Getting Ready for the New School Year, Fibromyalgia-Style

Despite dietary changes and the easier schedule of summer, my fibromyalgia has gotten worse in a lot of ways.  Part of it is stress (lots of stress this summer due to family stuff), but most of it no one seems to understand.  I had an upper endoscopy to check on my throat after many, many years of acid reflux, and that landed me in the hospital with severe chest pain.  Turned out, that was my fibro over-reacting to the procedure and my hiatal hernia (new diagnosis) moving or something.

So, here it is, the last day of July, and I'm trying to figure out the new school year:

• My daughter is going off to college this fall (Western Michigan University--go Broncos!), and I am so happy for her, proud of her, and trying not to be sad or worried.  We still have a lot to do to get her ready to move into the dorm and ready for her new year and new life at WMU, especially being in the WMU Bronco Marching Band.
• My son is starting his junior year in high school this year, and it's going to be a busy one.  He's on the lead team for his FIRST robotics team, on the varsity golf team, helping run his school's autonomous car team, and he is learning how to drive.  That's a lot!  With tough classes on top of that, he's going to need a better home routine and set-up to help him thrive.
• My stepson is starting is 8th grade year, second one in our district, and there are so many positives there.  He's switching to band with an amazingly supportive and awesome band teacher (Mr. Stout is one of the finest band directors I have ever had the honor of knowing), in honors classes, and getting the supports he needs at school.  Thing is, we need to tighten up the home routine to make sure he gets the support at home that he needs.

So, that means it's time to re-evaluate home schedules, chore charts, all of it.  In reflecting on last spring's difficulties with both boys in terms of school and grades and managing their time, I think it's time to bring back a stricter home schedule and definite dinner time.  Here's our family schedule as of now.

Some nights, a set dinner time of 6:30 will not work out, but I think it will most of the time.  One of the problems with last year was that I let my stepson spend too long after school de-stressing, so he ended up doing his homework later in the evening which 1) stressed him out right before bed, making sleep difficult, and 2) made it so he didn't have enough time for making his YouTube videos or spending more time with his dad.  I have a plan for cutting rest time short at 4 p.m. (it involves many alarms), and the boys will be re-arranging their desks in their rooms so that they can more easily do their homework there and not on their beds (where they often would fall asleep in the middle of it last year).

Since I'm the parent who's home, it is my job to keep them on task, hold them accountable, and make sure they get play time in there somewhere, too.  I also have to manage my paperwork for my disability, financials, family stuff, everything.  That schedule is for me as much as it is for them so that I make sure to spend some time on chores every day and not lose track of time (easy to do in the afternoons as the pain ramps up).

The chore charts have been re-done and updated to not include my daughter, the schedules have been tightened up and updated, and now I have to clear the table (again), inventory what everyone needs for school and then buy new materials, have the boys inventory what fits and what doesn't and buy new clothes, and still unpack the basement.  Tons to do in not a lot of time!