Thriving or Surviving

Please note: some links are affiliate links and may result in a small commission to me, at no extra cost to you, if you make purchases through them.  Oops! My last post was 14 days ago and I fell hard from the my personal health reset wagon! It wasn't intentional, but I fell into a deep funk after seeing my primary care provider recently and embarking on a specific diet for my gastrointestinal issues. I'm not going to get into specifics about the diet or why my provider asked me to try it as I don't want to dissuade someone for whom it could be extremely beneficial.  For me, it did not help at all considering the impact on my mental health. In fact, the impact on my mental health became so negative over the course of the diet that I had to discontinue it. It took away a significant aspect of my enjoyment of life.  If the choice is to be miserable mentally while following a diet I detest or to be miserable physically but strong mentally on a diet I enjoy, I'll choose th...

Yesterday, I wrote about needing to reset my health and well-being and that I was going to seek to improve my health by 10% over the next 30 days.  Today is day 2 of 30. Everyone in my house has officially tested positive for Covid-19 and we are all symptomatic. I don't feel great, physically, but this is far less severe than every prior Covid infection I've experienced, thank goodness! I do have a fever, however, so I will not be going to work tomorrow (fingers crossed that I can go to work on Friday!).  I attribute part of my not feeling as awful as my last few Covid experiences to simply how the virus has evolved over the last several years, but also because I've been consciously paying attention to my energy levels, hydration, vitamins, supplements, and medication needs.  Before I go on, I do need to remind you, my dear reader, that anything I write here is NOT medical advice. If you feel ill or have concerns or questions about your well being or anything discussed i...

Oops! I missed posting on day 6 of 30 for my personal health reset challenge!  On day 5 , I mentioned that I had ordered some homeopathic items for my nausea and severe reflux. They didn't arrive until fairly late in the afternoon that day, so I didn't really get to fully evaluate anything that day.  However . . .  I am SO HAPPY that I ordered Sea Bands ! These are a pair of wrist bands with a little hard bump inside each one that is meant to be positioned over a pressure point just below the wrist on the forearms.  And, they seem to WORK! Now, I've only been using them for about 48 hours, so maybe it's premature to proclaim success. However, I have played with wearing them and not wearing them quite a bit over the past two days, and I'm satisfied! Really, wearing these makes me feel like I've blown past my goal of feeling 10% healthier! Unfortunately, taking them off results in a slide back to severe nausea. They are quite tight, as well, and I've taken the...

I love the idea of a weekly or monthly reset, but they don't work when everything feels chaotic all the time.  Due to some chronic health issues, I've not been keeping up on a lot around my home for months. Thus, piles have grown here and there. Dustbunnies have also grown here and there. No surface is clear or clean. My home is stressing me out right now. This is not how I want to live. I've started some new meds recently, and while there are some unpleasant side effects, overall, I do feel about 80% of normal. My energy is improving, as are my strength and overall stamina. So, today seemed like a good day to get lots of little things done.  If you've been feeling stuck and need a body double, then feel free to work alongside the tasks I list in this post!  My first step to any project that could be overwhelming is to text one of my dearest friends with my thoughts ("I don't want to do this. I hate this. Why is everything so messy all the time?"). Then, I...

Yesterday, I had stated that today I'd be sharing a 0-10 alternative pain scale with you. That has been taking longer to design than I had anticipated. Hopefully I'll be able to share it this weekend or early next week! Instead, let's talk about yesterday afternoon and evening and this morning.  I felt horrible. I was so nauseous! I ordered some homeopathic nausea treatment items that were supposed to be delivered same day and they DID NOT ARRIVE within the time frame promised. They were supposed to be here by 11am yesterday. By the time 11am rolled around, the shipper was promising to deliver by 10pm. 10pm came and went with a notification that my items had been returned to the processing center. As the day progressed, I'd become increasing nauseous to the point that if I moved at all I wanted to gag. Without solutions, there was no way I'd be able to go to my day job today. My regular medications have seemed to stop working and other medications have such strong s...

Back in June, I shared a couple of posts about how I was getting a lot done. The downside was that I crashed a few days later as explained HERE . Well, consider this an "Oops, I did it again!" post! On Monday, my birthday , and the day after , I was feeling GREAT! The best I've felt in MONTHS! On Monday, I spent a ton of time exploring the city and enjoying my birthday. Tuesday, I spent much of my day cleaning, tidying, decluttering, and more at home.  Wednesday? I crashed, HARD. I started out strong with a few chores in the morning, but by lunch time, I was exhausted. I crawled into bed with a book and quickly fell asleep. I ended up sleeping for several hours and then was so tired that I just stayed in bed most of the rest of the day. I had a virtual healthcare visit with my vestibular physical therapist and then had an MRI for my right sided hip pain in the late evening. Otherwise, most of the bed was spent just resting or sleeping. Today, I woke up feeling pretty tire...

I have been struggling--mentally and physically. As I mentioned in my last post , my doctor had me trial a specific gastrointestinal health diet that did NOT work for me. I'm still feeling the negative effects and still will not be sharing the diet details--not only do I not want you to embark on that diet without your healthcare provider's advice, but nothing in this or any of my posts should ever be taken as healthcare or medical advice or input. This is exclusively about my experience. If anything I write feels like it might apply to you, please discuss it with your own healthcare team before trying anything I mention. Read all of my Personal Health Reset posts HERE . Ever since starting that diet, my wellbeing has been crashing. I initially thought maybe my iron reserves and my body's ability to use them was impaired--the last time I felt this way, my body had enough iron, but was not able to access and utilize it. My doctor and I checked my iron related labs, and all w...

Today, I am committed to flossing my teeth. I have a complex relationship with dentistry and oral care due to a series of traumatic dental experiences as a child and a horrible orthodontia experience. As a result, I find flossing physically and mentally difficult which results in not flossing often. Today, I am making (and keeping) a promise to myself to floss my entire mouth.  Please note: Links in this post may include affiliate links which could result in small commissions to me at no cost to you if you purchase through these links. Thank you in advance! To some this will seem silly, but to those who also have dental trauma, it might make perfect sense: I floss my mouth in sections. I simply cannot get myself to floss my entire mouth all at once. I generally think of my teeth in quadrants and will floss one fourth of my mouth at a time. Today, I will go one fourth at a time, but over the course of the day will make sure I've flossed entirely. To be totally honest, just typing th...