Dear EDS,
Thank you for being nice to me today. I had off of work yesterday so it was nice to just lounge around, clean my apartment in little bits, and do a whole lot of nothing. Having days like yesterday is what keeps me going and not in completely terrible pain all of the time.
Today was a really nice day too. I woke up, got ready, and headed off to work. Days like today are the reason why I am in love with my job. Not many people are lucky enough to be able to say they get to go to work but I am definitely one of them. I work with amazing people and genuinely enjoy going to work everyday. In between classes and studying, work is a great break from school life. I got to work and had a great chat with my friend A. She had to leave around 10am so I was alone at the desk for a bit. Our office is in the process of moving so I had the job of going through my bosses files and recycling old papers we don't need. It's really interesting to go through all of the files because I'm actually learning quite a bit about disability rights in the post-secondary setting. A is going to visit one of her friends this weekend and made some cupcakes for her. She brought the extras into work and they were delicious! T also brought in his famous pumpkin chocolate chip cookies which I just love. My office loves treats which is another reason why I love my office.
Some of my friends are living in the apartment directly below mine next year so one of them stopped over to get a better idea of how it's set up and exactly what they'll need to bring. I had actually never met him before but I can tell it's going to be a great year living with these guys. J was super friendly and seems like he'll be lots of fun. I'm really excited for school to start again so all my friends move back to campus.
I just enjoyed a nice dinner of roasted broccoli and now I'm trying to decide if I want to bake something or just snuggle in with a glass of wine and have a nice lazy night. I'm thinking the wine's going to win this time. Hopefully it won't rain tomorrow morning so I can go to the Farmer's Market on Capitol Square and buy some yummy treats.
Love.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Pain
Dear EDS,
As I was looking through different Tumblr blogs today I ran into the quote "Pain is inevitable, Suffering is optional." I know I've heard/seen this quote before but for some reason today it seemed especially relevant. Pain is just something that comes with the EDS territory but that doesn't mean it has to control my life. The last time I met with my genetics counselor she said something to the effect of "no one could ever blame you if you just sat around all day because of the pain you live with." It really meant a lot to me because I don't think people realize how painful of a condition EDS actually is. I definitely do have days where I do nothing but sleep or lay on the couch and watch movies but I try to avoid that as much as I possibly can. Just because I have EDS I don't want to miss out on having a life. I choose not to suffer because, well honestly, life would just be awful if I did. I really don't know how to live any other way. Living in constant pain isn't easy but I feel like constantly suffering and being depressed because of it would make life a whole lot harder than it already is. Staying positive and really working hard to focus on what I can do and how lucky I am has made living with EDS lots easier. I'm not saying it's never hard for me (I do have my days where I just cry because I wish it would all go away) but choosing not to suffer makes life nicer.
I think this quote is true for many EDSers because we do live with so much pain from the dislocations, bruises, cuts, and everything else that comes with this lovely condition. If 'healthy' people had to live with this condition even just for a day I think they would learn to not take everything they have and can do for granted. I think what I'm really trying to say is that even though we do have to live with constant pain we don't have to let it control our lives. We have the choice to let it take over and suffer or to take control of it and actually live to the best of our ability.
Anyways... with EDS comes lots of headaches...literally. I don't remember a day where I haven't had a headache. I went to the neurologist a few days ago (the guy was nuts, I thought I was being Punk'd) and he had me get a brain MRI. That was all clear so he's putting me on a super low dose of a beta-blocker to hopefully help prevent these headaches. Beta-blockers are typically used for people with heart disease because they help lower blood pressure. I personally have super low blood pressure (not sure if that's EDS related or if it's just because I do) but I was a little worried about this because if my BP goes any lower I'll get really dizzy/faint. I talked to the pharmacist and she thinks putting me on the really low dose will be fine so I'll start those drugs on Monday. I'll keep you guys updated on how that goes.
Love.
