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What I mean when I say ‘I’m Fine’
“How are you?” “Oh yeah, I’m good, thank you. I’m doing just fine.” A common, every day exchange between two people. It may be someone you know well, or someone you’ve just met. Telling people you’re ‘fine’ is so common nowadays that I don’t think any of us know what it really means. Whenever people ask me how I am, there is a lot that happens in my mind. How honest should I be today? If I did answer that question honestly, can I talk about it openly without crying (usually no)? Would they understand, or even care? Can I actually put into words how I’m feeling right now? How…
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Why is pacing so gosh darn difficult?
If you didn’t know, pacing is the single, most important way of managing your symptoms when you have a chronic illness like Myalgic Encephalomyelitis. It involves spreading high-energy activities over a long period of time, to stop your body over-exerting and inducing those horrible, energy limiting symptoms. ‘High energy’ is defined differently from person to person, depending on the severity of their condition. For me it is anything that involves standing up, but for someone with a more severe condition this could be as small as processing daylight. It takes a lot of planning, and a lot of practice, to be really efficient at it. However I do know people…
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How to manage an energy crash
I’ve been trying and failing to write this afternoon. Started things, stopping half way through, taking breaks to stare off into the distance, starting again. Nothing really seemed to be working. The problem I am having is that I am in the midst of an energy crash, and I just do not have the mental capacity to form sentences and write. I love to write, but I do need some sort of energy to be able to do it. I can’t just fumble through it – no one wants to read a half-assed post from someone who is struggling to keep their eyes open. While I sat there, resting in…
