Tracy Lee Karner

Managing Fibromyalgia–Keep a Health Journal

Tracy Lee Karner
This is a snapshot of the upper right corner of the comprehensive health journal I wrote.

I’m giving away the health journal I wrote, to anybody who needs it. I don’t want any money for it.
It comprehensively tracks aggravating and alleviating health factors. It has been useful for me, and now I want to make it available to anyone who needs to keep a health journal for any reason.
I’m overwhelmed by the unexpected number of people emailing me to tell me my blog is helpful.
Thank you, thank you! I’m glad for the feedback. It inspires me to keep blogging.
Regretfully, I can’t respond immediately & personally to every email & inquiry I get.
But I was so moved by the needs of people, that I decided to immediately post an answer to the most frequently asked question: How to keep a health journal?
Because there are so many factors involved in managing fibromyalgia, I couldn’t find a comprehensively adequate health journal, and what I did find, I thought cost too much for what I was getting. So, I ended up writing my own journal, and I’m giving it away. Why?
Because most of the people who need this are desperately in pain and overwhelmed: they need help. They’re not working or have reduced income because of illness, and they’re discouraged.
This is my way to say to you–be encouraged.
There ARE people who care and who will help you; and you can just ignore (or maybe run away from) the people who are trying to take unjust advantage of your adversity.
Brenda, Jamie, Pat, Megan, Emily, Joan, Teri, Cassandra, Kathy, Eve, Jack and Mary–this is especially for you.
And I understand how hard it is. I want to assure you that you can take steps to manage your adversity, and YES, it’s worth the trouble. Say YES to life, because life is meaningful. It’s not always easy to see, but there IS goodness.
Be kind & gentle to yourself, believe it’s possible to have a good life, say NO to your fear, and get started!
Fill out this form (in the comment field, type “health journal”)
[contact-form] [contact-field label=”Name” type=”name” required=”true” /] [contact-field label=”Email” type=”email” required=”true” /] [contact-field label=”Website” type=”url” /] [contact-field label=”Comment” type=”textarea” required=”true” /] [/contact-form]
you’ll receive an email of a (pdf) file of my journal to you, for you to print, on regular printer paper, with FREE instructions for using it. And I promise, it’s everything you need.* There won’t be follow-up emails trying to sell you something else.
If this helps you, all I ask in return is that you pass on the inspiration and hope that you’ve received.
Spread the word, so that everyone who needs to keep a health journal, can get started. 
**You might want to put your journal in a binder (you’ll supply that). And, after you start keeping a journal, you might find it useful to see a therapist who specializes in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) to help you interpret your observations and set specific, personal, manageable goals. I saw a terriffic CBT therapist for pain management, and it helped tremendously.
On the other hand, you also might be able to do it on your own (maybe I could have gone it alone, but seeing a therapist mightily speed up my movement from misery to joyful living). To see how a CBT specialist helps people manage fibromyalgia (or any adversity), go here: