CRPS week- the story of Jeanine Kosinski

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Jeanine Kosinski

Hi friends! My name is Jeanine Kosinski, I am 30, live in California in the USA, and have a rare nervous system disease, Chronic Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS), which causes my right leg to be in pain constantly which in turn affects my mood, psychological stability, and immune system. In addition to the CRPS, I have PTDS, anxiety, and depression (which often comes with a chronic, incurable pain condition), and was recently diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder Type II. All of these illnesses make it very difficult to work and do my favorite things (like exercise, hiking, biking, gardening, anything outsode!), which affects my mental health, which makes my CRPS worse, and on and on. My advice to someone who just received a diagnosis for a chronic illness is to:


Accept it: The sooner you do, the sooner you can collect data and help yourself learn how to manage your health. Take the all the information you can get and use it to find out what works and what doesn't not, make a plan, and stick

Keep moving: unless you are absolutely restricted from moving at all, move that bod. Anything, any way you (safely) can. Some days I lift weights or lump rope for 40 minutes, other days my leg hurts so much I can hardly walk. On "red pain days" I move my head, neck, shoulder ls, arms, lingers, toes if I can... Just gets the blood flowing and reminds my body it can move. 


Ask for help and treat yourself like your own best friend: Repeat after me, THERE IS NO SHAME IN BEING ILL OR ASKING FOR HELP. Say it again!!! No matter what your disability or disease is, be kind to yourself. And find people who are supportive and willing to learn about your illness(s), support is what you need right now. 


I hope this was helpful–please reach out if you would like to be friends! Remember, every day you wake up, you are a survivor, every move you take will help your body out, and there is no shame in having an illness or in asking for /needing help. Stay safe, stay kind, stay resilient.


Jeanine






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