"Can I nap yet, or are we still playing together?" #lupusin60 Read more...

Lupus in 60:  In many cultures around the world, an afternoon nap is part of everyday life. It's accepted, and expected. With a chronic illness like lupus, a nap can be absolutely necessary.

I used to fight the need to rest every afternoon, even though I was losing half my day to fatigue.  Stopping to rest mid-day seemed inconvenient, and made me feel inadequate and totally inefficient. But you know what's really inefficient? Me, pushing through debilitating fatigue, making mistakes, and taking three times as long to do something because of exhaustion.

So I decided that the energy I put toward resisting a nap needed to be redirected toward figuring out how to make one happen.  Tweaks to my schedule at work; getting help on weekends at home; making changes to my daily routine - I forced myself to find time to nap.  Armed with proper rest and time to recharge,  I worked faster, made decisions quicker, and had energy to think clearly all day long. I could make evening plans. I had on energy until bedtime. In short, I could have a life, despite lupus.

In fact, I had figured out how to make a nap accepted and expected in my own little corner of the world.

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