wabi-sabi
Senior Member
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- small town midwest
In the moment this is exactly what you do, no matter how weird it looks. In the long term, you decide whether you are still able to walk without triggering PEM and use mobility aids if you are not. Perhaps a recumbent bike if not a walk? Many of us eventually need wheelchairs.If you are walking it looks weird to sit on the sidewalk and a bench is unlikely to be there at the right moment.
Remember, that in ME/CFS the high heartrate isn't due to being out of shape. It's a sign that the body isn't able to get enough oxygen to the tissues that need it, due to the illness. Think of the way a person with iron deficiency anemia gets breathless and tired. More running won't help, but iron replacement will. In ME/CFS the breathlessness is often due to orthostatic intolerance which can be helped with salt, fluid, and compression garments.
This may be a sign of PEM for you. (I'm guessing you know what normal pain after a workout feels like and what you're describing is something different.) ME/CFS curtails our lives so much. At some point you may decide to give yourself PEM because there's something you really want or need to do. Yes, you are causing yourself an injury with every PEM, but sometimes in the moment it feels worth it.I wasn't worried about fatigue just the pain after walking.