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The pain didn’t stop but, hell, my dad just had heart surgery It’s hard to do yoga or eat healthily or do all the things I know I need to do to manage my pain. Managing chronic pain is a full time job, and I don’t always have time to do it properly. I know it will get worse, but I also know it won’t kill me.

You all know how much I love a practical blog post and you probably know how much I love an inforgraphic too, so here are two of my favourite things in one place just for you. In fact, according to the National Sleep Foundation, those who suffer from chronic pain experience lower sleep quality and have higher stress levels than those who do not. Additionally, those who struggle with chronic pain often have difficulty finding a sleep position that’s comfortable and doesn’t further exacerbate pain points. If chronic pain is making it difficult for you to fall asleep, SensorGel suggest it may be time to reconsider your sleeping position.

By building a bank of tips and tricks that help you understand and manage your pain, you can easily explain your condition to friends and can go back to the toolkit every time you need to be reminded of your go-to coping strategies. The Mighty shared the things people with a chronic illness do to help manage pain and everything that comes with it: 27 habits of people with chronic illness. Sheryl at A Chronic Voice wrote a post on managing her approach and finding the positives in her chronic illness: I wote an article on New Life Outlook which discusses the idea that fibromyalgia is degenerative, and the things you can do to manage the range of feelings that come with it: Is fibromyalgia progressive? Lisa from Damsel in a Dress usually writes sarcastic, hilarious posts about managing chronic illness, but this heartfelt post about the struggles of living with an invisible illness explains exactly how we feel on our darker days: My feels of not being able to work – and other uncool things.

Burning Nights is a UK charity increasing awareness of Complex Regional Pain Syndome (CRPS) who said; “The everyday pain of living with a chronic illness such as fibromyalgia is exacerbated by some people’s lack of understanding as to what it feels like. Lupus sufferer Christine Miserandino became known worldwide for devising the Spoon Theory, a clever yet evocative analogy which brilliantly contextualises the daily struggles of people with chronic illness. She used 12 spoons to represent activities that she can manage during a typical day, with something as seemingly routine as getting dressed taking one spoon while activities like driving, attending lectures or completing tasks at work require multiple spoons. When we’re first diagnosed with a chronic illness, the diagnosis is quickly followed with a word of warning that it’s unlikely the pain will ever just go away and therefore we need to learn how to live with it.