Uggghhh, I just stink at this...

[amyrising]

I just stink at this, "not overdoing it" thing. I over-did it yesterday and found myself in bed at 7:30 so exhausted and in pain. I didn't even put my kids to bed and that makes me feel like a dirt bag. My husband did but I hate missing out on things and it makes me feel bad. I didn't even really do that much but I didn't take any time to rest. I wanted to surprise my husband when he came home with a clean house. When I got in bed, I was cursing myself for overdoing it again. I started to think about all I did that day.
1. Got kids up, fed and dressed for school
2. Took them to school
3. Cleaned up kitchen and dining room
4. Did 2 loads of laundry (wash, dry and put away)
5. Cleaned both bathrooms (with the help of my 5 yr old)
6. Vacuumed the whole house
7. Re-potted 2 house plants and watered all plants indoor and outdoor
8. Got kids from the school bus, fed snack and did homework
9. Sat outside for an hour while they rode bikes
10. Got most of dinner made...and then...

bam!
It hit me, the wall of fatigue that says, "YOU ARE DONE!"

I did a lot more than I thought, it just is less than I use to do.

[marti]

I had to drive my husband halfway to St. Louis two days ago and I am still paying for it. It was a 2 hour drive which I haven't made in years. I don't go over 45 minutes anymore and that's a stretch.

I was soooooo exhausted yesterday. Just layed around all day and night and felt awful. Tons of pain too! I have osteoporosis and sitting in the car for that long caused my hips to kind of pull and snap and hurt all over my groin and legs too.

There is NOTHING I do anymore the way I used to. Life is no fun anymore. I rarely cook. Hardly eat. Don't talk much. It's so frustrating.

I have a bunch of problems that make the MS worse. Or maybe the MS makes them worse. Not sure how it works. It's really hard when you are the patient and the caregiver. At least my husband can do some things around here. He likes to cook so that helps.

Anyway, just sympathizing with you.

[Picture me]

Here's a little food for thought. I have found that a lot of us get overwhelmed because we want things to go back to the way they once were instead of accepting the new normal. Everyone I know with m.s. is forced to slow life down. Some more than others. I have to choose daily what is important and what is not. This can be a silver lining and a wake up call. I found a great free e book called "Zero stress transitions" by Dan Kass . It is a short read and could be life changing for you as it was for me. Here's to better days!

[amyrising]

Thank you both! I will check the book out. I paid all day yesterday for my cleaning spree. I think I just need to give myself credit for the things I do and stop comparing to how I was. It is very hard for me. Thanks for the support and letting me vent.

[Marie12]

Do u think MS only hits us because we used to b the workers no resters

I do remember I used to be @ work full time, then drove my daughters to their activities for the remainder of the day. This is funny, but there was a time when I tried to get by with one hr of sleep.

Now I guess my lifetime will even out on sleep, because now I'm in bed 24/7. It is difficult not getting out and about. So, I try to tell myself, "Remember when I thought how nice it might b, 2 have the whole day 2 myself. I guess I've forgotten about those thoughts, because I have every day to myself.

[mercadies25]

this is also so hard because people around me are always on the go. My husband, who works 2 jobs, on his days off he does some laundry, washes the dogs, re-arranges stuff, cleans out the car and run errands that I couldn't complete.

I always feel so guilty that I can't do all those things. I use to be the worker and the one who did all those things.

My kids will ask me to go shopping with them and I say no thanks. They just don't realize how exhausting it is just to get ready to go out in public.

Oh well it is what it is until it just isn't anymore.