Lupus and Recovery: Making Days of Rest Count

I play tennis. 

Well, actually, I'm learning to play tennis. 

I play about 5 days a week, mostly with my husband. He's much better than me, but seems to enjoy a good rally with his wife of 25 years...when I can keep one going. 

I couldn't even return a ball when I started a few months ago. But I just kept wanting to get better. I've surprised myself how much I like this new sport, shocked by how much fun I have, despite being a novice. (Unless you count the one day of 4th grade summer camp when Brendan C. got hit in the head with a racquet and was rushed to the hospital. There was a lot of blood that day - not a lot of tennis playing. I don't think I went back.)  

Now, I really do love the game. I love chasing down balls. I love the thrill of a perfect hit. I love watching my husband run to return a ball that I didn't really mean to hit cross court, but managed to to do so anyway.  

Since I've been playing, though, I've let other things slide. Like blogging. And working. And baking. 

No, strike that. Baking, I've done. I've been playing tennis and baking cookies. 

But four days ago. I injured my arm. Technically, I did it playing tennis. The full story is slightly more complicated and perhaps worthy of another blog post, but the day I injured it, we had to end the match immediately. I wanted to just shake it off and keep going. But Johnny refused, saying something like  when one cries out in pain and doubles over, you don't keep playing. Or some nonsense like that. 

It's my right arm. My forehand. My serving arm. My secret weapon. (I can't even write that without laughing. If you saw me play tennis, you'd laugh, too.)

But for the last three days, I haven't been able to play. The first two days off, it rained. Poured, actually. I felt like the precipitation was sent to make sure I took the days off. The third day, today, Johnny has an all day golf tournament. I asked if he wanted to play later...he said I should take it as a sign that I need another day of rest. 

He's right. My arm still hurts. I should keep resting it. 

So I'm getting other stuff done. Like writing this blog post. And ordering new fabrics for pillfolds. And tidying up around the house. 

I think we could all use three built-in days of rest - not only to listen to what our body really needs, but also to tend to those things that maybe aren't getting our full attention. 

I was not very good at listening to what my body needed when I was first diagnosed with lupus. In fact, I thought I was supposed to ignore what it was telling me. That's how I thought you got through the worst of a chronic illness. 

But it's not true. At least not for me. Rest is paramount. Listening to my body is essential. Finding other ways to feel productive is key. 

So look at me. Being productive. Resting my arm. Not rushing the process. 

Maybe I'll bake a batch of cookies next.