#chronic fatigue syndrome triggers

[69yard]

Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS): Causes, Symptoms and Treatment

Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), also known as myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME), is a complex and debilitating condition characterized by extreme fatigue that does not improve with rest and is not caused by any underlying medical condition. The exact cause of CFS/ME is still not fully understood, and there is no specific diagnostic test for the condition. Symptoms of…

[thecouncilofidiots]

Our day has been completely derailed and I don't know how to handle that

We're not DONE with what we need to do, we were just trying to take a break but now but now we are no longer okay

And of course, because we can't finish our self-assigned tasks, the brain is fucking SCREAMING at us to finish cleaning we have to finish cleaning we had a manageable list of plans! We were going to do a reasonable amount then stop, which is hard to do! But now but now we can't and that makes everything Bad and Wrong and Not Good

We can add the rest of today's plans to tomorrow, but that makes tomorrow's plans less manageable and that means breakdown! If we can't do it! We're supposed to do smaller amounts that the body can handle over a longer time to not induce a PEM! Or an obsessive-compulsive episode induced panic attack!

Edit : Yes this is related to the PSA about properly tagging triggering content post, because fun fact! Being negatively triggered can derail your whole day!

[wanderingandfound]

I need people trying to convey the seriousness of COVID to stop dismissing the flu because the flu absolutely kills people, triggers chronic illnesses, and causes brain damage.

[bursting-at-the-seems]

I am 28 years old and I am 5 foot 10 and wear a size 20. I work with a personal trainer, I don't eat a lot, and I do my best to eat mindfully. I also have several recently diagnosed chronic conditions, Autoimmune, Dysautonomia, and endocrine, though the symptoms have been around most of my life. These are genetic conditions and they are not caused by my weight.

They believe if I lose weight they will go away.

Growing up my family always made comments about my weight as well as others. Most everyone in my family is over weight. I would run miles every day in high school and skip meals and still hear how i needed to lose more. I became the DSM5 definition of bulimic, made easier by other abuse going on in my life.

Now, I am a happy person and happy with myself. I'm not at the weight I want to be, but I don't discuss my weight with anyone outside of my doctor. If my family asks I tell them I am doing my best and discuss my medical condition challenges. They have offered gastric bypass and lap band surgery unsolicited. At a party someone brought up my weight to try and help me and in that I found out people have been discussing it behind my back out of concern. So I sent this text:

Hey family,

I have heard for quite some time that there have been conversations about my weight with others in the family, though not to me. Recently, this has come to my attention, again.

My doctor and I are both aware and in agreement that my weight is not our primary concern. This is due to my other medical conditions taking priority, especially as my weight did not cause these genetic conditions.

Despite this, I still consider it a priority and I've seen progress: weight loss, more muscle, less body fat, smaller measurements. This is because:

• I have met with professionals (nutritionists, doctors, therapist) to review my eating habits, avoid disordered eating, and how we can manage my conditions and side effects impact on my progress.

• I work with my personal trainer and we track my progress. Also, I'm adding more physical activity as I can.

While appreciate the love and concern from everyone, I do not want my weight to be a topic of conversation when I am not in the room. I hope you will all respect that. There is no need to respond to this message as I trust that any of my family, whom I truly love and who I know love me, will not be discussing my weight amongst each other ever again.

Thank you

In response I had two people get very upset. Saying that I should have just let it go. That people talk because they care. That's what a family is. That they are worried they will need to bury me. That my text was dismissive and uncaring. That it's not about my looks (for some) I told them these conversations are hurtful and as they don't know my weight it must be based of my looks. I was told when I really want a husband and kids I will lose weight, I won't be truly happy till l do lose weight. I told them, aside from this I am happy, I my weight isn't a requirement to happiness or marriage, and that their conversations make me feel ugly and want to go back to disordered eating. That it's hurtful when I am doing everything I can, they know I didn't eat a lot, and I'm fighting my body in other ways. It makes me feel like l'm failing. That at the very least I didn't need to hear about these conversations and I didn't need it discussed at family events.

