M.E + Autistic child + half term = huge disaster

The title says it all really! This week has been half term, and has been hellish, on a personal level and on a M.E. level.

I tried to plan to do something every day to lessen the boredom, not taking into account the exaustion levels. On Tuesday, we went to Soft Play with some friends then on to the outlet village for lunch. The play was fine, Chloe left me in peace while she played and I rested while chatting over coffee with friends. Lunchtime was reasonable too, Chloe ate well and behaved. She was a mare while we shopped though. I did compromise and bought her 3 new story books, good for using during rest time. I was shattered physically afterwards though, so the story books came in particularly useful.

Wednesday was reasonably ok, we went for lunch at Pizza hut with Katy and Sophie. The restaurant was heaving! It was quite difficult to move with the walking stick around the buffet tables and to the toilets, and also the disabled toilet was out of order. That made taking Chloe to the toilet a bit difficult as I find it so hard to lift her now, as she is quite heavy! The food and company were good though. Afterwards, as it was pouring with rain, I went over to the supermarket and bought Chloe Over the Hedge on DVD. What a godsend! I was starting to get so fed up of Flushed Away, Happy Feet and Cats and Dogs. Its quite entertaining on an adult level too. I could at the moment quite happily sit through it.

Thursday was tough. Chloe was in a foul mood, it was pouring with rain, I was in pain, and the housework was piling up. I'd made myself a list and wanted to just get on with it. It seemed as though every time I got up to do something, Chloe wanted attention, and she wanted it NOW! At one point she accidentally kicked the laptop, and I went supersonic at her (not my finest hour) then burst into tears. It was like that all day. Looking back, knowing what I do now, it was the last exhaustion before I finally gave in. I hated thursday, I spent most of the evening upset in tears. Si came to the rescue with Kentucky Fried Chicken for dinner, and an early night was called for.

Friday was strange. I woke at 4-30am desperate for a drink and coughing. I'd also got the start of a coldsore, and a headache with the feeling of someone trying to drill a hole through my skull above my eye, a very strange sensation. I tried to sleep it off, but by 6-30am it was turning into a migraine. I took everything I could, told Si to cancel Hydrotherapy and I went back to bed, drowsy from the migrealeve. When I woke again at 10-15 am I felt a bit better, and although I realised I should really stay at home, agreed we'd carry on with the plan of going to see Jen in Reading for her birthday.

It wasn't too bad a day out, we went shopping and out for lunch, where Chloe was well behaved. I managed to get an outfit for a wedding we are invited to later this month, and we got an idea of what Reading is like to shop at, having not been since we moved here a year ago. I'd definatly go back for the day, probably on my own though.

And so to this weekend. We have been pottering around, I was quite tired yesterday so I had been resting upstairs and reading a lot. The book I'm reading now is facinating, Living With M.E. by Dr Charles Sheppard. I hadn't realised I had so many issues with brain disfuntion and core temperature control until I read about it. My condition makes more sense now I'm reading about it in black and white. I'm finally understanding WHY my body is all messed up and what I can do to help myself. Certainly porridge every day is helping my core temperature control greatly.

But for now, I do feel like yelling "Roll on Tuesday". I have so many jobs to do that are so much easier without her around, and my body prefers the school routine as I can sleep while she isn't here. I dread the summer holidays, but this week has taught me the necessity of regular breaks and sleep patterns, along with the need to ask for help from others more. My friends are so willing to help, I just have to ask.

For the rest of the day, I plan to potter and eBay stuff like crazy, to raise some pennies for an expensive month. Not only is there the wedding, there are many birthdays and the Suzanne Vega gig in Liverpool on the 30th. That is Si's fathers day present from me, and it looks to be a fab show with Suzannes new material being released next week. I can't wait for the CD to arrive.

So off to the grindstone I go.......