Pain Vs Exercise

I started on Gabapentin last year to help with my Fibromyalgia, it has helped to mask some of the pain, however it has made me put on over a stone in about 8 months. Holidaying in France eating cheese and drinking wine everyday probably didn't help, however the Gabapentin is known for slowing down metabolism and as I haven't really changed my diet I am assuming this is the problem.

Now, the problem with my Fibromyalgia is that it is a vicious cycle, of needing to exercise to work the muscles and help ease the pain, to not being able to do those things because the condition causes your whole body to ache for days on end. A never ending cycle of wanting to be active but being in so much pain you can't be.

However, my jeans are a little snug, so it is time to lose some weight. I had been swimming regularly since the new year to try and lose weight, but with half term and a dodgy knee, I haven't been for a few weeks. Life simply seems to get in the way.

I need to get a grip though, this isn't about me 'not needing to lose weight because I'm not fat' as I hear from friends and family so often, maybe not to the naked eye, but my body has changed shape and I am so conscious of it myself that I need to do it for me.

I try to be fibro-warrior, I try to get through the days and so if I can do that, then I can get rid of the weight I am carrying. I also think that it is probably adding to my weariness and I need to do it to feel better about me.

So, I have applied for a day pass to my local Nuffield Gym to see what it's like, I will be doing that and I will be getting back into my swimming, as well as going out for walks on my days off. You'd think that the amount of house work and running around I do I'd be fine but obviously something has changed in my body and I need to get better, for me and for my family.

Looking After Little Eyes

We all know that eyes are important, but do we do enough to look after them?

This week is National Eye Health Week and I have been talking to our children about their eyes, how we can look after and protect them, as well as what would make them even better.

With iPads, computer screens and other mobile devices becoming more prominent in our daily lives it is important now, more than ever that we put in place ways of protecting our children’s eyes. We need to ensure that they are kept up to date with eye checks at the opticians and make sure we limit their time spent playing on these devices.

To help promote National Eye Health Week, Boots Opticians asked me and my children to talk about our eyes.

To start off, we talked about our eyes and the colours of them, how they worked and what we could do to make them even better, here's what they thought.


My son: Would like eyes like a chameleon so that he can see all around him, as well as eyes that could pick out a specific piece of lego from a box. Personally I think both of these things are genius, especially the lego thing. 

My daughter, she wanted eyes that could see a castle and everything else, being four i'm not entirely sure she understands the question but I love that she put some thought into the idea, castles are after all one of her favourite things.

I asked them what colour they thought there eyes were, both being blue meant they already knew this easily, I asked them what they though the black part of their eye was, my son knew what it was and that if we closed our eyes it got bigger and if we looked at the light it got very small. Then ensued at least five minutes of looking at each others eyes in fits of giggles.

Wearing glasses myself, I know how important it is for the children to look after there eyes if not just for now but in the future. We always enjoy reading one of our favourite Topsy & Tim books, which is story about going to the opticians, it has been much loved and when we visited the opticians a few months back the children weren't worried or scared and took everything in their stride.

I think that reading a book such as this together is a great way to help give young children an idea about what happens, after all, the dark room and big instruments they face during a visit could we be scary, it is also great opportunity to talk together about your eyes.

Recent research shows 1 in 4 parents admitting their child has never had an eye check and whilst over 90% of children visit a dentist regularly, only 53% of children have ever had an eye check there has never been a better time to think about getting those little peepers checked and ensuring that they are well looked after and seeing everything perfectly.

In the mean time though, Russell Peake, Eye Health Condition Manager at Boots Opticians shares his top tips for kid’s eye health.

• After being way from the classroom for the summer holidays, signs such as your child rubbing their eye, blinking excessively or clumsiness may indicate a sight issue

• Kids won’t always articulate they are struggling to see and will often adapt their behaviour. Keep an eye out for signs such as sitting closer to the television, holding their book closer or squinting at text in the distance

• It’s a myth that children need to be able to read to have any eye check. Children should have their eyes checked at least every 2 years from the age of three - but you can take them sooner.