Was my message so wrong? Does anyone else struggle with this? I love my family so much. I'm doing everything i can to keep loosing weight and it never seems enough, not just for my family but for my body. It just won't go down more.

[catnipcoffee]

That's my cat. He sleeps on my right side 90% of the time I'm in bed.

Caution trigger warning: needles injections shot needle bad poops

Hi

I went for my lidocaine injection, had instant relief for 2 hours of almost all my pain. But then it wears off. It is meant to focus on my trapped nerve pain and my goal was to calm that the hell down so my body could then calm the hell down.

My existence is uncomfortable. I am not in screaming pain anymore. I did have a bad poop though (loltmidontcare) but I think this is all related to swelling from the injection sites and stuff. This happened historically where I also could not feel my need to pee until I had like 30 seconds to hobble to the bathroom.

Anyways this is finally exhausting me so I'm cutting this off now and gonna try to sleep.

[yournewfriendshouse]

after five years you probs won’t see this OP but if you do please thank your husband for me

this is brilliant, and it also works with the blubber/wetsuit theory that my psych at the pain clinic uses to describe [what your husband has now irrevocably labelled in my mind as] forks. The more emotional blubber we have, the easier we’re going to cope with shit, through the sake of insulation, and the less we have, the more hostile our environment will be and the less we’ll be able to deal with both our interior and exterior struggles

I don’t know if I’m explaining this right because it’s been a very long 48 hours but…so the blubber itself or your emotional wetsuit are things that gird us emotionally and they can be really simple and transient (but still significant in a world of forks) like successfully doing a task, getting positive feed back on a task, and hugs…or a lot more complex and permanent stuff like guarenteed shelter, regular food, healthy and supportive relationships, they all help us weather out life and help us as humans be more well balanced as individual and basically more able to deal with life…and forks

so that fits Really Fucking Well with the fork theory because the thicker your wetsuit or blubber or whatever you want to call it, the less damage a fork is going to be able to do to you, unless it’s a really big or particularly pointy one

hope this makes sense!

Have I told y’all about my husband’s Fork Theory?  If I did already, pretend I didn’t, I’m an old.

So the Spoon Theory is a fundamental metaphor used often in the chronic pain/chronic illness communities to explain to non-spoonies why life is harder for them. It’s super useful and we use that all the time. But it has a corollary.  You know the phrase, “Stick a fork in me, I’m done,” right? Well, Fork Theory is that one has a Fork Limit, that is, you can probably cope okay with one fork stuck in you, maybe two or three, but at some point you will lose your shit if one more fork happens.  A fork could range from being hungry or having to pee to getting a new bill or a new diagnosis of illness. There are lots of different sizes of forks, and volume vs. quantity means that the fork limit is not absolute. I might be able to deal with 20 tiny little escargot fork annoyances, such as a hangnail or slightly suboptimal pants, but not even one “you poked my trigger on purpose because you think it’s fun to see me melt down” pitchfork.

This is super relevant for neurodivergent folk. Like, you might be able to deal with your feet being cold or a tag, but not both. Hubby describes the situation as “It may seem weird that I just get up and leave the conversation to go to the bathroom, but you just dumped a new financial burden on me and I already had to pee, and going to the bathroom is the fork I can get rid of the fastest.”

[compassionmattersmost]

Finding Balance: A Gentle Guide to Pacing with ME/CFS

Question: What’s the best way to pace myself with ME/CFS? Answer: Pacing with ME/CFS is all about finding balance—managing your energy levels to avoid triggering post-exertional malaise (PEM) and staying within your “energy envelope.” As you read this post, please remember that pacing applies here too. There’s a lot of information, and it’s important to honor your capacity. Consider reading a…

