Tag: summer

Coping, new normal

Gettin My Slothy On

There really is a term “gettin slothy!” Who knew I would be so cutting edge with the urban slang! Go me!

Anyhoo, the past few days, I’ve been in this mode. I feel a bit guilty, but I truly feel like doing nothing. I’ve watched a lot of Netflix but that is all I can be bothered to do. No worries though; I have been feeding and watering the animal menagerie. They all seem quite content that we have been laying around in the AC watching copious amounts of television.

I can’t seem to get motivated! UGH. I would blame it on the Lyme but I haven’t been feeling terrible. Yes, I do have to rest off and on especially with the new meds I’m taking but not for 5 hours straight! And overall, I’m feeling better this week then I was last week, so what gives? In my defense, my husband has been really busy all weekend with some side projects and so I’ve been mostly alone. I don’t mind it, I just obvioulsy can’t take any initiative by myself!

tired
Not now, please!

I tried to be better today. Although I told myself I would complete an online class for work and well, that didn’t happen. But I did do some laundry and a few other household chores today so can we call it a “productive” or rather “not wasted” day, officially?

I mean I guess a positive of this situation is I am realizing I’m gettin slothy. Last July 4th, I wasn’t feeling very well at all. In fact, my husband went to a little get together, and I just couldn’t due to symptoms and fatigue. So that is good news. I’m not sure if we are up to anything tomorrow honestly. Maybe a movie. Maybe a meal out. Not sure. But either way, this summer, I will be able to do some stuff if we decide to which is a really nice change, no doubt.

On that note, I hope that you and yours enjoy Independence Day tomorrow (for those fellow Amercians) and I hope absolutely everyone has a great week! Take care, friends.

Peace! – Belle

 

Advertisements
The American Dream - Individual, Community, World, Work

It’s About That Time.

“Bus is coming, it’s time to leave
the summer’s gone, and so are we…”
“Let’s go shut it down in New Orleans…”
“Miami” – Counting Crows

It’s hard to say goodbye to the extensive time off I’ve had these past 2 months. When I first started teaching, I worked every summer, as well as an extra job on weekends or in the evenings to catch up and pay the bills leftover from divorce. Summers and evenings during the school year were spent slinging coffee, teaching, or both. But for the past few years, and especially now that I’m dealing with Lyme, summers are truly “time off.”

Since we are heading back sooner than soon to teach the young minds of America, my brain is shifting into overdrive. I’m thinking about overhauling one of the courses I teach. Without boring you too much with the details, the overarching theme is the American Dream. It’s a great theme. BUT, I’m seriously wanting to spice it up a bit. We’ll see.

Anyway, I would like to be able to share some of my ideas and get some feedback from you periodically. So, I am creating a new category for these posts. What might these posts entail?

1. Cool stuff related to the content that may come in handy for me later on ( and Lyme is sincerely stunting my short term memory right now)…

2. Ideas for teaching visual rhetoric and argument. I need to
do way more of this with my students.

3. Just writings, songs, authors, art, whatever related to the content I teach, and things I like and love. Like Henry David Thoreau. Or Ralph Waldo Emerson. Or….

4. Lessons I find that are awesome and that I can modify – maybe – to use in my classes (with permission of creators, of course).

5. Ideas for integrating yoga poses. This one is a stretch (and yes, pun intended!) But, I’ve read some research that using yoga with students can be a positive! More info needed along with a lot of consideration for logistics, student participation, etc. This may not be something I can really do this year.

I just wanted to give you a head’s up that I will be doing these posts randomly so you aren’t like, Say What? Yes, I will continue to blog mostly about my journey with Lyme.

With this American Dream stuff though, I will need some help. So get your brains in gear, too!

Hoping your evening is going well. Here’s some Counting Crows for your segue into sleepy time. Peace -b

Daily Post Weekly Photo Challenge, The Present

Looking up at Pikes Peak

Weekly Photo Challenge – LOOK UP!  

Our trip to Colorado Springs in July of 2012. We went hiking in Garden of the Gods, and I took this photo with my little cell phone. While the quality is lacking, Pikes Peak is still as breathtaking now as the first day I laid eyes on it.

 

IMG230

Daily Post Weekly Challenge – Look Up

new normal

The Livin’ Ain’t Easy

Hello to all. Summertime is here, and Janis Joplin’s rendition of “Summertime” is playing in my head. The “livin’ is easy,” no? Alas, not so much. It’s been a challenging first 2 weeks of this break to say the least. Summer began last week, (and I am a teacher 🙂 ) and I had a few days that I sincerely enjoyed. I worked one day, but then by the next day, I had so much back pain I could not get out of bed without help. The pain was on my right side and severe. Not just like a pulled muscle but achy and sharp all at the same time. So, I rested. Logically, I figured my body was just finally relaxing. I just needed to rest. Yes, right, rest would help. Also, I was able to get an appointment the next day with my LLMD just in case.

