Self-care can be hard for a number of different reasons and it's something I often struggle with. After really focusing on it for a while now and getting to understand what's made it tricky for me, here are my self-care lessons.

As the song goes, "neeeiighhbours, everybody needs good neeeigghhbours!" and that's definitely true for me. Tonight I can relax and switch off my worried little brain because I know I have help nearby and that I'm not as alone as ME can sometimes make me feel, that help is nearby if/when I need it.

They say it's the little things that count,  well since my ME started getting worse again, I can definitely say there's been a whole load of little things that have really made a difference. They might not have magically cured me but they have absolutely helped me in so many different ways. 

After listening the the hilarious Ballad of Barry and Freda by Victoria Wood, I've pulled together a few of my favourite funny songs. With clips from Lonely Island to Morecambe and Wise, there's definitely a bit of variety here. Hope you find something you enjoy x

For 2018 I've made my reading challenge list by selecting reading prompts from the Modern Mrs Darcy and Book Riot  reading challenges.

Below is the list of the books I've chosen for the various reading prompts taken from the challenges as well as other books I'm reading this year. As I finish the books I'll pop a short review down as well. I've got a bit of a backlog at the moment so do pop back and see how I'm getting on!

After Christmas my mum would always encourage me and my brother to write thank you letters and as an adult I've begun to realise that this practice is not just about saying thank you or showing gratitude to others but it's a really good way for us to pause and recognise we have people in our life who care about us and just how lovely that feels.

It's been a week of more ups and than downs. I've taken a few steps forward and I'm feeling pretty happy.

"How are you feeling?" It's a question I get asked a lot at the moment. It's nice; it shows people care and I'm always grateful for that but I need to work on my answers.

A little post about things I've done in the past which are helping me today. How I've tried to look out for my future self.

I met my dad before he met my mum. In fact if it wasn't for me, they might never have met. 

My mother always told me to make sure I had people in my life that were good for me; positives.

An incredibly positive, determined, independent and honest friend, here's my life lessons from my friend Sarah Sulzberger:

Here's what it's like to be me on a bad day. Not the worst day, but a bad day. See the difference fatigue makes to me and what it feels like having to miss out on important parts of my life.

This is the first in a series of posts I'm planning to write, sharing some of the things and people that help me feel happy. First up, cartoons, doodles and comic books.

Mummy Barnet has given me lots of good advice over the years, much of which continues to help me now as I cope with the challenges of fatigue, anxiety and other ups and downs life throws at you. Here are some of my favourites.

Just some of the thank yous I want to give to those who support me and others when we are facing fatigue.

Whilst out and about this morning I caught a bit of Stephen Fry's radio show "Fry's English Delight". This episode was called "That way madness lies" and looked at the "language of madness". Having toyed with the idea of writing a piece about the words and phrases I use to describe my own health issues (mental and physical) I was really interested to hear more.

In 2016 I started my first reading challenge. Keen to get back into the habit of reading more after books had taken a bit of a backseat to my crocheting, I decided that setting some sort of goal might help. 

Just before Christmas, a good friend shared an article on Facebook which looked at the issue of period poverty and asked friends to support a collection of tampons and sanitary pads to donate to her local food bank.

Immediately, I realised that I had never considered donating these items before and had really only thought about food for food banks. It turns out I was not alone. 

Last night I attended my first event with Girl Geeks Scotland, a group I've admired for a long time now but was never quite certain if I was geeky enough to join in with! Having been reassured and encouraged to come along by founder and friend, Morna Simpson, and other actual proper Girl Geeks I met at their relaunch this time last year I decided to go along....and I'm glad I did! 

Inspired by the Modern Mrs Darcy reading challenge I’ve set my goals for the year ahead. See my reading prompts and what I thought of each book.