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If you happen to be housebound there is a definite shortage of people to talk to and sadly, since few people these days have a vast support network to rely on, a computer and internet access really become a lifeline.
From profile sites the likes of  Faceparty and Lookitsme to health discussion boards such as the foggy friends forum and the Bury/ Bolton cfs/me support group you can find people of similar interests with shared experiences and not only will you find people to talk to, you may find that being at home is not such a bad thing after all.
The great part of being online is that not only is the internet a fantastically easy way of keeping a social life going (albeit a virtual one) it also offers much in the way of distraction and entertainment.
While you may not always feel you have the mental capacity to start learning new things, if you wish to make more constructive use of your time than merely browsing the net, chatting and playing games, why not start a blog?
Blogging has become increasingly more popular over the last few years with politicians and celebrities getting in on the act. It can be used as a way of sharing your knowledge and interests with the world at large or merely as an outlet for your frustrations with this illness - from personal experience I can tell you that blogging can be very therapeutic!
If you have a laptop you can even 'work' from your bed, the couch or a chair in the garden, and when you have days with a complete shutdown of cognitive function but still feel the need to do something other than watch TV, remember that time online does not always have to be constructive, simply sit back and browse round a few of these web sites:
Nor does a pc does need to be connected to the web in order to provide distractions a-plenty. With time on your hands you could write a book, turn a love of photography ( or mathematics) into stunning works of digital art - or even make music.
But what about those days when you just cannot focus on a screen?
Taking up a craft as a hobby can not only provide you with a fun and absorbing activity, it can also prove to be very satisfactory as you start to produce items that can be used as gifts or even (should you wish to do so) as items for sale.
Obviously, depending on your specific set of symptoms care needs to be taken in choosing a hobby - it's no good choosing pyrography if you can't hold your hand steady, nor are some forms of papercrafting advisable if the smell of glue does nasty things to you, but that's not to say there isn't a craft you can find to enjoy.
Here are a few suggestions:
- Beading (from jewellary and Bag making to ornamentation)
- Flower pressing
- Knitting (from clothes, to toys and tea cosys)
- Stitching (anything from cross stitch to embroidery)
- Mosaic art
- Paper crafting (boxes, cards, decoupage, Iris folding, paper making, Pergamano, quilling - the list is endless)
- Pyrography
- Weaving
I like to think of the positives where possible.. Do you get the shakes? Are you constantly dropping things? Great! Take up mosaic art, that way anything broken instantly becomes fodder for your craft.
Are you always cold? Heating bills getting you down? Try knitting jumpers, weaving scarves and blankets or make a quilt - all from the comfort and warmth of your bed.
One thing I've noticed while browsing through the blogosphere is that stitchers will meet up in forums, start group projects and have fairly regular meetings at the home of one of their group members in order to show off their work, so hobbies are not only good for creating useful and decorative items, they can also create communities - both on and offline.
On the days when you're too tired to stir from the couch but you're itching to get on with something, if you have the energy, keeping a pad and pencil on hand to sketch out designs for a craft project can keep you happily employed for quite some time.
If that's beyond you, why not listen to some classical music? Close your eyes and then describe the images it evokes - you don't even have to write anything down if you keep some form of voice recording device handy, it could be the start of your book.
I have come to believe everything happens for a reason, I came down with this illness and as a result met my partner and finally found the time to study web design, perhaps you came down with this illness in order to become the next JK Rowling or Stephen King.
Rosevibe 2006
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