Calling All People With Disabilities

13

Replies

  • Hello all!

    Seems like I'm the only one that comes on this forum anyways now :( makes me sad, lol
    How is everyone doing? I've been okay, found out I have depression too, so that adds to my stress, but I'm dealing with it, been logging in 5 days in a row, which is pretty big for me! Haven't checked my weight yet, gonna do that Sunday :)
    Have a good night! :D
  • Hi all,
    I had my weigh in Sunday, only lost 0.6 lbs but hey, it's still a loss :)
    I've been trying to go to the gym everyday, but my anxiety has been pretty bad the last week or two for some reason :/
  • Hey everyone!
    I have my Weigh In Sunday again, hopefully I've lost a few lbs again :)
    How is everyone doing today? I have a meeting to see about a job, (it's complicated) lol
    but ya, hopefully it'll work out!
    If anyone else wants to join feel free! :D I seem to be the only one on my thread anymore :(
  • Hey, I did a search for 'disabled' and it brought up this thread so I thought I'd pop in and say hi, even though it's a bit old if I bump it I might find other disabled dieters out there. :smile:

    I have Hypermobility type Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, Fibromyalgia, ME/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Autonomic Dysfunction and IBS or something similar and a few other conditions as well. I am bed-bound for a lot of the time, when I do manage to be up and around I am often in a wheelchair, when I do manage to walk I am on crutches or a walking stick. As you can imagine, this makes exercise pretty much impossible. The smallest exertion exhausts me and leaves me in great pain. All I can do at the minute is my physiotherapy and a small bit of hydrotherapy, although I'm not even able to do that at the minute because I have had suspected swine flu for the past 2 weeks and this has really floored me.

    It's really frustrating knowing I have so much weight to lose and not being able to exercise to try and help it along. Excess weight also causes more strain on my joints which makes my HEDS problems worse. I rely on my husband to do all the cooking but so far he has been really good about helping me hitting my calorie goals. As I have to do all of this through diet it's going to be a long, slow road but I am determined to do it this time. Too many times I've started a diet, lost a few pounds and then given up. I weigh more now than I ever have and I hate myself for that. 8 years ago I weighed at my lowest 118 pounds. I have no illusions about getting anywhere near that again - I was able to exercise a little in those days as well - but I started at 161 and I would like to get down to around 133.
  • Hi Serenity, welcome! :)
    How is everyone doing?
  • Hi CaptainJim!

    Still struggling to get over the swine flu, but have been faithfully logging everything I eat and so far have been coming under my calorie goals or just a smidge over. Hoping to lose at least another half pound when I weigh again on Saturday, but I'm never confident when it comes to weigh day! Have actually struggled a few times to get my calories over the 1200 mark but will usually have a glass of milk or something to try and bump them up a bit and not go into starvation mode. I think this was one of my problems before I joined MFP, I would go for long periods where I hardly ate anything and I was bound to have been in starvation mode but then suddenly it was like a switch would flip and I would want to gorge myself, just for a short time, but my body must have grabbed on to every single bit of fat it could from that ready for the next starvation. It's the only thing I can think of as to why I gained so much weight - at least up until I got put on medication that caused more weight gain, my weight went crazy after that. I'm still on that medication so I'm having to work against that the entire time.
  • Hi, I have Transverse myelitis, I have no balance and I walk different then everybody else so it is hard to find
    exercises I can do.
    I woke up one morning when I was 11 years old and I could not move my legs I spent time in the hospital and had
    to relearn to walk but they said my nerves rerouted so I walk different.

