Tips on pacing?

Sorry you had a major relapse. I think they key is remembering everything is in play....physical/mental stress, over exposure to the sun, over eating and even sex. If you have a demanding job I'm not sure how much you could reasonably have left in the tank.  I have had the best success by modifying my diet. Good luck. Hopefully you will get some responses with a more formal plan...I just go by experience.

Hi Elaine,

Sorry to hear that you had a major relapse due to pushing yourself too far. I completely understand how you feel, though. When I'm feeling better and more energetic, I want to accomplish as much as possible. There is a fine line between doing too little and too much, if you know what I mean. 

I think finding the right amount of activity that works for you can be tricky. What one person can do is different from what someone else can do.

I think of "pacing" as doing a task for a few minutes or a few hours (if you body allows it) and then resting for a few minutes. For example, if you have something complex that you must read, I would say read for 15 minutes and then take a break. Read again for another 15 minutes and then take another break. I think this also applies to exercise. I walk for 10 minutes, jog for 3-5 minutes, walk for another 15 minutes, and then rest after by taking a relaxing bath or meditating.  

If you of CFS as having a faulty/low battery, it all makes more sense. We have limited energy in the battery each day, so we have to use it carefully and wisely. Hope this helps. Good luck getting better :-) KPD

Pacing was the key to me beating this condition. Even now I have mini relapses so I take to my bed for a few days, say no to everything and recharge the batteries.

its a case as others have said of increasing activity gradually. So if I can cycle 10miles I stay at 10 for a few weeks, then try 12 or 15 once and go back to 10. I then slowly increase to 15 doing that for a few weeks and then try 20. 

I often do things more in the morning and make and make sure I rest in the evening. I also take energy drinks and gels when I do a lot of exercise to make sure my body is properly fuelled 

Thanks for the replies. I will try and be stricter with myself when my energy returns and will maybe try timing myself doing activities, resting then timing myself again to try and get some sort of idea of how much I can do without pushing myself over my limit.

?When trying to increase activities I will also try sticking to the same level until it gets easier, increasing once then dropping back to old level as suggested by wknight (hadn't thought of that before!). I used to do yoga and found it helpful but am struggling to get started with it again just now but I can use this as a plan of action. Will also try it with my walking. 

Thanks again x

Hi Elaine

Sorry to hear you're feeling poorly. I have found timing activity really helpful in pacing things. I have been taught that there are 4 types of energy - physical, social, emotional and cognitive.  Your baselines for these may be different - my cognitive stamina is pretty good but my physical is pretty weak. I've also learned stress uses a lot of energy for me. Then do what you *know* you can do with causing problems the following days. E.g. I know I can do 2 hrs social, walk 0.7 miles in a day and do up to an hour of house chores (broken up into 10-20 min bits and done slowly).  Then you can increase a little on whichever is your priority area (mine is walking to build fitness and freedom to get around). Emotions hard to measure but I just note down in diary if I have particular stressors on a day. Writing in diary what you've done makes it so much easier to track patterns. But the hard bit is saying goodbye to friends when you are enjoying time with them and feeling ok! But worth it as then you can see them again soon instead of stuck lying down with horrible symptoms. 

Hope u feel better soon

Rosie