Good Days...Bad Days With Maureen Pratt

Chronic Illness: Setting Boundaries or Building a Wall?

mpratt — Thu, 23 May 2013 19:50:05 +0000

Fatigue is one of the most difficult things to cope with when living with chronic illness or pain. It can make even the most mundane activities seem impossible, and sometimes it can come on so suddenly that it stops you in mid-sentence. To better manage life with...

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Moore, Oklahoma, and Beyond

mpratt — Wed, 22 May 2013 01:00:01 +0000

As many of us watched in real-time as the two-mile-wide behemoth of a tornado bore down on Moore, Oklahoma, yesterday, I was reminded of another night many years ago when I, a small child, my brother and parents hunkered down in our basement as two tornadoes hit our...

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Chronic Illness: What Do You Do with the Fatigue?

mpratt — Mon, 20 May 2013 19:43:08 +0000

Premission to sleep! Chronic illness, whether lupus, fibromyalgia, MS, or another culprit, can bring on fatigue. Not just the "normal" kind brought on by a busy night or day, or strenuous exercise. No, our fatigue is usually called "unrestorative," that is, no...

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Lupus: Coping Skill # 3

mpratt — Sat, 18 May 2013 19:24:22 +0000

The human spirit can endure a sick body,

but who can bear it if the spirit is crushed?

Proverbs 18:14, New Living Translation

These few words from Proverbs say it all about the importance of a strong...

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Struggling to Have a Good Day?

mpratt — Fri, 17 May 2013 10:11:20 +0000

Everybody's happy! Everybody's active! Everybody's...NOT! When you don't feel well, the struggle to make something, anything, good of a day can be exhausting and frustrating and, well, quite frankly, impossible. And yet, between those who say, "You have to have a...

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Lupus: Relationships and Us

mpratt — Tue, 14 May 2013 21:23:43 +0000

Last week, some friends of mine participated in a lupus event, and they invited me to come with them. I cannot tell you how wonderful it was to see their caring in action. Truly, the benefit of being enveloped by people who accept and care about you is priceless! I...

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Lupus: Coping Skill # 2

mpratt — Sat, 11 May 2013 19:00:35 +0000

When I was diagnosed with lupus, I found it extremely helpful to immediately organize all the information, appointments, and other things pertaining to life with the diagnosis. That, then, was my "Coping Skill # 1." Next, I set about finding out as much as I could...

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Chronic Illness and Pain: Are You Prepared?

mpratt — Thu, 09 May 2013 18:42:46 +0000

I'm behind on my blog postings, again! Not because I didn't want to put fingers to keyboard. Oh, no. Yesterday, the power in my neighborhood went out. Four times! My exercise consisted of walking around to reset my clocks - four times! And, I had to recreate work that I'd been typing into my computer - four times! Four-tunately (sorry for the pun), I'm a native Midwesterner whose habit of being prepared for the unexpected weather- or other-events was borne of experience with tornadoes and...

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Lupus: Getting Involved in Awareness Month

mpratt — Wed, 08 May 2013 18:24:39 +0000

Before this Lupus Awareness Month gets too far underway, I wanted to highlight a few activities that will be taking place to educate, encourage, and raise funds for research. I realize that budgets can get stretched and energy sapped easily by too much involvement...

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Lupus Coping Skill: Number 1

mpratt — Sat, 04 May 2013 19:45:37 +0000

When you are diagnosed with lupus, you have to absorb a lot of information in a brief period of time. Lupus is a very complex disease; even if your case is mild and you do not have to take any medication, there is still a lot to learn about things you can do to stay...

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