T'will all be alright

With term starting tomorrow, I am starting to panic a little bit about how I'm going to cope. My mobility is worse, and worsening, since my last placement and both of the hospitals I'm placed at this year year are huge. My fatigue is slightly more under control these days (hooray!) but I'm really worried about uni setting it back, especially because finals are at the worst possible time of year for me, fatigue wise.

So here is a a post to myself - a post about how to take care of myself, of ways to make myself feel better.

1) Take care of the lovely mrs. Have plenty of not medic-medic or carer-caree time. Tell her often that everything will be fine. Play with daft cat often.
2) Sleep. Stop work at a sensible time, journal before bedtime, be fastidious about night-time pain management, have catch-up naps naps at the weekend.
3) Drink cherry and cinnamon tea, cointreau hot chocolate and mulled cider. Plenty of water, and salt.
4) Be sensible with my energy. Pace as much as possible without becoming a hermit. Don't feel guilty about the cleaner. Be assertive about my access needs on placement. Take it slow and steady.
5) Read something non-medical - funny, easy, familiar. Listen to an audio book snuggled under a blanket. Sing along to Sgt Pepper. Watch BBCThree nonsense and silly films.
6) Phone lovely people. Go for walks (/wheels) and talks with the mrs. Have people to stay, go to visit notsofaraway best friend. Give plenty of hugs.
7) Don't get cold! Wheat bag, big fluffy dressing gown, electric blanket, woolie socks, hot water bottle, nights in front of the fire.
8) Remember all the reasons I love medicine. Revise in ways that keep it interesting. Don't go near the library in the medical school, and avoid talking about revision with anyone else. It is not worth the inevitable panic.
9) Eat proper food what is warm and has veggies in. Plenty of mashed potato and daal and plum crumble. And porridge for breakfast.
10) If things get bad - rest, cut back, get help. Don't let it build up. Talk. Keep the med school in the loop.

The bottom line is that my health is important. I would rather be well and fail than to burn out passing, so I need to act like it, and not let guilt, or panic or the fact that other people still think they're invincible convince me not to. It could all go really quite pear-shaped otherwise, when it very much needs to all be alright in the end.