Dancing For Rainbows

It's hard to live with a chronic disorder. But harder still is to live without beating yourself up over things over which you have no control. I sometimes feel as if my family, my friends and even strangers see me as handicapped, a term that is meant to provide help, but is more often used by my mind to belittle.

Things in our lives attempt to belittle us and make us feel weak or small. In the world around us people pay lip service to being uplifting, but in reality turn and knock the wind out of us. We even beat up ourselves for our shortcomings and even our illnesses.

I beat myself up over the smallest things that are left unaccomplished, unattended, unreviewed. My life can sometimes seem a collection of missed opportunities. It is often hard to look to the positives, as they may pale in comparison of those things missed. It's like sunshine and rain.

We live in a world of sunshine and rain. It rains different amounts based on where you are, but there are always days of sunshine. We live for the sunshine days, that we can get out and work and play, unimpeded by the rain. We live within the rainy days, doing whatever we must to keep ourselves out of the wind and cold, so that we may be ready for the sun at a moment's notice.

A rainbow appears when the sun hits tiny droplets of water in the air, just as the sun and rain interchange roles. No one knows when or where a rainbow will appear. They just do. If we don't live in the rain, we will miss them. If we only live in the sun, they will elude us. We have to go on living in the world of both, overcoming missed and creating new opportunities. To be ready for the sun, we have to dance for the rainbows.

Ice Cream

I've been at war with my head all day. I woke with a migraine. I went to bed (the first time tonight) with a migraine. Actually, I've been to/in bed several times today, trying to sleep away the pain.

I made it through church and lunch today, with much prayer. I didn't eat much and couldn't stay up long enough, this afternoon, to watch my favorite show on Tivo.

I took all my meds, took a hot shower, and gave myself two shots, during the course of the day. I used an ice pack and a heating pad. All, to no avail. I went to bed early, tossed and turned from one side of the bed to the other. I couldn't find a comfortable position and nothing seemed to be able to help.

Then, I ate some ice cream.


-- Andy

Post Traumatic Migraine Disorder?

I was going along, the day after surviving a three day migraine, minding my own business, when suddenly I involuntarily ducked my head, placed my hands on my forehead and winced.

Was it the bright sunlight reflecting from a car windshield? Was it the sound of a small child crying in an unusually high pitch somewhere nearby? Was it the strong smell of honeysuckle and freshly mowed grass? Was it the lack of sleep induced by the over abundance of restless rolling in my bed for three days straight? Was it all or none of these things?

Was it the memory of the pain? A migraine hangover. Post Traumatic Migraine Disorder, if you will. The fear that at any moment the monster that controls so much of my life, will rear it's ugly head, and try to take mine off at the eyebrows. At least I believe that the monster is ugly, as I have never actually seen the face, just felt the blows that usually hit without warning and from behind.

Any lingering of a scent, any fphlit-ering of light, or squeal of a siren over a mile away, sends me lurching away like Quasimodo from the bells.

Shunting the world around me is not the way to deal with living. I'm using all my tricks, avoiding those situations that put me in peril while welcoming life one day at a time.

Reduce Eyestrain While Blogging

Wow, sorry for the interruption in these posts. My service provider went down and I am only now getting back online. This has disrupted my life more than anything other than an electrical outage.

Eyestrain can be a big problem, when working on your computer for long periods of time. It is important for me, a migraine sufferer, to be careful and not cause any more problems than I already have. My light sensitivity means that I REALLY have to be careful.

Use the following recommendations to reduce eyestrain and eye fatigue:

• Close drapes/blinds to reduce glare.
• Adjust lighting to avoid glare on screen (light source should come at a 90 degree angle, with low watt lights rather than high).
• Avoid intense or uneven lighting in your field of vision.
• Place monitor at 90 degree angle to windows (where possible).
• Reduce overhead lighting (where possible).
• Use indirect or shielded lighting where possible.
• Walls should not be painted with a reflective finish.
• Use a glare screen or monitor shield to reduce glare from overhead lighting.

Is Your Computer Monitor Causing You Pain?

There are an infinite number of ways that we can cause ourselves pain. For a chronic pain sufferer there may be more. :)

I have enough pain in my life, that I try to avoid potential migraine triggers as much as possible. It is possible that my blogging can contribute to my migraines. I find myself working from the couch with the laptop on my lap (go figure), with my wrists sore from the keying angle, and squinting because of a glare on the computer screen. I purposely bought my laptop without the glossy screen to cut down glare, but glare I have. Working from my desk after adjusting the chair, and arranging the desktop is making a huge difference in my back and shoulder pain. Now it's time to tackle the monitor setup.