    I started my weight loss challenge at 196 and I am now 158 I need to lose 35 more pounds.
  • raindancer
    raindancer Posts: 993 Member
    Hi all, I'm sarina and i've been cursed my whole life with learning disabilities. My journey has been ****y because i grew up in the chicago public school system and there they decided i was LD because i failed every test and homework assignment. But yet they never refered me to a special doctor, just put me in special classes with behavior kids. AHHH. I was so scared. All i can say is that it takes me forever to learn new things. I was 12 by the time i learned how to tie my shoes and ride a bike without training wheels. This has effected my whole life socially as well because half the time i don't know what anyone is saying. My big word was WHAT. And that made me appear to be a moron to my piers. My family could never afford to get me tested and i have been looking for a long time for goverment assistance. Its ridiculous how long it takes me to learn anything and i can make another person very frustrated very fast. This sucks. Its like my brain is on a different frequency. Job Situation forget it, they think i lie about this. But i do relate with people who have disabilities and i understand the pain it cause. Believe me, i've had a communication crisis my whole life.

    My son has all the same issues. He can't hold down a job because he is so ADD also. He is one of the most giving caring people I know... Ok that is not just because I'm Mom. I always just told him his brain just misfires and some of the signals get
    lost.
    You just do the best you can to enjoy your life. From your post you are communicating just fine.
  • tsb50158
    tsb50158 Posts: 20 Member
    No your far from alone as you can see on here. I suffer from R/A, Fibromyalgia, Osteoarthrisitis and Dengenertive Spinal Disease along with Chronic Depression, So hey we are all in this together and all trying to make ourselves feel better, become healthier and be each others moral support.
  • Woah! :S Lots of posts again :P I'm glad everyone came back! :P
    I missed y'all! :(
  • fooja
    fooja Posts: 451 Member
    Well, I havent been on here in a looooong time!! I am not disabled myself, but my daughter is. She is 8 and has something called Atypical Retts with CDKL5 mutation. basically.... she cant do anything for herself. She cant hold her head up, sit, walk, or talk, or feed herself. kind of like an infant. I do it all for her :) She's awesome!! I on the other hand am not so awesome...lol..... I gained back the 30 lbs I lost last yr when I tried this, plus another 20. So I've gained 50lbs in, idk, 6-8 months. very very sad. Ive never been this big, ever!! ive had 4 kids and never been this big, its awful. But, I'm trying, yet again. My 1st goal is to lose 20 lbs. then from there I'll set my next goal. This has been a rough jorney for me, mentally. Good luck to everyone on their journey!!!!
  • YAY! Your back Fooja! Missed ya *HUGS*
    Sorry peeps, my babcia passed away last week, so that's why I haven't been on, but alas, I am back ^^
  • BrendaLee
    BrendaLee Posts: 4,463 Member
    The fibromyalgia pain has gotten quite extreme over the past year or so, and it's really been holding me back. I'm stuck in the house most of the time, and what else is there to do when you're sitting on the sofa in pain but eat something rich and sinful? Food doesn't make me feel that much better these days. So, without the payoff, it seems kind of insane to keep eating it mindlessly. That doesn't mean I won't. It just means it's crazy. :P

    I'm back though.
  • I've had an insanely bad day, but I haven't turned to chocolate like I normally would. I have allowed myself a bottle of lucozade which has taken me over my calorie intake for the day, but it's the only thing that settles my stomach when I get stressy sick like I am today, so I guess I shouldn't beat myself up too much over it, I've got enough going on, lol!
  • Hope you two feel better soon!
  • Thanks Captain! :bigsmile: Still struggling a little bit and this has led to a few poor food choices, but oh well, it's the start of a new week now, bring it on :ohwell:
  • Cbaker5156
    Cbaker5156 Posts: 76 Member
    Well I'm glad to have found this link... I too am disabled, have been home for about a year now. I have low back problems as well as fibromyalgia.. This last year has really sucked.. I'm praying for a better year in 2011. I'm currently in Physical Therapy trying to get some increased walking and reduced pain. I had to give up my favorite job ever about 6 months ago. But I have made progress, i'm out of the wheelchair and walking on my own. I threw the cane out because it agrivated my arm with the fibro.. So I've been pretty depressed. Lost my fav job, independence, and health all at the same time. bummer. But I'm still working on it being better at a snails pace, but still working. Glad to meet you all..

