Naomi the Wordsmith

My health conditions mean I struggle with pain every day. Some days it’s less bad, other days I can’t get out of bed. To keep my spirits up, and get through the bad days a little easier, these are the things I do on days like today…

Watching TV isn’t one of my remedies

This is personal – my parents find TV great for when they’re feeling rough and need to relax. It’s something you can switch off to.

But for me, it’s too passive to distract me from the pain. Too often I’m looking at the screen, but not registering what’s going on. The pain keeps dragging my attention away from the plot twist everyone else in the room is enthusing about.

I use TV, movies and podcasts as something to have in the background as I’m drawing. A sound to break up the silence.

Read a thrilling book

If the pain is really bad, it’s too hard to concentrate – I get sucked out of what I’m reading.

But most of the time, it’s only a bit bad and I can devour whatever my current favourite book is.

Reading hacks your mind like very few things can. I can feel what the character feels, see what they see, touch what they touch, hear what they hear, smell what they smell, and taste what they taste.

It’s so immersive and engages all the senses. I can feel things beyond the pain.

Get artistic

I love drawing and colouring when I’m as happy as a fish swimming among the delighted clams.

When I’m sick or in pain, it’s a great distraction. Something tactile for me to do and I get the reward of seeing some (generally crappy) art that I made myself!

There’s something so personal and invigorating about being creative.

Be like Sherlock and solve some puzzles

Picture this.

You’re curled up on the sofa. Propped up by fluffy cushions, nestled in an expansive, soft blanket. Sipping your favourite hot beverage.

And slowly, slowly, you’re making progress on a puzzle. A crossword. Jigsaw. Logic. Sudoku.

Every step takes you closer to the solution. And when you’ve solved it, you see how much time has passed. The satisfaction of a mystery solved.

For me, it lets me forget the pain.

Play a fun game

Gaming is the best distraction for me. It has a multisensory experience like reading. But I don’t have to put as much effort into it. This means I can play even on my worst days.

When I’m well enough to sit in my wheelchair, I play on my PS5 (at the moment I’m channelling my inner Star Wars with Jedi Survivor). If I’m stuck in bed, I play mobile games on my iPad (my favourite is Stardew Valley).

Even when I’m having a terrible pain day, video games let me be a hero. An adventurer of strange new worlds.

And when I need to, I can always harness my frustration at the pain into the game boss I’m fighting!

The goal is this…

Find something besides the pain to focus on. There’s always something good to enjoy, even on the worst days.

And with that in mind, I say goodbye for now, as I pick up the controller and become a Jedi, lightsaber-whacking the pain away…