I don't think I've mentioned on here yet that I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder. It's not serious, that's what everyone at the doctor's office keeps saying anyway. After all, all you have to do is take thyroid medicine for the rest of your life and you should be fine.
It does explain why I was so tired for a while, and why I was pretty blue. It also likely explains the fertility issues (to a point). I've done enough research now to know that thyroid medicine may not make my symptoms go away forever, but I've been lucky, the drugs have worked amazingly well for me.
Ever since the start of the school year, which is always exhausting and hectic (for students, parents and teachers alike) I've noticed that I've been able to keep up. I have a clear mind, I'm not as stressed, less prone to panic, and more able to do more things. That doesn't mean I don't come home and completely collapse some days. I'm trying to figure out if the days that I don't want to do anything are just normal, or if I'm still getting over myself. I mean, my body attacks my thyroid, the medicine replaces the missing thyroid juice, but I'm still fighting against myself.
I've followed a homesteading blog for a while, and the author has recently posted an article about her battle with Hashimotos. She appears to be allergic to the medicine so she's gone the natural remedy route. After we finish trying to conceive I might be tempted to try some of the same things (but perhaps while using the medicine too). Right now I'm just enjoying being a bit more like myself again.
Right now I'm trying to catch up on my winter preparations. I'm afraid I'm desperately behind. I managed to can some marinara sauce last weekend on Saturday (on Sunday a friend and I went to Six Flags and giggled like teenagers as we waited for the front seat of each roller coaster). I'll be away the next two weekends too, first to New York for a friend's birthday party and then to the Berkshires for my 3rd installment of Permaculture.
Hopefully I can keep my energy level up! Anyway I'm trying to stay positive. It is nice to know that there really was something wrong with me, I wasn't just crazy. Now onto figuring out what that means for me for the future...
Friday, September 30, 2011
Monday, September 19, 2011
Goodbye Friend
It's really no surprise that one of the phases of grief is denial. When someone is gone, we don't miss them if they're off to the supermarket or the movies. We just wait for them to come home. It's even easier to dwell in denial when someone lives further away. I mean, I love my grandfather, but I didn't speak to him everyday when he was alive. For months I kept having to remind myself that he really was gone. I still forget sometimes.
So it doesn't seem real yet that Bettina isn't around anymore. She was doing pretty good a few months ago. Sure, she was on oxygen, and I did know how quickly a person can go when they just aren't getting enough air, but she was so sure she was going to get better. And she was so young, too young, to have to deal with death. Diagnosed with breast cancer at 37, a recurrence at 40, another recurrence at 42. She lived the expected 5 years. And that just sucks.
You have to understand that Bettina was not someone you would expect to fade quietly. She was the clown, the crazy lady who drank beer while in hospice and had a going away snow tubing party. Somehow she just GLOWED with life. No really, her brother has a picture with the light shining behind her, and that's really what she was like all the time, shiny.
I'm not really sure how she would want to be remembered. She didn't want to die, so it was hard to talk about honoring her life. From knowing her, I would imagine she'd like something like a round a beer and a newly planted tree, or an annual naked run through the woods on her birthday (in winter). She loved nature more than most people, and she could keep even the least resilient plants alive despite a pretty mobile lifestyle.
So cheers, Bettina. This beer's for you. Safe travels to your new home. We love you.
So it doesn't seem real yet that Bettina isn't around anymore. She was doing pretty good a few months ago. Sure, she was on oxygen, and I did know how quickly a person can go when they just aren't getting enough air, but she was so sure she was going to get better. And she was so young, too young, to have to deal with death. Diagnosed with breast cancer at 37, a recurrence at 40, another recurrence at 42. She lived the expected 5 years. And that just sucks.
You have to understand that Bettina was not someone you would expect to fade quietly. She was the clown, the crazy lady who drank beer while in hospice and had a going away snow tubing party. Somehow she just GLOWED with life. No really, her brother has a picture with the light shining behind her, and that's really what she was like all the time, shiny.
I'm not really sure how she would want to be remembered. She didn't want to die, so it was hard to talk about honoring her life. From knowing her, I would imagine she'd like something like a round a beer and a newly planted tree, or an annual naked run through the woods on her birthday (in winter). She loved nature more than most people, and she could keep even the least resilient plants alive despite a pretty mobile lifestyle.
So cheers, Bettina. This beer's for you. Safe travels to your new home. We love you.
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Auto Pilot
Well, not much has been happening lately, but the world keeps spinning
I love my Permaculture class. We learned about making Food Forests this weekend, which got me to thinking about buying some vacation property on which to plant things, like PawPaw trees and American Currents, and groundnut plants...
Financially though, not yet. And really, not yet because we're still not sure where we want to be. Here's some irony for you. Gerd doesn't want to leave Boston for at least another year, likely two, but it'll take that amount of time to save enough money to put a down payment on a small piece of land (if we're careful) but by then we might not need a downpayment because we could be somewhere else. He'd prefer Africa or Europe, I'd prefer Glens Falls or Albuquerque.
I don't know, we're just kind of stuck right now. Not quite sure yet what's going to unstick us.
I love my Permaculture class. We learned about making Food Forests this weekend, which got me to thinking about buying some vacation property on which to plant things, like PawPaw trees and American Currents, and groundnut plants...
Financially though, not yet. And really, not yet because we're still not sure where we want to be. Here's some irony for you. Gerd doesn't want to leave Boston for at least another year, likely two, but it'll take that amount of time to save enough money to put a down payment on a small piece of land (if we're careful) but by then we might not need a downpayment because we could be somewhere else. He'd prefer Africa or Europe, I'd prefer Glens Falls or Albuquerque.
I don't know, we're just kind of stuck right now. Not quite sure yet what's going to unstick us.
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