Do you have covid fatigue?
Tired of washing masks, home schooling and sanitising hands?
Is your elbow getting RSI from all the pseudo handshakes covid style?
If all these apply to you, you’re not alone!
Covid fatigue is real! It’s an unwanted stress that we all resentfully lug around. Despite knowing all the ‘prevention’ measures that we need to continually adopt to minimise our risk, sustaining these are tough. What’s more, the invisibility of the lurking virus makes these even more difficult to take seriously.
After surviving my stroke at 24 years and adapting to my new realm, I naively thought that my pain management strategies such as using straws to help me drink & swallow would only be used in the short-term. I assumed that after my body returned to the ‘old Em’ I’d be able to stop these measures. I tried to drink normally from a cup – spluttering the fluid, spilling it and burning myself, I fell trying to walk ‘normally’ without my frame. But by not moving regularly my nerve pain rose and mood darkened. I tried to push through the fatigue fog, but it just engulfed me. I write in my book,
“I’m dead tired already! Even though I feel as though a concrete fatigue fog is squashing me, I don’t want to rest. I want to start fixing my body. NOW! If I could physically throw a tantrum, I would! “Reinventing Emma, p 168)
However, after seeing firsthand the negative impacts on my life when I ceased such strategies, the realisation of the longevity of my condition kicked in. Straws were staying, my walking frame was now my ally. My pain was there to stay. Wishing these would disappear was unrealistic and only keeping me in the past. Over time, after much trial & error and many falls, I chose to drop the ‘victim’ mentality and wear the title of ‘stroke survivor’ and ‘the queen of fatigue,’ Over time, I developed other strategies in my life that helped manage my fatigue levels & learn to inject self- kindness into my life . I write in my book,
“I needed to be mindful of my own needs if I was to perform at my best. Eye infections, medical appointments, grappling with my pain, waves of fatigue, sleepless nights and the emotional toll had to be factored in. I had to control it rather than let ‘it’ control me. These new strategies gave me a new level of awareness and led to clarity and a sense of calmness and control over my life…” (Reinventing Emma, p.213)
Covid Fatigue is real! We all are likely to have it in some form and it’s so valid to feel “over it all” – I do. We will fall at times. Many of us will choose to drop strategies. But the important thing to remember is that this covid fatigue you may be experiencing can co-exist with our lives. We can choose to drag it around or be kind to ourselves and be mindful of its presence rather than resentful of existence.
Choose to be kind to yourself when the fatigue fog hovers!