As I was looking through different Tumblr blogs today I ran into the quote "Pain is inevitable, Suffering is optional." I know I've heard/seen this quote before but for some reason today it seemed especially relevant. Pain is just something that comes with the EDS territory but that doesn't mean it has to control my life. The last time I met with my genetics counselor she said something to the effect of "no one could ever blame you if you just sat around all day because of the pain you live with." It really meant a lot to me because I don't think people realize how painful of a condition EDS actually is. I definitely do have days where I do nothing but sleep or lay on the couch and watch movies but I try to avoid that as much as I possibly can. Just because I have EDS I don't want to miss out on having a life. I choose not to suffer because, well honestly, life would just be awful if I did. I really don't know how to live any other way. Living in constant pain isn't easy but I feel like constantly suffering and being depressed because of it would make life a whole lot harder than it already is. Staying positive and really working hard to focus on what I can do and how lucky I am has made living with EDS lots easier. I'm not saying it's never hard for me (I do have my days where I just cry because I wish it would all go away) but choosing not to suffer makes life nicer.
I think this quote is true for many EDSers because we do live with so much pain from the dislocations, bruises, cuts, and everything else that comes with this lovely condition. If 'healthy' people had to live with this condition even just for a day I think they would learn to not take everything they have and can do for granted. I think what I'm really trying to say is that even though we do have to live with constant pain we don't have to let it control our lives. We have the choice to let it take over and suffer or to take control of it and actually live to the best of our ability.
Anyways... with EDS comes lots of headaches...literally. I don't remember a day where I haven't had a headache. I went to the neurologist a few days ago (the guy was nuts, I thought I was being Punk'd) and he had me get a brain MRI. That was all clear so he's putting me on a super low dose of a beta-blocker to hopefully help prevent these headaches. Beta-blockers are typically used for people with heart disease because they help lower blood pressure. I personally have super low blood pressure (not sure if that's EDS related or if it's just because I do) but I was a little worried about this because if my BP goes any lower I'll get really dizzy/faint. I talked to the pharmacist and she thinks putting me on the really low dose will be fine so I'll start those drugs on Monday. I'll keep you guys updated on how that goes.
Love.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
First Post!
I've decided to start this blog to have a way to talk about my journey with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and maybe (hopefully) even spread a little awareness. I plan on sharing my story by simply talking about my day to day life and how EDS impacts nearly everything I do. It's been a long journey this far and I'm sure I'll have many more adventures to come and I hope I can share them all with you.
I think the best way to start this blog is to give you a little background about myself and how EDS has changed my life... I'm 20 and about to start my junior year of college. After seeing more doctors than I can count I was finally diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome when I was 16. EDS is a connective tissue disorder that causes my joints to dislocate ridiculously easily. It's a very painful condition that comes with lots of other fun little issues but joint dislocations are my biggest problem at this point in my life. EDS has undoubtedly changed my life. Many days are filled with frustration and pain but just as many are unbelievably great and fun-filled. Because of EDS I appreciate every single minute of my life. As much as it sucks sometimes, I wouldn't ever change my situation because it's made me who I am am. I have an amazing group of friends and family who have helped me get through lots. Living with EDS is never easy but that doesn't mean I can't love life and enjoy everything. I plan on writing this blog in a completely honest way...if I'm having a bad day I'll tell you and if life is going great I'll tell you that too. More people need to know about EDS and I hope I can help those without it understand this condition.
Love.
I think the best way to start this blog is to give you a little background about myself and how EDS has changed my life... I'm 20 and about to start my junior year of college. After seeing more doctors than I can count I was finally diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome when I was 16. EDS is a connective tissue disorder that causes my joints to dislocate ridiculously easily. It's a very painful condition that comes with lots of other fun little issues but joint dislocations are my biggest problem at this point in my life. EDS has undoubtedly changed my life. Many days are filled with frustration and pain but just as many are unbelievably great and fun-filled. Because of EDS I appreciate every single minute of my life. As much as it sucks sometimes, I wouldn't ever change my situation because it's made me who I am am. I have an amazing group of friends and family who have helped me get through lots. Living with EDS is never easy but that doesn't mean I can't love life and enjoy everything. I plan on writing this blog in a completely honest way...if I'm having a bad day I'll tell you and if life is going great I'll tell you that too. More people need to know about EDS and I hope I can help those without it understand this condition.
Love.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)