CFS/ME Recovery (With Sophie!) - How to Find and Use Your Baseline

[@RaelanAgle]

TIMESTAMPS 00:00 Sophie’s ME/CFS journey 08:07 Using muscle memory and baselines for recovery 15:11 How to determine your baseline 24:05 How to slowly increase your baseline 28:03 The myth of ‘balance’ 30:53 Managing the psychological aspect of illness 41:25 How to get further information and support from Sophie

[@lwizyachanda5467]

This is very informative! Thank you

[@RaelanAgle]

@@lwizyachanda5467 so glad to hear that Iwizya!

[@bobbiev7062]

Thanks for sharing part of your recovery story with us, Sophie! I think making a list is a wonderful idea. It gives an objective view in terms of energy usage. I made a schedule of my daily activities after watching a previous video on pacing. I was shocked by how much time I spent doing things and not resting. This process was crucial in my making the necessary adjustments to allow for healing to occur. I am beginning to reap the benefits! Excellent interview Sophie and Raelan! 🙏

[@RaelanAgle]

Bobbie thanks so much for taking a moment to share a bit of your experience, and I'm so glad you enjoyed Sophie's chat! 🌟

[@bobbiev7062]

@@RaelanAgle Hi Raelan, You're so very welcome! The truth is that before finding your channel I was so desperately trying to make lemonade out of lemons. The good new is that your videos are giving me new insights, and helping me build on what is already working! You and your story are so inspirational. You have such a big heart, and I just hope that you don't overdo it in your enthusiasm to help others. 💕💕💕from your fellow Canadian!

[@RyanTford]

I found Sophie to be extremely knowledgeable/informative. I'm glad you are planning to bring her back for more chats, Raelan. I 100% support this idea and look forward to those videos! 💯 👍 🙌

[@RaelanAgle]

That's great to hear, Ryan! I shall do my best to bring her back 🙌

[@ElizabethCarlson]

Great wisdom from Sophie on finding your baseline & increasing it in a safe & stable way -- will share this! Love how you say Raelan "You can be anything you want just not everything you want." Such great wisdom.

[@RaelanAgle]

Aw thanks Liz! And I agree, really such useful and practical info from Sophie 💙

[@danw32]

This is eye opening and exactly where I should be going. Thank you so much! X

[@RaelanAgle]

So glad you found this helpful, Daniel!

[@alkathakor2455]

Loved this interview Raelan, Sophie thank you for sharing this information its so informative. It totally makes sense in finding a baseline and working your way forwards from this. Raelan please ask Sophie to come back for another interview soon 🤗💕

[@RaelanAgle]

Will do! I'd love to have her back too 💛

[@Hannah-dr1rl]

I love how you are so open to sharing others stories and advice on your channel Raelan as well as your own, it's so helpful! So often we hear that we need to 'find our baseline' or 'stay within our energy envelope' without really understanding what that means and I'm always left wondering if I'm doing it correctly. The level of detail and understanding Sophie brings to this topic makes me feel more confident in using this technique. It's great to see you both doing so well, looking forward to your next conversation !

[@RaelanAgle]

So glad this was helpful, Hannah!

[@apple369]

Hi Raelan! I'm am very grateful your channel was suggested to me and that I clicked thru to watch many of you videos. I've been living with ME/CFS since childhood and I'm now in my mid-50s... so, a long time. I'd given up hope for any sort of recovery; balance yes but not recovery. Your videos, and you specifically, have ignited my hope and motivation to find (and define) my recovery. Thank you very much for that.

[@RaelanAgle]

Hey! Thanks for taking the time to comment and share a bit of your journey. And I'm thrilled that you are feeling ignited again! ❤️

[@karenehni1893]

Thank you and Sophie for discussing the emotional aspect of CFS, this was invaluable for me.

[@RaelanAgle]

So glad it was helpful, Karen!

[@anna-marieeasmus7529]

It is so true, thanx. My worst symptom is insomnia that obviously bring on fatigue. I am working hard on sleeping better, but after a bad night I am very emotional (crying having difficulty with negativity). I believe that as I improve sleep to a certain level there will somewhere be a tipping point and I can improve from there.

[@RyanTford]

Raelan did a couple videos about improving sleep, which I found useful. I have also had insomnia for years. Her videos and the book she recommended "sleep smarter" have helped me some. Still not a great sleeper, but even minor improvements feel like a win to me.

[@itssini4777]

I had terrible insomnia as well but now my sleep has improved and I'm sleeping quite well. I know how you feel, I was so emotional and sometimes pure angry after a horrible nights sleep. I would recommend sleep smarter by shawn stevenson, he has some good podcasts. As hard as it is try not to get anxiety over sleeping, it will make it much harder to sleep. You can improve your sleep, it is a natural state for humans. I wish you all the best

[@anna-marieeasmus7529]

@@itssini4777 thank you.

