Survey, pt 2: Rewards! (Patreon)

Hey y'all! I hope your January has been going well!

Thank you so much for your answers to our last survey! We've been mulling them over and considering how we want to tackle the soft revamp of this Patreon. We're taking it slow, letting life and work settle out and stabilize a bit more before we take action. Giving us some space to work within reduced demands (and catch up on overdue rewards) has been a breath of fresh air after last year's full sprint to the finish.

This rest has been especially good for me, and I'm actually taking things slower and less hurried than I have been. I had my week of pain hell this last week, which involves slowly ramping full-body pain until it hits a peak of about 8.5/10 and then tapers off again. This is the first time I actually took time off from work during the ramp-up, instead of just doing small bits of work. I think it helped, and will continue to help, to be more proactive about taking time off not just when I need it but when it would be nice to do it.

Chronic Illness

If you're confused about why I have that pain, let me explain! I have fibromyalgia, which basically means my nervous system is messed up and takes most incoming stimuli and turns them into pain. That means I get random pains of all kinds, all over, in all different places. Sometimes it's like someone jabbed a needle in my foot for five seconds, and then it vanishes. Sometimes it's like being touched, even by clothes, feels like sandpaper, and it could last for a day. Sometimes I have flare ups where I feel a pain and it amplifies and travels through my body for days or weeks at a time. When I stub my toe, the pain can last up to an hour for even the mildest bump.

There are other things that come with this disorder: I am frequently fatigued because being in pain all of the time is exhausting. Being in pain all the time also ruins the quality of my sleep, so I never get good rest (and can't nap). My brain sometimes doesn't work very well, and trying to think through a sentence is like grasping through clouds. I can't exercise, because of what's called "post-exertional malaise" which means that even a tiny bit of exercise will put me out of commission for days with the exhaustion and pain. (I still am hunting down ways to do low-impact regular exercise though!)

Because my symptoms are caused by a faulty nervous system, caring for myself is frustrating. Painkillers don't work on any of the pain -- they're just brain signals, not inflammation. Any kind of stimuli can make it worse, including emotions, loud noises, or stress. I have spent a lot of time learning how to stay zen for my own health, but it seems I have more to do on that front!

I am disabled. There is no earthly way I could work a regular job with the accommodations I would need. I have a cane I need sometimes, and a wheelchair I need sometimes. I have a permanent disability placard on my car. So this isn't just some pain to deal with, but something that has actually crippled me. I don't point this out for pity; I just want to contextualize everything else!

Also as a result of this, I am at the doctor a lot. I have a wonderful set of doctors at a research institute who work together and are helping me investigate causes, effects, and mitigation. Sometimes my husband reminds me that most people go to the doctor once a year and not 2-5 times a month like I do, and I can't wrap my brain around that, haha.

All this to say... This is the baseline I am starting with. I have up to this point been treating this Patreon and the comic as my regular job that I must keep up with like a regular non-disabled person, albeit on perhaps a reduced schedule. My priority has been keeping content flowing and money coming into the household as my contribution (doctors do not come cheap). But after last year, it is increasingly clear that when something throws a wrench in things, like a Kickstarter, my system falls apart and so do I!

So that's why we're really pulling back. I am forcing myself to make health first priority, not second.

Survey, Part 2!

Whew!! I explain all of that because it's important to have context for the survey we're releasing today!  

As we are working on a sustainable, healthy path for this Patreon, we found there were still some questions we had, specifically about rewards and how you feel about each specific reward when juxtaposed with that context.

Like the previous survey, this is a vibe check. While we are going to be the ultimate arbiter of what we do with this Patreon, it helps us make decisions when we know more about your desires! We want to know what sorts of rewards and incentives are most valuable to you, specifically when balanced against the desire to support my current work on the comic itself. 

There is no judgment for your answers here - we are genuinely looking for an honest appraisal of your priorities with regards to the Tamberlane Patreon and workload.

This survey is shorter than the last one and should be easier to fill out, since there's no formal requests for long-form answers. It should only take about 10-20 minutes, though we would appreciate your thoughtful attention as you do so!

The Survey closes Monday, February 5th so be sure to turn in your responses before then if you'd like your opinion heard!

Fill out the survey HERE! 

Thank you so much for your interest and your support. You all have been so wonderful. We just want to find a way to give back without burning out!

Caytlin & the Tamberteam