Tag: Christmas

My Life is Fleeting One

Trying to get through this….

Hello people, it’s been a long while. And as we all say, so much has happened and yet nothing at all has happened. First, maybe, is that indeed, I have made it to Thanksgiving break at work. This is a huge hurdle for me, and I am very grateful to have cleared it, circa 2015, with all limbs intact. There were about 3 weeks there in late September that I honestly thought I would not be able to make it, and I would have to take a medical leave; I was really worried that I was getting worse. Then, things turned around, albeit slowly. I’ve finally come to terms with the fact that living with a chronic disease, things can change on a dime and they do. Although I am not a fan of this at all, accepting this as a reality has been somewhat helpful along my journey into the unknown.

Seeing another doctor has also happened. We made a 3-4 hour trip from home to the new doctor’s office a few weeks ago. The visit was a long one in which I talked too much, my husband reported to me afterwards, and we left with a few bottles of tinctures. Personally, I like this doctor, the approach to treating Lyme through more integrated and functional medicine, the way the doctor listened and validated mine and my husband’s experiences over the past 2 and a half years of treatment. I have stopped the abx and switched over to the herbal drops. The goal is to get to 25 drops 2 times daily. Right now, I’m struggling with 5 drops 2 times a day. I can do 4 and make it alright. But the past couple of days when I tried to get to the level 5, by about 4 p.m. I am herxing big time. I also have detox drops for the herxing, and I have added those as needed, but wow, there is s distinct difference, at least for my body, between the 4 – 5 drops. We are working on it. 🙂

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving! This break I’ve been able to do a few things I normally can’t / don’t do while working such as, and don’t laugh: grocery shopping, house cleaning, pie baking, dinner out, laundry – lots! While most of these things are not huge in any way, I have just not had the energy to do them much while working. And I actually did some simple Christmas decorating! It really has been pretty awesome getting to do these things without feeling so fatigued and overwhelmed. While several of these afternoons and evenings I have been in bed with nausea and headaches, I still feel like I’ve had some of the best days I’ve had in a very long time. I know I have pushed myself a little much, and I’ve eaten several slices of pie, pumpkin and apple, so my sugar intake is in the red, but it’s all been worth it! I feel like I have been partying it up, people!

Best wishes to you and to yours, -B

First Aid Kit

P.S. The above band is worth checking out. This song, “Fleeting One” is stuck in my head. Enjoy!

I just wanted a few days….

First off, I hope everyone had an enjoyable Christmas and that it wasn’t too stressful. Ours was quiet, more quite than usual. Our winter break started Saturday, December 20th, and I had been counting the hours. Not that I dislike my job at all; I was just looking forward to the uninterrupted and unscheduled – mostly – time until returning on January 6th. The past few weeks leading up to the breAk had been wrought with both personal and work drama. More work drama than anything.

The weekend was good and then Monday and Tuesday, I was feeling the best I have felt in months! I had energy, and I was working through my lists at a nice speed! 😁 I thought I was being careful and not pushing it to hard. It was exciting. Then, bam. Party over, sucker! I woke up Christmas Eve with a sore throat, and, well, it’s been all downhill from there. While I was able to cook a turkey that day get all of the gifts wrapped, and although we had a nice romantic dinner, I felt like hell. Christmas day was worse. I literally was in bed all day. Missing a trip to visit and dinner with the wonderful in-laws, I stayed in bed and pondered my life.

I’ve really been trying to be more accepting of my situation and more accepting of my physical limitations, which can change at any given moment as I am sure many of you have experienced. My initial reactions have been to become really upset and disappointed which then leads to stress, then to sadness and depression. The 4 S slope as I have coined it! The stressful, self-indulgent, sad, slippery slope!  Down, down, down.

But what I am beginning to realize is that that kind of behaviour sets me back. Making myself go through that rollercoaster changes nothing. I still do not have the energy or I am too sick to attend an event, dinner, baby shower, whatever. It also leaves me much worse off physically and mentally. I need to change my “stinking thinking” as they say in AA.

So, yes, it was indeed disappointing that I could not go to celebrate  Christmas at my in-laws as planned. I wanted to spend time with them. Instead, I had a little chat with myself assessing how I felt and thinking and saying, “It will be best for me to stay home today. Between the Lyme and cold infection, I have no business running around today, and that is ok!” While this seems like such a little thing to do, I guess it psychologically gave me permission to stay home without

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feeling guilty. My in-laws were gracious as always, but the best thing for me was the kindness I showed myself. I need to practice this much, much more!

While I still have a cold, I am wishing for a speedy recovery so I can still enjoy the rest of our break. How was your Christmas? Anything you would like to share about dealing with Lyme during the holidays?

Wishing you peace and lots of joy – B

Haul Out the Holly

Hi all, so this may not be the only post about the Holidays. Back in the day, I would almost be ready to go for Christmas at this point in the year. But in these past few years, it has become more and more difficult for me to get motivated to do anything related to the holidays. Here at our house, we celebrate Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s.

 

Book xmastree

I’m trying not to dread it, the Holiday Season. Yet, every time I turn around, we are getting closer and closer to that time of year. Thanksgiving wasn’t really that crazy, and honestly, neither are the other holidays really. Our family keeps it pretty low key all the way around, but I am still feeling anxious, I guess. There are just so many expectations involved, and I can barely meet any expectations the rest of the year! I am looking at the holidays as a break from work and time to rest, but that is not what most people have in mind. I know that I should be out visiting family and friends, socializing and having fun but a lot of the time, I am just not up for it. This may sound crazy, but with Lyme, I have experienced sound and light sensitivity along with anxiety. Sometimes, it is a little and sometimes the anxiety is huge. Especially when I am in large groups. There is so much going on and so much stimulus, it just becomes very overwhelming.

But hey, overall, I am just trying to be very thankful for all the love and kindness my family and friends have been showing me throughout this journey and, as for fretting about the holidays?  Thems First World Problems, yo.

Sending the sugar plum fairies your way -B