Are you trying to be positive when you’re miserable? Don’t be. Choose honesty instead

I often hear people with pain and other chronic health conditions say something like the following: “I am really struggling right now and I feel that talking about how...

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What can we do to find peace when we are struggling?

If you are struggling with anything in life, a question to ask yourself is, “what can I do on a daily basis that puts me in a position to...

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Isolating ourselves to feel less alone

This may sound like a strange title so let me explain. I live with a health condition called dystonia, which is a neurological movement disorder. It is the third...

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How life before and after chronic pain from dystonia changed my entire world

For most of my 21 years with chronic pain and other symptoms from dystonia, a neurological movement disorder, I viewed it as a curse; an evil intruder that ruined...

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Nature versus nurture when it comes to chronic pain and illness

If you live with a health condition, as I do with a chronic movement disorder called dystonia which is accompanied by pain, I have to be very careful how...

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Turning suffering upside down

Having lived for over 20 years with chronic pain and persistent involuntary muscle contractions from dystonia, a neurological movement disorder, I have experienced a lot of suffering. If you...

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Trying to put pain into perspective

This year marks the 21st anniversary when devastating chronic pain from dystonia took over my life. Within months after my first symptoms, I went from a very active, social,...

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Tips for becoming more self-empowered when living with a chronic health condition

When we are faced with a limiting health issue where performing “simple” everyday activities becomes a challenge, our self-confidence and self-worth can dwindle. This can happen with any health...

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Striving to find balance when in pain and everything feels off balance

I am always striving to find balance in my life, as I know most people are. Because my neck is off-center from a neurological movement disorder called dystonia, it...

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How to choose better for ourselves when we are suffering

If you have dystonia and chronic pain like I do, or one of many other thousands of health conditions, or just dealing with some tough life situations, you are...

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Coming to terms with painful challenges is hard!

Life is filled with endless ups and downs. The first 5 of my ongoing 20 years living with dystonia were pretty much nothing but down times. I experienced the...

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Try as we may, we can’t hide from our pain forever

Human beings are wired to run away from things that are painful and difficult. I sure as heck did the first 5 years of my dystonia diagnosis. It often...

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Self-care: Why, When, What, and How Much?

I have been compensated by Merz Pharmaceuticals, LLC for this blog post including for sharing information about XEOMIN® (incobotulinumtoxinA). I am not currently being treated with XEOMIN. For a...

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The truth about stress…in my opinion

Believe it or not, it wasn’t until final exams my freshman year in college that I heard the term “stressed out.” It just wasn’t used that often back then....

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Slow down to manage your pain

How many of you find yourself rushing around and it’s causing you stress and pain? And if you already have pain, does it add to your pain? Are you...

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