Housework

I am at home most of the time. I don't have a job, so I'm at home with our 14 year old daughter who takes classes online. Housework inevitably lands in my lap. Housework takes me longer than it probably should.

Today, I have cleaned out the cat's litter box, emptied, washed and rinsed and dried, and filled back up. I took out kitchen scraps for composting and have dishes to deal with.

As I tap this out on my tablet, the sharp paint in my back shoots down both of my legs. The pain is the exact same pain that I felt when a spinal surgeon put a needle into my spine.

My wife is at work and I feel like I owe her this, despite my months of working with three fractured vertebrae resulting in degenerative disc disease.

My mum was right, housework is a job that nobody notices unless you DON'T do it. #Housework #housekeeping

What chore is worst for your body? What do you do to make it easier?

For me its hoovering. I hoovered the living room this evening because it really needed doing and I was sneezing a lot (yay for hayfever season 🙃). My lower back pain kicked off this evening and woke me up after a couple of hours and I had to get up it was so bad. Urggghhhh. And I only just realised this was probably the cause. I really want a robot Hoover!!! Better start saving...💰

#ChronicPain #axialSpondyloarthritis #InflammatoryArthritis #Arthritis #Housework

Today I managed to tidy up my front room and vacuum my bedroom. It's been at least six weeks that I've been meaning to do that. As I was reflecting on what made today different than every day in the past six weeks, I realized that it's actually because I'm stuck at home, self-isolating.

I normally work a 4 hour shift 6 days a week, so I have to get myself ready, walk 30 minutes to work, and be fully present for the whole shift. Since I'm currently in self-isolation due to contact with a positive covid case, I am not allowed to go out. I'm able to do a bit of work from home (less than half my already part time hours), but it isn't much. I don't think I had realized how much energy it was taking out of me to get out of the house every day and how that prevented me from effectively doing things like cleaning at home. I know that my psychological state affects my physical actions, but sometimes a situation like this just makes it more clear. #Energy #Housework #Work #COVID19 #Depression #Anxiety #MentalHealth

I am tired of relying on my few good days and the generosity of my friends to get my dishes and cleaning done. I need to be able to pay someone to come in weekly and clean out my kitchen. I'd like to figure out a way to outsource laundry as well, but that seems a little more intimate and harder to do. I can pay at least minimum wage. Has anyone else had experience doing this? #ChronicFatigue #MyalgicEncephalomyelitis #ChronicPain #Housework #Fibromyalgia #Disability