Monday Magic – Inspiring Blogs for You

On Oct 8, 2018 By Claire Saul (PainPalsBlog)In Blog share, Blogging, Blogs, chronic illness7 Comments

Good evening and welcome to another new week and another Monday Magic.

Hubby and I have celebrated our wedding anniversary in the last week – 26 years! surely we aren’t old enough….We had a great night out at the Royal Festival Hall (second time in recent weeks) watching the glamorous and very pregnant Sophie Ellis Bextor supported by a full orchestra alongside her band. It shouldn’t be possible for a woman expecting her FIFTH child to look so gorgeous in a figure hugging black sequin cat suit!!! That lady can still boogie as she belts out all her classic numbers – I don’t know about “Murder on the Dance Floor”, there were moments when there we thought there might be a birth on the dance floor as mum to be danced so energetically. Wow! Full accessibility post about the RFH to follow.

sophie-ellis-bextor-exhibits-blooming-baby-bump-in-sparkling-sequinned-jumpsuit — The stunning S E-B!

I haven’t done a good job with pacing this week – why is it nights out all have to come together? A concert, a curry with friends and a quiz night has left my chronic pain screaming at me at full volume. But today I was reminded that there is always someone in a worse situation than you when I received the awful news that the brother of a school friend has recently died from cancer in his early 50s. He leaves a wife and 3 teenage children and as a GP leaves a huge number of patients at the surgery that he took over from their father. Once again life is put into perspective.

On this note I want to give you some blog posts to read that I hope will be uplifting and inspiring, practical and entertaining. Sit back, raise a glass to living life as well as possible and enjoy these blogs.

beautiful casual cute day — Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

http://jesdickerson.com/2018/10/01/break-free-comparison-trap/

https://www.lifeinslowmotionblog.com/do-coping-skills-really-help/

http://theunchargeables.com/pain-awareness-month-why-does-it-matter/

https://pamelajessen.com/2018/10/06/interview-october-derek/

http://notjusttired.com/2018/10/08/joy-in-autumn-challenge-joyinautumn/

https://www.mostlyblogging.com/go-viral/

https://beetleypete.wordpress.com/2018/10/08/the-settlement

https://www.graphic-organic.com/single-post/2018/10/03/HalloweenFall-Home-Decor?utm_campaign=2b769dce-26eb-45c0-b080-ab4bfead9564&utm_source=so

https://risingabovera.com/review-mighty-medcase-by-mightywell/

https://anhistorianabouttown.com/rwbs-the-handmaids-tale-10-14-october-2018/

Please like, comment and share!

Have a great week,

Claire x

Monday Magic – Inspiring Blogs for You!

On Oct 1, 2018 By Claire Saul (PainPalsBlog)In Blog share, Blogging, Blogs, chronic illness3 Comments

Hello PainPals – Monday Magic is back! The last week has flown by in a swirl of one drama after another….but that is the norm in this house!! Of course any excitement and stress always causes a flare of symptoms for me and this week has been no exception resulting in one long POTSie episode. Did you see my poem from yesterday?

Pin for later

Two faints and head cracks in the space of 48 hours left me talking “rubbish” yesterday according to the lovely girl. Or more rubbish than normal – mind you, she is pretty good at that herself, so a bit of a chip off the old block as they say.

Lucy & Matty.JPG — Chip off the old block with pal…& icecream

So apologies if what I described as a poem was just some ramblings, but what is a spot of concussion between friends? After the first fall, when I was home alone except for the dog, I took a photo from the ground and sent it to the younger two child adults (didn’t post it to SM until I was back on the sofa with a decent amount of analgesia circulating my blood stream…..hmm, that could be the reason that I did post such a flattering pic of myself!) Now that did get me in trouble with hubby as I didn’t call him, but I knew he was only dropping my Mum and one of his doggy charges home so I figured there was no point. I was already on the floor, wasn’t moving so I couldn’t do myself any more damage – that is sensible, right?! Anyway, what did impress me was that both kids phoned hubby and both were indignant that he had left me alone….yes, the politics student actually tried to call his father. When I asked the IT start up exec (new name for the Student engineer – Its U Exec for short) if he would have called dad, the response was “no…..if you could manage a selfie, you could manage to ring him yourself!” Oh well, two out of three isn’t bad.

