I’ve slept through Christmas. I shiver and pull the covers over me; sweat, and throw the covers off. My head bobs with nausea as I hobble to the bathroom to pee. The cats stay away, though at some point I hear them sliding across the living room floor, chasing that knitted ball with the bell. They sound far away. I sink into scalding bathwater—steam rising around me, my skin red—but it doesn’t feel anywhere near hot enough. I eat a deviled egg. Hear the glass of seltzer fizzing on my nightstand as I turn onto my right hip to relieve my left. Awake time for the day: 45 minutes. Sleep time: 20 hours. In-between these two: three hours of semi-comatose wondering, wondering if I’ll ever get back a bit of the life I once had.
*from “Sick Notes: The Story Inside the Illness: Memoir Meets Case Study”
- by amymilios.blog
Link to Master’s Thesis on ProQuest
United States
