“Don’t you feel lazy when you have to sleep most of the day or rest?”
To see the accompanying nail art, click here.
I did not. Until you said that. And now I am angry at you.
Seriously? Obviously, you are able-bodied. The problem with rheumatoid arthritis is I do not know if I am going to flare up or when.
What I do know is if I over do it, I will flare up and I have no choice but to rest.
Sometimes, medications just do not cut it. I have to sleep. I have to stop, let me body rest, and re-coop.
Sometimes, a nap is enough to keep my energy levels up and pain levels down. Sometimes, I have to take more than one nap a day. Sometimes, I have to sleep all day.
Medications are great, they make me feel great….or greater than I could feel. However, sleep is the best medication.
So, what is the difference between you sleeping all day when you have the flu and when I have a flare? Nothing.
So, why should I feel bad when I rest?
I will not lie. I wish I did not have to nap as often as I have to. I have things I want to do on my days off from work, I have errands to run, a life to live…
It is just one of those unfortunate “side-effects” of having an auto-immune.
And you know what? If taking a “rest day” ensures I can function for two or three days at a time, I am going to take it. And not feel lazy.
Hi, my name is Monica and I have RA.
the Rite of Aging...early 
Oh how I look forward to reading your posts!! People can be so dumb!! You need to rest, sleep is the best medicine. Like, duh, of course you would rather be doing other things – like living your life – but you don’t really have a choice do you? I so get it.
I relate – to the dumb shit people say part anyhow. My contract was not renewed despite the fact that it was a one year contract to begin with. So, I decided that I would take the time to consider other career paths. When I told my aunt her response was, “And you feel like such a failure, don’t you?” Um, “Whaat?” Aagh!! Are you serious? In my head, I was just taking advantage of unemployment insurance and weighing all my options. But then my aunt opened her stupid mouth, and well then, for a little bit atleast I did feel stupid!! Which is stupid!! Ha! I relate!! Anyhow, REST GUILT FREE my online friend and ignore these dumb people. Maybe they are just projecting their issues onto us? lol!!
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Thank you, exactly!
I’m so sorry your aunt said that! I don’t even understand what she even meant by that…sometimes our auto-immunes can get the best of us. We just have to deal with it and make the best of the situation.
I don’t think able-bodied people always understand that and try to rationalize what we are going through with similar situations from their own personal experiences but really can’t fathom how it affects us….if that makes sense…
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Thank you for those posts!
I don’t have RA, but fibromyalgia. Dealing with the pain is enough, then you have the naysayers telling you it’s not real. It’s feeling d*#n real!
I want to say thanks. It is hard to miss out on things, when you know you have to rest, not push yourself through the flare.
You miss out on kids, work,& life with these autoimmune diseases.
I like your posts, and being a nail tech, I look forward to more RA and nail posts.
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Thank you!
I am glad you are enjoying these posts. I took a huge risk with them, since I know I could offend some people.
Ever since I started painting my nails more regularly, I find it a great way to de-stress and take my mind off the RA. It became a lot more fun for me over the years than I ever thought it would!
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