# When is sick non-legit? **URL:** \ **Category:** Akrasia\ **Created:** [February 20, 2019, 2:14am UTC](https://forum.beeminder.com/t/when-is-sick-non-legit/4990 "2019-02-20T02:14:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![adamwolf](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/forum.beeminder.com/adamwolf/32/484_2.png) [@adamwolf](https://forum.beeminder.com/u/adamwolf)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2019, 2:14am UTC](https://forum.beeminder.com/t/when-is-sick-non-legit/4990/1 "2019-02-20T02:14:23Z")
Hi folks! I started having a discussion with the rest of the Beeminder folks about when is sick non-legit for me, and the conversation threatened to get interesting enough we thought we should be more public about it šŸ™‚ I am personally blessed with pretty decent health and no chronic illnesses. Since Iā€™ve got 2 little kiddos in the household, I get sick quite a bit more often, but weā€™re talking maybe two or three times a year where Iā€™m out for more than maybe 2 days, and those usually wrap up within five days or soā€“with a smattering of ā€œoff daysā€ beside that. I have a few goals I do every day, but they represent maybe five minutes of effort, and Iā€™ve been able to get through those through all my various illnesses in the past few yearsā€“but if you add up all my non-legits, data entry errors are #1, and being sick is #2. I have plenty of times where if Iā€™m sick, Iā€™m not going to make progress on most of my goalsā€“but I also am starting to feel that for some of my goals where I have to do one thing every 45 days, with my current level of health, really, I should be able to get them done whether Iā€™m sick or not. If Iā€™m sick on the eep day, well, maybe I should have finished it up with more buffer. Currently, I call non-legit when Iā€™m sick basically 100%, with no qualms at all. Please donā€™t take anything Iā€™m saying as a suggestion for _you_. be safe and kind to yourself. ---
**Author:** ![zedmango](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c67d28/32.png) [@zedmango](https://forum.beeminder.com/u/zedmango)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2019, 7:46am UTC](https://forum.beeminder.com/t/when-is-sick-non-legit/4990/2 "2019-02-20T07:46:25Z")
Here are my thoughts on this issue, posted on a related thread: > [@Derailing for mental health reasons?](https://forum.beeminder.com/t/derailing-for-mental-health-reasons/4875/8): > > Tough call - I deal with this too. There are two ways (at least) to deal with this: Keep your pledge cap low and just have a strict rule: if you donā€™t do the task, you have to pay the pledge, illness or not. This helps me out because I have to take responsibility, and it weakens the temptation to feel helpless and incapable and blame the illness (this temptation is itself a thought distortion caused by the mental illness), but the pledge is low so it doesnā€™t cost me too much when there was legā€¦ ---
**Author:** ![narthur](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/forum.beeminder.com/narthur/32/5113_2.png) [@narthur](https://forum.beeminder.com/u/narthur)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2019, 12:13pm UTC](https://forum.beeminder.com/t/when-is-sick-non-legit/4990/3 "2019-02-20T12:13:59Z")
On one of my goals I included that my wife can call a derail not legit in the fine print for situations like this. That way I donā€™t have to make the call, but I can ask my wife to. I havenā€™t had to invoke it yet, so not sure how practical it really is. ---
**Author:** ![phi](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/forum.beeminder.com/phi/32/2586_2.png) [@phi](https://forum.beeminder.com/u/phi)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2019, 7:32pm UTC](https://forum.beeminder.com/t/when-is-sick-non-legit/4990/4 "2019-02-20T19:32:08Z")
@adamwolf You pretty much describe what I have been doing so far. I also thought about this a lot. Hereā€™s what I have arrived at: - Would your doctor give you a sick note? Recovery is important. Donā€™t drag yourself through your goals if they conflict with this. If your doctor (would have) ordered rest then do so. - Whatā€™s the _spirit_ of your goal? Did you create it with the intent of simply not procrastinating the specific thing itā€™s about? Being sick is hardly procrastinating in my book. Also: [I need a second opinion on legitness](https://forum.beeminder.com/t/i-need-a-second-opinion-on-legitness/4827). - If itā€™s a tiny thing to do (like a 7 min workout or tidying up the kitchen right quick) Iā€™ll do it regardless though maybe a bit more lenient (in case of the workout). - Lastly (and I am conflicted about this one): If itā€™s about tracking hours I put into something I ask myself how much quality work would I get done if I forced myself to do it. Or if Iā€™d be better off getting some rest instead. Again, this one is not so easy. Sometimes thereā€™s some easy thing to do that indirectly benefits the goal and can still be done despite being sick. Maybe this is of some help šŸ™‚ Also kudos for surfacing this question! I find it super insightful to talk about these things. ---
