AIBU will people think I’m strange?

[starsparkle08]

I have chronic fatigue syndrome and am trying to increase the amount of walking I’m doing in hope to help myself .
I have just started to walk to my local park and around it . I don’t have a dog . I would like one but my son has autism adhd ld and his behaviour isn’t stable enough to consider having a dog at this point.

I just feel a bit silly walking alone and around the park feel as though I look a bit odd because I don’t have a dog . I’m just wondering what people think seeing a person alone walking around a park . Would you consider it a little strange ?
I no that everyone is within their right to go walking and enjoy a park , I just feel a little uncomfortable really and wondered am I alone in this ?

As a fellow ME / CFS sufferer I would also advise you to be very careful with the graded exercise therapy. Basically it’s a load of bollocks unless your extreme fatigue is primarily a mental health issue. For some people with depression are extremely fatigued and are thus some are (mis)diagnosed with the catch all / bucket diagnosis CFS. For these people, graded exercise can help and this is why graded exercise is hailed as a tool for restoring health.... and of course it’s cheap and doesn’t need additional research and funding.

For people with fatigue stemming from physical symptoms, graded exercise can be the road to even poorer health. CFS / ME is finally being recognised as being more widely recognised as an autoimmune disorder. You cannot exercise your way out of autoimmune diseases.

These are some of the things that can help you to manage symptoms:

Pacing. Spoon theory. Lots of rest. Gentle exercise when able. Mindfulness.

@Mummyoflittledragon, YY And also the research that was at the origin of graded exercise has also been discredited since then (lots of loots of issues with it, incl the fact they’ve skewed the results to favour certain results....).

Exercise can be great. I always feeler much better when I can do 15mins of very geeky yoga in the am. But doing it when I’m exhausted just makes me worse.

Thanks for all replies

Yes taking it very easy with the walking . I definitely can’t run or do anything more strenuous so thought trying to walk a little might help .

Think I need to grow a thicker skin and not worry what others maybe thinking ( and probably are not even thinking )

We don't have a dog and we walk all the time. Sometimes I do feel I'm the only one without a dog, but that won't stop me walking.

@starsparkle08
I walk to a park following dropping kids at school, I wear gym clothes listen to music and occasionally do a sprint, I see loads of women in particular doing similar, some in pairs but most alone.
It really lifts my mood even in winter.

Do it! Haven't RTFT but wanted to respond as I suffer from chronic fatigue too and I find short walks help me a lot. (Note I said short, it's really important not to overdo the exercise, but you'll know that already.) I sometimes walk round our local park and I do wonder if I look a bit strange but I listen to podcasts through Bluetooth earphones, which allows me to look like I'm concentrating hard on what I'm listening to - it makes the walks more interesting too.

An elderly lady does a long walk every day on a route near me. She treads very carefully, I think she might have had a stroke, and I have nothing but admiration for her. She always dresses very carefully too, matching beret and handbag and so on, I think she's great.

I wouldn't even notice! Get out there and enjoy your walks :)

After being poorly with CFS/ME for 7 years I'm now fully recovered so I wish you the very, very best in your recovery

@CuffAww fantastic that you have now recovered - what do you think helped you to regain your health?

I know exactly what you mean op. I used to walk loads with the kids in their prams/buggies and need to start again. Went out last Sat early morning kids stayed at home with their dad having breakfast. I didn't know what to do with my hands! Felt really awkward.
Next time I just held my phone (I'd taken it to listen to my audiobook) and it felt a bit better just having something to carry. E.g. no one looks twice at someone walking holding a bag do they?

Also I learnt in CBT that people are much more likely to be thinking about what people think of THEM rather than thinking anything about you IYSWIM.

Never worry what anyone thinks. Lots of people just walk.
I am at an age where i am past caring what others think of me.
I have a small dog and there are more people without them walking than with them. Most have headphones in.
Re a dog have you thought about PAT Pets As Therapy. They may be able to have someone who could help your dc .

I walk in our local park most days, never even thought that people would think it strange, there does be tons of people out walking, exercising, running, jogging, sitting around. Now what I do find strange is when we bring the dog to the dog park and people complain that we are runing their walk because he is not on a lead

I walked a lot after surgery as part of my recovery. Listened to music and played Pokemon go, had a rest on a bench occasionally. It was great!

@Snog I think a PP is right in that different approaches to recovery are needed for different causes of ME/CFS.

Mine was caused by stress and having glandular fever, then shingles and then constant viral infections over two years.

I had to rest and slowly build my immune system and strength back up. I ate a healthier diet, used graduated exercise and had a few relapses after doing too much too soon etc, but I got there!

I'm never poorly now, I appreciate my health every day, and after spending years being bedbound and light/sound sensitive I enjoy pushing myself on runs and hikes and I still can't believe I'm okay now - my heart goes out to anyone suffering. It steals everything away but there is hope.

Pace yourself, listen to your body, and never give up

I live in London but in a very 'parky' area and I often walk through a park/ through the woods without kids or dog if I'm going somewhere and cutting through or taking the scenic route. It wouldn't even occur to me to wonder why someone was on their own. The only people I notice are the people I see day after day in exactly the same place at the same time. I assign them lives but just because they become 'familiar' people, not because it's odd or weird. The only lone woman I've ever noticed is one that I've seen regularly in the 2 parks we go to most, I noticed her first because she sits curled up on a bench with a coffee reading a book- she was reading a couple I really love and I wanted to ask her what she thought but wouldn't intrude of course. But now I've noticed her I see her often, on a bench in a park (different benches, different parks) and sometimes walking through or on the way in presumably to a bench to sit and chill!
It really, really isn't odd at all to walk through/ round a park alone. No-one knows where you're going or what you're doing. And for what it's worth, I also often see exactly the same people on exactly the same benches at exactly the same time- reading the paper, looking at the view, whatever they're doing. It's quite reassuring actually, on the days no-one's there it all feels stark and like a horror movie waiting to happen.

@CuffAww thank you for sharing your recovery journey, really fantastic to hear you have regained your health after 7 years.

Please don't worry and get walking. I've always walked most places. I live in London now, but me and my mum were considered eccentric for walking in another UK city! We were much fitter than most though tbh. I'm sure noone thought we were criminals pedophiles etc though. My neighbour thought that I thought he was a paedo when I refused a lift! Is it so hard to understand that some of us like walking for the exercise?! Could you walk to eg the shops if it's really an issue for you so it's more purposeful? I'd happily walk in the park though.