Hey Joselita...

Thanks!!! Firstly - the insomnia only occured after I got RSD... the problem being that every time I fell asleep my arm would touch the bed and the pain would wake me up... and as the RSD spread so did the lack of sleep (unfortunalt I haven't learnt how to levitate so this can go on for hours...). It's worse now because of having to be turned etc at night as I have basically no movement at all (well I can move my shoulders and I have slight movement in my neck and i can move my wrists a little bit but thats it) so everytime I'm turned it hurts so much!!! that then you have to wait hours for the pain to calm down enough to sleep etc etc....

Unis. Well... I am at once of the best in the country - I needed AAA to go to there..- for psychology it is number one or something. Anyway - the way it works is I take 5 courses - controversies in psychology (a seminar), effective education (1 lecture), mind and behaviour (1 lecture), core skills for social scientists (1 lecture) and laboratory skills (1 lecture). This is the minimum I can take to get the credits. I can take new units next term - instead of my GAU (generally available unit - which is effective education). I have to take all of these in order to get enough credits to finish the year.. (something like 60 credits a year are needed). I am full time and live on campus. I have lots of support from learning support etc - note takers, academic support workers (who do library stuff/ type essays/ gather resources/ hand in work etc) and I have a full time live in personal assistant to manage all my personal care needs.

I think the main issue with the exhaustion is that it has come on quite suddenly.. I'm used to fatigue with the RSD but not this type of bone dead weariness where doing ANYTHING is exaughsting. I know what you mean about the fuzzy headiness though! i hate that.... it just really frustrates me!! just because before RSD I would have kept up easily!

I used to take things like amytriptylene to help regulate my sleep patterns but stopped it because of side effects. I have been thinking about it recently and I think that the main reason for my exhaustion is that I was lazy over the summer. I had paced up to full time etc and then over the summer spent alot of time in bed (I damaged my neck so had to be flat for quite long periods) and so before I started uni I had only been sitting upwards for perhaps 4 hours a day... (even though I'm reclined it's still tough!) and suddenly going to sitting up for about 16 was just abit much - and to avoid a flare up I have just been plodding - so I think that's why I'm now so tired as my body is trying to tell me to slow down!!

I think you're right and stress does play a large part in why I am feeling so tired.... I have a huge workload and being a perfectionist I won't let anything slide because not only do I want the essay to be done, I want it to be the best. (therefore it really does take me about a million times as long).

Tonight I have decided that I have had enough. I am going out with a friend to have coffee and just chill for a couple of hours and when I get back I will then go to bed. instead of what i normally do which is get into bed and start working....... (its really bad I tend to sleep for abit, work for abit, sleep for abit, work for abit all night).

it must be really tough bringing up 2 kids on your own and having the silly RSD!!! It's hard enough being a teenager with it! I couldn't handle the responsibility!

by the way - lol on the long posts... I do the same! Oh.. and I LOVED Frogger the game - it was such an inspired game! it was brilliant! I think I may still have a copy. did you finish it? i finished everything but that blasted forest level with the killer squirrels and bees!

Thankyou though!! lol..... its nice having a load of "RSD mums" (seriously.. my mum is great, but try and explain to her why I'm struggling and she's like..... well you knew you would...

thanks! and I agree - Mark is a mother hen!!

Rosie xxx