Pick Your Box

Have you ever heard of people talking about a fibromyalgia toolbox? Well, a fibromyalgia toolbox is a real ‘idea’. There is no definition. It is basically an emergency kit for fibromyalgia flares. When you are in a fibromyalgia flare, you are in much more pain, you are beyond exhausted and you may be in a fibro fog. (The Fog of Fibromyalgia).

A fibro toolbox can be made up of things of a tactile nature. Coloring books, journals, activity books, crocheting, knitting, craft supplies and other things that you can do while you are in a flare. If a fibro fog accompanies your flare, many find watching movies you have seen before (because you won’t remember a new one) or listening to specific pre-planned music helpful.

A fibro toolbox can also be a skill set you have learned for working through your pain. Meditation, deep breathing exercises, guided imagery, and/or reframing thought patterns, are examples of a few practices put in place.

Rescue medications should always be part of your toolbox.

So a fibromyalgia toolbox is really just a pre-planned way of handling your fibro flares. Things and/or ideas set aside ahead of time so when you start experiencing a flare, you are ready physically and mentally. Have the items you need in a designated area, room, or tote.

Personally, I use a backpack and have a portable DVD player in my closet. When I have a flare come on, the things that I need are ready. This also signals my husband that it is a flare day when he see’s I have my backpack out and my DVD player running movies that I have deemed as my favorites.

Get your toolbox ready. We cannot control when our flares will happen but we can choose how to respond when they do.

(Return to Exit Strategy, The Three Day Rule.)