How many of us work fulltime?

  I work full time as a nursing supervisor and care for my elderly grandmother who lives with me.  I do good to make it through the week.  It.s one day at a time.  Just to think 4 yrs ago I would work all the overtime I could get.   I fear what is ahead of me.  I have always been the one to help everybody and don't know if I will get any of that back in return.  But I just started back on Lyrica so I am optimistic that it will help me!  I have alot of years left to work!

I've had fibro since I was 11.  Sadly, being a lady of leisure was never a possibility for me as I am not independently wealthy, but I was lucky enough to get sick young enough that I could plan my life around it.  I gave up the thought of a performance music degree and put my brain to work (not to imply that performance music degrees are brainless!)  Now I'm an environmental consultant but I'm still young enough that  I have to spend a fair bit of time out in the field.  Every single day I come home in pain.  I've been fairly fortunate thus far in that I've managed to organise my own schedule so that I'm not out in the field two days in a row because some days when I get home I can barely move, but I know those days are going to end soon.  Pretty soon I'm going to be out every day and I may be in tears while working... it's happened before in other jobs.  I look at my steel toed boots with loathing because that pain goes all the way up your back and into your head.  The problem is that I want to be out in the field doing the work, but my body clearly has other ideas.

It is possible to maintain a static level of uncomfortableness that makes it possible to keep your full time job.  You will crash and burn if you push yourself too hard, and it's absolutely essential you get lots and lots of sleep.  Quality shoes make all the difference in the world, and it's even better if you can get proper orthotic insoles made for you.  You're still going to be in pain, but at least it isn't as bad.

My best recommendation is to get enough education to get you out of the heavy lifting jobs and insist on a high quality chair.