Relapse! Coping, Symptoms and Tips.

[DustingMyselfOff]

Oh my word - Mrs. C. - you and that amazing memory of yours!!!!!! No, I had NOT remembered what my other part-time work options had been, and I actually had to re-read your statement several times before I realized what you were referring to! OMG - I was seeking work at either an animal shelter or a HOSPITAL!!! I had sent out applications and resumes to this ONE shelter but sent out SEVERAL to medical institutions looking for work, and was surprised and disappointed that I wasn't getting many responses to my hospital applications and the ones that I did receive were either a bad fit with their hours or their location. And the odds of there being an actual paying "job" at an animal shelter is SO very rare because there isn't ever enough funding so most of them are run strictly by volunteers. So I have just looked up to the heavens to thank the Universe for opening up that position for me which not only keeps me sane but may have also saved my life and that of my family. I can't even imagine what I'd be going through right now if I had to go off to work in a hospital every day. My OCD and anxiety about not picking up any germs there surely would have driven me to madness by now. Thank you so much for the reminder - you have just put me in a very good mood and reminded me that the Universe DOES have a plan and that everything DOES happen the way it's supposed to. What seems like bad news or disappointment sometimes turns out to be such a blessing.

And in regards to you thinking the moon phases affect us? I absolutely believe that, and I've seen the evidence at the shelter, both with the types of interactions with people during those times as well as with the animals' behavior. More times than not things will be strange or crazy at the shelter that makes us say "what the heck is going on!?!?!" and then I'll check a calendar and ...bingo..... a strange moon phase.

All of us are souls/spirits that are currently on earth going through the earthly experience, and I have to assume it's to teach us all what to do and what not to do so that we can improve things on our next go round on earth. OK, now THAT opens up a whole new topic of conversation and area of speculation and controversy so I'll end it there.
Sue

[Carnation]

Sue, my amazing memory is probably the reason I suffer with anxiety, that and my empathy.
I feel above and beyond. I think the outcomes and scenarios of almost everything and my imagination is rife.
My mind may excel, but my body disagrees with most of the information.
Oh yes, I am very mind, body, spirit.
I believe in fate, the power of the universe and much more.
But like you say, its not for everyone and I respect that. x

[glassgirlw]

Hi there all, was just having a read through this thread to catch me up. Haven’t posted in awhile. Not that much has changed in this crazy situation we all find ourselves in...but I’m glad to read that everyone is doing as well as can be expected right now.

I turned 42 yesterday, had a “socially distanced” birthday dinner with my parents, husband, and daughter. I live with my husband (obviously lol) and work with my daughter (she turns 21 in a week, poor thing - all the pubs closed) and my parents just returned from a cross country flight. So we sat waaayyyyy across the driveway from them, outside. But it was nice to have an in person visit anyway.

As for me, my husband and I still go to work daily, still obsessively hand wash and hand sanitizer, disinfect everything that comes in my home, you know, the new normal. To be honest it all gets a little exhausting, but if that’s what it takes to stay as safe as possible right now then we have to just buckle down and do it I guess. Weather is starting to slowly warm here in the Midwest, was able to get some yard work done over the weekend. Fixed a fence section so my dogs are properly trapped in the yard again when we go outside to play ball. I’m afraid there’s not much excitement to report!

Everyone stay safe and healthy!

Amanda

[Carnation]

Sending you belated birthday wishes glassgirlw ��
It's warming up here too! And just as I thought, the UV level now too high to sit out or work, but we manage to get a couple of hours in the late afternoon.
The cleaning regime does become tedious, not that I wasn't clean before. But I wouldn't be disinfecting the handles and taps all the time or asking Mr C if he'd washed his hands like he was 12 years old.
Yesterday I watched a display of 3 neighbours chatting in the street, just outside my home. They were all 6 metres apart shouting and it sort of amused me in a way and the thoughts of "are we going to be living in a shouty future? (not sure if that's a real word).
Personally I can't bear people that shout. For me it borders on being angry and I don't deal with anger very well. I don't deal with queueing very well either, but I do like the distancing in shops and being able to park. As they say, you can't have it all.
As you say glassgirlw, there's not too much to report.
Our daily conversations are around what we are eating next, whether to mow the lawn, what we will watch on tv, who's cleaning what in the house and whether we've had a poo that morning.
We haven't played one game, de-cluttered any cupboard or drawer and still not tidied and sorted the garage.
I think you just have to go with the flow and do what you feel like doing. And if that's nothing for hours on end, then that's what your mind needs to do to adapt to this new lifestyle. x

[Carnation]

I'll catch up soon, just wishing everyone well and positive thoughts x

[DustingMyselfOff]

Thanks for checking in.... I logged onto the site yesterday just to make sure I wasn't missing the notifications that there were new postings, but there weren't. Kinda strange.... you would think that since most of us have MORE time on our hands we'd be doing more forum posts, but it seems to be working just the opposite.

