I think holding out on doing what I normally do or what I want to do
until I do something useful . If I just nap or lay with my phone i won't do anything Making myself earn my phone or TV time is the only way 4 me

Hi,i too had isolated myself and became very down and only looked forward to when my grandaughters came to visit or stay ,i found that they motivated me and brang me so much joy lifted my spirits and it made me realize no matter how much pain i was in i had to start thinking positive again and take small steps to change the way my mind was thinking as my thoughts were causing stress which then caused my body to react to the stress which then made more pain and it was a vicious circle repeating itself,stress can make our bodies do the strangest things and alter your mindset ,talking to your own brain and setting small challenges for yourself can have positive feedback to the brain and slowly it resets it thoughts and pattern and you become more concious of the things you can do and not the things you can't do,i started seeing an excercise physiologist and she taught me that small steps once a day maybe 4 days a week is the best way to start and then slowly increase it when you feel you can achieve more,i hope this helps you to keep motivated you have already taken the biggest step and that was starting the change so good on you,wishing you and your family a happy festive season .xxxxx

Yes! I have finally gotten out of my despairing state and feel like I've stopped trying too fight so hard against my pain. I have accepted it as a (if not life-long) companion. This gave me back my motivation to have goals. But I've learned through having chronic pain for 3 years, that a "To-Do List" can be discouraging. So I have added "...at some point" to the name. Important to remember while working toward goals, listen to your body, take care of yourself first, and pacing yourself (keeping your condition and compassion for yourself in your mind) is extremely important. Good Luck!

I can only do small things on hard days but at least I try and that makes me feel better

I make small goals too. Like bathing, brushing teeth and hair...very difficult and my husband has to help me. I do laundry in small loads so I can carry them to wash and dry. Standing or walking for long periods of time are not viable, so my goal is to go with my husband shopping and use a store scooter. I can't help very much but at least we are together. A major goal for me is to find one thing that I can work on even if it is just getting out of bed that day.