Energy Management

I really haven’t worked much today. In fact, I’ve goofed off more than I worked. Jonathan and I went to a movie this afternoon, something I do maybe once a year. We had a double treat, and met Jess at Red Lobster for dinner afterwards. I didn’t drive, I sat in more comfortable than usual seat for a movie theater, I got to sit in a booth instead of a hard seat at the restaurant, and I enjoyed both the movie and dinner.

So why am I so tired after doing such fun stuff?

I guess I didn’t have enough spoons available today. If you haven’t read “The Spoon Theory”, then I’ll rephrase that by saying I didn’t have enough energy. Unfortunately, my body doesn’t distinguish between work stuff and fun stuff. It also doesn’t seem to distinguish much between physical and mental and emotional drains on energy.

Almost always the demand for energy exceeds the supply. Worse, the supply is erratic. I never know from day to day just how much energy I’ll have available. It’s hard to know how to manage your energy when you don’t know how much energy you’ve got to manage. Add the fluctuation of pain levels and how that affects my energy, and it’s a daily gamble how much energy I’ll have each day.

Energy, energy, energy! I need more energy!

This kind of day with the perpetual “worn out” feeling is when I really start worrying about the trip to Alaska.

What am I thinking????
How am I going to manage for NINE days?
How am I going to do it all for myself AND help my dad when he needs it?

I sure hope I have a winning streak on the trip north –
HIGH levels of energy, and LOW levels of pain.