Friday Tired

Friday Tired is the name of my first book. It describes how I was feeling at that time all the time -- like every day was Friday, exhausted.

However, when I wrote that, as horribly sick as I was at that time, I don't think I really knew how tired I could be and still be alive.

I am shaking like a leaf. I can barely see my computer screen. I can't sit up without propping up my head on my hand. The thoughts in my head aren't coming out of my mouth the way I mean them to. Is this making any sense?

We've been conducting a survey with the University of Michigan Center for Managing Chronic disease on the obstacles facing the chronically ill and the strategies they find to surmount them. Over and over, the respondents talk about fatigue as their greatest challenge. And they don't have great solutions for the problem, either.

Since it's Friday, I'm going to give myself a pass on trying to figure out a solution, for myself or for all people with chronic illnesses. I'll be satisfied with just getting through the day. But it's something to think about. There has to be a way to live with chronic illness that doesn't feel so damned difficult. Jennifer