[transmutationisms]

these tags annoyed me to be honest

1. PCOS is a bad point of comparison because despite the name, diagnosis is not *supposed to be* done on the primary basis of finding cysts in the ovaries; these are common and not inherently of concern. instead, the more indicative biomarker is the hormone test (high levels of testosterone *throughout the menstrual period*, with corresponding disruption to the expected/typical fluctuations in estrogen/progesterone) but often diagnosis is done more on the basis of a physical exam ('exam') confirming characteristics such as hairiness or adiposity. this absolutely DOES result in PCOS overdiagnosis for some demographics; while a real biological condition, PCOS is also a load-bearing diagnostic term in the enforcement of very specific standards of (white) femininity and its use also frequently masks, for example, the frequency of hypothalamic amenorrhea (HA) secondary to chronic energy deficiency (as in anorexia), which doctors are loathe to diagnose because they view weight loss as prima facie good

2. the reason it matters that psychiatric diagnoses do not have a 'biology' is not because every disease must have a single specific biomarker; it is correct that some do not. however, the way patient complaints are sifted into categories labelled 'psychiatric' versus '(otherwise) medical' begins essentially with determining whether the distress is 'physical' or 'mental'. in other words, in the case of, say, the chronic fatigue syndrome (famously, lacking a known specific biomarker), the symptoms being investigated by the non-psychiatrist physician are still physical (PEM; mast cell dysregulation; pain; etc) whereas a diagnosis of depression may be accompanied by, but requires no, physical symptoms or presentation. the psychiatric claim that its diagnoses have biological causes and correlates is specifically a claim about the role of neurobiology in the causation of affective states; thus, the comparison to physical complaints is meaningless here

3. this person goes on to claim that depressives do in fact share, though not universally, certain biomarkers such as mitochondrial dysregulations. such claims typically come from various imaging studies plagued with systemic problems in the selection and definition of patient populations as well as the subjectivity of result interpretation and analysis. these claims are not well supported and typically rely on circular selection and definition of patient populations

4. speaking philosophically, it is in fact often correct to challenge the notion that a physical 'disease' chronically lacking a specific biomarker is indeed a disease, in any sense besides the colloquial one. that is, diseases that cannot be correlated with one cause or presentation are often better understood as 'syndromes', which is to say, as a taxonomical heuristic that is likely grouping together multiple disparate physical (anatomical, physiological, functional, &c) problems with multiple disparate causes. this is almost certainly the case for chronic fatigue syndrome, for example. this is a philosophical distinction that matters for research and understanding, and does not mean or imply anything to minimise or contradict the patient experience of the syndrome or symptoms. it matters because, for instance, CFS triggered by the epstein-barr virus may indeed turn out to have different disease mechanisms to CFS triggered by, say, covid-19, or may have different specific mechanisms when running in certain families, and so on. distinguishing these much more specific presentations, and possibly distinct diseases, from the current discursive schema of the overlying syndrome is potentially very good for patients, who likely have different needs and treatments to one another despite currently all sharing the same label in their charts

5. which goes back to an overlying point, which is that (despite frequent defensiveness to the contrary), whether or not something is a disease does not inherently tell us anything about its reality, its severity, its cause, the moral status of its sufferers, &c

[she-is-ovarit]

This might be old or unhelpful information to some, but along with women needing higher healthy fats in our diets (avocados, eggs, etc.) and liquid vitamins potentially being life-changing (because the body only has a 10-20% absorption rate for supplement pills), dehydration can be a huge trigger for chronic fatigue syndrome.

We can get to a dehydrated point where we won't feel thirsty (which is easy to reach), and some of us might struggle with cravings, because we are thirsty but these thirst receptors aren't perfect (also, prior to us being able to develop drier foods, most foods had water content in them so it's intuitive that our bodies do this). We live in an age where we can't unfortunately trust our water sources due to environmental pollution, and where the workplace might not accommodate healthy hydration (or frequent peeing). What I do to limit how much I pee and increase how much fluid I retain is to add those little electrolyte packets to my bottled water.

