Unfit for duty

~ beetleypete

After posting about being too hot or too cold yesterday, last night saw me having to retire to bed when it was still light outside. I had felt a little strange all day, with aches and pains around my hips and back, and had already taken some pain-killers, to be able to take Ollie for a walk. The unrelenting damp had affected the joints in my hands, and I couldn’t seem to get comfortable, in any position.

By early evening, I also had a splitting headache. I couldn’t concentrate on my nightly news fix on TV, and after cooking and eating the evening meal, I was soon checking the clock, to see if it was too early to call it a day, and collapse into bed. Just before 9 pm, I took some more tablets, apologised to Julie, and went to bed, securing the chinks in the curtains against the light from the garden. I must have had something wrong with me, as I slept right through, without any disturbance, until 8.30 this morning.

I woke up feeling as if tiny evil goblins had spent all night hitting me with their little hammers. Every bone and joint aches, and I am walking like a 100 year-old lady. There is something lurking inside me, some unnamed virus, only staved off by nearly twelve hours of sleep. My head feels wobbly, and barely attached to my body. If it had nuts and bolts securing it, Frankenstein monster-style, I would definitely be tightening them up by a few turns. One thing is certain, I won’t be getting much done today.

In 2013, I wrote this post, about how it feels to be ‘off sick’, when you are not actually working.
https://beetleypete.wordpress.com/2013/02/19/reporting-sick/ After a lifetime of having to call in a sick report, to a manager or company, it feels very different when you only have yourself to answer to. There will be no ‘phone calls from someone supposedly ‘checking on my welfare.’ No callers at the door, to ensure that I am actually at home, and nobody to have to see afterwards, for the ‘back to work interview.’ With no more six-monthly appraisals to endure, I will not have to listen to a list of all my days taken off sick, and whether they were certificated or not. There will be no dire warnings about exceeding acceptable sick time, or perhaps not being paid on the next occasion.

Despite being free of all this, I still feel absolutely awful, so it doesn’t help that much. I will still have to take Ollie out, though for a shorter time than usual. I then have to drive him over to the Vet in Swaffham, for a review of his skin problems. I have also just cancelled my shift at the windmill tomorrow, as I can’t face the stairs, feeling like this. The first time I haven’t turned up in six months, so not bad.

I’ll just have to take more tablets.

23 thoughts on “Unfit for duty”

  1. “I woke up feeling as if tiny evil goblins had spent all night hitting me with their little hammers.” Maybe they were leprechauns who’ve turned their backs on the Rainbow Coalition? You have a humorous way of depicting human agony. I do hope you beat the hell out of those goblins!

    Like

    Reply

    1. That was just how it felt David. I had a vision of those goblins scuttling off as dawn broke.
      Still not too good today, but I am going to stay inside all weekend, and try to break it.
      Regards as always, Pete.

      Like

      Reply

  5. That sounds horrid Pete. Hope you are feeling somewhat better now. Lots of fluid and lots of rest. I have had headaches the last few days but I think it is due to the weather. Low pressure and all that. Can’t shake it, and I feel so tired all the time! Getting older is not fun 😦

    Like

    Reply

  10. I was like this a few weeks ago and its not nice at all 😦 After ringing my GP (I have to with any illness), I was told that a virus was going around and would last a couple of days, to sleep and keep hydrated. I actually slept for a whole day and night with just a few minutes here and there when John woke me to give me my tablets and made me drink lots of water.
    I finally felt better on day 7, but I do have a weakened immune system so hopefully you will feel better in a day or two.
    If you can change the appointment for Ollie then I would advise you to do so as today may be your worst day and you shouldn’t leave home. Can someone else walk Ollie or could he not have a walk at all today?
    You get better soon Pete, get well vibes coming from me (((hug))).

    Like

    Reply

    1. Thanks very much. I hope that your estimate is correct. I have left it a bit late to find someone to walk Ollie, and the Vet appointment is overdue, so I will probably go ahead with both. I will see how I feel later today.
      Thanks for your concern, and the ‘vibes’ too! x

      Like

      Reply

All comments welcome

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.