Exercise, Pacing yourself, and Richard Simmons

I committed myself last summer to getting serious about regular exercise, and getting stronger. I had to be patient with myself, and let myself take breaks, work incrementally, and listen to my body. And I love how I feel after a great workout.

Unfortunately, when I've been in the middle of a lupus flare, fast-paced, sweaty aerobic workouts were not an option. I missed them a lot. They were a great stress reliever, fun, and of course good for me.

Pushing too hard too fast can lead to worse than sore muscles or injury; it could set off a lupus flare for me, or leave me in fibromyalgia pain for several days.

One other consideration: I also had to pick a workout I like.
I love music. I love to dance.  So one of my "when I'm better" fantasies was to be able to again do the aerobics record (yes, record! an LP!) that I used to do when I was 15. I loved that record. I forget the title of it, but it was Joanie Greggains and it had all kind of great music on it: Hall and Oates, BeeGees, Village People. Not on my top 10 favorite albums of all time, but great music for working out. And way better than that boring drum-synthesizer non-music track on most music videos these days.

Of course, after I had a stroke in 2002, I couldn't even get up and down one stair, never mind do aerobics. So back then I started really small. I got in the pool and kicked around. Then when I could get up and down the one stair to the outdoors by myself, I went for short walks. To the stop sign and back. A few yards further each day, with my cane, never far from the house, just in case I fell. I worked on it a little every day. Eventually I could climb stairs and get around normally, without a cane.

Fast forward about 2 years. I found a copy of that Joanie record on ebay and Joe transferred it to CD for me. But there was no way I could do the workout. I mean I was literally crawling up the stairs on all fours at that time. How was I ever going to be doing jumping jacks, leg lifts, and running in place? I tried it anyway, in a moment of pure wishful thinking/ delusion, but I just could not get through it and I ended up with a big migraine.

So I started out just walking. Brisk a walk as I could do, which for me was one 20 minute mile. I know that's not fast, but that's what I could do. Me and my ipod, with David Lee Roth singing "Just a Gigolo," looping around the neighborhood. After I eliminated dairy from my diet, I had more energy and I threw in short little passages of jogging. Bolstered by my newfound energy, I decided to try the Denise Austin "Fat Burning Blast" 25-minute workout that I used to do (on VHS). Aimed too high again. Needed percocet that night. Back to the walk/ jogs.

Then I remembered Richard Simmons. His videos don't have a lot of jumping around, and that jumping was what always aggravates my system. So I got his Disco video (great tunes!). And at first, I just did one song. Because it takes me time to learn all the moves, and I had no stamina. Then two songs. And after a couple months I could get through the entire workout.

After sweating with Richard all summer, I went back and did the Denise Austin video and now I could handle it just fine! So, I added in a Dancing with the Stars video to the mix. Wow, that was hard. I had to stop the video and catch my breath a few times. But no pain. It took a while, but now I can get through the first 2 dances (that's 30 minutes of swing and jive) without much trouble. So... it was time for the ultimate test: Joanie Greggains! I put on the CD, and Yes! I did it! And I felt fine. It was challenging, but I did not need percocet or any other remedy afterwards.

People whose lupus is not under control have to be even more gentle and more careful. It's important to move. It's important to be wise. It's also important to hope and to try.

And it was patience, persistence, listening to my body, and Richard Simmons and his totally doable workouts with fun songs that made it doable for me. Dare to dream big, but start small and check in with yourself.

Yours in health-
Carla

Carla Ulbrich

The Singing Patient: Author, Humorous Songwriter and Entertainer
_____________

www.thesingingpatient.com- performance  info and dates
www.youtube.com/user/carlaulbrich - funny songs
www.twitter.com/singingpatient
www.linkedin.com/in/carlaulbrich

"I am reading Carla's book How Can You NOT Laugh at a Time Like This? and loving it. I LOVE Carla's songwriting, so I'm not surprised that her prose writing is as smart, funny, and insightful as her music." - Christine Lavin

http://tinyurl.com/348hroc- Carla's book

Resources for people with lupus

Nobody can truly understand what you're going through the way another person with lupus does. Support groups, the good ones anyway, can be a great place to share without judgment, and to hear what's working for others. You don't have to figure this out all on your own.

This is courtesy of the Lupus Foundation of America, www.lupus.org.

to your health-
Carla
Carla Ulbrich

The Singing Patient: Author, Humorous Songwriter and Entertainer
_____________

www.thesingingpatient.com- performance  info and dates
www.youtube.com/user/carlaulbrich - funny songs
www.twitter.com/singingpatient
www.linkedin.com/in/carlaulbrich

"I am reading Carla's book How Can You NOT Laugh at a Time Like This? and loving it. I LOVE Carla's songwriting, so I'm not surprised that her prose writing is as smart, funny, and insightful as her music." - Christine Lavin

http://tinyurl.com/348hroc- Carla's book

Lupus- not just a punchline on House, MD

Lupus- it's not just a punchline on House, MD.

This infographic brought to you by the Lupus Foundation of America. Visit them at lupus.org.
Carla Ulbrich

The Singing Patient: Author, Humorous Songwriter and Entertainer

_____________

www.thesingingpatient.com- performance  info and dates
www.youtube.com/user/carlaulbrich - funny songs
www.linkedin.com/in/carlaulbrich
www.twitter.com/singingpatient

"I am reading Carla's book How Can You NOT Laugh at a Time Like This? and loving it. I LOVE Carla's songwriting, so I'm not surprised that her prose writing is as smart, funny, and insightful as her music." - Christine Lavin

get Carla's book! http://tinyurl.com/348hroc

Happy Things Jar

It's only January 5, so we're not too far into the year, and really it's never too late to start something good. So I thought I'd share a nice idea that's been going around the internet this past week: a "good things" (or "happy things") jar.

