Cervical Sponylosis and Lifestyle Adjustments

As with all chronic conditions/illnesses, one of the biggest hurdles to conquer is the acceptance that your lifestyle must change to suit the problem. This is particularly true of c/spond because of the intermittent and unpredictable nature of severe bouts. Also, because of the return to normality between bouts, your friends/colleagues may well assume, only wanting to see the positive, that you are exaggerating your symptoms when a bout does occur. This can lead to resentments, on your part, and needs to be controlled to avoid negative outcomes. To me, it seems, the less empathy you recieve from people manifests itself in greater self-pity, like some sort of mathematical equation!

Most people make arrangements to meet and socialise, in advance, and expect others to do likewise. With c/spond I have found this particularly challenging because of the number of times I have had to withdraw with the flimsey excuse of a headache etc. and I have felt that I have become tarnished with a negative image (like my list of bad attributes

needs topping up!). This can be depressing, in itself, because I know I am testing the tolerance of my friends...they might even stop asking! To get around this, I now always say to people that, because of the unpredicability of c/spond, I would like to leave the arrangement open and make my decision on the day. This approach lessens my anxiety about breaking yet another arrangement and, once people get used to it, it lessens their expectations, to match my own, and excuses them from having to appear offended (am I being bitchy?)....It works!

Work: I am a self employed decorator and as such I have the option of making my work suit how I feel any particular day. I don't know what it's like for c/spond sufferers doing 9 to 5 sitting at a desk job. I always allow myself 2 hours at home, every morning, to get my head together and talk myself up for the tasks ahead. Somedays (muggy headaches), this is really difficult but at least I have the option of working alone or even cutting short the day to suit how I feel. If I can, I get someone else to do the tasks that I suspect might aggravate my neck..painting ceilings, lifting heavy loads etc., or I try to pace myself so as not to strain. I can't afford a mid-job crisis, as used to happen in less enlightened times.

Generally speaking, on rough days, I will avoid interacting as much as poss as it doesn't bear fruit for me ( I don't enjoy it). I'm content to wait for days when I feel positive and any communication is more likely to be productive and satisfactory. I've learned to tolerate the disbelief of those who don't understand the difficulties I experience...stay focused on my own needs/comfort. This can be quite an isolating and anti-social stance to adopt but I have found that, once assumed, it makes it a whole lot easier to focus on what I need to do to make my rough days tolerable. In other words, if you take away the anxiety of worrying about what others think of your behaviour, on a bad day, you leave the way open to only consider what you really want to make your day good.

Finally, one thing that always amazes me. Many people who have known me for 20 years plus and listened to my descriptions/explanations of c/spond symptoms, over the years, still can't grasp the complications arising from the intermittent and unpredictable nature of the condition. The same is usually true of doctors, as well. I suppose this is the norm, as people can really only empathise with what they can understand and stretching their mental powers to imagining what it's like to have a confusing condition like c/spond is probably asking too much. I trust my own instincts (and nurofen) above most of the 'helpful advice' I've had and I have every intention of squeezing as much out of my life that my condition will allow.

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