What are you up to today if you have a Chronic Illness. Thread 11 🧵Last of the Summer

[MewithME]

Link to last one https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/_chat/5556429-what-are-you-up-to-today-if-you-have-a-chronic-illness-10-summer-edition

Thank you for being here, friends old and new and sharing our gentle chat, trials and tribulations.

You know the rules though...let's be good and fill up the last one 😊

Having previously lived very rurally we are reasonably well prepared for power cuts.
We start stocking up the cupboards & freezer in September in case of being snowed in so it's normal routine here. Although no longer have a spare chest freezer so may miss that if things get rough.

Looking at the El Nino forecast it seems to be veering towards wet & windy rather than lots of snow this winter. But things change over time when the polar vortex & the jet stream are taken into account so we'll see.

Morning all. It's sensible to be stocked up a bit I think. I've been thinking about needing to stock up for particularly wintery weather - my street is one big hill (but not the sort of road that'll get gritted first) and there's no way I'm getting to the shops or deliveries are getting here if it's very snowy/ icy. And we seem to get not infrequent water issues round here. And floods. There may be some infrastructure issues...!

I don't have loads of storage space but I think a couple of boxes of packet meals/ rice and a bottle of water may be wise. At least I have power banks and a good supply of warm layers from when I used to do lots of long walks and runs.

Just a worky sort of day here - one long meeting, lots of bits and pieces to do.

I've just ordered some rechargeable lights in case the power goes out. We've already got motion sensing nightlights in our hall and bedroom and they have been so useful.

Still crashing. Sadly I've had to cancel the osteopath tomorrow but I felt so ill after my shower. Oxygen dipped below 90 for a while so not got a lot of energy today. Of course now it's normal as is my pulse, as long as I do nothing!

It's so frustrating trying something like a shower. You can't really just build up to it in stages, although I sit down mostly. Once you get in and are covered in shampoo and soap you are committed 😏

So a quiet day counting my spoons!

@CoffeeBeansGalore what do you advise in terms of cupboard stock? Anything that you recommend or things to avoid?

@TeaAndStrumpets hope it isn't too long for your energy levels to return.

@martha79 we are reasonably flat here. Our issues are rivers, we have a Ford one end of our village which renders that exit useless for several months of the year. Then in our nearest town the water often comes over the top of the bridge and creates a huge diversion. Luckily we don't venture far most of the time but it could have a knock on with any deliveries for us.

Back to normal this week. My MIL has returned home today and DH comes back once we are all asleep tonight. I'm pottering through my list of jobs although my brain is screaming 'stop can't be arsed' at me. Just waiting for the robot vacuum to finish, I'll mop the floors and empty any bad food out of the fridge. After that I refuse to do sweet FA until school pick up. I might lie back in bed and top up the 'fatigue O meter'. All ready to be stabbed tomorrow and then feel worn out for the next 48 hours.

Monday is my day off this week - very discombobulating 🤔

I've been for my acupuncture session this morning, so am feeling chilled and may have a little nap. Sleep was rubbish again last night so, on her recommendation, I have ordered some magnesium glycerate tablets. I'll try anything 🤞

Bean and bacon soup for tea and then an early night 😴

Take it easy all 💕

Magnesium is definitely worth a try for sleep @Swanhilde

Sorry you’re crashing @TeaAndStrumpets Rest, rest, rest. I just cancelled the osteopath for this week too. It’s an early evening appointment which is all she had but it’s my worst time of day and I know with two lots of visitors this week, it will exhaust me.

My DS & GF are on their way which is my excitement for the day. They're here til tomorrow evening so that will be nice. Gfs mum who is dropping them off is popping in to say hello. She’s very lovely but I do need to pace my chatting!

Have a good day all 😊

Yes I'm dropping all the extra stuff....like getting dressed! Ironically I forced myself to have a shower to wash my hair ahead of my appointment 😏

I hope you survive your visitors!

I've also been sleeping poorly, can I ask how much epsom salts you put in a bath @MewithME or anyone?

@danglethedingle I do it like I approach my cooking... just chuck it in. I'm pretty generous really. Don't think it can be too much as such?

