Anxiety and absence 

Posted on by sparklystripes

Hey everyone, apologies for my absence, I’ve had a tough month and struggled to concentrate due to stress and anxiety.  I am hoping to start blogging regularly, about topics such as, health, fashion, beauty, baking, crafts, music… Literally my lifestyle and interests combined, because, why not?! 

I think it’s important for us spoonies to share tips and feedback on products that we’ve had positive and negative experiences with and advice on getting any free or discounted products/aids.  I only found out a few months ago that my local council install equipment & aids like; bath/shower rails, perch stools, bannister rails… etc for free, to people who need them, to make your home more accessible and safe.  So I definitely recommend contacting your local council to see if you’re eligible.  I’ve found having a bath & shower rail has really improved my daily lifestyle and on some bad days I can still manage to bathe (severely bad days I would require assistance).  I’m still nervous about falling or sustaining injuries, but I’ve recently started seeing a psychologist to hopefully decrease my fear factor.  Since I was a young child, I’ve always known I was fragile but never understood why, I just lived my life avoiding activities due to being afraid of injuring myself, although I still manage to injure myself with minimal effort regularly.  

Due to my recent stress levels, I’m having atleast 1 week off from social media & no phone calls, my phone will be switched off for most of the week and I’ll check my messages occasionally in case emergencies. I just need to clear my mind and enjoy undistracted & quality time with my children.  I will be back, but hopefully with a beaming smile and lots of positivity to share.
Happy Easter xx

Normal day style VS Modelling

Posted on by sparklystripes

For those of us who suffer with chronic fatigue, we know all too well how difficult it can be to get dressed in the morning let alone style our hair or do our makeup.  With chronic illnesses come widespread pain, exhaustion, skin problems, insomnia… the list goes on, so for me personally, I try to dress as comfortably as possible. Most school runs are done in a jogging suit and trainers because if I’m in pain, I really don’t give two hoots if people care about my fashion sense ✋🏻

I love having an excuse to get dressed up and photoshoots are fun and a nice change from the norm but it takes up a huge amount of energy to make extra effort and when I have children to take care of, I have to utilise my energy wisely. 

I hope that anyone who acts like the fashion police, get the chance to read this, so they can take into consideration that, when someone ‘looks rough’ or ‘hasn’t even done their hair’, there might be a very good reason for that. 

And for anyone else who suffers with pain/fatigue/illness, you’re not alone, don’t worry about what shallow people think about your appearance.  If you have a special occasion that you’d like to make an effort for, take your time, find products that make the job easier (happy to give recommendations if you contact me) and don’t be afraid to ask friends for help. 

Pain is so exhausting

Posted on by sparklystripes

I’ve always had a love/hate relationship with sleep and rarely feel refreshed even if I do get a decent amount of sleep.  But as my pain has worsened, I’ve found myself completely wiped out, who knew pain would be so exhausting?! I’ve hardly done anything today because my body says NO!  Over the last 15 months, since first being diagnosed with Fibromyalgia and Joint Hypermobility (and then an official diagnosis of EDS3 in December 2016), I’ve started to understand my body more, learned some of the triggers that can amplify my pain and how I can try to retain as much energy day by day.  The hardest thing with these chronic illnesses is, that you can go from one extreme to another daily, on an adrenaline high one day and the next completely drained and in agony.

I found ‘The Spoons Theory’ to be helpful in explaining to people who don’t understand chronic fatigue, just how our energy levels work. Please follow link if you don’t already know about ‘The Spoons Theory’

https://butyoudontlooksick.com/category/the-spoon-theory/