P.A.C.E. - A Prescription for Coping with Fibromyalgia

Everyone's rhythms are different. Don't give up if at first you don't succeed. Our goal here is to come up with a plan that is workable for us, depending on our own individual situations, for a slow, gradual improvement.

Making a plan:

From the information gathered from your journaling you should now be able to come up with a plan that will allow you to put into practice what you have learned. Our goal here should be to find a constant level of activity that will interrupt the cycle of overdoing it on good days while minimally functioning on bad days. Ready - Set - Pace:

Prioritizing activities;

Make a list of all the activities you simply must do on a given day. Include things like doctors appointments, work, personal hygiene, caring for your children, spending time with your family, self-care, paying bills, etc. - anything you feel cannot be put off. Now list those things you should do, but could put off if having a very bad day. This could include housework, grocery shopping, and making meals. Even though these are all things that should be done - they are also things that could be delegated to other family members/friends/helpers, or put off until you are feeling more able. The final list will include those things you would like to do. While these things aren't necessities they can be just as essential to your health and happiness as the musts and shoulds. Perhaps you'd like to go to the movies, find time to read your favorite book, visit a museum, a play, or even attend a function with your spouse. Sadly, oftentimes these are the very things we feel most sorely missing from our lives. The point here is that your list will be personal to you.

Acknowledging limitations;

I think this bears repeating as I certainly don't mean you should never push your limits, or admit defeat. I'm just saying that in order to accomplish pacing on a daily basis we do have to recognize that some days our limits are lesser/greater than others and adjust our plan accordingly. The key here is to be flexible with your plan and allow for the unexpected. If something comes up that you feel you're not able to handle without sacrificing health and happiness be prepared to say NO. On the other hand, it may be something that requires you to rework your plan for the day.

Conserving energy;

Conserving energy is actually what pacing's all about. It's the ability to manage time, daily activities, and budget energy that allows us

Go To Page: 1 2 3

Articles in this Topic    Discussions in this Topic