I'm absolutely floored after work today..will check in properly later. Bed right now

@Oioiqueen just easy stuff really. Pasta, rice, curry sauces, soup, tinned fruit, custard, tinned tomatoes, chick peas, kidney beans. Herbs & spices.
Ingredients you can cook up on a camping stove to make chilli, stew etc. If the power goes we start using veg etc from the freezer. Never been out longer than a few days so the freezer actually stayed cold.
Freeze bread & milk. Get a few cartons of UHT.
We've got a camping oven which can do pizzas garlic bread, etc. Even toast!

@CoffeeBeansGalore im on the right lines then, thank you.

You're welcome.
Just to add we batch cook chilli to put in the freezer anyway. It wouldn't take long to cook on a camping stove if you take it out to defrost the day before. We store in plastic lidded tubs for individual portions which stack really well in the freezer.

Other things we've found useful.
Good old tea lights 😁. I keep some jam jars to put them in on the bathroom & kitchen window sills (no curtains). Also had jar candles to hand.

A few battery push lights can be handy for kids bedrooms, bathroom, hallway.

Rechargeable power banks for phones/tablets.
If bad weather was forecast we'd charge up everything & download films for the kids to watch if the power/internet went down.

We now have a mobile calor gas heater as no longer have an open fire.

Camping stove & Camping oven - both run on those little gas canisters.
Kettle to go on the camping stove.
Dig out your small saucepan to heat milk for coffee & hot chocolate.

Treat box with biscuits, crisps, cake & chocolate. Not a necessity but nice to have if snowed in ☃️.

@CoffeeBeansGalore I Batch a lot generally and cook from scratch most of the time. I worry for our power during storms, we have a lot of power cuts throughout the year so I'm never too positive.

@Oioiqueen We cook from scratch a lot but if the power goes off it can limit what you can do. Hence the just in case sauces & soups.

Do you have a generator? Can be useful. We do have a small one for longer outages.

Feeling rotten. Back later.

Sorry...see you tomorrow. 💐

Hope you are feeling better today?

Morning all. Had the worst nights sleep, hormones are making me hot and fidgety at the moment. DH was sooo excited to see us all when he returned at midnight that he woke us all up in turn giving us a kiss on the cheek haha! We've missed him so nobody was complaining. Then poor DS wet the bed at 3am, absolutely beside himself. He is only 5 but was so upset, it's been quite a while since he last did it. Once I got him back into bed I couldn't get myself back to sleep for hours.

However we go on, today I have treatment. Rain clouds have gone and now blue skies and sunshine. I'll have a listen to the birds in the country park on the way to the hospital. Hopefully in an out quickly and done for another three weeks. Feeling a little anxious as I'm settled into this new routine, it's so easy compared to before. Next scan will be likely in a couple of weeks and then follow up. I'm terrified of progression and my world being tipped upside down again. However trying to remain positive as if this one is ok then I'll be able to start planning October half term, Christmas and then my birthday. I feel like so much is riding on this one. Especially as this time last year I was so poorly in the run up to being diagnosed. I'd like a semi normal autumn and early winter if possible. I know I'm feeling worse at the moment because of my hormones, I'm actually starting to think I might have developed PMDD since my periods have returned after chemo.

Thanks @MewithME I think we may have gone to the same cookery school! The only things I weigh are cakes and pastry, everything else is eyeballed, and depends what I have on hand.

I've got the old epsom salts coming today, I also just realised I have a full pot of hoof poultice left over from my pony owning days. I think that's just epsom salts and water, so I could have probably just chucked a tablespoon of that in. Its unopened, so should be free of horse germs, but I'm pretty sure I am immune to those anyway.

Now I miss ponies, but I'm too old, fat and broken for that malarkey now, even without the other things. Ho hum, onwards and upwards.

Hope all goes smoothly today xx

@Oioiqueen good luck. Hope it goes well.

Home from work and in bed with a cuppa and some nuts and raisins ☕

Sleep slightly improved so not feeling quite so knackered today. And DH is cooking tea 😋

I'm another one who just lobs in the epsom salts, probably a good couple of handfuls 😆

Have a restful evening all 💕