Elizabeth’s Diary
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| My name is Elizabeth A. Norris, I am 46 years old and I have three daughters; Tanya, Charlotte and Rachael. I fell ill with M.E. in July 1995 with what my GP told me was a virus infection and since then I have suffered numerous unexplained symptoms such as: - Dizziness - Nausea - Headaches - Insomnia - Fatigue - Fever - Night sweats - Neck pain - Frequent colds - Flu and viruses - Short-term memory loss - Muscle twitching at night - Adverse affects to nicotine and alcohol - Swollen glands - Joint and nerve pain - Depression - Panic attacks - Heat exhaustion in the summer - SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) in the winter I started writing down what was happening to my body and when because several doctors and consultants were asking me when each symptom started and how it progressed and as I have stated my memory became poor so I started keeping a ‘symptoms diary’. As my diary started to grow I began to write down my days activities, as well as my thoughts and feelings. I began researching M.E. and adding facts and figures, poetry and helpful web sites, and before I knew it I had written a book! I named this book ‘The Rag Doll’ because that was exactly how M.E. made me feel. I went from a bright bubbly, physically active mother and full time career woman to a sickly, depressed person who was unable to work or go out of the house without the aid of another person. My world has been completely turned upside down, my social life came to a standstill, I was fighting the medical profession for a diagnosis and the Department of Social Security for finance. I wanted to crawl away in a little corner and die as I felt my life was not worth living like this. I was finally diagnosed with M.E. in May 2001 after feeling very unwell for six years. What follows is an extract from my book entitled ‘Diary of Events’. I would be delighted to receive your comments concerning this extract. Please contact me at elizabeth.hulcoop@ntlworld.com. This is an on-going project, however I hope to have the book published some time in the near future. If you wish to read any other part of my book then please visit my Homepage titled The Rag Doll. Please be aware that the Copyright of M.E. Support protects this extract. Further details can be found on the Privacy Policy/Terms of Service. Lastly, I would advise all M.E. sufferers to keep an account of their state of health. This may simply be a brief summary as I have done below, or a more detailed daily account using the Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Disability Scale. You diary will not only be of help to your GP and/ or consultant with their choice of treatments, but it will be helpful to look back on at a later date to track any patterns within your health. |
| Diary Of Events |
| JULY 1995 My first attack of symptoms was when I went on holiday to Paignton in Devon for a week. A lot of preparation went into getting time off work, getting the kids off to school camp, cleaning the house and packing and when I got there - I was ill. My partner and I went to Paignton by train from Redhill and we arrived late afternoon. We went to our chalet and unpacked and then went to get something to eat at a fish and chip shop café. My meal arrived I began eating, suddenly felt faint; I became very hot and had to get some fresh air. I couldn‘t eat a thing because of the nauseous feeling in my throat and was taken back to our chalet. I told my partner that it was probably because I was tired and that I would have a rest. Things did not improve. I found it difficult to eat, I felt constantly nauseous, I was dizzy and tired, when I rested I could not sleep and I was sweating profusely. This lasted all week and I had to have another week off work when I got back home. I went to visit a local doctor in Paignton who said it was probably a virus and that it had been made worse by all the hard work of organising everything and then suddenly relaxing. He said ‘you are on holiday for a rest so do just that and rest’. It wasn’t a rest I wanted - it was a holiday. I suppose I went out about two days out of the entire holiday, apart from that I stayed in the chalet, which wasn’t much fun for my partner, so much for a romantic holiday. I believe this to be the start of my illness because of the symptoms. I have never felt anything like it before and certainly have never had any trouble sleeping before. It stuck in my mind as being something odd and unexplained. DECEMBER 1995 It was the Friday before Christmas and I was eating dinner. I suddenly felt very sick, dizzy, faint and tired. When I went to bed that night I did not sleep and was sweating profusely. The symptoms lasted several days and nearly ruined Christmas. I went to the doctor who told me I had a virus. The symptoms were the same as I had experienced in July. JANUARY 1996 The same symptoms were occurring on a monthly basis. I was beginning to get very frustrated and quite frightened of what was happening to me. Every time I visited the doctor he told me I had a virus. I thought it could be hormonal, as I was then 37 years old. I booked myself into a well-woman clinic and they told me that the symptoms could be hormonal but these symptoms could be a result of quite a number of illnesses. The symptoms continued every month and I finally got put on a hormone drug called Norethisterone in May ’96. Things did improve for a few months and I actually had more energy. It was great. NOVEMBER 