Thursday, June 21, 2012

I took my health for granted...

If you're reading this, some Facebook post probably led you here. A blogger I read talked about how who we "show" ourselves to be on social media isn't really who we are, because we only post what we want others to see. How true... In this case, I just didn't want to post at all.

The day after my last blog post, and, truthfully, I'd forgotten I'd written that Tuesday, I became very, very ill. After 2 ER visits, 3 doctor visits at Henry Ford Medical, 2 specialist visits and a long ultrasound in Virginia, we had a few ideas of what it wasn't but no idea what it was. I lost 7 lbs. in 9 days, and although we all joke about easy ways to drop a few pounds, this was not one of them. I learned that when you lose weight that quickly, you lose muscle and not fat... and that is never anyone's goal, right?

I've never been sicker in my life, and I've learned a lot. I learned that
1) I need to remember to check in on people.
2) People with a chronic illness will be sick, to some degree, for the rest of their lives. It doesn't go away, and neither should my compassion for them.
3) "How quickly we forget" has taken on new meaning.
4) It's all about relationships.
5) I had been wasting a lot of time.
6) I took my health for granted. Did I really think that not exercising when I had the time and not eating well would not take a toll on my body? Apparently, I did, and I was wrong.
7) Laughter has very real medicinal benefits.
8) Being over-sensitive to light and sound reminded me that the best things are not electronic. I missed reading, studying, listening and looking.

I've never been sick for 4 weeks, but we now have a diagnosis. Actually, I have 3, and they're somewhat interwoven. Suffice it to say that they're fixable, but it will take a little while. I'm thankful for a doctor who was willing to dig deep, look hard, and care enough to spend the time needed to actually find answers.

I'm hoping the lessons aren't fixable; I want them to be chronic in my life.

1 comment:

  1. Pam, God is all about healing so I will be praying that for you ,and thankful that you got some answers. I'm thankful for a doctor that stuck with you without blowing you off , listened to you, and helped you. God's blessings to you-I will be praying for you to feel better quickly.Love you!Pam

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