{"id":33962,"date":"2023-08-09T08:07:15","date_gmt":"2023-08-09T07:07:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/?p=33962"},"modified":"2023-08-09T08:44:09","modified_gmt":"2023-08-09T07:44:09","slug":"ffion-struck-down-by-me-vax-uplifted-by-poetry-card-making","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/ffion-struck-down-by-me-vax-uplifted-by-poetry-card-making\/","title":{"rendered":"Ffion: Struck down by ME &#038; vax, uplifted by poetry &#038; card-making"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><strong>Struck down by ME and vaccinations &#8211; Uplifted by poetry and card-making<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>A lover of the outdoors, and a literature and languages graduate, Ffion&#8217;s ME deteriorated after a COVID vaccination.<\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-40388 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Ffion-cards-Summer-fun.jpg?resize=225%2C300&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"225\" height=\"300\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Ffion-cards-Summer-fun.jpg?resize=225%2C300&amp;ssl=1 225w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Ffion-cards-Summer-fun.jpg?resize=113%2C150&amp;ssl=1 113w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Ffion-cards-Summer-fun.jpg?w=720&amp;ssl=1 720w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 225px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 225\/300;\" \/>Her life was already restricted, though she had found a release through writing poetry (often humorous) and making cards, and was occasionally able to enjoy short walks in nature. The vaccination changed that. Now, she says:<\/p>\n<p><em>Must lie down, darkened room, eye-mask on, in silence, 5-7 hours a day.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Generally spend, daily, 15-17 hours lying in\/on bed.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>When upright for c. 1hr in house, very limited &#8211; able to:<\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>make 1-2 cards a day, on a good day<\/li>\n<li>type a couple of emails<\/li>\n<li>write and upload a poem<\/li>\n<li>listen to a little Audible (unable to read book etc. since 2010 and unable to hold face-to-face or phone conversation for more than a couple of minutes&#8230;. Oh, the irony&#8230;. and me a literature and languages graduate&#8230;.)<\/li>\n<li>watch c. 20-30 mins of &#8220;easy&#8221; TV in evening &#8211; nothing fast-paced, active, bright\/flashy etc and no more French films for me, nor sub-titled ones, etc. etc.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 style=\"padding-left: 160px;\"><strong>To sum up<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 120px;\">When able to do so very little<br \/>\nIt&#8217;s a struggle &#8230;<br \/>\nTo fill in an endless day &#8230;<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 120px;\">&#8220;Activity&#8221; must be<br \/>\nMeticulously measured &#8230;<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 120px;\">Added?<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 120px;\">No, divided &#8230;.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 120px;\">Then &#8230;<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 120px;\">Taken away &#8230;<\/p>\n<p>Ffion&#8217;s husband manages her poetry blog. Each poem is accompanied by a carefully chosen image and she has noted the important role he plays in her life and creativity.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"padding-left: 80px;\"><strong>Thank you to the good man in my life<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 80px;\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-40391 size-medium alignleft lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/love-800.jpg?resize=300%2C117&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"117\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/love-800.jpg?resize=300%2C117&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/love-800.jpg?resize=150%2C58&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/love-800.jpg?resize=768%2C299&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/love-800.jpg?w=800&amp;ssl=1 800w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/117;\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 80px;\">Lying, quietly, in comfy bed &#8230;<br \/>\nRoom bathed in monochromatic light &#8230;<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 80px;\">Gradually, the world awakens &#8230;<br \/>\nAdvancing daylight vanquishes night.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 80px;\">And then appears &#8230;. The Good Man &#8230;<br \/>\nHis presence a balm to my burnt-out brain &#8230;<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 80px;\">&#8220;How was your night?&#8221;, he gently asks &#8230;<br \/>\nAnd day &#8211; if not Life &#8211; begins again &#8230;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Ffion marks Severe ME Day 2023 with<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/a-life-in-a-day-a-poem-by-ffion-for-severe-me-day\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">A life in a day<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Read more poems by Ffion<\/strong>: <a href=\"http:\/\/ffionoriginalpoems.blogspot.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ffionoriginalpoems<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>See Ffion&#8217;s cards on Facebook<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ffion.cards.1\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ffion.cards.1<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Struck down by ME and vaccinations &#8211; Uplifted by poetry and card-making &nbsp; A lover of the outdoors, and a literature and languages graduate, Ffion&#8217;s ME deteriorated after a COVID vaccination. Her life was already restricted, though she had found &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/ffion-struck-down-by-me-vax-uplifted-by-poetry-card-making\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33962","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p5qkYK-8PM","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33962","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33962"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33962\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":40406,"href":"https:\/\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33962\/revisions\/40406"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33962"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33962"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wames.org.uk\/cms-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33962"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}