Covid Diaries: An Optimistic Intermezzo full of joy

It's nice to offer an upbeat update on my long-haul. (For my official "covid diaries," see here; here; here; here; here; here; here; here; here; here; here;  here; here; here; here; here; here; here; here; here; here; here; here; here; here; here; here; and here). So, now I have taught four lectures in two weeks on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Three of the four lectures went really well -- the students here give loud applause when that happens--, and I was especially thrilled with the questions I received from the students. (It takes real courage to ask a question in front of hundreds of peers--this is the 600+ students course.) During intermission and after each class I spent time answering further questions. (I know this stretches me a bit, but I get so much energy and joy of the students' eagerness to learn that I allow myself to engage longer than I should.) In order to reduce cognitive load, I improvise less and make fewer jokes during lecture; unintentionally, I am also a bit slower in my delivery. But I am really grateful to my past self to have created such streamlined lectures (although I am amazed that my students don't complain more about the slides).

 

In each case, the night after class, I wake up in the middle of the night with a headache. It's scary because during the Fall such headaches were the start of two (plus) days misery each time. But not this time! So far, I tend to fall back asleep. Somewhat weirdly on Wednesdays I have a modest headache (last week worse than this week), and on Fridays I have been fine so far, and yesterday I felt awesome. (My only regret of the storm was that I could not be outside to enjoy.)

 

Ordinary conversations still fatigue me relatively quickly, and in other respects I live a very simple almost monkish life. I spent a lot of time this week with physicians, and we're going to change my medical care. I am dropping my occupational therapy and will start working with a neuro-psychologist (in consultation with a rehab physician) in order to reduce my stimulus sensitivity. The occupational therapist I had really helped me get my symptoms under control, but I felt we had exhausted options with her (she was basically treating my long haul as if I had burn out--which has been the norm in the Netherlands for those w/o clear heart or lung problems--this itself often generates infuriating circumstances, but that's for another occasion).

 

So, after the Fall semester I was really doubtful about my future professional life. I imploded during most seminars, and spent days recovering in miserable fashion. Even if the university were to accommodate me in the future, the prospect of that was miserable. But this is much more enjoyable, and the prospect of teaching fills me with joy. And while it's unusual for me not to be busy with several big projects at the same time, I am doing final edits to Neglected Classics II on the side. Anyway, this is longer than I intended. But those of you who like hearing about progress, today's update was definitely the cuppeth is half full and, with -- aliquid fit ex nihilo -- the magic of undergrad teaching, filling up.

Comments

[Marius Stan]

That's the kind of great news I come here for. Very good, Eric. We're rooting for you. Dum spiro, spero.

[Therese Doucet]

I hadn't checked up on your blog in a long time - it's wonderful to hear things are going better with you! Thanks for sharing your interesting observations!