I’m fine today, if I ignore the egg on the back of my head and a few misplaced joints – you have to look on the bright side, so the best thing to do seemed to be to find you some interesting and inspiring blog posts. There are two serious posts that I will give you trigger warnings for – one discusses rape, the other suicide – but they really are worth a read if you are able. Enjoy a wander through the Vancouver Rain, or some beautiful wedding photographs with an extra special message from the photographer; there are some book recommendations and a blog birthday celebration. Finally I have added a treat from a fellow spoonie who has an Instagram account full of beautiful foodie pictures and recipes.

So sit down with a glass of something delicious and enjoy!

https://prettycouchpotato.com/2018/09/27/photographing-a-wedding-a-thank-you-to-my-body/

https://illness-to-wellness.com/2018/09/29/rape-is-a-personal-public-and-political-health-issue-we-need-to-believe-survivors/

https://www.ajourneythroughthefog.co.uk/2018/09/%EF%BB%BFhow-can-you-help-a-friend-who-may-be-contemplating-suicide/

https://zebrapit.com/2018/09/26/what-is-interstitial-cystitis/

https://teaandcakeforthesoul.wordpress.com/2018/09/30/tea-cake-for-the-soul-a-summer-round-up/

http://www.thisspooniespeaks.com/2018/09/reading-to-escape-health-storylines.html

https://byrnewithme.com/embracing-the-vancouver-rain-at-lynn-canyon/

https://wheelescapades.com/2017/10/01/just-a-little-respect/

https://kirstythroughthelookingglass.com/2018/10/01/kttlg-one-year/

https://www.lifeofpippa.co.uk/2018/09/27/books-you-need-in-your-life-july-september-2018/

https://www.instagram.com/anniesplantbasedpicnic/

As ever please, please share some love by commenting, liking and sharing these posts.

Have a lovely week,

Claire x

Monday Magic – Inspiring Blogs for You!

On Sep 17, 2018Sep 17, 2018 By Claire Saul (PainPalsBlog)In Blog share, Blogging, Blogs, chronic illness9 Comments

Another week, another Monday! Where does the time go? Well….hospital visits have figured quite heavily for September and I have already clocked up orthopaedics and gastrointestinal, with urology, rheumatology and my GP all coming up in the next week. What a thrilling social life I lead!!

There have been a couple of great trips out this week – I wrote about the ball at The Oval cricket ground hosted by my old school in my last post, but hubby and I also went to see the live cinema screening of the RSC production of The Merry Wives of Windsor. Absolutely hilarious! It wouldn’t be everyone’s cup of tea, particularly if you are a Shakespeare purist – but it is set in current day Essex styled “Windsor” with lots of leopard skin, gold chains and botox! The cast are superb and bring an old tale right up to date as the wives of Windsor show their strength as they turn the tables on Falstaff. I haven’t laughed so much in a long time – and it isn’t often that it would be the Baird who I would say this of.

1390-merry-wives-review-web-images_hub-(1).tmb-img-820

I want to do something a little different with Monday Magic Blogs this week. Over the last year I have been nominated for various awards and tags by some lovely blogger pals, and i am very aware that I have failed to get my act together to join in the communal fun that these awards can bring.

Firstly a huge thanks for these nominations go to:

Wendy at Picnic with Ants and Michelle at Jumbled Brain for tagging me for the Three Day Quote

Tasha at Pain Warrior Code for the Mystery Blogger Award

Alyssa at Fight MS Daily and Tasha at Pain Warrior Code for the Liebster Award

Ali at Notebooks and Glasses for Behind the Illness

Terri at Reclaiming Hope for The Sunshine Blogger Award

Gary at Fiction is Food for The Blue Sky Tag

……and I really hope that I haven’t missed anyone out! I have also added

Caz from Invisibly Me and Sheryl from A Chronic Voice – they may be pals I have forgotten on the nominations list, but they are definitely bloggers who have offered me a huge a amount of personal support, sharing and kindness!

