The Lighter Side of: Forced Rest

Forced rest sounds amazing, but when you are faced with enough pain and illness to force you to stay in bed a lot of the time, it can be quite frustrating.
I hate the fact that my body crashes too often and cannot handle the normalcies of everyday existence.
It is frustrating to have to sit at home - still feeling awful - and feel like I am not being 'productive' enough.
Not only is it difficult for me, but it is difficult on my family and friends, but there is a lot of criticism that comes with being ill as well. There is a lack of understanding, a lot of presuming and assuming, and a lot more stigma than I had expected.
Of course, any illness that is virtually invisible is difficult to comprehend unless others have dealt with those symptoms.

However, what is the point of always feeling guilty about it?

The Lighter Side of forced rest is that your 'job' is to enjoy easier, more relaxing, days. The pain never leaves, there are various symptoms that we are constantly dealing with, so if I am forced to rest, you bet I am going to do whatever I can to enjoy that rest. It often results in reading outside, enjoying the nice weather, throwing on a movie while I fill out paperwork, grabbing an iced drink or hot chocolate on the way to appointments, and lots and lots of puppy cuddles.
When you are forced to be at home and to be consistently ill, we need to take advantage of ANY part of life that is enjoyable. It is not disrespectful to enjoy those little moments, even if there is stigma surrounding it.
Illness has already thrown a life sentence at you, just for being in the body that you have. Why let it destroy all of your happiness for the sake of being less criticized?
Unfortunately, there are people who abuse programs. There are people who lie and exaggerate and make it tougher for those who truly deserve a break. That doesn't mean, however, that everyone is dishonest or abusing the programs that are in place.
If you are stuck, feeling awful and in pain all the time, enjoy yourself whenever you possibly can.