**Author:** ![matti](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/forum.beeminder.com/matti/32/2506_2.png) [@matti](https://forum.beeminder.com/u/matti)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2019, 8:00pm UTC](https://forum.beeminder.com/t/when-is-sick-non-legit/4990/5 "2019-02-20T20:00:59Z")
> [@adamwolf](#): > > Currently, I call non-legit on sick basically 100% willy-nilly, with no qualms at all. Thatā€™s what Iā€™m doing and how I still feel about this. No need to find a better heuristic, than answering the question ā€œAm I sick?ā€, imho. If people have a hard time deciding if there are sick enough: You are sick enough. Youā€™re welcome. šŸ˜‰ If you want to do something anyways: Donā€™t. Itā€™s counterintuitive to act like this for most people like us, for sure. But I do believe in the benefits of holding back in this way. [ā€œFestina lenteā€](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Festina_lente) and all thatā€¦ ---
**Author:** ![zedmango](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c67d28/32.png) [@zedmango](https://forum.beeminder.com/u/zedmango)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2019, 9:40pm UTC](https://forum.beeminder.com/t/when-is-sick-non-legit/4990/6 "2019-02-20T21:40:57Z")
> [@adamwolf](#): > > Currently, I call non-legit on sick basically 100% willy-nilly, with no qualms at all. Iā€™m confused. Does ā€œ100% willy-nillyā€ mean you say that the derailment was non-legit (that is, you donā€™t have to pay) whenever youā€™re sick, as a bright-line rule? Or does it mean you call it however you feel like at the time? @matti seems to have interpreted it in the first way, but I thought you meant the second choice. ---
**Author:** ![matti](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/forum.beeminder.com/matti/32/2506_2.png) [@matti](https://forum.beeminder.com/u/matti)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2019, 9:42pm UTC](https://forum.beeminder.com/t/when-is-sick-non-legit/4990/7 "2019-02-20T21:42:37Z")
Oh maybe I read that wrong. ---
**Author:** ![adamwolf](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/forum.beeminder.com/adamwolf/32/484_2.png) [@adamwolf](https://forum.beeminder.com/u/adamwolf)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2019, 10:11pm UTC](https://forum.beeminder.com/t/when-is-sick-non-legit/4990/8 "2019-02-20T22:11:10Z")
I have, so far, called non-legit on any emergency within even a few days of being sick. I will go make the willy-nillly phrasing more clear. ---
**Author:** ![zedmango](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c67d28/32.png) [@zedmango](https://forum.beeminder.com/u/zedmango)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2019, 10:21pm UTC](https://forum.beeminder.com/t/when-is-sick-non-legit/4990/9 "2019-02-20T22:21:14Z")
> [@phi](#): > > Did you create it with the intent of simply not procrastinating the specific thing itā€™s about? Being sick is hardly procrastinating in my book. Yeah but: > [@adamwolf](#): > > I also am starting to feel that for some of my goals where I have to do one thing every 45 days, with my current level of health, really, I should be able to get them done whether Iā€™m sick or not. If Iā€™m sick on the eep day, well, maybe I should have finished it up with more buffer It just seems awfully convenient to get sick on the eep day when youā€™ve had 45 days to do something! It seems liks paying is appropriate there - paying for procrastinating on the 44 previous days. (Thinking of me and my own procrastination here, not trying to cast doubt on anyone elseā€™s sickness!) ---
**Author:** ![zedmango](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c67d28/32.png) [@zedmango](https://forum.beeminder.com/u/zedmango)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2019, 10:53pm UTC](https://forum.beeminder.com/t/when-is-sick-non-legit/4990/10 "2019-03-03T22:53:25Z")
This just came up for meā€¦ I called non-legit on a couple of every-other-day goals that had to be done during a specified time period. I ended up being exhausted and sleeping through that time period, which I think served the purpose of the goals (better physical and mental health) better than forcing myself up to do them. So thinking about it, I decided that my ideal would be sleeping during that time, so it shouldnā€™t be penalized.