I don't bake over the holidays. My mother in law bakes me a huge container of cookies every year so I don't bother. She has been doing it for years and loves it.
The thing that gets to me over the holidays is the constant running around. It seems there is something to do almost everyday. My pain has been bad recently. I don't know why. As my son said there seems to be no rhyme or reason for the flare ups I've been experiencing. They do seem to be coming more often with less time between them.

One thing I did over this holiday was turn down a few invites. I have never done this before. It makes me a little sad that I have gotten to the point that I can't make everything. I know if I keep trying I'm not doing myself any good.

I'm invited out tomorrow night and would like to go. However, my kids are coming to spend the night on Saturday. I just said to my husband maybe we should skip our neighbors tomorrow night so I have energy for Saturday. Like I said I don't like doing it but I'd rather be well rested for my family to come.

Hopeful, I hate to pass on invites too but ..as you said, it's more important to feel good for the people you love.

While in Florida my hubby and sons went to all the disney parks. It is the first time in 25 yrs that I did not go. That makes me sad to even remember it. But I knew it would ruin their day to be slowed down by me, and it was way too hot outside for me. I tried to justify going a million ways in my head but my heart knew it was right to skip it...

It sucks missing out on life due to this PN but we make the most of it. I think you are making the best choice by passing on the invite so you feel good for the family.

Prolonged stress is bad for us in many ways. It produces toxic chemicals such as cortisol that kills brain cells, and I presume is toxic for neurons elsewhere in the body, but I don't know that for a fact. Stress also pulls blood away from the extremities toward the core of our body. This depletes peripheral nerves of oxygen and other nutrients.

The purpose of all this--When you are being attacked, a legitimate time for stress, you want the blood supplying the brain, heart, lungs, etc. but away from the extremities where wounds are likely to occur. But when this is chronic, not a good thing.

To combat stress, looking into some relaxation techniques such as Yoga, guided imagery, meditation, etc. You might go to your local library or search your library online for CDs with keywords "meditation, "guided imagery", etc. Dr. Andrew Weil has a few of these that I have listened to. There are also gobs of videos on youtube, but not sure of their quality.

When you relax your body, blood flow will increase to your extremities and their temperature will actually rise. A psychologist came to our of our PN support group meetings and demonstrated this.

Good luck.
Ron