I will try to combine some of the challenges in these posts to write a little about myself (at the risk of boring you all silly), but meanwhile I want to share some blog posts with you from these inspiring bloggers! So without further ado grab a cuppa, turn your phone off and sit back to enjoy these posts….

https://picnicwithants.com/2018/09/13/i-dont-mean-to-fighting-depression/

https://www.jumbledbrain.com/2018/08/20/simple-bug-vs-brain-injury-disaster/

https://painwarriorcode.wordpress.com/2018/09/11/do-you-know-when-a-flare-is-about-to-happen-painwarriortalks/

https://painwarriorcode.wordpress.com/2018/07/11/hang-on-in-there/

https://fightmsdaily.com/2018/09/11/never-stop-believing-in-hope/

http://notebooksandglasses.com/2018/09/16/september-link-up-party-with-a-chronic-voice/

https://reclaiminghope.blog/2018/09/17/on-a-weather-break-be-back-soon/

https://fictionisfood.com/2018/09/06/are-you-a-writer-then-join-in-this-september-and-spin-us-a-yarn-blogbattle-is-back/

https://invisiblyme.com/2018/09/11/september-pain-awareness-month/

https://www.achronicvoice.com/2018/09/15/singapore-chronic-illnesses/

I hope that you enjoy these – Sheryl’s pictures of Singapore are wonderful! Please like, comment and share these posts!

Have a great week,

Claire x

Monday Magic – Inspiring Blogs for You!

On Sep 3, 2018Sep 3, 2018 By Claire Saul (PainPalsBlog)In Blog share, Blogging, Blogs, chronic illness, Monday Blogs10 Comments

Good afternoon! For many in the UK this is back to school week – today hubby and teachers across the country have school inset training days, whilst the kids enjoy their final days of summer. The school uniform is bought, the pencil cases packed and soon the countdown will be on for Halloween.

This is the first year in about 18 years that school uniform hasn’t been bought in our house! The lovely girl has a very loose, smart “own clothes” code for the sixth form – although mum has a feeling that this could prove a lot more problematic!! The first line of the code made me both smile and sigh – “no underwear to be on show”……so no knicker skimming skirts, shorts need to be long and tailored, no bras or cleavages on show. How times have changed since my day – the only concession we got in the sixth form was girls didn’t have to wear blazers or ties; the boys had no concessions. Skirts above the knee….forget it! The girls have been out shopping – last week they visited the interesting God’s own Junkyard with its displays of neon lights amongst other places – and she did return with a skirt….it definitely doesn’t reach her knees!

God’s Own Junkyard

The skirt!

The young engineer has been away at a festival this weekend, but it is far removed from those visited by his brother this year. I think an accurate description would be a “Geek” festival where like minded inquisitive souls meet up and CREATE! Never will you attend a camp with such power, high speed wifi and every imaginable technological gadget – one comment on instagram said “You know you are at @emfcamp #emfcamp and not any other festival when the guy in the tent next to you is running a server from the porch of his tent :)” It is based at Eastnor Castle in Herefordshire and this year additional power and wifi had to be installed, so my bet is the local villages will have the fastest internet connections in the whole UK!

39872637_296187404511673_7423779580189605888_n

Last year the young engineer and his friend built a giant (8 feet) version of Guitar Hero – wires and lights were arriving at our house for weeks before (you can see it on Youtube here: https://youtu.be/AOU09T3l9Kg). This year he has taken his better half who is a software engineer but frankly I’m not sure that he knows what he has let himself in for. They are due back later today…..

