First and foremost, If you have a condition where you should not be exercising as ordered by a doctor then do not attempt to exercise! If your doctor gives you the okay then continue reading about how exercise helped me feel better and why it is so important for those of us with chronic illnesses.
I've had symptoms of chronic illness since I was 14 years old. The symptoms and pain gradually got worse over the years causing me to stop working and drop out of college. At the worst point, I was bed ridden from my illnesses starting around 2011/2012. My biggest problems being POTS and Fibromyalgia. My doctors continued to tell me exercise would help but the pain I felt and the symptoms I had deterred me from wanting to do much of anything. I basically laid in bed and felt sorry for myself. As people with chronic illness know you go through the stages of grief over losing the healthy person you once were. Nobody wants to hear that they should be doing yoga, strength training, stretches, and other simple exercise's when you feel like you are dying. So, I didn't and year after year I was always bedridden. It was better in the summer months and worse in the winter which we attributed to the weather so exercise was put on the back burner.
Fast forward to 2015, I chose a healthier diet which included going gluten free. This was once piece of the puzzle that started me on the path to getting better. Gluten can cause some nasty inflammation issues which are bad for fibromyalgia and anyone with gastrointestinal issues. Lowering my pain a bit was step one to getting moving. Step to was finding a way to force me to exercise which happened in a really awesome way. My mom let me adopt a dog since they are so great for emotional support. This finally forced me to do what my doctor prescribed every single time I saw her and start exercising. No matter how bad I felt I had to get up, feed her, take her outside and walk her. This was not an easy task at all. When we started we walked slow, with many stops and not very far at all. It felt like I couldn't breathe just a 50 feet into the walk so we just went up and back down the street. I'm sure it was less than 1/4 mile but It was a starting point and at least I started. Soon enough I noticed the accomplishments I was making and this gave me the motivation to continue. I was able to go further, stop less and even conquer small hills. However, come winter I still wasn't feeling the way I wanted even though I could do considerably more than the winter before.
In April of 2016, my mom and I visited the Vanderbilt University Hospital POTS Clinic. There I was given propranolol to take during workouts and was told to drink 16oz of cold water 15 mins before exercising to alleviate POTS symptoms. I started walking more as my heart was able to handle the exercise better now. My dog and I were now able to walk one mile at a steady pace with minimal stops, including going up and down hills. I added in some stretching and the occasional yoga video. I continued to improve so when my doctor prescribed physical therapy for me again, I decided to go. It was the best decision I made. In just a few weeks I've learned how to exercise the right way in order to retrain my body. Each week I saw improvement in both my strength and cardio. Walking is fantastic, and light cardio is something you need to keep in the mix but strengthening your muscles is super important for improvement. Stronger muscles = better circulation = less blood pooling = less symptoms. I had no idea where to even begin with strength training before I started physical therapy, I took weight lifting class in high school but there was no way I could use those machines now. I was introduced to using resistance bands and my own body weight instead. The key was simple, low impact exercises that I could do a few times a day for 10 minutes each time. It doesn't take an hour of straight exercise to retrain your body, just 5 minutes twice a day or whatever you can handle can change everything.
I'm not going to lie about how this process went. It was one of the hardest things I ever had to do and I absolutely had to do it or I would not have gotten any better. If I had known that my doctor wasn't just trying to torture me by telling me to exercise I would have started sooner. The toughest part is starting because you are going to hurt and you will want to quit. This is why having someone hold you accountable is important. If you have insurance start with physical therapy before trying anything on your own. This will get you through the worst parts and give you all the tools you need to continue on your own. If that's not an option check back to my blog and I will post the exercises I've learned to get you started. Once you start seeing progress, however small it may be, it starts getting easier. In the beginning, your pain will most likely be worse than usual during or after your workout especially if you have been bed-ridden for awhile. Your symptoms will get worse also so you'll need to take the time to rest. The goal isn't to get better fast, it's just to get better. If you can only handle 5 minutes one day a week to start then do 5 minutes one day a week. If you can do 3 sets of 10 for 5 different exercises, then do that. No matter where you start, as long as you do something, you're already making progress. You'll be sore, tired and feel bad for awhile until your body gets used to exercise again but if you keep at it wonderful things can happen. You might not be able to run a marathon but being able to go out with friends or do your daily activities a bit easier is still a huge win. So grab your headphones, turn on your favorite TV show and exercise yourself better.