[@anna-marieeasmus7529]

@@RyanTford thank you.

[@RaelanAgle]

Sleep really holds everything together, doesn't it. Thanks for sharing a bit of your journey here Anna-Marie 💛

[@finnroohomebrewing]

At rock bottom at the moment and need to try yet again. Great interview some more ideas to try. Thanks

[@RaelanAgle]

That’s tough, I’m so sorry to hear that. It’s hard having to keep pulling yourself out isn’t it. Good for you for not giving up - you can do this!! Sending hugs 🤗

[@deion312]

Awesome story sophie!!! So proud of you!

[@RaelanAgle]

So inspiring, isn't it 💛

[@andyhamilton9459]

I’m a year late to the party but the insomnia I have makes consistency very hard to achieve on days with poor sleep. I’ve previously found Sleep Restriction to work and starting it again. Look it up. Love you, Raelan.

[@RaelanAgle]

This sounds intriguing Andy, I can't wait to check it out!

[@freyasolvelind]

Hello loves ❤️ this is so interesting to me - and I have a bit of a challenge to use the concept. I experience CF and have been for about a year (I think) - before then I was pregnant, and so it’s difficult to say when I really started getting tired (because as pregnant you are tired, and as a new mom with a baby that doesn’t sleep, you are tired!) My condition is “mild” in that I can walk, talk, do and so on - but I am absolutely exhausted and have to nap to even get through the day. I have completely stopped working (I’m a business coach) to 100% focus on healing. I can go for long walks, and do stuff during the day without feeling like I have a horrible bill to pay if I do more than I normally would… I am just so fucking tired. So I have no idea where to put my baseline. If I work out (go for a run) I am definitly well fucking tired after, and when I did run regularly I did expirience feeling heavy on the run and then even more tired after.. but when you are so tired all the time, how can you even define when it’s on the side of okay exercise or not? You are talking about scoring it 1-10 depending on how you feel… Like, I consistently just feel exhausted no matter what I do? And that doesn’t feel great. If I stay in bed all day. I am still exhausted. That doesn’t feel good either.

[@lexinichols4057]

Thank you both so much for expertise and experience sharing on this subject! ! So helpful! !!

[@RaelanAgle]

Great to hear Lexi!

[@kathystoner5239]

Wow! Love this! So very informative!

[@RaelanAgle]

So glad you enjoyed this Kathy!

[@mirandaandrea8215]

Wow ! to write down all that stuff to assess yourself sounds hard if your feeling totally wiped out! It makes sense though and I get the logic behind it!

[@Bachconcertos]

I sit down for 3 minutes after walking with groceries for one block and breath deeply which helps to walk the final block to my apartment - if I have too many groceries that no one can carry really I just have them delivered - they have free delivery over $50.

[@lizzieh5284]

Raelan, have you interviewed anyone over 60 who has recovered?

[@finnroohomebrewing]

Very good question id be interested in too. I'm 58 and have CFS for 6 years just can't recover. Take care.

[@finnroohomebrewing]

Ah just found the interview with Ali I think she is 52.

[@marionlow6737]

Thank you for this interview - really helpful. I think I’ve got my baseline after 2 years (I’m 67) but not totally confident about it. Still fear “dips” which for me can last 3-4 months. The “consistency “ message is one I’m going to remember in particular.

[@finnroohomebrewing]

@@marionlow6737 the biggest problem is that things still have to get done, getting on the computer to pay bills, going to appointments, keep the house tidy, holding a conversation, mowing the lawn, cooking meals, volunteering, restorative yoga. Life goes On . One hour yoga very very gental can put me in bed for 2 or 3 days but it's good I think to stretch out, have something that's community based and something bto look forward to. I like to brew beer as a hobby but that is very taxing and blows my base line out of the water. I was told by a sycologest that it's better to do things and crash than not to do things at all. But no Yoga today for me I'm still in crash mode. In a few days I'll recover enough to get around, see something that needs to be done because it won't do it by itself. I like this channel and starting to take a few things on board, but as I say life goes on and things need to get done. Good luck with your journey. Take care.

[@RaelanAgle]

Hey Lizzie - no, not yet I don't think. I've interviewed a few people in their fifties though 🙂

[@Lilzvx]

My biggest issue, is that in the weak points in my cycle I totally mess up everything by adding in new supplements Im not ready for. I know I shouldn't, but at certain times my brain is not in the driver sit...