1996 My very close friend and working colleague died suddenly from a heart attack. I was devastated. Although quite old in years she seemed as strong as an ox and would outlive us all. She carried on working alongside me in the Advertising Department teaching me everything she knew and we became very good friends. She was also the bosses’ wife and I had the pleasure of getting to know all her family. She always spoke very highly of me and filled me with self-confidence. Whenever I was ill and couldn’t come to work she would be there at the door with a nutritious food parcel and instructions of how best to cook it. I loved her dearly and she would be sorely missed. JANUARY 1997 I started feeling ill again. Most days I had symptoms of night sweating and an inability to sleep. During the day I would feel very hot one minute and very cold the next, my hands and legs would shake and I felt like I was going to faint. Several times I had to go home from work because I would get a sudden attack. I was generally feeling very unwell by this time and was getting fed up with being fobbed off with ‘it’s a virus’. Several people thought my illness was related to the death of my friend and the fact that I still worked in her office, but I disagreed. My partner asked me to see a psychiatrist, which I did, but the psychiatrist agreed with me that although I was devastated by her death, I was actually coping well and my symptoms were not because of depression. It was about MARCH 1997 that I was put on HRT by a kindly woman doctor who thought I might be going through ‘the change of life’. My periods improved immensely and so did the hot flushes, but not all the symptoms went away and I was still feeling very unwell for months. After a few months of taking HRT (Prempak C) I think I went into remission because things did improve slightly. Just for a short while though. It was the LATTER MONTHS OF 1997 when the symptoms started getting worse when the winter months brought in the colds, flu and viruses. JANUARY 1998 My partner and I separated, there was a lot of arguments and tension in the house and his behaviour over the years had chipped away at me and I got to the stage where I felt I couldn’t live with him any more. I thought it would improve my mental and physical health, by not being under so much stress. But the split was even more stressful and my health started failing again. I was getting depressed, I thought everyone was talking about me at work, not just about the fact that I had asked ‘a fine member of their working establishment’ to leave my home but also because of my constant sick leave from work. I had been in the office when particular members of staff were running down other people who were off work sick. MARCH 1998 I felt it would be in my best interest to seek employment elsewhere and gave my notice in, as it was becoming very difficult working at the same company as my ex partner. I sorted out my benefits and started claiming Income Support. I was unemployed for a year. My health did improve slightly but by no means completely and I was still suffering this never-ending dizziness. WINTER OF 1998 The winter months are here again and the viruses are taking their toll. I couldn’t find work and went to several interviews. Maybe I didn’t persuade the employers that I could do the job. Maybe I couldn’t do the job because of my health. Did I really want to find a job or was it just the pressure from everyone else (my parents who think you should carry on regardless no matter what you feel like, the DHSS who wanted me to find work and my daughter who ideally would like more cash coming in to the home so she can go shopping with mum more often)? I told several people how I felt but people have short memories where illness is concerned and it is not something you can see. I was at my wits end, who could I turn to and who would listen to me? FEBUARY 1999 I decided to go back to college and upgrade my computer skills to improve my chance of getting employment. It was a part time course and the government would pay for it to get me back to work. I was learning to cope with the fact that I was dizzy all of the time and I was getting to know my limitations. I would only get up and go somewhere, like the printer in the computer room, if there was no one blocking the aisle. I could go straight to the printer and straight back without standing still very long. I was becoming a professional at this. I did have a few scary times when I thought I was going to pass out at the bus stop and down the shops, which I reported to the doctor, but to no avail. Maybe I was a hypochondriac after all. Besides, no one as yet has actually found anything wrong with me and I had had many blood tests done. MARCH 1999 I found employment in a Nursing Home in the Administration Department. It was a part time job, 1.00pm - 5.00pm Monday to Friday. Saturday and Sunday 9.00am - 4.00pm in total 33 hours. Answering the phone, dealing with people at the reception, typing, etc. It wasn’t something I had done before but thought I was quite capable of doing it. I could rest longer in bed in the morning and do my housework in the evening if I wasn’t too tired. It meant that I had to work 7 days a week and not have a complete day off but I’d have to try it. The dizziness was definitely a problem, I dreaded people coming into the office in case I had to get up. When the boss asked me to make tea for visitors I would be frightened I might fall and drop everything. It was a big problem, but I was back to working full time and my computer skills, although not finished, came in very handy. 