Sketch Sunday 45

Ahh, the Book Seat. I’ve had a back problem for over ten years, and one of the frustrating things about this is that reading while sitting up can quickly become very painful – and the pain can go on for hours afterwards. I’ve seen many physiotherapists and osteopaths over the years. Their recommendation is that I read while lying on my side. However, several years ago I had a two-three year bout of chronic fatigue, which meant that if I lay on my side to read I’d be asleep within a few minutes. Even if I tried to read sitting up for a few minutes at a time, I just couldn’t concentrate. So I went from being a book-a-week reader to someone who didn’t read much at all. (Instead I started knitting, but that’s a whole other story.)

Well, I mostly recovered from the fatigue so I’m trying to get back into the habit of reading. What surprised me was that reading is a habit – and one you can lose. I really have to make myself reach for a book these days. The Book Seat has helped me do that in two ways. Firstly, if I prop it up on a pillow a book is about the right height that reading it doesn’t put strain on my neck. Secondly, knitting has programmed me to feel restless if my hands aren’t occupied, so if I get too twitchy to concentrate on reading I can pop a book on the book seat and knit something simple – like a plain sock. Multitasking!

There is a down side to all this, however. I haven’t yet worked out how I can have the cat and the Book Seat on my lap at the same time.

But I’m working on it.

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