What to do when you have to lift too many boxes?
Sunday, July 6, 2008 13:31You might be wondering why I’ve been silent the last few weeks. The truth is, among a ton of work projects and other events, I’ve also moved! I packed up all my junk and office supplies and am slowly settling them all into a new home/office location, just a block away from the lovely lake merritt in oakland.
I always forget how mentally, physically and emotionally draining moving can be, so now I am going to take the time to remind you, dear readers! Please, if you have previous arm and hand injuries, do not attempt to move most of your things all on your lonesomes.
I decided to be brave, and rather than beg for the kindness and assistance of my friends (again), I hired a moving company. However, I also decided it would help me save some cash by packing and moving as much of my stuff as possible. It seems I spent about a week, packing, lifting, and moving boxes–and by the time the movers arrived, I was more than happy to let them lift everything and pay them as much as they liked with a fat tip on the side.
Then I slept for two days straight. I was a serious amount of exhausted. After I slept, I was in serious pain for a couple days, downing ibuprofen and Airborne and various comforting liquid foods, and applying ice packs, until I could walk down the hallway straight again and get back to work as usual.
So the long winded moral of the story– be aware of what your body is used to, set reasonable goals and limits for yourself. If you spend most of your time typing away at a desk in relative peace and comfort, it’s not reasonable to expect your body to spend several days on the go, lifting heavy objects, and stressing out.
Another thing — it’s okay to ask for help sometimes. It’s even okay to pay for help. It might seem expensive, but think of it as an investment you get a hidden return from — if you pay people to do your hard work, you’ll be rewarded in comfort and peace of mind. That’s important, because your furniture and material things aren’t worth nearly as much, if your body’s not in any order to use or enjoy them.
So that’s my wizened advice for the week. Next week I’m headed off into parts unknown, for a camping trip beyond the intertubes and webosphere and blogonet, but I’ll be back in August.
Take care of yourselves 
ps. Since I’m on hiatus, I’m interested in publishing guest articles to keep the blog updated. If anyone has interesting personal anecdotes, good advice or information about any kind of repetitive stress injury or how to cope with them, you’re eligible to contribute. Send me a few sentences describing what you’d like to write about, and I’ll let you know whether it’s a good fit. I unfortunately can’t pay anything at this time but you’ll get your very own byline and a link back to your site. Email submission ideas to amy at inkweave.com.
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