I would like to think (and am hoping) that means that due to the quarantine we are all having to face less stressors and less anxiety-triggers, but it might also be that we just don't have much to talk about during these boring times, and also that we have all become so comatose we don't have the inertia to post. Probably a combination of all of that, right?
Sue

[Carnation]

Yes, it is strangely quiet. I think it's a mixture of not knowing what to say unless it's about the coronavirus, which seems to have taken over all conversations.
Although we have more time on hands there is definitely more lethargy, more depression and a feeling of cutting yourself off.
We can always talk about the way we feel, but to certain extent its going over old ground for most.
I've definitely been more emotional of late or should I say melancholy.
I've been keeping active in spurts. But there has also been this feeling of marking off the days as they go by almost like a prison wall.
We thank our lucky stars we are safe in our home with food to eat and the right time of year to be in the garden.
My produce is coming on well and it's always my saviour to look after something.
My new hanging basket makes me get out of my cocoon of a bed and so do the veggies I am growing.
Unfortunately the downside to that is my hay-fever and being a target for any insect to bite me. I'm just too tasty, lol.
So my days consists mainly of this....
Cooking, cleaning, a short walk, a trip to the corner shop or farm shop, time in the garden, a bit of reading, a lot of Internet, facetime, a film and something that will make me laugh on tv, the tiniest bit of exercise, listening to music, playing the piano, playing a game, looking out the window, spending time with my cat and now, maybe a drive somewhere.
To be honest, that's all I can cope with at the moment.
My anxiety is hiked up and so is the depression, but it's understanding why is half the battle.
The virus is a battle in its self, so we should be kind to ourselves and remind ourselves how well we are coping under the circumstances. x

[pulisa]

Sounds as though you are filling your days productively despite everything, Carnation.

It will be good when everyone has something else to talk about other than "The Virus", won't it?! I hope you won't be getting an influx of daytrippers to your neck of the woods this weekend. I'm glad my daughter and i got our day trip to Brighton in before things escalated in terms of my son's illness and of course the lockdown.

Things will get better but it's ok to feel low and depleted because we are just ticking off the days and getting through as best we can xx

[Carnation]

It's only when you put things down in words that you realise you are actually doing more than you realise Pulisa.
I often think of you and wonder how you are coping.
And you always have time for other people despite your heavy load. xx

[DustingMyselfOff]

My first thought after reading your post, Mrs. C., was "Wow, you're doing a LOT during your days and nights!" Seriously! Good for you, IF you are enjoying some or most of it. But please be kind to yourself, and don't feel obligated to do so much. Listen to your body, your mind and your gut and do what pleases you, especially during these stressful times.

I'm keeping fairly busy between working at the animal shelter, caring for my seahorses (I now have adults, juveniles, and newborns, all in separate tanks, and of course then I need two other tanks to raise their live food in), caring for my dogs, and trying to keep the house looking like humans live here instead of just animals. I don't like cooking, but I'm doing it probably four nights out of the week. I spend a lot of time in my recliner with the TV going in the background while I read and research things online. But I'm getting bored with the amount of time I am sitting down, so hopefully today I am finally going to be able to plant flowers in all the various places in my yard. We have still had freeze warnings almost every night this past week so I have been afraid to plant anything!

Speaking of insect bites, I now have a new phobia to worry about: I found an embedded deer tick in my hip yesterday morning. I'm not sure if you're aware but there is a dreaded disease in my part of the country that is called Lyme Disease, due to being bitten by a deer tick. If you catch it early enough it's usually treatable, but for some who were bitten years ago and didn't realize, it can be disabling and incapacitating. My son and his wife have spent thousands of dollars and dozens of doctors and treatments trying to rid their bodies of this ailment, but the testing still shows levels in them. So I phoned my doc's office, told her about the tick bite, and she insisted on a Zoom call with me so that she could see it. As a result, I am to take one megadose of a specific antibiotic within 72 hours of the bite. Sounds simple enough, right? Except last night I got notification from the pharmacy that they were out and that it would be arriving on Monday. Cue the anxiety - I need to take it within 72 hours of being bitten. So lots of calling around to other pharmacies and we finally found it elsewhere and I took it last night. So now I'm trying to figure out how to cover myself from head to toe while enjoying some gardening. I have lots of long, thick hair, so I need to get that up and wrapped somehow that a tiny deer tick (about the size of a pencil point) can't hide but yet a way that won't have me sweating bullets (more than I already do) from having on a head covering. Ahhhh, the challenges of life, but .... it could be SO much worse. I tell myself that several times a day.

Be kind to yourself, everyone.
Sue