Some of us with chronic illnesses find ourselves with quite a bit of spare time. There are only so many repeats of Friends you can watch before getting cabin fever.

I have put together my favourite ways to beat the boredom. Some of them are unique, but it might lead you to your own version of unique. I’ve tried to make these ideas universally accessible for everyone’s ability, but you can adapt them to suit you and your difficulties.

1. Buy some sort of subscription service. It could be a magazine you like or Netflix. Just something to either make you anticipate its arrival or give you access the films and shows you like to watch. You get bonus points if it can mildly be classed as educational too. Gives you a great excuse to hog the TV a little longer.

2. Try a craft or something creative. I am a fan of the adult colouring books, but I know of people who make cards or write. The aim with this one is to give you an outlet to make or create something.

3. Read books, I have always been an avid reader most of my life. I was rather upset when books were becoming far too heavy for me to hold, even with propping them on cushions. So, I bought a Kindle and have never looked back. I do upgrade them pretty regularly, the one I have at the moment is the Kindle Voyage. It’s very light and you can adjust the brightness of the screen. Also, you can get free eBooks, which are great for trying out genres and authors.

4. YouTube. Not that creative to add in but funny videos can be just what you need sometimes. On a more serious note, this TED Talk is a talk by an amazing woman who fights for people with M.E/CFS as she herself is a sufferer. She has a documentary called Unrest which I will leave a link to the Facebook page which has the trailer and updates.

5. Fantasy holiday shopping. I also call this research, haha. I have so many places I would love to visit and experience. Unfortunately, this isn’t possible right now for many a reason. So I look up the most extravagant hotels and resorts and research the local areas. You can also do this with houses for sale.

6. Music and fully relaxing can allow you to feel less bored and more centred. I have breathing techniques that I do and guided meditations that I find useful. I probably need to use them more often.
7. Try crosswords, Sudoku or word searches, anything that makes your brain hurt basically. Easy to do from bed or the sofa.

8. Now I’m not expert or well versed in Games, but I know many play games with friends or without. Apps and all, there is a wide market out there.

9. Talk to people. There are many Facebook groups and some charities run forums for people who will understand where you are right now. Or catch up with friends and family send an email/text if you can spare the energy.

10. Creating photo books. I have done one recently and used Blurb. It was very simple to do and it is a great format to flip through the good times you’ve had.

I hope these ideas help you find something that you enjoy to do in your spare time. Feel free to comment your suggestions.