This week the young engineer officially becomes a Master of Engineering & Software when he graduates at the Royal Festival Hall. I am hoping that I will have some very embarrassing pictures to share of him wearing his gown and mortar board!

The first blog on today’s list is about the EMF camp, but if this doesn’t grab you then hopefully you can be inspired by the others on the list. I have found a post about an artisan Mead brewery (having seen them featured on a BBC programme), some timely back to school views from a teacher, and a new blog from a cyclist touring through Kyrgyzstan to Nepal. There are also some great life posts and my favourite title has to go to “The Special Stank of a Boy”!

https://hackaday.com/2018/08/14/looking-forward-to-electromagnetic-field-2018/

http://viking-mjod.no/apothecary-mead-legends-of-sherwood/

https://butismileanyway.com/2018/08/30/the-onset-of-inset-days-backtoschool-teacherslife/

https://inspiremystyle.com/2018/08/26/leading-a-fulfilled-and-healthy-life/

http://www.secondhand-life.com/2018/08/anxiety-storms-demons-on-the-boat/

http://janetgivens.com/at-seventy-seven-thoughts/

https://thewildreaderwithacat.wordpress.com/2018/09/02/beautiful-houses-%F0%9F%98%81/

https://woods-wanderer.com/2018/09/02/cycle-touring-chapter-7-osh-to-kunelek-kyrgyzstan-an-ode-to-kolbek/

https://butterflyinremission.com/2018/08/21/how-i-experienced-mindset-shift-motivation-life-change/

https://hotmessmemoir.com/2018/09/03/the-special-stank-of-a-boy/

I hope that you enjoy this great mixture of posts…..please like, comment and share!

Have a great week,

Claire x

Monday Magic – Inspiring Blogs for You!

On Aug 20, 2018 By Claire Saul (PainPalsBlog)In art, Blog share, Blogging, Blogs, chronic illness10 Comments

Another week has passed, the heat wave in the UK has broken and students across the country have either just received exam results or are awaiting them this week. In our house, the lovely girl will receive her GCSE results this week and remains very calm and level headed. But she can’t get her head around the year group chat that is full of anxiety about grade boundaries and count downs to the “big day” – I agree with her that there is no point worrying about the grade boundaries when you have no idea what grades you have received yet!

board chalk chalkboard exam — Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

The national press is of course feeding this anxiety with articles about the new exams – both GCSE and A level – are they harder, are the grade boundaries higher/lower, have more students done better? I’m not sure we will be able to make head or tail of her results though as half will be the old style A-C grades, with the remainder bearing the new numerical grades 1-9!!

Pin for later

The politics student is currently taking exams – he was unwell earlier this year with chronic migraines so the university deferred exams until now. I actually received a text after his first exam earlier! Maybe it has finally dawned on him that although these first year exams don’t count towards the final degree, he does need to pass them all to go back for the second year……his sister would be horrified to find that both brothers were back home permanently! I’m not sure that my kitchen would cope either…..

I have spent another dislocated week vaping on my Medipen – I feel a review coming on – and adding to my “surgical appliances”. Firstly I bought some physio kinesiology tape after reading Ali’s article last week – I thought that hubby might be able to learn how to tape my arm back in place, but the family consensus seems to be to mummify me in it! Hmmmm……..Then I sent hubby out to Lidl to buy some chicken and he came home with ankle supports. Those of you who are Lidl or Aldi fans will know that the middle rows in the store are always very exciting and you never know what you might find nestling alongside the crisps and fruit juice! This week it was various medical appliances from heat pads to raised loo seats seated next to petrol powered jet washers and lawn mowers. I came home with a garden table on one occasion….

So whilst sitting here watching youtube videos about applying sticky tape to my body (we will get our physio to teach us) and adding more velcro straps to my wardrobe, I have been perusing the blogosphere to find some more fab posts for you to read. Who has heard of #BlogBattle:Moon? Have a look at Gary’s post for this writing challenge. I’m excited to introduce you to Anna, a local artist who also happens to be a part of the We All Send Cards community (where my girl’s art can also be found on greetings cards). She has been featured on the Women Talking website and discusses her career as an artist alongside her diagnoses of dyslexia, dyspraxia and ADHD. Lily provides pointers for US residents navigating the benefits system at How To Get On blog. The lovely girl is very pleased that I have included a post about “period poverty” – something that hasn’t been spoken about in the past.

