Amanda Shortman - she/her

Amanda, a white woman with long, dark auburn hair is sitting wrapped up in a burnt orange winter coat, with a red and white keffiyeh wrapped around her neck, ans a yellow blanket over her lap. She is wearing sunglasses. There are some plant pots behind her.

Day 12

Today I'm grateful I managed a quick roll down the road to catch Pokémon with my family.

My fatigue is high. It wasn't a wise decision physically.

But I *needed* to do this for my mental health. I've been looking forward to this weekend for weeks.

#40DaysOfGratitude

Screenshot from the Garmin Connect app which shows 527 intensity minutes for the past 7 days. The weekly target is automatically set at 150, so this is 3x as much as the target. There is a graphic that shows the target was met on the second day of the week.

People who believe ME/CFS is psychosomatic despite all the evidence 🙄: "you're just deconditioned and afraid of exercise!"

My body: wildly exceeds the weekly target for intensity minutes set by my Garmin simply by existing!

This was a relatively quiet week for me too, with a LOT of resting.

I used to spend hours walking in the woods, now I spend hours looking out the window or sitting in the garden. It's my sanctuary 🥰

And this magazine is reminding me to keep hold of my dream of a garden full of life all year round, with wildlife visiting too. One day... 💭

#40DaysOfGratitude

I just about manage to add a few bits each year, and then get way behind and the weeds take over 🤦‍♀️

But I'm still immensely grateful for the outdoor space. As someone who is mostly housebound, my garden allows me to still connect with nature and the wheel of the year as the seasons come and go 😊

We've been here since Summer 2020, and trying to make both front and back gardens as accessible, low maintenance, and beautiful as possible with next to no energy and very limited finances feels like a Sisyphean task 😫

Do I wish Alan Titchmarsh and co would surprise me one day with a garden makeover? Oh yes 😂 Because with all my health issues, it is really hard to make my dream come true.

The March 2026 edition of Gardener's World Magazine that has a photo of Monty Don behind some tulips and a free packet of Zinnia seeds on the front.

40 Days of Gratitude | Day 11

Today I am grateful I was able to treat myself to a gardening magazine 🥰 which reminds me just why I am working so hard to make @ourgardengetaway.bsky.social the best it can be.

It's Pokèmon Go Tour Day!!! I am soooooo excited 😂

The inside of a greenhouse which has potting and growing benches around each side. There are several large pots on the floor filled with compost with multiple tiny lavender plants in each one.

40 Days of Gratitude | Day 10

Today I am grateful for our greenhouse. It meant that we could pot the lavender plug plants I ordered even though it was raining. Again.

These will all hopefully grow and merge into each other to create solid plants for popping in spaces we have around the garden.

I have a wicked migraine today - this usually happens after a meltdown. But nothing is gonna stop me spending some time catching Pokemon with my boy ☺️

#40DaysOfGratitude

So knowing we have this to look forward to again tonight to help reset and have fun together is helping me a lot. Because you know I am ruminating on this, right? Autism truly sucks sometimes.

The reason I am particularly grateful for this today is because last night was hard. O had a meltdown, I tried to help, inadvertently made things worse, and ended up having my own meltdown. It was rough!

And for the main event this weekend, we decided to treat ourselves to the full pass, so we can enjoy every second of it. My wheelchair battery will be charged and we will be heading out around the village. O will even be able to add some extra steps to his @oscarscharityextravaganza challenge 😉

This week there's an event, so we've been setting up a party each evening, so we can complete some field research and defeat some 5 star raids (of which there have been plenty). We only just discovered how to do that with just the 3 of us, and it is such a thrill to catch those big ones!

A screenshot of the Pokemon Go app showing 3 characters standing across the road from a blue gym and a yellow gym. There is a Stonjourner, a Littleo, and a Torchic waiting to be caught. One of the characters is a female with long hair, a red scarf, black puffy vest over a white tshirt, and jeans. Another character is a male wearing a black tshirt, black short trousers, a blue sleeping cap, and green glasses. The third character is wearing a white hoodie and jeans.