    Cathy
  • Hey Cathy, great to meet you :smile:
  • Cbaker5156
    Cbaker5156 Posts: 76 Member
    Thanks so much. I've had a painful week with all this cold business going on. So i'm hoping for warmth next week... Sure do wanna feel better...
  • Hiya, Welcome!
  • Cbaker5156
    Cbaker5156 Posts: 76 Member
    Hi guys. Feeling much better this week. Got one more physical therapy visit. Have a great week.
  • Hi everyone - I'm really struggling with pain at the minute, and my appetite isn't great because of that, I've been having trouble meeting my calorie goals. That could be why I only lost half a pound this week. Have been living on painkillers instead of food, lol!!
  • Aww, I went up on my anxiety meds, I dunno if they have a different effect at first, but I had the worst panic attack while I was out last night, very embarrassing too, lol,
  • *hugs*

    No change in weight for me this week, but I have been mainlining Lucozade so it's not really a surprise.
  • Did a lot better today :) Walked for 150 min throughout the day :) Feels good man :P
    my weight hasn't changed either, so don't worry about it ^^

    *HUGS*
  • Well I guess this is the thread for me. I have IIH (Idiopathic intracranial hypertension) was diagnosed in july 2010 so pretty new to this. Still trying to work out how to cope with the problems it causes. If you have any questions about my illness of me your more than welcome to ask.

    Sorry to read all of the other posts, but it is very comforting that i'm not alone. Looking forward to getting to know you all better.

    Cheers Chicky
  • Glad I found this board. I have Fibromyalgia, PMDD and migraines. I understand all of the frusterations with pain and meds and trying to get out of bed and off the couch to live life. If its not the meds weighing me down its pain. I feel like I cant win most of the time. I do have times where I push myself and go work out but many times I push too hard and end up too sore to do much. It has gotten a little better over the past couple years, but it is hard to keep up.
  • Cbaker5156
    Cbaker5156 Posts: 76 Member
    Welcome Stephy... I also have fibro and understand about the working out. I have worked with my rheumatologist for a Month or so now to get mine back under control. I have a back injury and it makes it harder to work out at all. But i've discovered that I can't really push myself too much. My doctor recommended to work out atleast 20 minutes every day. Even if it is just walking is all you can do that day. I have to say this really helps. He truly believes that you have to do 3 things to feel better.
    1. Sleep good. take sleeping meds if you need to but sleep every night..
    2. Exercise atleast 20 minutes every day. As light or as hard as you can with out over doing it.
    3. Minimize stress.

    So far these have helped. Good Luck to you.,.
  • Hey Girls! :) Saw the doctor today, stayed the same with my meds, but having a difficult time at work :/
  • GolfLady10
    GolfLady10 Posts: 24 Member
    Hi there. So glad to see this post. I have a neuro muscular disease in that mostly affects my legs below my knee. They do not have a specific name for it. I even went to the Mayo clinic in 1990. I was diagnosed in 1987. Lucklily for me I have no pain at all. Only when I trip and fall, which happens often. Though there are many things I can not do, like run or walk very fast I do the best I can. My calf muscles do not work at all and I can not even move my toes. Thank goodness I wear braces on both legs. The drawback is the things I can wear. I am also an avid golfer with an 11 handicap. At times my balance is not the best, but I am so glad I can play the game of golf. I always walk 18 holes and push my clubs. In the warmer weather, I have ankle braces I can wear that give my the stability I need to walk around the house and golf course.

    When I walk on the treadmill, I feel I am working as hard as the person next to me. But when you walk with a limp, it takes a lot more energy to get around. My walking at 3.0 is the max I can do, and I get a great workout.

    I always have to remember to be happy with what I can do, and not dwell on what I can not do. Just do the best I can at all times.

    Thank you
This discussion has been closed.