[@jessicahayward-smith3469]

Thank you so much for this interview, I found it really helpful and informative. Currently experiencing a step backwards in my recovery that I hadn't been expecting and been trying to figure out why, I think it's a combination of things related to sleep, the lockdown we are experiencing but now also wondering if it is partially related to the stationary cycling that I had quite quickly built up to doing 2/3 times per week for 30 minutes - it felt good but maybe the quick build up has not allowed my muscle memory to build and it has backfired on me? Sophie has highlighted the importance of finding your baseline and building gradually, but this is so difficult to do when you have a 15 month old daughter! I feel that the level of activity I do each day is largely dictated to me!

[@RaelanAgle]

Thanks for sharing this, Jessica. And good point about having children, I can’t even imagine what that would be like! A lot is out of your control for sure. I’d love to start interviewing more parents to get some insight on how to manage things with children 😊

[@MD-fh4ub]

Wow..Love this!

[@RaelanAgle]

Great to hear!

[@janerowena4023]

I dont know how I can write lists because I have really bad brain fog so cant remember to write things down. Any suggestions?

[@a.s.7232]

Thanks for this great and very informative Interview. Sophie is a great speaker! 🥰👍🏽 @Raelan maybe...😂 there is the oppurtunity to do a video with all informations you know till now about the Baseline? Actually i understood everything but still struggeling a bit to find my own especially because of my very bad conditions now. Love and hugs, Anika 🌷💝

[@boxerdogmum583]

Ah. So you can still have symptoms when you’ve found your baseline? I feel like I’ve found my baseline but I wondered why I still had some symptoms.

[@RyanTford]

For me, I always feel some symptoms/a little off (like that feeling when you have the flu - you're just not yourself), but certain things like overextending myself can dramatically make things worse/put me in a "crash state". Is that kinda where you are at? Someone else described it to me as "it feels like life is happening all around me and I'm not really there. it's like you're cut off from experiencing everything in front of you." I thought that was a relatively good description (everything feels kinda surreal), but something only those of us with the condition can comprehend. For me it kinda feels like my senses are dulled, especially things like my peripheral vision and motor skills.

[@boxerdogmum583]

@@RyanTford It does feel surreal to me too, but I feel like my senses are heightened. I put a lot of effort in to sitting still and calming things down.

[@RaelanAgle]

Yes I found this explanation helpful too!

[@staceylynnash]

I don’t really understand the part about muscle memory and didn’t get much out of of this, I just wanted to hear about baseline😢😢😢

[@staceylynnash]

In a simplified way.

[@snic5805]

Hi all, I haven’t got a diagnosis for cfs. But I fear I have this, can I ask if anyone has done a long walk or stayed on their feet for over an hour do their legs and feet ache so bad and resting won’t get rid of it, and also feeling exhausted, and lying down doesn’t help, yet mentally not tired? I’m tryna figure out what’s happening to me so I can tell the doctor. I have been told by one doctor that i have muscle de conditioning, another said depression, another said he doesn’t know what’s wrong, so I am very confused.

[@RaelanAgle]

So sorry to hear that you’re going through this, I hope you find your answers soon 💛

[@snic5805]

@@RaelanAgle thanks Raelan, thanks so much for your channel. Your doing great work

[@rebekahnelson600]

Great information! I am not on Instagram. Is there another way to contact Sophie about getting her packet?

[@RaelanAgle]

You can reach her at [e-mail] 😊

[@gailducrest8851]

I have a question. And thanks to both of you fabulous women who want to help the world. Do you consider reading for pleasure to be restorative or an exertion? Same for watching something (pleasant; not news) on TV on your iPad, to be restorative and relaxing or is it using energy as you become mentally/emotionally involved in what you are watching?

[@RaelanAgle]

Hi Gail, great question! Personally, I feel these things are on the spectrum of restorative activities. For me, truly restorative activities are things like meditation, lying down with my eyes closed listening to relaxing music, quiet time in nature, and so forth. I think a combination of all are good (but relaxing TV and reading can't replace the other 'real rest' items)

[@Bachconcertos]

How do u not work if u can end up homeless?

[@Bachconcertos]

I'm not going to take any anti depressants.

[@Bachconcertos]

If I did not work I would be kicked out in the street? Cannot get well in the street.

[@halburke9115]

40 years and nothing has worked for me

[@RaelanAgle]

Hal I'm so sorry to hear that you have been facing this for so long. Sending support and wishing you all the best with your own recovery journey 🌼

[@Bachconcertos]

I do not have any family or friends.

[@samanthadalloo8232]

Thank-you for all of the great info. I don't believe that "workaholic" is ever a positive term. No one should aspire to be a workaholic...my opinion.

[@Truerealism747]

Yes that's what's society.engraines for a reason money 💰 and early demise