it's not that severe but it can turn into that in a split second. I get so very upset when I hear people have just stopped taking their meds against their doctors instructions, just because they wanted to, they didn't want to deal with it any more, they want to feel normal again. Well friend, let me tell you if you don't get back on those meds quickly you will feel far from normal. Our doctos put us on these medications for a reason, yes there are side effects but the benefits outweigh those side effecs. We must look at the big picture and the picture right now is the "quality of life" we will have not the "quantity". Yes, some of our meds have some nasty side effects which ,make us take more meds, that's what I'm dealing with right now and my meds are making me incredibly sick and I'm having more bad days than good but I know there has to be good days around the corner. Just hang in there, listen to your body but most importantly listen to your doctor and if you don't trust them enough to listen to them or follow their treatment plan, it's time to find a new doctor! The disease we deal with is relentless and needs these meds to slow down the progression, but if we don't slow it down by not taking our meds, we are giving it a free pass to wreck havoc on our bodies! Let's listen to our bodies & take care of ourselves the best we can! Don't fight your doctor, take your meds. When you have side effects don't stop taking the meds, call your doctor immediately and let them make the decision on what to do next.