So grab a glass of something nice, turn off the phone and sit back to indulge in some great reads…

https://fictionisfood.com/2018/08/09/blogbattle-moon/

https://writeintolife.com/2018/08/17/motivation-why-do-older-bloggers-blog/

https://kerrylifeandloves.com/2018/08/16/experience-boa-vista-cape-verde-choose-happy/

https://sarahsbrandnewchapter.com/2018/08/17/memories-of-my-grandma/

http://www.womentalking.co.uk/topics/lifestyle/intuitive-oils

https://www.meriahnichols.com/lorna-duff-howie/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=SocialWarfare

https://howtogeton.wordpress.com/about-the-artist/social-security-disability/

www.lifeofpippa.co.uk/2018/08/16/periods-poverty-and-perceiving-empathy-walker-ya-blog-tour/

http://katethealmostgreat.com/is-chronic-illness-a-disability/

https://prettycouchpotato.com/2018/08/16/diy-tpn-backpack/

Please share, comment and like these posts!

Have a great week,

Claire x

Monday Magic – Inspiring Blogs for You!

On Jun 4, 2018 By Claire Saul (PainPalsBlog)In Blog share, Blogging, Blogs, chronic illness3 Comments

I can’t quite believe that June is upon us. We are nearly half way through the year and you know what that means? Soon the shops will be stocking up for Christmas!! The lovely girl (who wants me to change her name on here – all ideas gratefully received) is becoming very annoyed with her brothers – number 2 has just sent a message announcing he has only one exam left to go, whilst number 1 keeps sending her photos from Sorrento, Italy – whilst she is still revising. Not many to go now though.

Pin it!

The student engineer finished his course after 4 years this week – so he too will need a new name – and to celebrate he and his better half jetted off at some unearthly hour to Italy. There actually are some occasions when it is great being no longer able to drive, and a 4 am airport run is definitely one of them. Today I received some photos and thought “ahhh, my boy is actually thinking ahead to my birthday in a couple of weeks”, only to be informed that Capri is well out of his price range! The pool, sea view and cocktail shots all seem indicative that they are letting their hair down – so long as they don’t forget to pack the Limoncello in their homebound luggage for their mums, I don’t care!

Meanwhile I received a cake request from a very good friend for a BBQ that we went to on Saturday. It started out as a birthday cake for his wife, then quickly incorporated another male friend’s birthday….OK so a birthday cake suitable for a lady & a man, with their names….but then the wedding anniversary of another couple cropped up as being Saturday too. Hmmm, thinking cap on at short notice….a gender neutral, celebration cake – what could be better than using my zebra colours? Lovely evening had by all! Hubby’s biggest concern came the following morning when he found that the handle on his Chelsea football mug had cracked….he blames the government for turning down Abramovich’s visa!!

I couldn’t finish without a mention for the British TV show “Britain’s Got Talent” – not as a great fan, I don’t even watch the show – but to applaud the diversity of contestants that I have learnt have taken part this year. Both the winner and the runner up have disabilities and this is written about beautifully in the first post here: Disability Horizons, alongside some clips of the contestants – well worth a watch! There are a host of great posts here from endangered animal species to shoes to a lovely poem.

