I’ve been doing a little experiment while I’ve been on annual leave. I’ve been trying to see whether it makes a difference to my symptoms if I do nothing or if I push myself to do more. Obviously I’ve started proper walking every day… it’s not a huge distance and it’s not at great speed… but it’s exercise of sorts and it’s more than I was doing before… when I wasn’t actually doing anything. Other PWPs report an improvement in their symptoms for several hours after a period of exercise. I don’t find that. In fact I find that the stiffness and rigidity in my right leg is much worse. But it’s still early days so I’ll keep going… plus, I love my poles! So my right arm is moving and has a purpose for the first time in forever. That can only be a good thing? Yesterday I went for my walk and did housework all morning. Then I gave in to the insomnia-induced exhaustion and fatigue and went to bed after lunch. I slept like the dead, or rather, my husband, which tells me I needed it, but I woke up feeling terrible and consequently had a very bad night’s sleep last night… So today I took the boys to Birmingham to endure the Manga Store and Nostalgia Comics and to have a peaceful coffee in Waterstones while Joe indulged his literary passion… we walked a fair distance but I decided to keep up my walking promise when I got home. It was a difficult lap of the water park. The uncharacteristically warm, sunny weather had brought everyone and their grannie and her dog out, with bikes, scooters, pushchairs and balls and frisbees… I dodged and tripped and cursed my way round, but I did it! I could so easily have gone home and put my feet up but I didn’t. Against my better judgement, I went out walking, attracting stares and comments by the dozen, but I did it… Mark reckons putting my phone in my knickers drew more attention than necessary… dunno what he means?? When you have a pole in each hand, a phone is difficult to accommodate… Especially when your walking app talks to you after every kilometre… Tomorrow we’re doing Dovedale for a change of scenery… I’m hoping the poles will draw less attention there… maybe it’s not the poles???! Probably avoid Dovedale tomorrow if you had even the merest thought of going…
The Wisdom in Wobbling 