• Regular eye checks up to the age of eight are recommended as a child’s eyes are still developing and this can help improve the outcome if they have a sight problem. For example, treatment for a lazy eye is most successful before the age of 7 so early intervention is vital

• If your child is in front of a screen for prolonged periods of time – such as a computer or ipad – use the 20-20-20 rule. Every 20 minutes get them to look 20 feet away (six metres) for 20 seconds to help give their eye muscles a break

• Depending on where you live in the UK your child may have their eyesight checked via a local vision screening programme but it is no longer a guarantee.  Remember these should not replace a full eye check at your local optician. Eye health checks are free on the NHS until a child is 16 years old. If your child needs glasses, you can also get an NHS voucher towards the cost, so often they are free of charge

• An eye health check can tell you more about your child’s eyes than just their sight. An eye check can detect diabetes, some cancers and although rare, can also detect some tumours. At Boots Opticians, all eye checks include digital retinal photography as standard which can help us to identify serious health conditions.

To book an eye health check, speak to your Boots Optician or make an appointment by calling 0345 125 3752 or visit www.boots.com/en/Opticians/Eye-Health.

NB: This is a collaborative post.

How to be an Allergenius with AO.com

Earlier this summer, we were invited by AO to meet with them and learn about allergies and how to combat them in the home, I was at work so I sent my hubby and the kids to find out more. 

The event took place at the Think Tank science centre in Birmingham, an ideal location to learn about these biological threats. As many as 1 in 4 of us suffer from some form of allergy, with the most common being to pollen, dust mites and mould. The ladies from AO had first organised a treasure hunt for the children to find cartoon allergies hidden around a typical home, once they found them, these had hints or tips on how to limit the impact of bugs around the home. The kids loved this and the adults found it informative too, even if some of the tips sounded like hard work!

Once we had learned about the allergies and what we could do to fight against the cause of them, we hopped over to speak with a Hotpoint representative about the new features they are adding to their products to help. These include, additional anti-allergy cycles on washing machines at 60ºc  with extra rinses as well to kill bugs, anti-allergy cycles on tumble dryers and also a new range of vacuum cleaners with washable HEPA 13 filters to help contain as many allergens as possible.

After the informative part, we spent some time crafting and made some flowers from pipe cleaners and tissue paper, with a little help from the AO life team.

To finish of the day, we spent a few hours discovering what the Think Tank has to offer. Everything from an outdoor science play area, complete with water experiments, a human sized hamster wheel and a cart with a square wheel (it really worked!), to some enormous steam trains and a model of a spitfire with WWII dressing up. The children particularly loved the Kids City, which had a doctors, dentist, cafe and even a TV studio, they really enjoyed role playing in the various areas.

Thanks to AO for inviting us to this informative and fun day out.

Starting my Fitness Journey

My health at the moment is not that great, with exhaustion like I've hit a brick wall most afternoons, I know something has to change.

So, after a chat with a colleague about running, I decided it was time to do something about this and try doing the Couch to 5K.

Sainsbury's currently have the Fitbit Flex on offer, so I bought this to see how many steps a day actually do.

It's super simple to setup and looks just like a watch, it can be worn in the shower and the soft plastic strap doesn't rub. Using the app on my phone I can keep track of how many steps I am taking, as well as monitoring my sleep, calorie intake and how much i'm burning throughout the day too.

People often label stay at home mums as lazy, assuming all we do all day is sit on the sofa or in a cafe and drink coffee.

Well yesterday I did over 12,000 steps, I walked around the park, the shops, did the school run and generally went about my day.

So I know I am covering about the right amount of steps a day but now I need to get ready for the Couch to 5k. I have some great products coming my way to make things easier so stay tuned for my progress reports and reviews.

Look After Your Back

Whilst reading #52LittleThings over on The Oliver's Madhouse this week, it got me thinking about my neck problems and how important it really is to look after your neck and back.