If your mind feels laggy or jumbled, if you feel too weak to get out of bed, if you're tired like all the time, if no matter how much sleep you get you still feel tired, if you have cold hands and feet, anxiety, and if you have memory issues - these are all signs of chronic fatigue and women experience it more than men. It's a complex chronic condition that is debilitating and not taken seriously at all, and there can be numerous triggers to it. I mentioned not obtaining enough healthy fats above or proper vitamin levels (especially iron and vitamin Bs), and these issues can trigger the above symptoms of chronic fatigue. Dehydration is another big trigger, and it's why we might especially experience these symptoms a few hours or a day after exercise or after drinking alcohol. Take care of yourself, pound water.

[myalgicencephalomyelitiscfstom]

Press release: "COVID may trigger chronic fatigue syndrome"

--- Full study can be read here: Impact of COVID-19 on #MyalgicEncephalomyelitis / #ChronicFatigueSyndrome-like illness prevalence: A cross-sectional survey

In a large, integrated health system, 1.67% of adults had ME/CFS-like illness and 14.12% of all persons with ME/CFS-like illness developed it after COVID-19. However, COVID-19 did not substantially increase #MECFS -like illness in this cohort during the study time period.

[play-now-my-lord]

about 1 in 10 people who have had epstein-barr virus develop lifelong, clinically significant chronic fatigue. EBV is also known as mononucleosis or mumps, and is considered a common and harmless childhood disease. if you have ever had EBV and have serious problems with energy or sleep, you are probably living with CFS and don't realize it.

EBV isn't the only virus that can trigger CFS, and it's suspected the common root is a specific, otherwise asymptomatic retrovirus frequently or constantly reactivating immune responses to other viruses. in general, CFS involves damage to the mu opioid receptors and can sometimes be treated quite effectively with naltrexone, with a handful of typically minor side effects. it can also be treated with lifestyle changes such as consistent sleep - about 8 hours every 24, no more or less - and careful management of physical energy and fatigue triggers.

(noteworthily, there is research suggesting that in at least some cases, COVID-19 exposure can produce CFS as a long viral syndrome.)

if you have ever been diagnosed with CFS, especially before the last couple of years, it was commonplace for clinicians to prescribe frequent exercise as a treatment protocol. even at the time this was known to have marginal positive results at best and severe, inescapable effects on fatigue levels. this is another thing that helps: self-advocacy. if you find that running a mile in a day means you can't brush your teeth or get out of bed in the morning, you need to put your foot down about not doing it and get any clinician you see to take alternative lifestyle changes and treatments more seriously, or else find another clinician

[mindblowingscience]

Long overdue and sorely needed, research into chronic fatigue syndrome has picked up speed since the pandemic illuminated the lasting and debilitating effects of long COVID. The possible causes of chronic fatigue syndrome, otherwise known as myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) or ME/CFS, remain elusive despite this new research effort, although they are slowly coming into focus. Past viral infections triggering an overactive immune system and malfunctioning mitochondria depleting cells of energy are possible explanations for how chronic fatigue syndrome develops. Now a new study based on mice suggests that some drugs used to treat depression, which commonly accompanies ME/CFS, could also ignite the condition.

Continue Reading.

[mrs-snape5984]

“I was held in chains but now I’m free…”

“Hey, little train! Wait for me! I once was blind but now I see. Have you left a seat for me? Is that such a stretch of the imagination?” (“O Children” by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds)

I feel obligated to set up a trigger warning on this post, since I’m mentioning thoughts of suicidal ideation in my text. If you’re feeling uncomfortable with this topic, please feel free to ignore the following four paragraphs and skip right to my praise for the incredibly talented artist of this comic strip.

As already mentioned in some of my latest posts, I’ve commissioned some of my favourite artists here on tumblr for a special project of mine: My afterlife project.

I’m suffering from multiple autoimmune disorders, which probably have paved the way for this bitch of a disease, ME/CFS (myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome), two years ago. Sure, my life already wasn’t the easiest before, but since then, it came to a standstill. More and more, I lost my abilities, my social life, my place in the society…and surely even my participation in my own family. My days are mostly spent in bed all day and night, surrounded only by darkness and solitude.