So turn your phone to silent, grab a coffee, sit back and enjoy!

http://disabilityhorizons.com/2018/06/disabled-comedian-lost-voice-guy-wins-britains-got-talent-2018/

https://beautifultraveller.com/endangered-species-day/

https://quintessentiallymeblog.wordpress.com/2018/05/31/fiv-debunked/

https://kateonthinice.com/looking-at-things-more-positively-with-the-great-what-if/

https://risingabovera.com/seven-go-to-shoes-those-living-with-rheumatoid-arthritis-must-know-about/

https://hannahthemaddog.com/if-i-didnt-have-lupus-i-probably-wouldnt-be-blogging/

https://3sistersabroad.wordpress.com/2018/06/01/world-wide-lam-awareness-month/

http://lifewithanillness.com/2018/05/29/my-2-year-anniversary-of-being-chronically-ill/

https://schoolrunshop.com/monday-motivation-know-mood-hoover/

https://natashatungare.wordpress.com/2018/06/04/none-knows-the-real-you/

Please comment, like and share these posts to your own social media!

Have a great week,

Claire x

Monday Magic – Inspiring Blogs for You!

On Apr 16, 2018 By Claire Saul (PainPalsBlog)In Blog share, Blogging, Blogs, chronic illness5 Comments

Today it is a beautiful day, the sun is shining and apparently we are about to have a warm snap in the UK. Just as the kids all go back to school – typical! We still have a house full here and the mound of shoes grows daily inside the front door. Our local park has turned into a swamp over Easter and several pairs of these shoes, including my DM boots borrowed by the lovely girl, are thick in mud. I wonder how long they will sit there for? The housework fairies don’t function so well in this house these days!

Revision time, or maybe I should say panic time, is reaching fever pitch here and the art work for the final exam piece is being practiced on every available surface…..using a mixture of paint, plaster, polyfilla, wood. Watch this space for the outcome! The eldest and youngest visited their grandparents for a few days giving us some respite from the folders and books!

One of the blogs I have picked is The Unofficial A – Z of Babies, and it struck me this week that we have come full circle with the politics student. When he was a baby I remember well the nights being woken for feeds….what I didn’t expect was the nights being woken at 4.30am to recur 19 years later! This time the waking is done by a front door slamming so loudly that we could hear it shake in the frame….in the way that someone who is drunk tries so carefully to be quiet and careful, but just makes it all ten times worse. Let’s just say he was unable to do his sister’s paper round for her that morning…..

Onto our blogs – it is World Craft Week this week, so I have shared the link to the Conscious Crafties site, where those with chronic illness or caring for a loved one can show you their handmade crafts and designs. There is a story feature, a book review and easing chronic pain with pole dancing!! So time to sit back with your coffee and enjoy so fantastic blog posts….

https://www.consciouscrafties.com/sell/join-the-crafties/

http://www.jottojot.com/the-unofficial-a-z-of-babies/

https://bysarahwhiley.wordpress.com/2018/04/13/the-dance-lessons/

https://ingawellbeing.com/pole-dancing-to-pampering-can-help-ease-chronic-pain/

http://notjusttired.com/2018/04/13/new-blog-feature-interviews-with-people-living-with-me-cfs/

https://allabouthealthychoices.wordpress.com/2018/04/14/solutions-are-they-subconsciously-part-of-the-problem/

http://chronicallyhopeful.com/update-a-season-of-anticipation-and-new-beginnings/

https://simplychronicallyill.com/2018/04/15/the-stupidest-advice-people-have-given-me/

https://littlemissnosleep.wordpress.com/2018/04/10/bookreview-5-stars-i-still-dream-by-james-smythe-jpsmythe-boroughpress-istilldream-sciencefiction-fiction-book-review/

https://thepbsblog.com/2018/04/15/author-spotlight-yecheilyahs-2nd-annual-poetry-contest-sponsor-tinzley-bradford/

Please remember to share some love and pass on links to posts, like and comment!

Have a great week,

Claire x

Monday Magic – Inspiring Blogs for You!

On Apr 9, 2018Apr 9, 2018 By Claire Saul (PainPalsBlog)In Blogging, Blogs, chronic illness8 Comments

I can’t believe that another week has gone by and it is time for Monday magic again! Have you finished your Easter chocolates yet? There hasn’t been much eating for me this past week with 3 days of clear fluids and yet more bowel prep for a hospital investigation….third time lucky, hurray and thank god!!! I had already decided that if my body hadn’t played ball this time, my mind was going to tell the doctors where the scope could be shoved…..Anyway this is a story for another spoonie post!!

