I don’t often write about it, but I suffer from ME/CFS (which I’ve had for 30 years). It’s one of the reasons that I sketch the way I do (in short bursts, and fairly quickly), and also why sketching is so important to me (more of this in a minute).
When I started sketching the restoration work at Cliffe Castle I didn’t know how often I’d be able to get up to the park or how much I’d be able to do, because my condition is variable and unpredictable, but it turned out that I managed quite a lot. And somewhere along the line I realised that Urban Sketching of this kind, with the support and encouragement of other Urban Sketchers, had made a huge difference to the way I felt and to what I was able to do.
I also began to think that it was important for other people to realise this as well, because it’s probably not obvious that sketching on location is something that can be so useful in managing a chronic condition – not just to people like me with a disability but also to people who aren’t disabled, to make it easier for them to understand what I can do and what I can’t. And an added bonus is that I’ve become more confident and better at explaining this, which makes things easier for everyone.
The exciting thing is that this month’s edition of Drawing Attention, the online newsletter of the international Urban Sketchers organisation has picked up on this theme, and back in December I was interviewed for an article on the subject which has now been published! (Note: it’s better viewed in an internet browser on a computer rather than on a tablet or phone).
When I sketch I disappear into a space and time that separates me from everything else that’s going on around me, which is one of the reasons it’s so important to me and why it’s such a useful tool in a situation that would otherwise be overwhelming and exhausting. Drawing is tiring, but much less tiring for me than talking and listening and interacting with people (no matter how much I’m enjoying the conversation!)
I’m amazed at what the last two years have taught me. I hope more than anything that other people can discover this too.
Deborah Rehmat 
Thank you! What you have written make so much sense. Saying it ‘out loud’ is I am sure good for you and good for those who have difficulty articulating just what managing ME/CFS really means. You have helped me to think little harder about that – what it means and how managing can turn into “hiding’, the real effects. xxk
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Karen – thank you so much for that. It means a lot to me! I never thought that it would be Urban Sketching that would help me to become more articulate about ME, but that is what seems to have happened, and to be able to share it in a way that may make sense to other people feels like quite an achievement. I really like your description of how managing can turn into hiding – that really resonates. Thanks again!
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