29th MARCH 1999 An appointment with Consultant Urologist, Mr. M. Bailey, at the local doctors surgery to query the reoccurring bouts of cystitis. 21st APRIL 1999 An appointment with Consultant ENT Surgeon, Mr. P. Robb, at the local doctors surgery to query the dizziness. My hearing slightly down on the right side but no other diagnosis, if symptoms continue he would like me to see a Neurologist. MAY 1999 My youngest daughter came home from her friends’ house one day and said ‘Mum I heard something today that was really scary’, ‘what?’ I said. She told me ‘my friends mum has got the same symptoms as you and she has ME’. I started looking into the possibility of it being ME. I went and spoke to this woman and I did have a lot of the same symptoms. I told my daughter not to tell anyone because I could not bear the sympathy of being treated differently. The next time I went to the doctors I asked him if it could possibly be ME and he said it was possible it could be CFS. 19th MAY 1999 A second appointment with Consultant Urologist, Mr. M. Bailey, at Epsom General Hospital, to query re-occurring bouts of cystitis. X-rays taken of kidneys and bladder, everything okay. Due to continuous bouts of cystitis Mr. Bailey would like to prescribe me a long course of antibiotics to help repair the lining of the bladder. JUNE 1999 My hours have been cut down at work due to over budgeting I can now have Sundays off and only work until 2.00pm on Saturday, which will be 25 hours. It means I am very short of money but still manage to pay the bills. The only trouble is when I have time off work sick I can’t pay the monthly bills because the money is so tight. 14th SEPTEMBER 1999 An appointment with a Gastroenterologist at The East Surrey Hospital, Dr. Phillips, about the continued nausea and also to query the CFS. When I arrived at the hospital and saw the doctor, he asked several questions and did an overall examination and then asked me if I would see a psychiatrist if he wanted me to. My eyes welled up with tears and streamed down my face, this doctor obviously thought I was suffering from depression. I was starting to lose hope of getting any help; these symptoms were seriously affecting my ability to carry on living a normal life. He has done some examinations and blood tests and he wants to do an endoscopy. He also prescribed Cinnarazine for the dizziness. Endoscopy results showed a few white spots in the stomach. After several months of taking Losec the nausea did subside for a while but returned later. 4th OCTOBER 1999 MRI scan to check my inner ear for abnormalities as I had been to see Dr. Robb, ENT, who wants further tests done about the dizziness. The MRI scan results came back confirming no abnormalities. 8th AUGUST 2000 An appointment with a Neurologist at The East Surrey Hospital, Dr. Gross, tests were carried out and the doctor would like to refer me to an ENT Consultant at Guildford Hospital about the dizziness. She also told me to take up yoga for relaxation and visit the Physiotherapist at The East Surrey Hospital for the neck pain. She says if things don’t improve she may consider a lumber puncture. 19th AUGUST 2000 I had a phone call today; my dad had died suddenly in his sleep from a massive heartache at the age of 66. I went to stay with my family in East Sussex for the next two weeks. It was the most distressing time of my life. I was devastated, as was the rest of my family. I tried coping with not only my grief, but also my family’s as well. My dizziness and other symptoms continued and I suffered in silence and did not discuss my illness with anyone, it just wasn‘t the right time. No one really felt well at the time and my symptoms would probably be put down to stress. 25th SEPTEMBER 2000 An appointment with ENT Consultant at The Royal Surrey County Hospital, Guildford, Dr. Jayarajan. The doctor did some tests and diagnosed Ménièr's Disease and Migraine related Vertigo and prescribed me Propranolol which he said would treat both conditions and gave me some balance exercises to do at home and he would see me in another four months. I had to have more time off work because of the affects the medication had on me. The tablets made me very sleepy and drugged. I rang him to tell him how the tablets affected me and he told me to stop taking them. 16th OCTOBER 2000 When I was due to return to work I started having panic attacks at the thought of going out of the house. I tried several times but could not overcome them. I went to see my doctor who signed me off work for a month in the hope that I would overcome them. I never did return to work and resigned from my job on. I have to get myself well. I now spend countless hours on my own at home only going out if someone can take me and I have got very depressed and of low self esteem. I got to the stage where I was so desperate I was thinking of suicide or running away somewhere and hiding. Most days I confined myself to the bedroom where I felt safe and secure and watched the world going by through my bedroom window, saddened by the fact that I couldn‘t be out there myself. Money was very tight. While I was off sick from work I was receiving SSP (Statutory Sick Pay) from the government. I rang the DHSS to ask them, if I give up work could I still get SSP, they said I would receive Incapacity Benefit if I still produced sick certificates from the doctor. I filled in the forms for Incapacity Benefit and