I wrote a poem about my brain fog last week and it has played a long visit alongside its brother fatigue this weekend. My balance has been seriously off kilter and as I went over backwards in the bathroom this morning, the lovely girl couldn’t stop laughing “You look like you’re doing the limbo Mum!”. She did catch me though, ha, ha, ha. I have been reading a couple of your blogs about journals and bullet points – and decided I must start actually doing this. Whilst I am up to date with my reading, writing my book reviews has been a bit more of a challenge and my dodgy mind has got the dates completely muddled. Apologies authors – there will be reviews for everything I have promised.

I’m not the only one in need of a journal plan….the lovely girl has devised a lovely revision plan but now she has to get down to actually doing the work, so far so good! I don’t think the same can be said for her big brothers!! Have I mentioned before that she is allowed to use a laptop to help with the hand and wrist pain from her Ehlers Danlos Syndrome? Hubby and I took a massive step last week when we allowed her to go a concert to see Declan Mckenna in North London with friends – and they made their own way home. Conditions were put in place….”text when you leave” “call when you get to the overhead train” “let us know when you’re back”….if anything goes wrong, if the concert over runs, etc etc both your brothers are in London…..We sat here with hubby watching Twitter for the times of the support act finishing, when would young Declan go on stage…and we knew that the venue has an 11pm curfew.

Declan-McKenna-050418-Forum-Emma-Swann-5897-web — Image by Emma Swann on DIY Mag

Of course the girls were fine – she couldn’t text when they got out as they had to rush to get across London for the last train. But as parents our hearts were in our mouths whilst we had to let go of our baby…..guess what the most surprising thing was? Both her big brothers called home to check if we had heard from her….the student engineer at half past midnight! They do care really….

But back to some blogs for you to check out this week….I couldn’t resist sharing one about Hotter shoes teaming up with Marie Curie cancer care & daffodils (as a MC nurse in a previous life!), and I have sent out for supplies for the no bake energy balls recipes. For some really inspiring stories please read Debs World (her beautiful writing made me cry) and also the book review by Jazmin – Chessy Prout is a remarkable young lady who spoke out about her rape by a fellow pupil at school, the response of others about her and her strength of character. I have also added a couple of extra posts today as I sit watching the Commonwealth Games. These young ladies are both swimmers and have both won gold medals at these games, overcoming huge personal obstacles on the way. I have written about Siobhan Marie O’Connor here in the past and Sophie Pascoe is a great ambassador for parasports.

In case you mixed it – voting is now open for the Bloggers Bash Awards so don’t forget to vote for your favourites.

Grab a cuppa, sit back and enjoy!

https://www.vanityandmestyle.com/2018/04/hotter-shoes-supporting-marie-curie.html

http://allthatjazmin.com/reviews/chessy-prout-book-review/

https://debs-world.com/2018/04/08/what-ive-learnt-from-surviving-a-school-trip-that-went-terribly-wrong/

https://easymommylife.com/no-bake-energy-balls-recipes/

https://mummyhereandthere.co.uk/2018/03/30/why-you-should-try-counselling/

https://www.graphic-organic.com/single-post/2017/10/10/World-Mental-Health-Day

https://helensjourneysite.wordpress.com/2018/04/07/time-rest-breath/

https://livingwithme.blog/2018/04/02/studying-in-the-spring/

https://mymedmusings.com/2018/04/08/im-good-my-body-not-so-much/

https://shannondianax.wordpress.com/2018/04/06/mental-health-and-hospitals-and-lifesaving-heart-surgery-and-british-heart-foundation-all-in-one-week-3/

http://www.thesportfeed.com/siobhan-marie-oconnor-swimming-with-ulcerative-colitis-nicola-kenton/

https://offthetracks.co.nz/sophie-pascoe-stroke-of-fate/

Please share these posts and show these great bloggers some love!

