The Frogman wrote this up tonight in response to a snarky anon. And I really liked what he had to say. I was able to relate to a lot of it even though I don’t have Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (even though some doctors are kicking that idea around) but I do live with chronic pain. This part below, especially, hit home:
Have you ever had the flu? I bet you have. I bet you even called in sick to work. Sure you could still walk around and stuff. Maybe heat up some chicken soup. And without any context someone might not even know there was something wrong. If someone took a picture you could probably muster up a smile and a wave. But that split second capture of your life does not show the misery you feel. It does not inform people of your ailment.
What if you had the flu every day? What if it was unending? Would you call in sick every day? The fatigue I experience isn’t even comparable. People get tired all the time. Whereas I run out of energy. If I push myself too hard I lose the ability to power my muscles. A 5 pound box becomes 50 pounds. Walking becomes dangerous because I do not know if my legs will hold me up. But if I pace myself. If I rest and let my energy replenish… I can take a few pictures of myself. I can walk my dog. I can run a website from my bed.
If I could give you my illness for just 30 seconds you would not question my inability to work. You would wonder how the hell I do as much as I do.
I spend too much time being discouraged over what I cannot do because of my pain. I do not spend enough time marveling over what I do in spite of it.
I use the flu analogy quite often. I feel like I’ve got some messed up version of the flu every single day.
This response the an ignorant anon is such a perfect description of how I feel on a daily basis…
If anyone wants to know why this blog and making it my job is so important to me, this is why. Because it’s all I can do.