Patients with severe ME/CFS might die earlier than expected, due to multiple organ failure and - yes, I have to admit, that this reason is, indeed, undeniably relatable (and alluring) to me - suicide. With each passing day, that I’m doomed to “live” with these confines of my personal hell… imprisoned within myself without any chance to escape… death appears to be a welcoming friend, who’s only awaiting to pull me into a tight embrace. For me, it’s like it’s written in the following poem (“Joy in Death”) of Emily Dickinson…it will be good news and maybe even a relief…not just for me.

I know, I can’t leave, yet… and that I have to stay as long as endurable - at least for my children’s sake - but… yeah, BUT… but, damn, I’m tired. My personal limits are set… my lines are drawn… my responsibilities are cleared and both of my closest friends are informed about my pathetic little wishes (please, play that goddamn song for me!). I’m prepared. But for now, I have to stay…. to fight a little longer… to be a mom, even though my kids only see me for a few minutes each day… a mere shadow of the mother, they used to know. It’s a fucking shame!

For this particular part of my afterlife project, I’ve commissioned my sweet friend @sleepybradipo, who will always be my first choice to draw my vision of the young Severus in his own uniquely tender art style, which I’m so weak for.

In my imagination, I will be able to choose, how my eternal life will look like. Finally, I’ll be with Severus! We’ll meet at the age of 11 years and eventually spend the rest of our lives side by side...growing old together. Severus and Jukes will finally get the life, they’ve always deserved to have. I’ve started to show sections of this existence by Severus’ side in some of my other posts, which belong to this project. It may sound strange and pathetic (obviously), but this is all, that I'm wishing for. I want to come home to him.

For this artwork, I asked @sleepybradipo to make the process of “renewing” visible…almost like some kind of resurrection! Jules is stripping off her old, exhausted self, only to be 11 years old again…happily running towards the 11 years old Severus, who’s waiting for her.

Ivano, at first, I felt guilty for my request for this commission. I’m constantly afraid of becoming a burden to others with my ridiculously morbid thoughts and ideas. But you, my dear friend, made me feel seen with your kindness and compassion. Your understanding of my fantasy and the way, you’ve realised it in this mesmerising piece of art, are absolutely breathtaking! I don’t know, how I could possibly show enough gratitude to express, what your art is doing to my black little heart. It’s like a bandage…a soothing balm… a comforting embrace. Thank you for everything, Ivano.

🖤Severus & Julia🖤

🖤Sevy & Jules🖤

PS: I have to apologise for my repetive use of terms in my writing this time. The lack of coherence might be caused by my current “crashing” condition and a weird cocktail of different medications. I’ll try better next time, but it was important for me, to show this heart-wrenching composition of art as soon as possible. Your work needs to be seen, Ivano!

[covid-safer-hotties]

How COVID-19 might increase risk of memory loss and cognitive decline - Published Aug 7, 2024

Of all frightening ways that the SARS-COV-2 virus affects the body, one of the more insidious is the effect of COVID-19 on the brain.

It is now clear that many patients suffering from COVID-19 exhibit neurological symptoms, from loss of smell, to delirium, to an increased risk of stroke. There are also longer-lasting consequences for the brain, including myalgic encephalomyelitis /chronic fatigue syndrome and Guillain-Barre syndrome.

These effects may be caused by direct viral infection of brain tissue. But growing evidence suggests additional indirect actions triggered via the virus’s infection of epithelial cells and the cardiovascular system, or through the immune system and inflammation, contribute to lasting neurological changes after COVID-19.

I am a neuroscientist specializing in how memories are formed, the role of immune cells in the brain and how memory is persistently disrupted after illness and immune activation. As I survey the emerging scientific literature, my question is: Will there be a COVID-19-related wave of memory deficits, cognitive decline and dementia cases in the future?

