"Take it easy" tips

[MrsSlocombe]

I am still in my first trimester, so I am seeing the fertility doctor who helped me conceive (just by prescribing pills - Clomid), and because of a uterine cyst, he has told me to "take it easy."  The guy is so terse that I had to call back to get even basic parameters as to what this meant.  I can't lift heavy things and should bend at the knee if I do need to lift something.  Also, no sex.  That's the only information I could get.

Do you have any tips for what to do and not do when vaguely "taking it easy," and/or practical tips for how to make this more doable?

I'll start us off with a tip I discovered today:  tongs.  I have the general idea that I'm not supposed to bend over much, so I am using tongs to retrieve light, non-fragile objects from the floor and low shelves.

[Adaline'sMama]

To me, "take it easy" means not pushing yourself to the point where you are exhausted. When you are cleaning the house, sit down and take a 10 minute break every 30-45 minutes instead of going, going, going for 2-3 hours and then taking a two hour break and watching a movie. When you start to get stressed out, stop. Stop whatever it is that is stressing you out. For example, if you are making dinner and you burn something and so you start making something to replace it in a hurry so that your meal is complete, just dont- its okay to just have one less item in your meal that night instead of running around like a chicken with your head cut off for 30 minutes. Just try to stay relaxed and dont overwork yourself.

[DoubleDouble]

Another meaning of "take it easy" for me - don't do things that won't exhaust you but require a big burst of energy or effort. Don't lift a 20 lb bag of veggies, that kind of thing. It's not exhausting, but not a smart thing to do. (Btw, I had a cyst from Clomid and it slowly went away, thank goodness.) One of the examples of what not to do is a story told by my mom - one of her friends did the spring cleaning and decided to push a wardrobe away from the wall, to clean behind it...

I pretty much acted like I was broken, even though I was healthy. We grew some veggies in a community garden, and I would have taken those pumpkins home, no problem - but I asked my dh to carry them. Or, carry 1/4th of the usual weight for groceries. More repetition, less effort, that kind of stuff.

Edited to add: if you feel tired, lie down for a few minutes. Even if you don't nap, lying down for 15 minutes is refreshing.