About five years ago I was sat at the breakfast table, I yawned and did that arm stretch thing you do, immediately a pain shot down my neck and I was pretty much stuck with my neck to one side.

Worst thing was it was a bank holiday, I managed to find a chiropractor that was open and from that point on I have seen one every month since.

Now it's a case of keeping on top of any potential problems, with my fibromyalgia being the source of most pain now it is a constant reminder of just how delicate we really are, and how important our skeleton and our muscles are.

When my son was born my husband had been in a lot of pain for months, he couldn't even move on the day our son was born. Sat in the corner he was probably in more pain than me, he'd certainly had a lot more drugs.

Years of bad trainers and sitting poorly had meant his discs had ruptured, the consultant was shocked that someone so young had such badly herniated discs! Five weeks after my son was born he had major back surgery, and it took about three months for him to fully recover.

Your back is so important and with so many gadgets these days that mean you are constantly looking down I suspect things will only get worse.

I limit the use of iPads in our house, mainly because of the position you sit in to play on them. When I'm on my phone I try and keep it held at face height so as not to be looking down putting much unneeded pressure on my neck.

Your back is so precious and it isn't until you have a bad back or neck you realise just how much it can affect your whole life.

Look after your back, it is so important. This post was bought to your from someone who had a bad nights sleep and has a sore neck this morning.

Weleda Insight Day

Yesterday I was lucky enough to be invited to one of the Weleda Insight Days up at their UK head office in Ilkeston. Having worked just up the road for the last 9 years I felt terrible that I didn't know they were there.

Weleda is a brand that most of us will have come into contact with at some point in our lives, my memory is always of their Calendolon Ointment (now Calendula Skin Salve) that my mum called magic cream, it was her go-to antiseptic cream for bumps and scrapes.

On arrival at Weleda, we were taken into a lovely open space with tea, coffee and drinks whilst we chatted and waited for the day to start. An introduction to Weleda and how the business started was the first of many 'i never knew thats' from me. Rudolph Stiener, who I knew of from the Stiener schools, was the person that helped start Weleda.

Off to the gardens, again I never knew this is where they were, having driven past them several times.  We were greeted by Michael Bates who was a gardener at Weleda for 30 years before retiring, his wealth of knowledge on the plants, how they work and the whole Weleda philosophy knew no bounds.

I think we all stood in awe at the information being presented to us, I know I have much more of an appreciation for plants now than I had before. Have you ever taken the time to look at the leaves on a plant? How they change as you move from the roots to the flower, if you hold up a St Johns Wort leaf to the light it has tiny holes in it. Amazing stuff!

There were so many wonderful flowers in the garden, including the beautiful Chamomile flower, the properties of this useful flower know no bounds. I promptly had a cup of chamomile tea when we got back after hearing of its medicinal properties. On the flip side, we also saw poison ivy and a few other not so pleasant plants.

And finally onto the flower I know best, in relation to Weleda anyway, the beautiful calendula flower (part of the marigold family). The plot with them on was vibrant orange and beautifully swaying in the breeze.

Afterwards we got to see a demo with one of the other gardeners, she showed us how they take the plants and turn them into a tincture. I got to be one of the helpers and was pretty proud of my chopping.

After lunch, which was not only beautiful but from my the deli local to my work, it was divine and a lovely break in the day.

In the afternoon, we got to test lots of Weleda products, trying them out and learning about the lead plants (the one which is is the main ingredient). My favourite has to be the Sea Buckthorn. I am really excited to have found this, in fact I am hoping the Sea Buckthorn Juice might help with my Fibromyalgia and the tiredness.

All of the different smells were amazing, I am really looking forward to using the citrus hand and nail cream which we were lucky enough to get a sample of, a review will be up later of this great product and some others too.

Overall what I learned about this company and what they do has made me all the more determined to get me and my family using more if not all natural products.

NB. I was invited to the Weleda Insight Day and received a bag of goodies, however no payment has been received for this post and all thoughts and opinions are my own.