Good Morning and welcome to another week, another Monday Magic and some more great blog posts to explore! 
Here in England the schools return this week, much to my daughter’s disgust, and it feels slightly odd that we only have one child still at school. I have almost missed the ritual trip out to buy school shoes and stationary, but my 15 year old doesn’t need me for this any longer. Note that I have said ALMOST, not really missing queuing up with a numbered ticket in a branch of Clarks along with a bunch of harassed mums and boisterous children……however there are going to be some shopping lists I should think, ahead of the soon to be politics student going off to uni in a couple of weeks. He is more concerned about his football season ticket and joining the Facebook freshers’ group than how many sets of bed linen and cutlery he might need. Who am I kidding? One set of bedding will last the term, won’t it – there is no way my 18 year old son will change it of his own accord, YUK!
Moving on swiftly, September is Chronic Pain awareness month and naturally with my background I will be mentioning it….just a few times! This week also happens to be Fibromyalgia awareness week – which falls under the chronic pain umbrella – and Kat writes about this over on Chronically Composed – a Scottish journey with Chronic Pain. The other posts I have found this week include a back to school guide, an emotive poem about depression (you can see I have commented on it), a young dad struggling with illness and surgery whilst raising his family, and a face that many of you are already familiar with – Danny from Dream Big who is currently concentrating on his Youtube channel and MS awareness. Plus a great post looking at what is more important in blogging…numbers or friendship?
But to kick off I have kindly been given permission to bring you this fun poem from Anna on Healing Hugs and Hope blog……
An Ode to My Heating Pad
From arthritis to subluxations,
with you by my side.
 |
| If you love your heating pad so much, why don’t you marry it? Well, maybe I will…. |
A Silly Poem for People with Chronic Illness by Anna Ottlinger HEALING HUGS AND HOPE
So now time for feet up, cuppa in hand and enjoy some great posts!
https://chronicallycomposed.wordpress.com/2017/09/03/my-fibromyalgia-awareness-week-2017/
https://thezebramom.com/2017/08/24/back-to-school-guide-for-parents-with-chronic-illness/
http://lifesapolyp.blogspot.co.uk/2017/09/dialectical-behavioral-therapy-for.html
http://channongray.com/talk-mental-health-awareness-stigma/
https://thisreallifedad.com/surgery-going-knife/#comment-332
http://www.homeschoolinsights.com/2017/09/trials-of-chronic-illness.html
http://www.weareholistic.com/mental-health-care/might-call-depression/
I really hope that you enjoy these as much as I have – and had a giggle at the poem from Anna. It appealed to me as I really can’t go anywhere without my heating pad! Please explore the blogs leave some messages and share posts you enjoy.
Claire x
PainPalsBlog 
Thank you so much for your support! It means so much knowing there are bloggers who help each other and support one another! 🙂
Danny
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And you are the biggest supporter of the rest of us! xxx
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Thank you for featuring me here – it means a lot. I’m passionate about spreading the word and making the concept of Mental Health more ‘acceptable’ and listened too! ❤
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Channon, I am delighted to be able to share. Mental health/illness has played a big part in our family life in recent years, so I am very keen to alter the stigma too x
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Thank you for the shout out, Claire!
I loved the heating pad poem–I’m a fan of those warm rectangles of comfort. 🙂
I’ve enjoyed reading the other blogs you’ve included in your list as well! A curated list of posts is one of my favorite ways to discover new ideas and learn about inspiring people. I look forward to increasing my knowledge and awareness of those who live with chronic pain. I jumped over to the American Chronic Pain Association and found a fun challenge to participate in to do my part.
Thanks again for featuring my little post on what matters most when it comes to blogging: people.
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You are welcome Angela – your post was so good I had to share it. Something I love about the blogging community is the sharing and pride in each other’s work. So pleased to have connected with you x
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Thanks for sharing my post here! I love the poem and illustrations! I love my heating pad, too 🙂
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You are very welcome – Anna’s poem just made me laugh as my family say I’m wedded to my heat pad!
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Reblogged this on Dream Big, Dream Often.
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Thank you x
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Most welcome! 🙂
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I love this poem 🙂 It cracked me up (and hit home). I use 2 here at work all day. At home I use 3. I use mine almost 24 hours a day. They’re a blessing. Ode to our heating pads. I think I’ll give mine a hug 🙂
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