Once the chair and work surface height are properly adjusted, the computer monitor should be placed so the top of the screen is at or just below eye level when seated in an upright position. This is difficult for me to do with my laptop. If it is in my lap, it's too low. If it's on the table top, it's too low. Having the monitor too low (or too high) may cause eye and neck strain.

The following suggestions can help prevent the development of eye strain, neck pain and shoulder fatigue while using your computer workstation:

• Make sure the surface of the viewing screen is clean.
• Adjust brightness and contrast to optimum comfort.
• Position the monitor directly in front of you to avoid excessive twisting of the neck.
• You must position the monitor at a comfortable viewing distance, approximately 18-30 inches from your torso.
• Position your monitor at a right angle from windows to reduce glare. Close the window blinds or curtains as needed to reduce glare from sunlight.
• Position your monitor away from direct lighting which creates excessive glare or use a glare filter over the monitor to reduce glare.
• Adjust the monitor tilt so that ceiling lights do not reflect on your screen.
• If you use a document holder, it should be placed at approximately the same height as the monitor and at the same distance from the eyes to prevent frequent eye shifts between the monitor screen and reference materials.
• Get regular eye check-ups.
• Adjust these height and distance guidelines as needed for larger screens. You may need to sit farther away and increase the font size to take full advantage of a larger screen.

Bifocal and trifocal wearers have to pay particular attention to the placement of their monitor. Wearers of bifocals and trifocals often unknowingly tilt their heads backwards so they can read the screen through the lower portion of their glasses. This can sometimes lead to neck, shoulder, and back discomfort. Potential solutions include either lowering the computer monitor or purchasing glasses designed specifically for working at the computer.

I hope these help you as much as they have helped me.

5 Ways to Avoid Computing Pain

Avoiding neck, back, arm and wrist pain is important when spending time at your computer. Keeping a clean work environment is one of those things that can help your mood as well as your aches and pains. Many of us are guilty of building up a mess on our desk. Not having to work around objects, paper, books and other stuff makes it easier to prevent repetitive stress injuries.

I am probably as criminal as anyone for not following these simple rules.

1. Your desktop should be organized so that frequently used objects are closer to you to avoid excessive extended reaching.
2. Use a headset or speaker phone to avoid neck and shoulder discomfort if you use a phone frequently throughout the day.
3. Place the phone on the side of your non-dominant hand (i.e., left side if right-handed, right side if left-handed)
4. Position your desk lamp (if you use one) so that it illuminates source documents without causing either glare on the computer screen or direct illumination to your eyes.
5. Use a document holder if you refer to documents while computing. The document holder should:

• Be stable and adjustable (height, position, distance, and angle of view).
• Support your document on either side of the monitor.
• Be at the same distance from your eyes as the display screen to avoid frequent changes of focus and you should be able you to look from one to the other without moving your neck or back.

Reduce Keyboarding Stresses While Blogging

Many ergonomic problems associated with computing occur in the shoulder, elbow, forearm, wrist, and hand. Continuous work on the computer can expose soft tissue in these areas to repetition, awkward postures, and forceful exertions, especially if the workstation is not set up properly. These can contribute or lead to chronic pain.

The following adjustments should be made to your computing area to help prevent the development of an ergonomic problems:

• First adjust your chair as mentioned before, then with your arms resting comfortably at your side, raise your forearms to form a 90 degree angle with your upper arms.
• Adjust keyboard height so your shoulders can relax and allow your upper arms to rest at your sides. An articulating keyboard tray is often necessary to accommodate the proper height and distance for each station user.
• You should position the keyboard directly in front of and close to you in order to avoid excessive reaching.
• Keep your forearms parallel to the floor (approximately 90 degree angle at elbow).
• Place your mouse adjacent to keyboard and at the same height as the keyboard. The back of the wrist should be kept flat (in a neutral position). Do not rest the hand on the mouse when your are not using it. Rest your hands in your lap when you are not keyboarding or using the mouse.
• Use a padded wrist rest to keep your wrist in a straight and neutral position while typing and keep your arms off the sharp edges of the work surface.
• Do not rest your wrists or hands on a palm or wrist rest when you are keying. These rests are designed to provide support only during breaks from keying.
• Adjust the slope of the keyboard so that it is flat, in order to keep your wrists straight, and not bent back while you are typing.
• Press the keys gently; do not bang them or hold them down for long periods. Keep your shoulders, arms, hands, and fingers relaxed

If your work surface is too high and not adjustable, adjust your chair to bring your arms to
the proper position. If you raise your chair, make sure that your feet are properly
supported. These tips and others provided in this blog series will help you prevent chronic
pain due to computing.