sent them my sick certificates. I then received a letter from the DHSS to say I wasn’t entitled to any money because I hadn’t paid enough National Insurance stamps during the years of April 1997 to April 1999. Well of course I didn’t this was when I took a year out of work due to my illness and claimed Income Support. But only now am I informed that when I claimed Income Support the DHSS did not pay my National Insurance stamp. I am now relying on my new partner and my daughter to support me financially and money is very tight which is putting a big strain on our relationship. NOVEMBER 2000 My mother phoned me and asked if I would go and keep her company, as she was not coping well with her bereavement. I explained that I was not well either but she said that she would look after me and I could look after her. It seemed a good idea at the time. I went to Seaford for two weeks and I think it did lift our spirits, although I had several bouts of severe dizziness when we were out shopping and a few of days when I had headaches and nausea. My mum is now getting help from her doctor and I have to do the same. I must get this illness sorted and find out exactly what is wrong and how to put it right. 27th NOVEMBER 2000 On my return I made an appointment to see Dr. Wells on and explain the situation. He has now referred me to the Community Psychiatric Nurse for some help in the hope that I can start going out again on my own and I can talk to her about my deep depression. 7th DECEMBER 2000 My first appointment with the Psychiatric Nurse, Giselle Wilton. After my first appointment I started visiting her every week on a regular basis. The more I spoke to her and told her what I’d been through the last few years, the state of my health and what the symptoms were, the more she became convinced that I was suffering from M.E. I was not suffering from anxiety and my depression was due to my illness, just as I had thought. At last someone was listening. She explained that she had only come across a few people with M.E. before meeting me and thought my symptoms were very similar to a couple of her other patients. She then tried to explain to me that there is no cure for M.E., which depressed me even more, but with careful treatment, I would learn how to cope with it. I actually started looking forward to seeing her the following weeks and telling her how I felt, because this was the first person who listened and believed me and was actually trying to help. I told her that I had once telephoned the M.E. Association in London and they had given me the name and telephone number of a local M.E. group who held meetings for fellow sufferers. I told her that although I had telephoned them I hadn’t actually gone to any of the meetings because I was either working or was too ill to attend and that I felt a fraud because I hadn’t been diagnosed with M.E. She told me that a lot of people with M.E. never do get an official diagnosis because there is no specific test a doctor can do to tell the patient they have M.E. She advised that although no diagnosis had been given to me she felt that it could be beneficial to me to go along to the next meeting. Well there was no stopping me now, I wasn’t working and I really needed to know what these people thought about my symptoms. I wrote to the group leader before the next meeting to explain how and when I started getting ill and how it had progressed. 24th MARCH 2001 When I went to my first M.E. meeting I felt quite apprehensive, I didn’t know what to expect, I had arranged that my partner would drive me to the meeting so that I wasn’t too tired when I arrived. I got out of the car and walked up the driveway to a private house, I knocked on the door nervously not knowing what I was walking into. The woman that came to the door welcomed me with open arms and I was introduced to the two leaders of the group, both of which had read my letter. After speaking to the other members of the group and swapping stories and symptoms, I was told that there was absolutely no doubt, in their opinion I had M.E. and had had M.E. for a number of years. The group leader not only organized an M.E. group for Redhill, Surrey and surrounding districts but several others around the country and I felt she knew what she was talking about. This woman said that the symptoms were so obviously M.E. that she couldn’t understand why it hadn’t been diagnosed years ago. She told me that although she knew how tiring it was going to the doctors and having no diagnosis, I must go back and ask him to refer me to a specialist in London at St. Bartholomew's Hospital and gave me the doctors name. She felt sure he would give me an official diagnosis of M.E. and once I had that diagnosis I would be able to get monetary benefits from the government so that I could take the time off work and recover sufficiently before returning to work. She also told me that I was probably still in the acute stages of M.E. if I was still getting severe dizziness and insomnia and that I would have to be very careful not to overdo things. I must rest as much as possible. I left that meeting quite exhausted but filled with new hope that now someone believed how unwell I really felt and that as long as I took care of myself and got the proper treatment I needed, I would recover in time. I made an appointment to see my doctor and in the meantime went to see my C.P.N. I told her what the M.E. group leader had said to me at the meeting and she was pleased for me. 26th MARCH 2001 My doctor’s appointment