Have you ever felt yourself drowning in the chronic pain & illness sea?
That's where I've been the last few months. The fatigue that accompanies my disease had passed the point of ridiculous. I was so exhausted that I could barely function.
Honestly, the whole summer has been quite difficult in many ways.
But there is light now...
I finally kicked my way to the surface enough to call my primary doctor.
I treaded the proverbial water while I had blood drawn for labs and waited for the results that offered hope... my thyroid, which hasn't been behaving itself for at least two years now, had acted up in a new way.
Hope came in the form of a new thyroid supplement. So now every morning I swallow two tiny pills to help my thyroid know to do its job.
Hope came in the form of a call that said, "The doctor is happy to see you. He can see you in September."
So there's treatment now, and there's new options and expertise on the horizon.
I don't feel quite so much like I'm drowning now.
This is for you: the one who feels she's drowning. This is to say, "Please keep fighting."
You have a beautiful life to live. You are a unique gift to the world. So please keep fighting to live your best possible life.
That's what I'm going to do. And we'll do it together.
I'm so glad you have some hope. I'm glad you have any improvement, and I hope there is more to come. We do what we can, when we can.
ReplyDeleteYour strength to go through each day is a wonder to me. I would probably curl up and have a pity party. But guess what? I know your secret! I will give HIM the glory for you are HIS creation! May He continue to carry you as only He can. You are truly an inspiration!
ReplyDeleteA good reminder. I am feeling a bit of the hopelessness myself lately. xo
ReplyDeleteAmen, Jennifer. Keep fighting, keep writing, it does help to read of other's experiences and go through things together...
ReplyDeletei'm sorry for your pain. i know what it is like to live with pain; to not have your body be physically what you need (and it should) be. i'm glad God magnified mercy on you and allowed you to find some relief sooner than later.
ReplyDeleteHi! Had to comment as I can so identify with your situation. I dealt with rheumatoid arthritis for about 20 years, so I am extremely familiar with grinding, exhausting, chronic pain. But as you're finding, that was not what defined me - it was absolutely not the most important detail of my life ... even though it seemed that way sometimes.
ReplyDeleteI'll be praying for you as you keep up the good fight!
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I am so glad you finally did that Jennifer. I know what that kind of fatigue is like. And the LAST thing you can find the strength to do is call your doctor and start that whole painfully difficult and frustrating process. You and I have been in the same boat this summer. The entire summer has been spent waiting for the next day to be better - it DOES feel like you are drowning. Like every day you are fighting just to get to the surface where everyone else is just floating along. I completely understand.
ReplyDeleteI did just like you did though. I made the call to my primary about a month ago and he set up a number of appointments. In two weeks I had 13 appointments. It was CRAZY to say the least. BUT!!!!!!! what came out of it is really good news.
First, I changed one of my medications from pill form to giving myself a shot once a week. This has eliminated days of nausea and bowel problems. YAY!!!
Second, they sent me to a nutritionist (even though all the tests for gluten and lactose intolerance come back normal). They did this because I have all the symptoms of being intolerant of FOOD. They started me on the FODMAP program/diet. (google FODMAP and Patsy Catsos, MS, RD). OH MY GOSH!!!! I am on my second week and I can hardly believe the difference. Not only do I have much less GI issues going on, I feel like my energy/fatigue has improved by at least 30-40%...which is a lot in my book! YAY!!!!
Third, my neurologist started me back on Neurontin (which in the past has caused a lot of dizzyness) and it has been helping A LOT with all my nerve pain. I am not waking up nearly as much with all the nerve pain in my back/hips/legs/feet. YAY!!!!!!
SO...we really ARE doing it together!!! And you know what I say...
CONGRATULATIONS US!!!! WE are AMAZING!!!
We are beautiful.
Peace and blessings to you - to us both - as we move along this journey together. You, me...and all the others fighting debilitating and chronic disease.