The immune system and the brain Many of the symptoms we attribute to an infection are really due to the protective responses of the immune system. A runny nose during a cold is not a direct effect of the virus, but a result of the immune system’s response to the cold virus. This is also true when it comes to feeling sick. The general malaise, tiredness, fever and social withdrawal are caused by activation of specialized immune cells in the brain, called neuroimmune cells, and signals in the brain.

These changes in brain and behavior, although annoying for our everyday lives, are highly adaptive and immensely beneficial. By resting, you allow the energy-demanding immune response to do its thing. A fever makes the body less hospitable to viruses and increases the efficiency of the immune system. Social withdrawal may help decrease spread of the virus.

In addition to changing behavior and regulating physiological responses during illness, the specialized immune system in the brain also plays a number of other roles. It has recently become clear that the neuroimmune cells that sit at the connections between brain cells (synapses), which provide energy and minute quantities of inflammatory signals, are essential for normal memory formation.

Unfortunately, this also provides a way in which illnesses like COVID-19 can cause both acute neurological symptoms and long-lasting issues in the brain.

During illness and inflammation, the specialized immune cells in the brain become activated, spewing vast quantities of inflammatory signals, and modifying how they communicate with neurons. For one type of cell, microglia, this means changing shape, withdrawing the spindly arms and becoming blobby, mobile cells that envelop potential pathogens or cell debris in their path. But, in doing so, they also destroy and eat the neuronal connections that are so important for memory storage.

Another type of neuroimmune cell called an astrocyte, typically wraps around the connection between neurons during illness-evoked activation and dumps inflammatory signals on these junctions, effectively preventing the changes in connections between neurons that store memories.

Because COVID-19 involves a massive release of inflammatory signals, the impact of this disease on memory is particularly interesting to me. That is because there are both short-term effects on cognition (delirium), and the potential for long-lasting changes in memory, attention and cognition. There is also an increased risk for cognitive decline and dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease, during aging.

How does inflammation exert long-lasting effects on memory? If activation of neuroimmune cells is limited to the duration of the illness, then how can inflammation cause long-lasting memory deficits or increase the risk of cognitive decline?

Both the brain and the immune system have specifically evolved to change as a consequence of experience, in order to neutralize danger and maximize survival. In the brain, changes in connections between neurons allows us to store memories and rapidly change behavior to escape threat, or seek food or social opportunities. The immune system has evolved to fine-tune the inflammatory response and antibody production against previously encountered pathogens.

Yet long-lasting changes in the brain after illness are also closely linked to increased risk for age-related cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s disease. The disruptive and destructive actions of neuroimmune cells and inflammatory signaling can permanently impair memory. This can occur through permanent damage to the neuronal connections or neurons themselves and also via more subtle changes in how neurons function.

The potential connection between COVID-19 and persistent effects on memory are based on observations of other illnesses. For example, many patients who recover from heart attack or bypass surgery report lasting cognitive deficits that become exaggerated during aging.

Another major illness with a similar cognitive complications is sepsis – multi-organ dysfunction triggered by inflammation. In animal models of these diseases, we also see impairments of memory, and changes in neuroimmune and neuronal function that persist weeks and months after illness.

[You’re too busy to read everything. We get it. That’s why we’ve got a weekly newsletter. Sign up for good Sunday reading. ]

Even mild inflammation, including chronic stress, are now recognized as risk factors for dementias and cognitive decline during aging.

In my own laboratory, I and my colleagues have also observed that even without bacterial or viral infection, triggering inflammatory signaling over a short-term period results in long-lasting changes in neuronal function in memory-related brain regions and memory impairments.

Does COVID-19 increase risk for cognitive decline? It will be many years before we know whether the COVID-19 infection causes an increased risk for cognitive decline or Alzheimer’s disease. But this risk may be decreased or mitigated through prevention and treatment of COVID-19.

Prevention and treatment both rely on the ability to decrease the severity and duration of illness and inflammation. Intriguingly, very new research suggests that common vaccines, including the flu shot and pneumonia vaccines, may reduce risk for Alzheimer’s.