Take any clean empty jar with a lid- mason jar, spaghetti sauce jar.
Each day, write on a slip of a paper and put in the jar any of these kinds of things:
- something that made you smile today
- something that made you laugh out loud today
- an accomplishment
- a compliment someone gave you
- anything else good you want to put in there (ideas? comment below!)

It's kind of the reverse of resolutions. It's appreciation.
The remarkable thing about appreication and gratitude, is that the more gratitude you show, the more you have to be grateful for.  The Law of Attraction would say it's partly your growing awareness, and it's also the kind of energy you attract when you are grateful. You begin to attract more good things as you are in a the kind of similar state of being. Like attracts like.

Regardless of whether you believe in the law of attraction, or whether you think it's a bunch of hooey, what a treat it will be to open the jar on December 31 and relive each joy in your "good things" jar.

I just started my jar, and I plan to put in both big and small things, like finding out yesterday that my book has been translated and published in Thailand... and getting a warm fuzzy e mail from my cousin. I haven't decorated my jar yet, and I may not even get around to doing so. But I do plan to put at least one new and good thing in it every day.

Who else is up for starting a good things jar?

Carla



Carla Ulbrich

The Singing Patient: Author, Humorous Songwriter and Entertainer

_____________

www.thesingingpatient.com- performance  info and dates

www.youtube.com/user/carlaulbrich - funny songs

www.twitter.com/singingpatient

www.linkedin.com/in/carlaulbrich

"I am reading Carla's book How Can You NOT Laugh at a Time Like This? and loving it. I LOVE Carla's songwriting, so I'm not surprised that her prose writing is as smart, funny, and insightful as her music." - Christine Lavin

http://tinyurl.com/348hroc- Carla's book

Come Back When You're Sicker

Question:
I've had dry eyes for 12 years, constant phlegm in my throat for 3 1/2 years, dry mouth for 6 months.  7 doctors over 3 years can't figure out the phlegm problem. When the dry mouth came along 6 months ago, the internet led me to Sjogrens.  My primary doctor said, "Maybe. But if it is, there is nothing we can do but manage the symptoms."

At my annual eye appt., I told my eye dr. about the phlegm and dry mouth (he of course already knew about the dry eyes) and he said we need blood tests: "sounds like Sjogrens but we need to find out if it's primary or secondary."  Had the blood tests last week.  Can't get into a Rheumatoligist until the end of January.  In looking at the blood tests I still have no idea what I have.

ANA screen is positive and speckled (1:40). Rheumatoid Factor: 11 - says less than 14 is good.  Sjogren's Antibody (SS-A): negative.  Sjogren's Antibody (SS-B): negative. SED RATE: 2.  It sounds like Sjogrens but the blood test says no.  I read that of 11 Lupus symptoms and you need at least 4 to probably have lupus.  I only have the positive ANA. None of the other symptoms.  My middle right hand finger has been hurting at the bottom joint for a week and a half but I don't know if I injured it or if it's arthritis coming on.  That is the only thing close to maybe having 2 Lupus symptoms instead of just the ANA. I am baffled.  Any ideas?


Hello!
Thanks for writing.
It sounds like your symptoms are not severe enough yet that they have developed into an easily-diagnosed disease.

That's bad news in that it's hard for you to get an answer but good news in that you still have pretty good health and quality of life, it sounds. Doctors often tell someone like you "come back when you're sicker" so it's easier to diagnose. How about instead, if you don't get sicker and just get all better?

It definitely sounds like to me that something is "off" and you are getting warning signs from your body that you are on the wrong track, either with stress, or your eating habits, environmental allergy, or something else in your life that needs to change. It's causing your body distress and the symptoms are its way of asking you to get back in balance.

First I would look for food allergies, or other allergies, because of the phlegm.
The first thought that came into my mind when I read your message was "Is she eating dairy regularly?" Dairy can cause a lot of phlegm. Other food allergens are gluten, soy, eggs, nuts, corn, yeast.

Have a look at this article from Dr. Mark Hyman and see if it resonates with you.
http://drhyman.com/blog/2012/02/22/how-hidden-food-sensitivities-make-you-fat/



Another progressive, nutrition oriented MD is Dr. Joel Fuhrman (www.drfuhrman.com). He has had numerous success stories with healing "incurable" "chronic" diseases like Psoriasis and Lupus (and probably Sjogrens too- many people with lupus also have Sjogrens diagnosis, including me). I have reversed my bad blood tests and vastly improved my health by eating gluten-free and dairy-free and getting rid of nutrasweet (asparatame, diet coke) and eating a lot more plant food.

You don't have to slide downhill. You don't have to end up witha  disease that you can just "manage." You don't have to live with phlegm in your throat for the rest of your life. You can nip this in the bud and not have it turn into Sjogren's, or any other autoimmune disease.

well wishes-

Carla Ulbrich

The Singing Patient: Author, Humorous Songwriter and Entertainer

_____________

www.thesingingpatient.com- performance  info and dates
www.youtube.com/user/carlaulbrich - funny songs

www.linkedin.com/in/carlaulbrich
www.twitter.com/singingpatient

"I am reading Carla's book How Can You NOT Laugh at a Time Like This? and loving it. I LOVE Carla's songwriting, so I'm not surprised that her prose writing is as smart, funny, and insightful as her music." - Christine Lavin

get Carla's book! http://tinyurl.com/348hroc