Friday Favourites: May 4th 2012

May 4, 2012 by Hayley Cafarella

Dear Audy,

Here I am! Here, on Friday! Getting back on track with all things blogging! It feels good to be starting to feel like my old self again. The self who thinks and writes about stuff other than food and herself. It’s ever so nice to think about other things sometimes.

I am starting to get better at the monotonous daily tasks that it takes to look after myself. Cooking doesn’t feel like such an event every day, it’s starting to feel more normal. I am currently working on getting some more structure into my days. I need to fit in basic needs (like food and sleep), pain management and creative productivity. When I have those three things working in harmony, life gets easier.

Here I am winning at baking Paleo chocolate cookies. No sugar, no grains, no dairy, but all yum! I can’t link to this recipe, it’s from this ebook.

This week, I have been able to spend some time working on projects for Chronic Pain Australia. I am very excited about some of the things that are happening over there. National Pain Week is in July and there’s lots going on this year. Check out the official page if you would like further details! You can also stay up to date with the events by following CPA on Facebook and Twitter.

I have done a better job at keeping my emotions in check after writing this post earlier in the week and realising that there was no need to be getting upset about things. Occasionally, I stray a little too far away from the bottom line that I established back in December.

Nothing actually needs to upset me. I need to challenge these feelings, the thoughts that led to them and the inherent beliefs that I hold that led to these thoughts. The power to feel happy or sad about any situation is entirely my own.

Without further ado and introspection, here are some links to blog posts that have helped me to stay focused and inspired this week:

So much harder than I ever could have thought…
on Battling With CRPS

An insightful look into how CRPS can make doing things so much more difficult than they would be without it. Sometimes we really enjoy things, however, and we pay the physical price of participation. Sometimes, we try to enjoy things and it doesn’t quite work out and then we have to pay the price of the attempt. Life can be so challenging! Really hope that you recover and feel better soon, Jane.

What My Back Injury Taught Me
on Going Down Swinging

Maria has cultivated an amazing ability to learn from her experiences, however painful they might be. Her resilience is inspirational, go and have a read.

Tern To The Present
on Life, CRPS & Everything

Awareness is a wonderful and powerful thing. This personal story is a great example of how emotional things can get mixed up in our brains sometimes, but if we put in some effort, we can alter our happiness by altering our perceptions.

Does the internet rewire your brain?
On BBC Neurohacks

An interesting read on how technology and the world around us effect our brains. I like to read about how our brains are changing all the time on account of I am working as hard as I can to get mine to change in ways that have life cause me less pain.

Happiness That Doesn’t Depend On What Happens
on Sarah Wilson

A great read on learning to adjust what we perceive to be the triggers of happiness.

I hope that you enjoy following those links and find something there to inspire you too!

Do you know what happens now? The weekend. Yay! I have been pushing myself a little bit harder from Monday to Friday in terms of the three areas of my life that I mentioned I am attempting to improve. This means that Saturday and Sunday are a weekend again. I had missed them! All of the days start to feel the same without work or study to break them up. Not anymore, I’m taking back my days off and mmmm, they taste good.

Enjoy your S-days, Audy! Are you planning any adventures?

Love & Spontaneous Dance Moves,
Caf

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