It's hard to avoid cooking, but I sure wish I could! I was OK with it before I had fibromyalgia, but now the very thought of it stresses me out.
If I'm doing something really simple and familiar, cooking's not too bad. When I have to keep track of multiple things, or go through a multi-step process, I can forget what I'm doing and get overwhelmed. When your family is waiting for dinner and you find yourself lost in the brain fog and on the verge of ruining it all, it can definitely trigger your anxiety!
In my early fibro days, when I was still working full time, I'd pick up the kids from daycare (where there was unbearable noise), drive home in heavy traffic, then have to cook dinner while the kids were clamoring for my attention. I was already trying to deal with the stress, pain and fatigue caused by work, so dinner regularly pushed me over the edge. It was common for me to take Vicodin and collapse on the couch, twitching in pain, before I even got a chance to eat.
Things are a lot better now, but I'm still trying to shake off the emotions I learned to associate with cooking. For a long time, I relied heavily on microwavable entrees and eating out, but since I've had to go gluten free, I've had to be more consistent about actually cooking. I've found some things that help, and here they are for you:
At the end of that article, there's a Readers Respond where you can learn from other people and leave ideas of your own. To share your cooking mishaps and how it makes you feel, leave a comment below!
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I do it the easy way and have my husband do all the grocery shopping, cooking and cleaning up. LOL
To me, there is little difference between cooking 2 helpings or 20, so often I will cook a huge pot of chili or vegetable soup or pasta sauce, and freeze in meal-size portions for use when needed. During clear weather, my husband grills enough meat (chicken, pork, bison or grass-fed beef) to either use during the week or to freeze for use at a later date. For those times when I don’t feel like doing much at all, I will have some already prepared foods from Trader Joe’s to fall back on.
I have fibromyalgia. When making a recipe where I actually need to measure things, I use a small notepad and write down all the ingredients and amounts. The notepad sits next to my cutting board and I check off the ingredients as I use them. It takes time, but at least I don’t forget the key ingredients. I have also purchased some new kitchen products that help. Oxo Suregrips products don’t cause me any pain and the 6 1/2 inch Oxo Santoku knife is amazing! It cost $15.00 and I use it every day and can chop things now without any pain. I have 2 professional cutlery sets and don’t use them anymore. They used to be the pride of my kitchen, but this great little cheap knife has made them obsolete. Anything to make cooking less painful!