40 Days of Gratitude | Day 9

Today I'm grateful that I can play Pokemon Go with my family, even from my bed!!

As you can see, there are 2 gyms right across the road from our house, plus 2 pokestops, and plenty of pokemon to catch. So even on my bad days, I can still join in the fun with Thea and O

They trust me to know what is and isn't normal for me. This should be the norm, but sadly isn't. And the impact it has had on my quality of life (QoL) is huge.

#40DaysOfGratitude

His response was not only yes, but he also told me to book a follow up for after the blood tests to discuss everything.

My GP surgery treat me as an active and knowledgeable partner in my own care.

I messaged the surgery this week to say, "As I'm due to have blood tests for my annual review (due to some meds I'm on) in March, could we please add in FBC, thyroid, and vitamin D as for months I've been struggling to stay awake every afternoon, and this is different to my usual ME/CFS fatigue."

He's currently off work, so my care was transferred to another GP. He also gave me 30 minutes and in a single appointment referred me for both a CT scan of my head (due to denting around an old injury), and an ultrasound of my foot (due to ongoing pain since last June).

He referred me to Cardiology after years of battling to be referred back. He also referred me to ENT, after years of never getting around to discussing my ongoing dizziness with anyone. And he helped me prepare for my Gynaecology appointment, which helped me get the care I needed. He was wonderful.

Last year I was under the care of my favourite GP ever. He always gave me a 30 minute appointment, and not only allowed me to cover multiple issues in one session, but also ended up helping Thea a couple of times too when I happened to mention she was struggling!

We've been with this surgery since 2020. It's the 8th surgery I've been with throughout my life, and is by far the best. And it got even better when they changed their policies recently to ensure patients could see the same GP as often as possible, to ensure better continuity of care ☺️

Cream text on a pale green background that says "The differencs a good doctor makes to QOL"

40 Days of Gratitude | Day 8

Today I'm grateful to have such a good GP surgery. I know from experience that the kind of care I now receive is so rare. And as I lay in bed, unable to function *yet again*, I'm grateful for that.

Graphic from Action for ME promoting the ME Friends Online Forum, open to adults in the UK living with ME. Photo in bottom half shows a person using a mobile phone with a QR code to the forum sign up page in right corner. Text in top half details the forums support. Action for ME logo in top right.

💻 Join our ME Friends Online forum & connect with others who truly understand.

Our friendly forum is open to users aged 18 & over from the UK. There’s a range of topics being discussed, including a section for games!

Sign up & read the Terms of Use 👇

www.actionforme.org.uk/sign-up/

Day 7

Today I'm grateful that Sprite is playing with a toy 😃

You have no idea how much I have tried to get Snowy and Sprite into toys. They need the stimulation. But they have always been so suspicious 😂

So seeing her play, even tentatively, with this today made me so proud.

#40DaysOfGratitude

She is always in my corner, no matter what. And so today, as I lay in bed barely able to function, I am grateful for her. Please help me tell her how amazing she is.

Plus, isn't she bloody gorgeous? 😍

#40DaysOfGratitude

And I *hate* that I can't support her. She supports me so much. But she loves me so deeply, so faithfully, and so unconditionally, that she refuses to let me harm myself to make herself more comfortable.

Normally I try to push through for events like this. Because they are important.

And because Thea struggles so much herself - she is disabled too, remember.

But anyone with ME/CFS knows that some days you simply cannot push any more. Today is that for me.

Today is that day. Because she did the food shop alone, *and* she's taking O to his orthodontist appointment (an hr away) on her own.

Despite being at her most vulnerable emotionally & mentally right now (her hormone blocker is due soon). Because my body just won't today 😫

Thea, a white non binary trans woman with long dark red hair is laying on her front with her head and chest raised resting the weight on her arms. Her hands are clasped in front of her. She has red lipstick on and a green lingerie top and black lace gown. Her bails are painted red. The bed is covered in grey velour. This is from a boudoir shoot.

40 Days of Gratitude | Day 6

Today I am grateful for @theajane.bsky.social 🥰

I know, I know, Thea has been mentioned most days already. But I truly am grateful for her every single day, and she deserves a day just for herself.