The Work-From-Bed Plan: How to Earn Even When You Can’t Work

I haven’t been well lately. I’ve been having dizzy spells and feeling like I’m about to pass out. It’s like the sensation of being on a rocking boat, even when I’m lying in bed at night, making it hard for me to sleep. It’s been alarming, to say the least. 

I almost went to the urgent care a couple times, but didn’t because the lightheadedness passed before I made up my mind. Yesterday morning I finally got to see my doctor. With the (basically nonexistent) state of our healthcare system, it took me almost a month to get an appointment. Turns out, I have double middle ear infections with fluid in my ears causing the vertigo.

After my appointment I picked up a prescription for antibiotics. Then I came home and took a long nap. Last night I slept like a rock for the first time in weeks. It is amazing to wake up when my alarm rings, rather than tossing and turning at 3am like I’m weathering a storm at sea!

The odd thing about these ear infections is they haven’t caused any pain. Usually I know if I have an infection because it hurts! There are also usually sounds, like wind whooshing in my ears, if they’re infected. This time I had none of that, so I’ve been worried I was about to have a stroke or something. Maybe because it’s the middle ear it’s different? I don’t know. The first sign something was amiss was when I was talking to our neighbors in their driveway a couple weeks ago and all of a sudden it looked like the driveway stood up like a wall and I felt like I was going to pass out.

I am relieved because the day before that I took a short, easy 2 mile walk to the lake and felt like I was about to die during and afterwards. I worried I was so out of shape, but it turns out I was just sick. I am also feeling grateful, not for living here in America since the healthcare is so bad and expensive, but because I have the freedom to come home and rest instead of having to go back to work or beg for time off. (I am still working on getting my husband to move to Italy for its free healthcare and college).

Also, my stores made enough money while I was at the doctor to pay for the bloodwork and exam, so that’s a load off my mind. Since I was in the office at long last the doctor decided to run a thyroid panel and see how well my Hashimoto’s treatment is working.

While I was sitting the waiting room I read a prescient article in the Wall Street Journal about how the economy is increasingly dependent on the richest Americans. The vast majority of people, even 6-figure earners, report living paycheck-to-paycheck, relying on things like payday loans to get by, and have no savings to cover emergencies like unexpected doctor visits.

Of course, I'm still a mom, which means I don't get any real days "off". I still have to supervise my kid's driver's education, put dinner on the table, ferry our pets to the vet, oversee the exterminator, etc, etc, but at least money is coming in while I do those things as well as take time for self-care. I am so thankful I my stores are bringing in extra income while I live my life.

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