But, the pain did not improve. By Friday, the pain was almost unbearable. But no fever. My husband had to drive me to my doctor appointment. I broke down in tears several times because of the pain; it was ridiculous. You may be asking, Why didn’t she go to the ER? Well, we know with any chronic illness one doesn’t get far at the ER.

After a urine analysis and some more tears, it was determined that there were no kidney stones and no kidney infection. Whew. But I did have a possible UTI. Doc prescribed different antibiotics from the ones I already take for treating Lyme and some mega pain meds. Thank God. She told me that we would treat for 3-5 days, and then I should be good to go or at least back to Lyme Normal.

But, here I am, a week later and still having lower back pain. Not as crazy or severe as last week, but boy howdy, it’s still there. Next up then is a lower back MRI with and without contrast. This isn’t scheduled for another week. Before my diagnosis with Lyme Disease, actually 2 full years before being diagnosed, I had a spinal and brain MRI. I was having hip pain on the right side and numbness in both feet (both decent symptoms pointing to possible Lyme disease). That MRI was inconclusive for MS so the neurologist sent me on my way. If only one of the  4 doctors I saw that summer had tested me for Lyme I could have started treatment 2 years earlier and 2 years less sick. I’m not trying to be whiney, it just makes me angry sometimes.

I spent yesterday and much of today in bed. I’m struggling to be productive, to be of value but I spent and will spend most of my time online here or FB. I need distracting, and I don’t have the concentration skills for reading of any length right now. Struggling to stay positive and pain free are the real challenges at this moment.

Am I worried about the MRI? Not really, and why waste time worrying? I am hoping of course that it gives us some insight into what is going on in my lower back. I’m sure that whatever it is that it is Lyme related somehow, and I am very grateful that I now have a doctor who can and will help me and that it isn’t a waste of time and a lot of money like the last one I had in 2011. Last time I definitely got conned in that I had no idea that the Imaging office was out of network even though my neurologist had sent me specifically to that place next to the hospital where he was located! Oy. Insurance companies, but that is for another post.

image

I’m trying my best not to be depressed. But thoughts and lists are piling up in my brain:  I’m not doing anything productive or fun. This is my summertime and the days are precious. I had to cancel a few appointments because of the pain issues. My husband has been working non-stop, and I haven’t seen him much. I haven’t been away from the house for a week, whine, whine, whine.

Anyway, thanks for listening and thank you all so much for reading. I do hope you and yours are having a good time and that you are able to enjoy the good stuff coming at you.
Gracias – B

Peace and joy to you all – B

The Present

Back to the Grind

So after a very relaxed and unproductive summer, that is unless you count watching gobs of Netflix and Hulu shows inspiring – as I do – I am back at it! No more waking up at 9, sipping on java and reading blogs, moving on to light housework then a long summer nap/rest/ Candy Crush marathon! Yes, while other teacher friends bragged about traveling and completing ultimate house projects, I “did” Lyme time as I like to refer to the time I spend healing.

I’m not sure how much I accomplished in Lyme time, besides maybe adding a few pounds to the 8 I have already put on during this recovery. However, I can say that the fatigue is lessening as are the headaches, both good signs as far as I am concerned!

Starting back for me was August 12th. We had 3 staff days that week and 4 staff days the following week. I survived because I had a day each of those weeks to catch my breath. But this week was the official first week of school for students as well. Starting off strong, I managed to get through the first few days juggling all kinds of things, including 3 separate preps for my English classes. But by yesterday, I was wiped. Now, I am up because I may be over tired? Not sure. Anyway, I’ m proud that I survived the first real week Of school, and I am grateful forsuch a kind and courteous group of young people. While I am apprehensive about my health and holding up day to day, I am still looking forward to growing relationships with my new group of students this year. After, 14 years of.teachning, I sure do love it!

Home Challenges

Boredom

So since I am a teacher, I have about 2 months off. Now, granted, this time is filled with some work such as professional workshops, trainings, interviewing candidates, working on lesson plans. Still though, is is a nice chunk of time to call “vacation”. This summer, I took some of my required classes right after school was dismissed and while I have gone up to campus to conduct a few interviews, I cannot complain at all. I have had a lot of time to relax.
I would really like to say that I have spent this time in a productive way, but that isn’t the case at all! While I have managed to do some small projects like organize the closet, the plastic drawer and the papers that need filing, other than that….Ugh. My main focus this summer is to work on getting well. This requires dedication! Ha! I have my Picc line now, so it takes about an hour to dose. I then try and clean the house as much as I can: 6 dogs running in and out the doggie door and the shedding-Oiy! About noonish, I lay down with a heating pad and a book and do some reading for a few hours. Sometimes, this turns into like 4 hours. And then, sometimes, I attempt dinner if I know husband will be home, proceeded by watching some shows.
While I wish I could do more, I know that the best thing for me right now is to not overextend and to rest constantly. I am working hard to build up my immune system so it fights back the Lyme as well as for the first day of school! I plan on working this year! I completed last year successfully; it was a long haul but I was proud of myself for meeting this goal. Anyway, with resting as the project this summer, ain’t much getting done! I hope all of you are getting some relaxation in too!

Peace ducks,
-B