Energy and pacing

Why fatigue happens

Fatigue is one of the most common and most underestimated parts of inflammatory disease, and pregnancy and broken sleep with a newborn add to it. It responds to planning rather than pushing through. If broken sleep is a large part of it, see sleep and inflammatory arthritis, which covers when poor sleep signals active disease and what actually treats insomnia.

The four P's

Occupational therapists often teach four simple habits:

• Prioritise. Decide what actually matters today and let the rest wait. Not everything needs doing, and not all by you.
• Pace. Break tasks into smaller pieces, alternate heavy and light jobs, and rest before you are exhausted rather than after.
• Plan. Put demanding tasks in the part of the day you have most energy, and build rest into the plan on purpose.
• Position. Set things up so you can sit rather than stand, keep what you use often within reach, and avoid awkward postures that cost energy.

Building rest into the day

• Short, regular rests beat one long collapse at the end of the day.
• Sit for tasks you would normally stand for, such as food prep, folding, or showering with a shower stool.
• Accept and organise help: a shared list makes it easier for others to step in.

A simple pacing plan

For a few days, jot down what you do and how tired each task leaves you. Patterns show up fast: a heavy morning that wipes out the afternoon, or three big jobs stacked together. Then spread the heavy tasks across the week, put a rest between them, and stop a task while you still have a little left rather than running to empty. Pacing is not about doing less forever, it is about doing it in a way you can repeat tomorrow.

Nights with a newborn

Sleep will be broken for a while. Protect energy where you can: keep night feeds low-effort and set up at cot-side, take turns if you can, and rest when the baby rests rather than saving chores for then. Tell your team if fatigue is severe or suddenly worse, since active disease and treatable causes such as anaemia or thyroid problems can look like ordinary tiredness.