How to Find Your Baseline for M.E./CFS Recovery (Stop the Push-Crash Cycle)

Timestamps:
0:03 - Introduction to the CFS Health Recovery Podcast
0:19 - Topic of the session: Baseline and its importance
1:06 - Explanation of Baseline: Doing what you can without worsening symptoms
1:20 - The push-crash cycle in chronic illness
2:00 - The emotional and physical effects of pushing and crashing
3:10 - Why you shouldn't wait for energy: Focus on stamina and capacity
4:00 - Consistency over intensity for long-term success
5:00 - Breaking the push-crash cycle with Baseline
6:00 - Maintaining progress and health over time
7:40 - How energy increases as health improves
9:50 - Identifying the “good tired” feeling as a sign of progress
11:00 - Micromanaging your recovery: Pros and cons
13:05 - Creating an effective daily routine for recovery
15:00 - Final thoughts: “Less is more initially, not forever
Here are 4 ways we can help:
1. Join our free community to meet others, be inspired, and get more recovery info - groups/cfshealthrecoveryhub
2. Watch the newly released past members "Guest Panel" Workshop where they share their top 5 recovery secrets - www.cfshealth.com/guestpanelreplay
3. Get our free most popular recovery trainings:
- Find your baseline - Stop pushing and crashing - www.cfshealth.com/baseline
- The 3 stages of recovery and what to do in each one - www.cfshealth.com/the3stages
- The "9 do's and don’ts" PDF - to decrease symptoms and improve energy - www.Cfshealth.com/pdf
4. Want help professionally with a step-by-step recovery plan specific to you? Fill out the application form and the team will send you the details - www.cfshealth.com/form

[@joannebate-shawcross4653]

♥️ Thank you that's me to the tee... You have hit it on the nail 100% it's hard to keep a level..

[@deanablythe9394]

Thank you for sharing.

[@patlaing4489]

Thank you

[@CFSHealth]

You're welcome

[@setitheredcap2677]

I do not have a baseline. I have tried so many ratios and variations and am still constantly crashing. I can make breakfast and then barely be able to move. I’ve taken every piece of advice I can, and the cycle is still endless.

[@wilmamacmillan7760]

Wonder if you can prepare part of your breakfast the night before, then when it's time for breakfast, you don't have to do too much. Do a little bit at a time in anything you do.

[@hshfyugaewfjkKS]

@@wilmamacmillan7760 I have done this with dinner. I will chop up whatever needs to be and gather ingredients from cupboards, then give myself a rest for an hour or two, then finish dinner. Of course the dishes sit in the sink for 2-3 days, but you know, you gotta start somewhere. It is hard to manage some days for sure. It can be challenging to see how we can possibly break things down when we feel like we are only doing one thing.

[@wilmamacmillan7760]

@hshfyugaewfjkKS That sounds like a good start ... do what you can without making yourself feel worse. It takes time and you have to celebrate the little wins each day or week. You need to progress very very slowly so you don't overwelm your central nervous system. I have done Toby's program and this is what they teach ... less is more initially. Baby steps, seriously.

[@maiqueashworth]

I sympathise. I think everyone has their own situation, so we can't really know what will help someone else. But we can make suggestions. Life has its own way of doing what it wants regardless of what we do. My experience in similar situations is that it took me a long time to work out that whenever I started going backwards, having crashes, it always meant I was doing too much, so I had no choice but to dial it back. Sometimes we think "but last week I could this easily!" and we simply can't understand why it happened. My experience is that firstly, it's very difficult to actually judge how tiring an activity is. Secondly, fatigue gradually builds up over time. So we might be able to make breakfast for a whole week, then on the eighth day, suddenly feel drained after doing it. We have to then find a way of resting more. Maybe an easier breakfast, or get help. It's incredibly difficult sometimes. And then sometimes we chat on the phone with a friend and really enjoy it, but then find we're shattered the next day. What helped me was learning to recognise this and rest. And it's really difficult to do because I'm driven. About 18 months ago I was desperate, and sometimes couldn't get out of bed. Thoughts of ending it all came into my mind (though I don't know how I would have done it🤣🤣). But now I can walk for hours every day, go sprinting, carry heavy things, I'm learning how to do a handstand. I'm really enjoying life. Nevertheless I've been overdoing it recently, and was overtired this afternoon. The difference now is that I know all I've got to do is rest adequately. I dozed for maybe an hour in the afternoon and felt well again, though I know that even though I was back carrying things, I'll need to rest more than normally to get back my full oomph. My heartfelt thanks to Toby and team. Actually I attribute my recovery to you, who taught me that I can fully recover, and techniques to do it. I wish everyone else who's suffering this horrific illness, made all the worse by not knowing what is happening to us and other people thinking we're just being difficult, a full recovery!

[@jenniferfoster2200]

You sound like me! It's crazy hard.

[@jimmiehellstrom386]

I think there’s also some help (other than working primarily/solely on the baseline) with auriculotherapy. Thoughts?

[@LornaAnnMcCabe]

How do you get up and dressed when you have been bedbound, should I try and get up in the morning ?

[@janerowena4023]

I get up and get dressed later on.

[@wilmamacmillan7760]

What about trying to do a little movement every day while you are in bed ie lift your arms up, that's it. Do it again the next day and build on this. Before you know it, you will be able to get out of bed without crashing. I have done the program and this is what they teach, a little bit at a time adds up. Hope this helps.

[@hshfyugaewfjkKS]

@@wilmamacmillan7760 Where was your baseline when you started the program? I'm stuck at a 1-3 hour window of daily energy.

[@wilmamacmillan7760]

@hshfyugaewfjkKS Hi, I was a somewhat functioning person with chronic fatigue. I could get up, get dressed, make some meals, drive to appointments and sometimes go grocery shopping with my husband.

[@jog5289]

@@wilmamacmillan7760 Thank you for sharing this.