Last Updated on May 14, 2022 by melissanreynolds
Symptom tracking is a simple but profoundly helpful practice to start today.
Welcome to part three of the Fibromyalgia Framework Series – tracking your progress fighting fibromyalgia!
The fibromyalgia framework series is going to present my (evolving) view of managing fibromyalgia. In 2018 some of my strongly held theories were proven true by experience and research. I’ll share this with you.
In this series we will address the components of my framework including diagnosis and misdiagnosis, tracking your progress, sleep, basic human needs, pain management, the central nervous system and fatigue.
Did you grab your free Fibromyalgia Framework Puzzle and Grid templates in the first part of The Fibromyalgia Framework?
Symptom Tracking with Fibromyalgia
As you may have noticed, I firmly believe we have the power to impact our quality of life. Our daily choices make a big impact on our wellbeing. Only we know our bodies so intimately. So we need to take charge in order to help our doctors to help us.
Fibromyalgia is complex and unique, so good record keeping is an important step in managing the myriad of symptoms and potential treatments.
By tracking our symptoms and things that we have tried we can notice patterns and make informed choices. Relying on fogged brains is not the easiest way to go. I have tried a great many things that I cannot remember! By keeping track you have created useful data to discuss with your doctor at appointments, it can help you see clearly what you need to discuss first and to give feedback for any changes they have previously suggested.
How to: Symptom Tracking
It doesn’t matter how you track, but that you are consistent. Here are some ideas:
- General health journal (blank journal dedicated to your health)
- Bullet journal
- An app
- Using a template (whether a printable or book version)
I created a template that goes with the Melissa vs Fibromyalgia: My Journey Fighting Chronic Pain, Fatigue and Insomnia eBook and worksheet bundle. You can learn more about that here.
It is good to keep track of:
- Your sleep quality and quantity
- Key symptoms and severity
- Any medicines or supplements you are taking, and
- Any self-care and exercise you manage
- Notes of what you are learning
I recommend a more comprehensive one while in the middle of experimenting and at the beginning of your journey.
You don’t need to be tracking all of the time, but it is especially useful for identifying patterns periodically and for tracking experiments. It is important to know if things work. Especially over the course of this series!
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This invisible illness has me fighting quite a bit nowadays. Great blog! Stay well.