arrived and although after telling him what the group had said he wouldn’t refer me to St. Bartholomew's he gave me a prescription for another course of different antidepressants to alleviate some of the symptoms. My heart sank and I wept at the mere mention of more antidepressants, I had tried about five or six different ones and had, had a bad reaction to all of them. He tried to reassure me that he felt sure these tablets would work and that I should stop taking the sleeping tablets because they were addictive. These antidepressants were called Amitryptylin 25mg and they would hopefully help me sleep and reduce muscle pain and fatigue. I went home very apprehensive and rang the M.E. group leader to tell her what he had given me and that he would not refer me to St. Bartholomew's Hospital. She told me that these tablets were widely used for M.E. patients and that many patients have had a good response to them. She also told me of a retired doctor that would come to my home and give me an official diagnosis of M.E. if I wanted him to, but that it would cost me £100. I just didn’t have the money. I was still not getting any money from the government. I started taking my new tablets and slowly felt an improvement in my general well being. 24th APRIL 2001 I returned to the doctor for a repeat prescription and he was pleased that I had started feeling better. I have now been taking these tablets for two months and they seem to have not only induced sleep but also cured my headaches and nausea. I asked him if he could now give me an official diagnosis of M.E. and he said “Yes, why, do you need one”? I explained that I had filled out the forms for Disability Benefit because I was unable to work and I needed to tell them why I was claiming benefit. To which he replied “I don’t like the word M.E. but I think its highly likely that you have Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, but” he said, “there is no magic answer it takes time”. I know it takes time, its taken years so far and I really don’t care what he calls it, its all the same condition just different title, its just a shame it took so long to get diagnosed. I’m not completely out of the woods yet and still get some of the symptoms but I do feel a bit better physically and mentally and much more positive about the future. I am thinking of returning to work maybe a couple of days a week, but I’m quite worried that if I do my health may deteriorate again. But at least I know, or hope, that at some time in the future I could be back to a part of my former self. MAY 2001 My health seems to be improving by each new day and I’m delighted, all thanks to these new tablets. I can go shopping and out socializing and actually stood in the kitchen and held my young grandson without having to sit down. I haven’t had so much as a sniff of a virus for at least eight weeks, which is pretty good for me and there are various things that I can do these days that I haven’t been able to do for years. I actually got on a train and went shopping with my daughter and we had a great day, which I haven’t done for about three years. I still know my limitations and take things steady but I’m enjoying the improvement the medication has made. I gave my daughter an 18th birthday party and had the whole family stay over night at my house. All our family and friends came and a good time was had by all. JUNE 2001 For the past three weeks I seem to have gone down hill again. I don’t know why but the dizziness has got worse again, my foggy head has returned and my glands are back to being swollen. I’m due to see the doctor so I will ask his advice. My partner and I are arguing over money and he wants me to go back to work, I’m apprehensive, my health is still not stable enough to return to work, but I can see his point money is still very tight and still I‘ve got no income from the government to help me. 18th JUNE 2001 Doctors appointment, he has increased the dosage of the Amitryptiline from 25mg to 50mg and told me not to get too down hearted, this is only a setback. 1st JULY 2001 Went on holiday to Butlins in Minehead with my partner and my daughter, my sister and her family and my mum. I wasn’t too bad and the times when the dizziness really affected me badly my sister came to my rescue and helped me all she could. The heat was exhausting and I looked forward to the evenings when it was cooler. A few nights I tried to tell them I really needed to rest, I was extremely tired and dizzy, but they wouldn’t here of it and made me feel guilty about spoiling everyone’s fun. So I went out and painted a smile on my face. It wasn’t all bad by any means I had a good holiday and I didn’t feel completely worn out like I have done in the past. A few weeks ago I contacted my old boss at the publishing company and told him about my health and finance problems. I asked him if it would be possible that he could employ me to work on the computer at home for the research department. He knew that I could do the job because I had worked for him before but he didn’t know if he could help me at the time. He was sympathetic to my plight and told me to keep in touch and he would see what he could do. 16th JULY 2001 I have started working for SGP again. When I came back from holiday I received a message to say that there was a job I could do at home and that I should contact Graham as soon as possible. I was delighted; I went to SGP and met the new office manager, Karen. She was familiar with CFS/ME and was also sympathetic. They would be happy to employ me to work on researching the Universities throughout the United Kingdom at home on my computer. I received a contract of employment to do a minimum of 20 hours a week and would earn £6.00 an hour. JULY / AUGUST 2001 Feeling a lot better again the increased dosage of Amitryptiline is starting to kick in. I actually went shopping on my own and felt no ill affects. I enjoyed an increased social life and mentally was feeling a lot better about the future. 