Hi, I’m Helen. I spent more than ten years trying to get a diagnosis before I was told in 2020 that I have panhypopituitarism, and I also live with dysautonomia and chronic fatigue. I’m a mother and partner who still has to feed a family on days my body won’t cooperate, so everything I share here is something I’ve worked out and use myself.
The wellness world loves variety, but my body loves not having to make a decision. So I pretty much eat the same breakfast every day, and it makes my life so much easier.
Not because I’ve given up, I do it because decision fatigue is a real energy cost, and when my spoon budget is already stretched before I get out of bed, spending spoons on deciding what to eat is a luxury I can’t always afford.
My rotation meals
A rotation meal is one I’ve already decided on. It lives in my repertoire permanently, takes almost no thought, and my body knows it’s coming. My family thinks I’m a creature of habit. What I actually am is someone who worked out that cutting food decisions on hard days leaves more energy for everything else.
This is what my rotation looks like on low and medium spoon days:
Protein waffles
I make a batch on a high spoon day, freeze them, and toast them straight from the freezer. They’re my first choice, always. Here’s the recipe.
Cheese toast with a savoury spread
Toasted rye, a spread, and pre-grated cheese. I buy it pre-grated because grating costs spoons I’d rather spend elsewhere.
Rice crackers instead of toast
The same toppings, with no toaster, eaten wherever I can sit down.
Butter rice
Leftover rice warmed in the microwave with butter, and sometimes soy sauce. On a hard day that’s a complete meal and I won’t hear otherwise. Here’s the recipe.
Rice with sausage
The same base with a sliced sausage warmed in the pan next to the egg I’ll fry and add to the rice. On a rough day the sausage goes in the air fryer.
What these have in common is that they’re built from things I keep stocked permanently, each has a minimum version and a slightly better version, and none of them need me to think beyond “which one today.”
My formula
My formula is protein + carbohydrate + something I actually like. The last part isn’t optional for me. It’s what makes the meal feel like a choice instead of a punishment. For me it’s Bovril, butter or soy sauce, flavours I enjoy that make a simple meal feel intentional. I stop changing it on hard days and save the variety for days when I have the energy to enjoy it.
Feeding myself vs feeding myself well
On the days I’m eating rice and butter at 2pm because that’s what I could manage, there’s a voice that says I should be doing better. That a healthy person would have made something more nutritious. I’ve learned that voice isn’t helpful and it isn’t accurate.
On a low spoon day my goal isn’t perfect nutrition. It’s nourishment, and those are different things. So I eat the simple thing and save the guilt for something that deserves it.
My grab-and-go shelf
One of the most practical things in my kitchen is a small designated spot, a shelf, a basket or a section of the fridge, that holds everything I might need on a flare day. Foods that need zero preparation, that I can reach without bending or searching or deciding. Mine includes:
- Protein waffles
- Crackers and rice cakes
- Nut butter
- A tin or two of something I can eat cold
- A snack I actually like
On the days I can’t make a decision, the shelf makes it for me.
Feeding my family when I can’t cook
My commitment to my family is one full cooked meal a day. That’s the line I’ve drawn, and I hold it on all but my very worst days. For the other meals I keep the freezer stocked with things they can make themselves: nuggets, sausages and spring rolls for the air fryer, frozen vegetables to steam in the microwave, two-minute noodles, and portions of hot pot sauce I made in bulk on a good day.
I still feel guilty that the kids feed themselves for two out of three meals. That guilt is real. But they’re fed, well and capable, and fed is fed. It isn’t giving up. It’s a standard that keeps everyone nourished even on my hardest days.
My list
I keep a list of five to ten options for my worst days. I started with what I was already eating on my hardest days, because those were already my rotation meals and I just hadn’t written them down. Now, when brain fog makes it hard to even remember what I eat, the list is already there and I pick one.
Mine includes:
- Protein waffles with a savoury or sweet topping
- Rye toast or crackers with butter, ham and cheese
- Butter toast with toppings, depending on my energy levels
- On the very worst days, a few slices of cold meat rolled up around some grated cheese will do just fine
I built a page for exactly this in my planners (my own products). For the bigger picture, see my pacing guide and my dump bag system.
I’m sharing what works for me, not medical advice. Please read the Disclaimer and talk to your own healthcare team about what suits you.
Hi, I’m Helen. I live with chronic illness and chronic fatigue, and I share the systems that help me get through the hard days. Read my story.