Who can relate to this story about the autoimmune activity hangover?
I woke up Sunday feeling okay. Okay is not great, but it is not terrible either. When I feel okay, I try to get as much done as possible to make the most of the time.
So, I cleaned the house, did the laundry, went food shopping, meal prepped for the week, worked out and then watched one of our favorite TV shows until 11pm. You know, normal human things that people do on the weekends.
I woke up Monday feeling less than human. In fact, I felt like a bomb when off in my body. I felt hungover, with all the lovely hangover symptoms minus the night of partying – utter exhaustion, muscle aches, joint pains, a raging headache, nausea, etc. It was an autoimmune activity hangover.
If you’ve ever had one, you know it totally sucks and can bring on a variety of emotions.
So now what?
There are a few approaches you can take when facing an activity hangover.
1- Get really pissed off and ask why me? Cry about how this isn’t fair. Everyone else can go food shopping without feeling like they are going to die, why not meeeeee?
2- Be grateful you had an okay-enough day yesterday to get all that done, because there are plenty of days when you are not okay-enough to do anything.
3- Listen to your body, rest, rejuvenate, eat nutrient-dense food, hydrate and wait for tomorrow when you’ll probably feel better.
4 – Accept you ran out of spoons and reevaluate where you could have done things differently. (I assume most of you know the Spoon Theory, but in case you don’t… we only have so many spoons in the drawer. When we run out of spoons, we are essentially on empty and out of energy. Sometime we have to pick and choose where we want to spend our spoons.)
5- Speak with your family about how you are feeling and ask for more help on the days you need it.
6- Say to yourself… screw this…I am not stopping my life because of an activity hangover, I am going to push through it even though I may feel worse tomorrow.
I have done all of these at some point and realize now that understanding our limitations is actually our autoimmune superpower.
It is powerful to say “no” sometimes. It is powerful to listen to your body and rest when it is needed. It is powerful to know you are making the best choices for your body… food, exercise, sleep, support.
All of this power helps you to feel more “in control” of what can seem like an “out of your control” situation.
Remember, only you know how you feel at any given moment. Only you know what is “too much” for you to do. Only you know when it is a time to push yourself a little more, or when you need to relax a little more.
You are in control here, not your illness.
Bonus tips for your next autoimmune activity hangover:
1- Drink some fresh green juice (recipe here)
2- Do some light stretches or go for a gentle stroll outdoors
3- Take a vitamin b12 shot or b12 supplement
4- Drink more water or electrolyte drinks (no sugar)
5- Take a warm bath with Epsom Salt for your muscles or try resting with a heating pad
Want to learn more personalized ways of taking back control of your health and avoiding the autoimmune activity hangover? Set up a free call with me to learn more.