15th AUGUST 2001 I fell ill with my first winter virus. I took to my bed on the worst day of fever but managed to carry on with life during the course of the illness. My five-year-old granddaughter Stacie came to stay with us for a few days without mummy and daddy and we enjoyed having her immensely. We drove her back home to Manchester, which was a six-hour journey, stayed over night and drove back the next day. From then on it was down hill. I fell ill with a virus virtually every week from 15th August, through September and October. I only had a couple of days when I felt relatively well. The dizziness increased, the nausea was back, I constantly had a cold and chesty cough. In fact all the old symptoms were coming back slowly but surely and I was now getting carsick every time I went out. My social life has started deteriorating and I hardly ever go out of the house now. 30th OCTOBER 2001 My daughter Charlotte gave birth to Joshua. He weighed in at 9lb 12ozs. I had invited my mum to come and stay for a week at my house, so that she had some company and could visit friends and family in the area. When visiting my daughter in hospital my mum came with me, I was severely dizzy the whole time and here was another baby that I couldn’t nurse. I did hold Joshua, my mum made sure I did, she sat me down and assured me that I would be okay. I was and I enjoy my new grandson. 9th NOVEMBER 2001 Doctors appointment. I told him that I hadn’t been feeling well now since the middle of August and that most of the symptoms were returning, even the headaches, which I hadn’t had for a few months now. I also asked him about the carsickness and he told me that it was part of my balance problems. He is increasing the dose of Amitryptiline again by 25mg. I asked him if this is going to keep happening, feeling better then not and how many times would he have to increase the medication? He said he could go up to 150mg but he really didn’t want to do that if he could help it. I am now on 75mg. He asked me if I had increased my hours at work, or had I been doing too much, but I haven’t. I suppose I have done more with my new found energy but its hard not to enjoy it while its there. 18th NOVEMBER 2001 Got up early this morning the men are coming to fit my double-glazing but they haven’t turned up. Eight o’clock in the morning is not a good time for me especially as I had hardly slept a wink all night. I do wish that if people say they are coming to do something they actually turned up. Instead of working today I surfed the net for M.E. sites in the hope that I might find out more about why I am feeling so dizzy and how I can improve my immune system this winter. I found a very good site at www.mesupport.co.uk it is well worth a look. When I read Louise’s story it made me sad. I am lucky really that I don’t get such severe muscle fatigue and pain as some people do with M.E. On her site she also suggests other sites that may be of some interest, so I spent the day reading everyone else’s stories. I wish I could do something like Louise and set up a web site to help and support other sufferers and get support myself along the way but I wouldn’t know where to start. 19th NOVEMBER 2001 Still waiting for the higher dosage of Amitryptiline to kick in………… If this works it should see me okay for Christmas and New Year. Every time he increases the dose it works for approximately two months. DECEMBER 2001 After four weeks of taking the increased dose of Amitryptiline it still hasn’t made me feel any better. In fact it is actually doing more harm than good. I am constantly drowsy and have severe constipation. I have decided to decrease the dose to 50mg again. A week before Christmas and my daughter arrives with her children for the festive holidays. Is this a blessing because I will have help with Christmas and some company at home or is it going to completely wear me out? CHRISTMAS 2001 I have made a promise to myself that I will not overdo things, I have made sure the house is clean, the shopping is done, the decorations are up and the house is child friendly, now I shall rest and have a good time. Yippee my first Christmas without flu for three years!!! I don’t say I was healthy but at least I didn’t have any bugs and I wasn’t in bed. I celebrated Christmas with everyone else and tried not to get too stressed about the house being in a mess. I had late nights, drunk alcohol, smoked cigarettes (I know I should do either) and rolled around the floor like an idiot with the grandchildren. I loved it. JANUARY 2002 I’m still extremely dizzy and tired after the festivities, I have to behave now, stop smoking and stop the alcohol and get some early nights in to recharge the batteries. Although I still have M.E. and the symptoms persist I don’t feel really ill at the moment. The dizziness is still quite bad and I don’t feel I am safe enough to go out yet but hopefully now the festivities are over I shall stop doing so much and maybe that will improve as well. |
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