Energy Economy - How to Get Organized while Chronically Ill

How to Get Organized While Ill

If you have been following this 5 part series you already know that organizing, de-cluttering, and simplifying are three different things.  And, it is actually pretty important to understand their differences.  Otherwise things just get confusing.  See this post Coping with Chronic Illness – The difference between simplifying, decluttering, and organizing.

Confessions

OK, I’m just going to say it.  This is my least favorite subject in this series.  De-cluttering, I love.  Simplifying, I love even more.  But talking about organizing just brings things to a halt for me.

And this is why:  I literally have nothing new to say.  This topic is covered SO much – it is actually overwhelming to try to think of a new way to approach this.  However, there are one or two things which it is important to know.

Definition and Benefits of Organizing

To organize means to channel our stuff into orderly lines.  It does not require getting rid of anything per-se, it just requires setting up systems to juggle everything.

Being a little more organized can help us, the chronically ill, in various ways.  It can help us find things easily, even on bad brain fog days.  It can help us keep things clean with a minimum of effort.  It can give us a feeling of peace.  And that leaves your brain open for other activities.  

Energy Economy - 10 Ways to COMBAT Cognitive Dysfunction (Brain Fog, Fibro Fog)

10 Ways To Combat Brain Fog

As I see it, dealing with cognitive dysfunction falls into two categories:  1. Coping, and 2. Combatting.

Coping means to accept that it is a problem and do what you can to live within its limits.  Cope can literally mean to come into contact with, to meet.  So to cope is to go out and meet the challenge as best we can.  Last week we discussed 10 ways to cope with this problem.  Today we will discuss how to combat it.

When I think of Combat, I think of a battle.  And often battles are fought over territory.  So, ‘to combat’ means to fight for our mental territory.  Literally it can mean to take action to reduce, destroy, or prevent something.

Energy Economy - 10 Was to COPE with Cognitive Dysfunction (Brain Fog, Fibro Fog)

Brain Fog (Cognitive Dysfunction) and Chronic Illness

One of the most difficult and devastating things I have had to deal with in this last year is a worsening of my brain fog/cognitive dysfunction.  I thought, ‘so my body doesn’t work, at least I can catch up on some reading and studying’.  But no.  To my horror, I found that even reading caused extreme exhaustion, pain, and debilitation.  This realization was a very low point for me.
 

Cognitive dysfunction (or brain fog) has many causes.  It can be a symptom in illnesses like depression, lupus, Celiac disease, multiple sclerosis, chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis, fibromyalgia, sjogren’s syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis, cancer, MCS (multiple chemical sensitivity), and many more.  It is also sometimes a symptom in ADHD and peri-menopause.  And this barely scratches the surface.