My name is Suzanne ,I’m a 62 years old retired Registered Nurse that have now been living in pain due to a work related accident sustained in 1987. I’ve developed chronic pain & fibromyalgia following that accident. In 1991 while working as a Community Nurse, I contracted Rubella then developed Epstein Barr mononucleosis, and was in contact with a Coxsackie virus (that almost killed my husband & killed my 2 birds), then I developed ME/CFS . I was bedridden from 1991 to 2001. My blood pressure was about 70/40 during those years, I was so sick the doctor had to do house calls for over 10 years. Today I’m still in bed about 80-95% of the time. I do my best to manage my energy’s envelopes as well as I can but it’s not always easy when your nickname used to be “Speedy Gonzales”. Last year my life was so painful and hard to manage with too many symptoms to elaborate on, that I asked my doctor for some help with a plan with my ” End of life ” protocol. As I’m still young and eager to live, my request was to put an end to my inhumane suffering (as I’ve never been depressed or suicidal in my life) but my constant suffering just killed my joyful spirit after so many years of being disabled & sick. Of course in Canada you can request the “end of life care” but it does not mean you are going to get it. Together with my wonderful GP we’ve decided to rule out others possible health issues that could have made my life miserable and I decided to ride the wave for a little while longer. I’ve decided that I would retain the “end of life plan” as an option if I ever get too sick and have no quality of life in a that awful future that ME/CFS has kept me in for too many years. Florence Nightingale’s is the patron of Nurses, she had Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and is honored by those suffering from that disease. I wonder if being born on the same day as her, becoming a nurse myself had anything to do with my downfall? I don’t think so but it’s food for thought.
If you are currently experiencing a crisis, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
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