This is something that always comes to my mind when someone disbelieves my pain or my limitations. Also I think about this when I am in horrible pain.

I've seen sensitivity training for the elderly: they place shoes on your feet with little spikes (to make you walk badly); flashing lights on your eyes (to make you distracted easily); multiple audio tracks playing in your ears (to confuse you)... etc. It really made me more sensitive to my Mom and other Elders.

So what would you do to provide TOS sensitivity training to your friends/family?

Here's my plan for such people:

1) place a doggie harness thru both arms, with 2 metal clips on the back. Did I mention the harness should be 2 sizes too small?

2) place plastic gloves on both hands, plastic wrap around arms up to the shoulders.

3) place 50lb ankle weights on each upper arm, and also on the lower arm.

4) after 24hrs, smack the person in the back of the neck with a 1" x 4" plank.

Now, tell your person to go out and "have a nice day"... week...month...year...life. Tell them to brush their hair or teeth. Tell them to drive or do all of their normal daily routines. You all know for a fact that after 3 hours your victim would be screaming to get out of the harness, as it is cutting into their shoulders. Well, they CAN'T. Their arms would be like deadweight by now. Tell them to try to sleep with those 2 metal clips digging into their backs (they are NOT allowed to sleep on sides or stomach). After 24hrs, they will be raving mad, crazy screaming and insane. OH, also tell them to be pleasant, sociable and NOT to discuss their problem with anyone.

Ya know what? WE do this every day... some of us possibly for the rest of our lives. I'll bet some of you have other ideas to emulate symptoms we have... would LOVE to see your ideas!!

Anne

I use the spoon theory -
http://www.butyoudontlooksick.com/20...oon_theory.php


With some people I send them the link and let them read it.... with others I actually get spoons and do what the author of the spoon theory did by doing the actual demonstration.

I have also sent "The Letter To People Without Chronic Pain" to many family and friends (the letter is posted in the chronic pain forum).

But I prefer the spoon theory demonstration for the dumb ones

Oh anne, that is sadistic and cruel.... I however like the way you think ! how many times during a flare you mention to somebody the way you feel and they just brush you off and expect you to smile and be your old self to them... it just happens, though we pay the price later on.... because we try and live the norm!!!

For those here that are not familiar with GOOBER this is the nasty beast who resides within... I thought since he is around so much may as well give him a name! During a flare on the left side he actually raises to the size of a golf ball !!!!!

Best to all........ Mark-n-Goober

okay....if you want this thread to stay...y'all have to take pictures of people you put thru the TOS sensitivity training.

Mark, thanks for the explanation of Goob... I'm a big Andy Griffith fan, so naturally I thought...

Wittessa, yep, guess the spoon theory works best for the largest segment of the population.

Curious... thinking about getting a picture is almost as pleasing as thinking about the training program.
Anne

If there was ever a time when that other person had some kind of pain- I just say " remember when your {fill in the blank- back, knee, shoulder ect} was hurting? - it feels like that only much more often and any time I do certain things for too long"

Well, the only problem with pictures, is that you need to make this whole thing completely invisible, so no one knows at all what the "trainee" is going through

Wow, Wittesea, I just read the spoon link...that's an amazing analogy. I've read those funny "You know you're a TOS'r when..." things to my family before, and we laugh because this is what they see everyday....but then my older daughter made a comment about that being funny but sad at the same time, because they were so true. I think, for most of us, at least our family knows about the spoons...well, maybe not, though. The girl in the story thought her friend understood, too.

Sorry....rambling...gotta go use up some spoons to put dinner in the crockpot...

Donna

This site is exactly what I needed!! Thanks Wittesea!!

My family and friends still don't get it. I think I have mentioned that my dear sweet old Dad will still ask me to do things that seem so simple to him, "thread this needle for me, can you put this air gauge on the tire stem, hold this for a minute..." in his defense he is 83, blind in one eye and has other physical ailments.

The worst part is when I tell him I can't, he feels terrible and gets upset with himself for even asking me!!

On the old B.T. I posted that we (hubby and me) went on vacation with my in-laws 6 mos. after my surgery and they kept saying "what is wrong with you, you just aren't yourself ???" And " now remember, we don't mention the P word today" ...

AGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!!!

Guess who will be getting this sites url sent to them!!!

G~

The best so far I have come up with that people can relate to an experience they have had is to ask if they've ever had a really bad tooth, maybe one that needed a root canal, and they couldn't get in right away because it was a weekend or holiday.

They usually remember!!

I tell them THAT is nerve pain, the throbbing, aching, shooting, stabbing attention-capturing, sleep-destroying PAIN. That they had one, relatively short nerve that was really PO'd at them for a few days and kept them from normal activities such as eating, drinking, resting, enjoying themselves.

Then I tell them I have several, some of which extend all the way from my neck to the end of my fingers, and they've been PO'd for 3 1/2 yrs.

It's funny how the mention of severe tooth pain can make believers, but it does!