I think the troughs we experience with ME is a sign of total mental and physical exhaustion. They also make me feel the need to try and fix it(!) - but what I find best, is to just let it be, and completely rest - because that's what the body is crying out for. The feelings will soon lift and strength returns allowing you to then start prioritising and doing the things in life which make you happy. Take it easy.

Hello. Yes its very difficult to motivate ourselves to use the tools we have been taught with this illness, & that inner critic does give us a hard time about it. But the tools are there & the inclination does come back, we just have to be gentle on ourselves & get back on track when we can. All the best

I'm not going to waste what little energy I have on replying to lentax2. Totally understand you G, I'm my own worst enemy and once I'm doing something I don't want to stop to rest yet I know I should. I was also found to be severely deficient in Vit D and am on tablets which have given me a real energy boost - I hope you found it was beneficial to you too :)

I can relate so much to what you are going through! Sometimes it's just hard to stay postive... But I think you are pretty awesome :) And have you heard of the F*ck It philosphy? It's a book by John c. Parkin. I haven't actually read the book yet, but the idea of it and the philosophy behind it helped me a lot with letting go of my perfectionism and accepting things just the way they go and not how you think they are supposed to go. It made me much more relaxed and made my life a bit easier.

Self-compassion can be hard; I've found the work of Dr Kristen Neff helpful in that regard. Google her and the term 'self-compassion'. Also Pema Chodron's The Places That Scare You has been powerful in reminding me how normal having fears, anxieties, feelings of failure are - and having such things normalised is, in itself, very healing :) x