Have a great week,

Claire x

Monday Magic – Inspiring Blogs for You

On Nov 20, 2017 By Claire Saul (PainPalsBlog)In Blogging, Blogs, chronic illness10 Comments

Happy Monday PPals! I am currently sitting here cursing as WordPress decided to wipe my writing of this post and I can’t recover it. It was finished too!! Aghhhh

Anyway I will attempt to replicate it….the Uk’s Strictly Come Dancing is whirling through the weeks in a series of foxtrots, tangos, quicksteps and more. This weekend saw the couples entering a whole different level as they performed at the spiritual home of ballroom. Professionals and celebrities alike are all in awe of the iconic Palace Ballroom, Blackpool which takes centre stage and steals the thunder of the dancers, as it is so breathtaking.

This weekend saw the end of the road for an inspirational young man who is a gold winning GB Paralympian and 100m sprinter. I am of course talking about Jonnie Peacock, the 24 year old athlete who aged 5 years underwent surgery for a below knee amputation, having contracted meningitis. He is the first contestant with a disability to take part in the main series and there have been questions along the way – Is it fair for Jonnie to perform the same dances as his able bodies counterparts? How can the judges possibly give Jonnie the same level of critique? Why are the judges picking on Jonnie’s posture, bottom position and stature when he has one leg?

But these questions have never come from Jonnie himself and in his farewll speech last night he said that he was honoured to be the first disabled contestant, and he thanked the judges for judging him as an equal saying

“That’s what I want. You’ve been critical with me and I want that criticism. I think that’s fantastic and hope it paves the way for more people to come through and I think they may be able to stick their bum under a bit better than me.”

His tearful professional partner Oti Mabuse said

“This has been one of the most life changing things that could ever happen to me. Jonnie is not only an inspiration but he represents so much more. ‘If anybody wants to do anything, if you put your mind to it then you can achieve it and that’s what he represents.”

I am not suggesting that we will all, abled or disabled, reach the heights of this remarkable young man, and for those of us living with chronic illness invariably daily pain and fatigue won’t even allow us to reach the putting our minds to it bit, let alone anything else!! But this is surely a good mantra to aspire to and Jonnie Peacock has left Strictly a dancer. Watching him jive on his running blade was a highlight for me…..and not forgetting him as Jack Sparrow on Halloween.

So from one inspiring young man to a handful of inspiring blog posts. With another weekend of dodgy dislocations, I have read lots of blogs, interspersed with cheesy family movies and heat pads! I have picked a selection of posts for you from a variety of bloggers – and as yesterday was World Prematurity Day, the first comes with a mascara alert as it is a post from Nicole that is written from the heart. I have also managed to slip in a Christmas post – never too early – and will aim to do so each week in the build up to the festivities.

So grab a cuppa, sit back and enjoy some fab posts!

https://www.nicolefrancesca.co.uk/homepage/2017/11/19/november-never-forgotton

https://themswire.com/2017/11/19/four-airport-tips-for-disabled-flyers/

https://chronicallystrong.com/lupus-aibd/

https://yadadarcyyada.com/2017/11/17/people-forget-kindness-is-free-2/

http://www.themonochromeblog.com/single-post/2016/09/11/How-to-move-to-a-foreign-country-go-travelling-when-your-a-spoonie-TBC

https://thewildreaderwithacat.wordpress.com/2017/11/18/paint/

http://www.thirstydaddy.com/2017/11/10/the-good-guys-dont-always-win/

https://thedreamgurusite.wordpress.com/2017/11/17/how-i-found-out-about-eds/

https://mydailyjournalonline.com/life-rulebook-guest-post-riya/

https://medicalmysterymusings.wordpress.com/2017/11/19/christmas-expectations/

Please like, share and follow these blogs if you enjoy them!

Have a great week,

Claire x

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