A Life Regained
I was quietly resting with my feet raised and my eyes closed, when I overheard a conversation in the kitchen between our adult son and my husband.
“Is Mum alright?” he asked anxiously.
“Oh yes, mate; It’s called pacing. It’s all to do with this new course.”
In October 2008 I took part in the ME/CFS and FMS Self Help Course in Canberra, attending a two hour session each week for two months. It has been the most wonderful experience. In our particular case, my participation has involved a considerable cost in travel and accommodation and a great deal of physical and emotional stress in making these journeys and a lot of help from our very generous neighbours. But the rewards have been overwhelming.
ME (Myalgic Encephalomyelitis) otherwise known as CFS (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) is a very silent disease. It is often referred to as the ‘invisible disability’ and I, like many others, have suffered for a number of years with a disease which effects almost every aspect of my lifestyle and, by association, that of my husband and family. But the course in Canberra has been the start of a ‘new life’. The group of course participants is intentionally small and together we have explored ways of living; not waiting ‘until I get better’ or struggling to maintain the familiar lifestyle of the past or grieving over a life ‘lost’; but living within the confines imposed my ME/CFS.
We have individually discovered the limits of our own ‘energy envelope’ and together have pooled our ideas on techniques to maximise this precious resource.
The sufferer is now in control and not the disease. By using techniques such as pacing and target setting, we have as a group learnt that goals can be achieved.
They may need to be modified by using different coping strategies, I now know that there are some solutions. This energy reserve can be enhanced by using a more measured approach: balancing activities and taking pre-emptive rest for example and by using techniques of sleep management and changing patterns of exercise and nutrition. And all this new-found drive needs to be protected from the destructive effects of anxiety and stress and worry and self-defeating thoughts.
I am sure that I am speaking for many in the group when I say that I found tremendous value in learning how to identify these problems. I can now return home to start my ‘new life’, knowing now that so much more can be done; it just has to be done in a different way.
ME/CFS and Fibromyalgia Course
The Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) /Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) andFibromyalgia (FMS) Self Help Course is designed to help participants to better understand their illness and to manage their health more effectively. The next course will be held in 2009. Bookings Essential. For more information go to www.mecfscanberra.org.au or contact the ACT ME/CFS Society on 02 6290 1984
ME/CFS
Watch a short 4 minute video on ME/CFS au.youtube.com/watch
ACT ME/CFS Society
The ACT ME/CFS Society is a not for profit organisation providing support, information and advocacy for people effected by ME/CFS and FMS in the Canberra Region. All donations, large or small, are gratefully received. For more information call us on 02 6290 1984 or go to www.mecfscanberra.org.au/actmecfs/act_cfs_donate.htm
