I'm not sure what type of tv you're watching, but I can't tolerate commercial tv and if my pain is elevated I do better with watching things like historical dramas without loud music and fast cuts, or just settling down and reading a book.

Glad you're doing better!

Imo the medical profession worsens our CRPS, because their lack of knowledge about it contributes to our stress. It certainly has escalated mine. I am sick of documenting my symptoms so that I have proof of my misery, so Zi can get care.

It has created a cycle of negative attention, that I purposely avoided in the beginning, but now I have no other choice. Looking at the photos, etc, just makes me enraged. My only comforts are being on my couch with my legs elevated or in a warm tub with epsom salts, baking soda,sea salt, but lately the latter both soothes and aggravates.

I would love to get back into a heated pool, but fighting with WC is too much.

Deep breaths are the best at releasing stress. Pay attention to your shoulders. Are you "wearing them as earrings:??" Make sure to keep your shoulders down where they belong. And just plain don't over-do it. Which is often the hardest one of all.

Three year olds are the hardest, I feel your pain there! On that all you can do is be firm, set limits, and don't crack (give in) no matter how much you want to. That said, saying no all the time doesn't work either. So pick your battles. Ask yourself if its worth the fight before you get into it. Keep her busy, so she has less to get into it with you about. Do you have a way to get her out of the house?

Good luck!

Yes...having a 3 yr old puts a good deal of stress on me...though not as much as many other things. Mostly what I stress out about has nothing to do with her or her behavior though...it's more my being upset or disappointed that I can't do more for her and general stress as a mom (like do I take her to the ER for the cut on her chin, did she eat enough of the right stuff today, is she getting everything she needs from me, etc). She's a really good kid...prone to normal threenager mood swings and such but they usually pass quickly and only stress me out if they are going to make us late to daycare or something like that...if we're just at home I let them run their course and stay positive because really in hind sight they are usually hilarious. I definitely pick my battles with her and, although my husband seems frustrated by it, I will watch movies with her a few times a day because I need to be able to chill for a while (we also read 20-30 books a day and all sorts of other stuff so it's not like I use the tv as a babysitter...but a chance for me to not have to be "on" constantly for her). And I am not above using fruit snacks as a way to get what I need from her...lol.

I agree...we need doctors obviously but especially when you are going through work comp and other stuff we are not focused on getting well as much as constantly proving that we are unwell...and that's not a healthy place to be mentally. Not only is it stressful but it keeps us in a dark place mentally. Because work comp has refused to pay for any treatment, I am kind of lucky in some ways because most of my treatment has been approved easily (except the DRG which was approved easily when I switched insurance companies). But still...because it's a work injury I always feel like I have to go in with a list of questions and updates because I need everything documented...and that alone is stressful when preparing for appointments.

I try to avoid commercial tv as much as possible for the same reason. In truth...I generally don't watch much tv at all these days except when I am feeling too crummy to do anything else...and even then I have a tendency to just flip on one of the music channels to the Singers and Swing station to help me chill. If watching a tv show or movie I try to do pretty much anything without commercials...but right now with the flare i can't concentrate on anything. I turned on a movie and I think I "watched it" for 30 minutes and then realized I hadn't really seen or processed anything.

Friday I just laid in bed with the lights off and my headphones in listening to an audiobook and while I had to basically rewind everything I listened to because I wasn't really hearing it, it was calming to have the noise and help drown out all the stressful thoughts.

Of course this weekend my husband and daughter have been home with me and I haven't been able to rest so the flare continues. I have not slept at all the last two days and I am feeling so drained both physically and emotionally. Hoping I can get some much needed sleep tonight and focus on some self care the next few days to try and break this cycle. I have a doctor's appointment Tuesday morning to talk to the dr about what my options are for these stupid kidney stones (apparently there are several) that I haven't been able to pass but have been bothering me for what will be 6 weeks on Wednesday since the first symptoms started.