I’m sure you all have days like I’ve had today.
Those days when it all just seems too hard. The pain, the fatigue, the digestive and bowel problems (yep, those bits nobody wants to hear about!).
It all just seems never-ending at times, and sometimes even makes you want to give up completely.
Luckily today is far from those misery days I recounted in an earlier post, but the intensity and unrelenting nature of the electrosensitivity headache-migraine today is about as bad as I get.
I’m hand writing this (as I do most posts) because I tried to have a tech-free day.
The difficulty of that mission, especially as a mother to a 9 year old girl, is not to be underestimated (and when I say tech free, I mean no TV or computer on anywhere in the house as it all affects me!).
And after all that, it’s made no difference anyway!
Something’s got this headache stuck and not even a night’s sleep shook it.
This isn’t written so anyone feels sorry for me (though go ahead if you like. This pity party is getting a bit lonely!). 😉
No, I really just want to acknowledge that we all have our really bad days at times – even someone who rather tongue-in-cheek calls her business The Get Up ‘N’ Go Guru!
Sometimes this CFS / electrosensitivity / pyroluria gig is really rubbish – or more rubbish than usual.
You don’t get much more positive a person than me, but trying to think, make meals, mother and function while you have a blinding headache is not fun.
I do it most days, but for some reason today is a step up. And all I want to do is doona dive and escape the pain.
But that’s actually the worst thing I can do when I’m in such pain, because without distraction I notice the pain more.
I need to rest periodically throughout the day, but unless I get to sleep, the pain is worse.
So what do I do on days like this?
Distraction is the key. I’ve written about the joys of distraction before, and today those joys are even more poignant.
Medication doesn’t even scratch the surface, so I don’t bother until bedtime.
A gin and tonic takes the edge off, but unless I want to stumble around in a drunken stupor all day (I don’t!) that’s no good.
Sleep helps to escape, but until night I’m not tired enough.
SO I distract myself – in a non-tech way, by reading, going to the gym (three months down and counting after a 10 year break – yay!), cooking for a friend in crisis, playing Monopoly with my girl (and winning :-)).
In short, I focus my mind outward, usually on practical, active tasks.
When the pain is so bad I have to sit or lay down, that’s when I read or listen to my friend the podcast.
At the moment I’m quite fascinated with learning internet marketing, so I listen to Pat Flynn or Nicole Dean podcasts, or Cliff Ravenscraft about how to podcast as I’m starting my own podcast soon.
When I want a break from an entrepreneurial focus I listen to Hamish and Andy (Aussie comedy duo) or Farnoosh Brock (Prolific Living) for general inspiration. (See my Joy of Podcasts blog)
I learned a long time ago not to do anything too intellectually or physically challenging on days like this.
It’s not a good idea to think too much full stop on these days as my brain physiology seems to lean to negativity.
It’s like a dark cloud hangs over my brain (in amongst the miasma of pain!).
So I know I don’t ponder the meaning of life on days like this.
I focus on practical, often menial tasks or listen to podcasts in bed.
I don’t find music is that useful on these extreme days as it allows my mind to wander too much back to how much pain I’m in or it hooks onto the “lost love, please come back” sadness of many songs (which I sooo don’t need). So music is not enough distraction for me on these days.
When I have days where it’s the fatigue dialed up to 100 rather than the pain (or both), that’s when audio books (happy ones!), and podcasts are even more useful as a distraction to bring my focus outward.
There is a definite argument for mindfulness in pain management, but today wasn’t the day for it.
I’ve love to hear what you do on the “Just Too Hard” days.
Do you doona dive?
Do you do menial non-thinking housework?
Or do you do something else?
Leave me your answers in the comments section and maybe I can blog about them too!
(This blog was written about a week ago. The pity party is over for now, but the party hats and balloons are always on stand-by! :-). Of course, after this blog was written, I just had to get up, brush myself off, and get on with it – cos that’s life!)
Keep Smiling
Louise
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