Life Hacks

My only life hack is to write EVERYTHING DOWN. Then I not only have a written record of what I want to do, what I have done, what I have to do, when I'm supposed to do it, I also have a better handle on remembering it because I have enshrined it in my MUSCLE memory by physically moving the pen over the page. And I also set alarms on my phone to remind me to do things like feed the cat, or empty the wastebaskets or scoop the cat litter.


I should probably set an alarm on my phone to remind me to go back and look at my notebook and see what I wrote down, of course, but I can't do everything, can I?

I used the SUPPORT icon because we inexplicably do not have a HOWL OUT LOUD LAUGHING reaction icon on MultipleSclerosis.net. Maybe for version 2.1b? And I'm probably twice your age, my lamb!


Which gives me a thought for an article. Maybe we could do a prompt article around AGING WITH MS and make the cutoff age 60? (I say this because hands down, everybody's BEST decade is their 50's.) Because my MS is settling down as my immune system fades away. I wouldn't be forty years younger for ANYTHING. the 30s and 40s were pure hell with MS.

I actually thought of another great life hack! I am an exercise FIEND, you could call me a gym rat! I exercise with a trainer three times a week, go walking with a friend twice a week, and go to two separate yoga classes. I was a total sloth until I had a BAD exacerbation and lost the use of my left leg. I loved physical therapy so much it occurred to me that I could probably do it on my own, and became a gym rat. But I like to work out with a trainer, which is in itself a hack. My trainer has a master's in body mechanics, and is very knowledgeable, so he can suggest alternative ways to do exercises when I don't have the use of the required limb. But I am very careful not to get overheated when I exercise, so I always have a fan going, usually have a wet towel around the back of my neck. I use a yoga mat or plastic cushion on which to exercise so that I don't slip, and I know a LOT of exercises we can do sitting down. No matter what shape you're in, a good trainer can help you come up with a program that will make the most of what you've got, and will help devise sequences that help you build new pathways when old ones go out of commission. I've learned to walk three separate times,


Every BODY has an exercise it wants to do, and a trainer can help you find it and practice it. For me, it was weight training and yoga, and I've stuck with it for over twenty years.

My model for loving exercise is physical therapy, so I have never exercised without someone telling me what to do. When I joined a gym in our new town, I asked for a trainer and they supplied one. When the gym closed for the pandemic, I suggested we try video chat, and it's worked out really well. Trainers usually charge a set fee. It's worth it for me because Aaron helps me personally with physical challenges.