Fatigue is Not a Strong Enough Word
I didn’t get around to writing a post yesterday because I was sooooo tired. I had zero energy and spent the whole day on the couch (and that was after I slept for 12 hours straight!)
I’m really tired again today too. Using my pain equation example, I explained how pain can build up. The same principle applies for the fatigue portion of fibromyalgia. Through the really stressful and busy month that I had, I didn’t rest nearly as much as I should have. As a result, I am feeling all that fatigue now!
I find the chronic fatigue to be one of the most difficult symptoms to deal with. Sure the pain is awful, but the exhaustion can actually end up being much more debilitating. While the pain can be excruciating, there is a better chance that you can push through it if something really needs to be done. However, when you are so tired that you can barely lift your arms – nothing is getting done, no matter how important it may be.
I’ve tried, over the past year or so, to preemptively combat the exhaustion by giving myself ample time to rest (watch tv, read, sleep etc.) during the week. As I have become more in tune with my body, and more understanding of my illness, I have been able to gage when I am starting to work my body to hard, and when I should take a break to allow my body to recharge. As a result, throughout the past year, while I’ve still had to deal with chronic fatigue, I did a much better job of lessening the number of days I unexpectedly had to spend in bed.
One important thing to understand about this illness, is that even when you are doing really well at managing it, you are still sick. This doesn’t align with most people’s understanding of sick and well, but it is the reality for me. Even though I did a better job over the past year of managing my fibro, I still had a number of rough days, and even good days included a significant portion of time spent on preventative measures. However, a few bad days is always preferable to only bad days.
