Chronic at Christmas – my best ideas for balancing the festivities with pain and fatigue

In 43 years I can’t remember a Christmas that wasn’t exhausting. When I was 7, the excitement of seeing whether Santa had visited became unbearable around 5am. Like all kids, I was eager to discover what exactly he’d left for me under the tree. As a consequence, my parents and I had heavy eyelids andContinue reading “Chronic at Christmas – my best ideas for balancing the festivities with pain and fatigue”

Crap poem 57 – Disability dating

Hi everyone, and welcome to my 57th Crap Poem as part of the COPE campaign. First a disclaimer – I watch a lot of crap on the TV as a distraction. It seems, at the moment, I need distracting a lot. One of my favourites (and my partners, although he’d deny it!) is MAFS. What’sContinue reading “Crap poem 57 – Disability dating”

Pain bias – why is everything collectively coined as ‘backache’?

There are so many things to be frustrated about when you live with chronic pain and / or chronic fatigue. As soon as your pain becomes ‘chronic’, the level of explanation needed just to get across to family, friends, doctors, nurses, and healthcare workers, what you’re experiencing can mean that you spend most of yourContinue reading “Pain bias – why is everything collectively coined as ‘backache’?”

Finding cheap chronic pain solutions

Being uncomfortable and trying to mitigate my pain is a daily obstacle for me. I’ve saved up to buy heated pillows, expensive support cushions, feather filled large cushions and I’ve been given support wedges by social services. Despite all these options, I still found myself struggling to get comfy while sitting up. After less thatContinue reading “Finding cheap chronic pain solutions”

Crap poem 56 – Chronic Stigma

Hi everyone, and welcome to my 56th Crap Poem as part of the COPE campaign. This poem is a serious one, despite the rhyming. Let me start by explaining my reason for getting so worked up about this. As some of you will know, some of my more disabling diagnosis are ME/CFS, Ehlers Danlos SyndromeContinue reading “Crap poem 56 – Chronic Stigma”

What do I eat my soup with?

I needed a different subject to take me away from my own ‘Brain Pain’ for a bit. Something outside of my head that wouldn’t force me to look internally and analyse my sanity (I do that too often). What did I choose? Well, it’s been kicking me in the kidneys for some time now. Pain.Continue reading “What do I eat my soup with?”

Chronic Pain – a new diagnostic chapter

Well, it’s officially 2023 and I’m sure many of you are feeling as redundant as I am about what the future holds. These are not simple times. But my fear of external catastrophies, things I have absolutely no control over, has forced me to find the silver lining on every charcoal cloud. So when IContinue reading “Chronic Pain – a new diagnostic chapter”