You may or not remember me but I was unable to take Pred so have 3 weekly injections of Depo Medrone. I got married a few weeks ago and my partner had to learn to do the injections whilst we were on our honeymoon. I feel great. Very little pain. Just putting something into the discusion. Do you think if you are happy and try to discount your pain it makes a difference?? Sometimes if you dwell on it and are always searching for answers that may be an issue.
congrats on getting married! pretty awesome. amazed you were able to get your partner to do the injections. my husband is too freaked out to stick a needle in me, lol. found that out when I had to do injections long ago. Had to do my own injections :O.
personally, I do think state of mind has a teensy bit to do with it as you don't notice pain as much when you're happy. Also stress can trigger symptoms. However I don't think that people can cause their own pain. ignoring pain will not make pain go away.
Yes, of course we remember you, Hilary - wasn't I suggesting something like separate beds for a while, and you replied that you were about to get married! Many congratulations and best wishes for a long and happy marriage.
Certainly it's true that when we are in pain we need to try and focus our attention on something other than our pain, but PMR pain is very real, can be very severe and impossible to ignore, making even the happiest and most laid back person most unhappy. It's wonderful to hear that your 3-weekly injections are so successful as to leave you feeling great and in very little pain. I actually know someone else who has been having injections only since diagnosis, and she has fared very welltoo with minimum side effects. I hope they continue to work as well for you.
congratulations, on married and managing PMR.
I have headaches (all my life) and find that when I'm interested in something, or better still something to concentrate on for long periods, the headache becomes "background noise" that no longer occupies center stage. As soon as I stop it surfaces. Doing something well (being "in the zone" is apparently similar to meditation. Its easier when I'm happy. And I'm happier for it.
Its not something I do consciously any more, it just happens like any habit.
Pre diagnosis I noticed similar with the PMR some of the time. The rest of the time I couldn;t break away from the pain which became consuming. Other pain management tricks were a bit useful.
Now with the pred controlling most of the PMR symptoms concentration can banish any remaining. Of course the problem is the fatigue which limits what I can do. And the pred which limits my concentration. Grrrrrrrr.
After meeting my wife and after getting married was one of the least headachy times of my life. They became worse later for different reasons.
If I find myself dwelling on the pain, or indeed PMR in general, I stop. It does no good and makes it worse. I divert my attention to something else. Different to seeking understanding about it, though I'm wary that I can feed my imagination.
So yes, I think being happy and discounting the pain helps enormously. If I think cup is more than half full it is. The rest follows.
Stay happy!
Congrats - always a good therapy better than stress!
OMG I am so happy for you both. Over the moon and back again. I think at one time you were so low you were maybe going to call it off because your partner was younger than you and you didn't want to be a burden on him. You sound like a totally different person. Brill, you and hubby deserve all the happyness in the world. Best Wishes to both of you and it was so good of you to let us all know how you are doing. Keep in touch when you can. Pat
Best wishes to you both on your marriage, and well done not to have to take pred.
Good to hear from you Hilary and so pleased you are doing well.
I think there is something in it - being happy does make the body produce endorphins and they have a pain-relieving effect. But having something else to think about is also distraction therapy - and very effective!