Additionally, several emerging treatments for COVID-19 are drugs that suppress excessive immune activation and inflammatory state. Potentially, these treatments will also reduce the impact of inflammation on the brain, and decrease the impact on long-term brain health.

COVID-19 will continue to impact health and well-being long after the pandemic is over. As such, it will be critical to continue to assess the effects of COVID-19 illness in vulnerability to later cognitive decline and dementias.

In doing so, researchers will likely gain critical new insight into the role of inflammation across the life-span in age-related cognitive decline. This will aid in the development of more effective strategies for prevention and treatment of these debilitating illnesses.

[heatherwitch]

POTS magic masterpost

(Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome)

A collection of tips and suggestions from and for magic practitioners who have POTS!

*To be used in addition to proper medical care, medication and mundane efforts, not as a sole alternative.*

Salt + electrolytes:

As you take salt pills, say a spell or blessing.

Incorporate salt into general health, wellness, and energy spells.

Draw sigils on your salt shakers.

“I drink a lot of electrolytes, and Pedialyte to help with orthostatic issues, and I will cast over my drink much the same as I do for tea, coffee, water, etc. So any spellwork for drinks could easily apply to one's electrolytes or water.” (x)

Tips and tricks:

Ask for specific strength to your blood vessels and brain.

Draw sigils on your medication bottles and mobility devices.

Carry around a resilience sigil or a sigil to keep your heart rate and blood pressure at a more average level.

Do little enchantments on your compression stockings and put them on a windowsill to charge with solar energy.

“Keeping all of my ingredients in easy to reach spots has also been a big help, specifically places that are low to the ground and don't require me to do much standing or walking around.” (x)

“When using counter maneuvers for POTS, visualize yourself being grounded & connected to the earth.” (x)

“I find time in nature also tends to ground me better, which can help if stress is a trigger for POTS.” (x)

“Pray to Apollon and Artemis for help at the start and end of the day. Again, this doesn't replace medical treatment, but it can certainly offer a lot of comfort, especially in the middle of a flare-up. For me, stress is a major trigger of my POTS, and I find that praying to my deities makes me calm down much faster, thereby allowing the flare-up to be a bit shorter.” (x)

Correspondences:

“Keeping a lot of bloodstone and rose quartz around has been helpful to me.” (x)

“As far as wandwork correspondences go, I like to use my mangrove wand for POTS-related work, bc of its unique adaptations to a salty environment. (Mangrove has a lot of health correspondences for me, but POTS and menstruation related issues are the two biggest.) Aspen, bloodwood, ebony, lignum vitae, redheart, and willow also have various health-related meanings for me, so I sometimes use those too.” (x)

Sigils:

Balance my blood pressure

My blood pressure is a healthy level

My heart rate stays average

Ease my dizziness

Ease my lightheadedness

I remain conscious

People respect my diagnosis

Other posts:

Suggestions from @khaire-traveler

The post asking for contributions

Spoonie witch masterpost

Bedridden witch series

Witchcraft for the chronically fatigued

Spoonie sigils (pain + symptoms) (energy + mental illness) (healing + other)

With contributions from:

@moonshoesmoonshoes, @zazathehousewitch, @khaire-traveler, @templemarker, and @the-witch-of-wands thank you!

[catnipcoffee]

I got my shot today

It's hard to type and be good at it now so you get this.

I got sushi for lunch and went owling. I only saw eagles. :/

Overall the lidocaine injection is going to help but it causes chaos on the first day and night. I have severe fatigue and brain fog and pain everywhere but the spot the lidocaine is meant to treat. Today is just bad health wise but I'm in a good mood.

Oh, there's also a wounded chicken in my shed. I can't access it and if it makes it through the night, I'll get it out of there. Used a lot of energy in that situation. Won't share the photos cause it looks rough.

This probably didn't make sense. Sorry.

I'm okay, my husband is teaching care of me but I'm truly out of it.