Take Care of Yourself
1. Keep a pain journal. We have a free download for one in our Toolbox (enter your name & email to the right and you’ll get access to it).
2. Get some fresh air everyday.
3. Yoga is great for your sense of well being
4. If you have a loved one or friend who is having a hard time empathizing
with you, invite them to TMJ Hope so they can see what you and
others are dealing with.
5. Chat, vent, rant, ask questions, and share on TMJ Hope. We are here to
support you every step of the way.
6. I know you have heard it before……take baby steps. Feeling good and
over doing today could make tomorrow miserable.
7. Have all the tools you will need for your recovery ready.. Heating pad,
ice packs, bandages, pillows, pre-made and frozen smoothies, straws etc.
Entertain Yourself
1. If you have young children, play your favorite classic board games with them.
2. Purchase or rent an entire season of Sex In The City (or one of your favorite
TV series)
3. Let your kids read to you…….it makes them feel involved.
4. Rent some classic movies…….I love An Affair To Remember!
5. Books on CD are great!
6. Go to the end of the internet and back
7. Download all your favorite music
Be Productive
1. Get rid of those nagging piles of paperwork, catalogues and bills.
Sort them out and file appropriately (most of mine goes in the
circular file)
2. Start planning your next vacation.
3. If you knit or crochet start some early gifts
4. Plan your next garage sale and inventory what you plan on getting rid of.
5. Prepare the honey-do list for the resident handy-man. If you don’t have one,
this is a great time to take friends and family up on their offer to help.
6. Plot out your summer garden, choose the plants you will need
7. Keep a diary of your recovery. It will give you a better perspective
on things,and is a great way to help and support others
What tips do you have???
Three weeks into the first of two TMJ total joint replacement surgeries, I feel like this was written just for me. And just in time, too. Thank you for this and I’ll be checking back to see what others have to offer as well. The second surgery is tentatively scheduled for June 1st. Still a long way to go.
You are doing such a good job, I am proud of your progress. Hang in there and take time to smell the coffee…LOL. I forgot to add TAKE NAPS to the list ~Candy
Along with a pain journal and a recovery diary, I started a journal of my thoughts, today. Having so much time to think means that my thoughts will drift into the past, present, and future, and the writer in me has to get that out of my head and onto paper.