Three Reasons Psoriatic Arthritis Demands That I Nap

By Cynthia Covert

2 min read

I used to think of naps as a time to energize for a late-night out or reenergize after a wild night. Who knew they would become a way of surviving life with psoriatic arthritis?

Making naps a priority

Like my need for naps, what I want and need from a nap differs greatly from one day to the next. There are naps for pain relief or recovery. Then there are those that no matter how hard I fight the urge, take over, and force my body and mind to shut down.

Here are three ways that psoriatic arthritis forces me into making naps a priority.

Physical exhaustion

The first reason is pretty simple. Living with chronic pain is exhausting. There is no other way to explain the toll it takes on our bodies. When you think about how our bodies are constantly at war with this disease, it is actually mind-blowing that we are able to enjoy a good day now and then.

It is fairly obvious that when my body is too tired to function, communication between my brain and body begins to fail. I drop things, trip over nothing, and struggle to walk a straight line. Simple words fail to come to mind and I am known for saying the opposite of what I intended to say.

If noticed early on, a simple hour or two nap is all I need. When ignored and pushed too far, a day or two of resting and napping may be required.

Inability to process pain

When I am experiencing a severe flare or am nursing an injury in addition to PsA, my physical pain may reach levels that my body is not able to process yet. This leads to a forced day of rest and naps to prevent me from increasing the pain.

To be clear, there is no choice in the matter, my body will make it extremely difficult to move. This forces me to stay put. How long my body needs to rest depends on the level of pain and source of pain.

Self-induced healing

The final form of forced nap and rest time is one I find the most fascinating. It strikes when my body needs time to heal. While an injury like a broken rib or torn rotator cuff is usually included, a forced healing time of sleep may also occur with a severe flare.

This form takes several days and sometimes a full week to complete. I will have little to no recollection of what went on during that time. I may return a text and have no memory of doing so. There is no fighting this “nap”. In fact, there is no energy to even attempt pushing through this type of fatigue.

What I find the most interesting about it is that unlike the others, I know when this one is ending. I can literally feel the fog lift from my brain and the energy return to my body.

Final Thoughts

I miss the days of recreational napping and feeling refreshed afterward. Although I am not thrilled with my chronic illness calling the shots, I am thankful that it does before more problems occur.

This article represents the opinions, thoughts, and experiences of the author; none of this content has been paid for by any advertiser. The Psoriatic-Arthritis.com team does not recommend or endorse any products or treatments discussed herein. Learn more about how we maintain editorial integrity here.

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Great Nana Member
This is all so true for me, too, and the Physical Exhaustion sEection really hit home. About 1 year into the 3-year period it took to finally get my diagnosis of PsA, I was working as a greeter at Walmart. There were lots of days I was so exhausted I could barely walk from my car, through the store to the Employee Only area to clock in, then make my way back to the front of the store to start my shift. Every single thing you said about dropping things, losing balance, and saying odd things rang true! The only blessing during that time in my life was I did have a doctor's note that I only work 4 hours a day because of back pain (scoliosis and degenerative disc disease, and in retrospect, probably PsA involvement in my spine). When I look back now, it all makes sense why I was struggling. Prior to that job, I successfully trained to be a CNA and was hired at a long-term care and rehab center. I was only on the payroll for 2 weeks. That job literally almost killed me. That's how I ended up as a store greeter. It took 2 years and one appeal, but I was finally approved for SSDI, 4 months before I reached full retirement age. Fatigue, pain, depression, anxiety, psoriasis. Lovely symptoms, but I am so grateful I was finally diagnosed and have a great care team. I'm in between pharmaceuticals now (had to stop MTX and am awaiting funding assistance to give Humira a "shot" LOL).
1. Great Nana Member
 <inline-mention username="Cynthia Covert" user-id="3273162"/> Thx! I had worked 20 years as a medical transcriptionist in a hospital and just about the time I started feeling unwell, the hospital outsourced our department. I decided at that time to utilize my medical background but on the clinical side instead of a desk job. That's why I trained for CNA. (Kudos to all you CNAs out there!)
2. Great Nana Member
 <inline-mention username="Lori.Foster" user-id="3297576"/> Thx! Still waiting. I'm having a bad flare in PsA and psoriasis. My doctor prescribed 1-week course of prednisolone in the meantime but didn't discuss it with me. He forgot that I took it for a week when I first started seeing him and all it did was exacerbate my depression and I cried every day! I will not take it ever again. Also am avoiding NSAIDS because of recent elevation of LFTs and ultrasound showing mild fatty liver. And I've gained 10 pounds in the last 2 weeks! Such a merry-go-round/vicious circle LOL. Everything is related. I am grateful I wasn't struck with these things until later in life. I can only imagine how difficult it is for you folks in the prime of your lives with young families and careers.