Phewww...what a long week! Brian has been in Amarillo, Texas since Sunday on business. He gets back tonight. It's been a challenging week in so many ways; however, I am thankful for the Lord's protection, peace, provision and comfort. It's times like these that I am so overwhelmed with the gift God gave me in Brian. I know I have said it before, but the way he takes care of me, our house along with all of his personal and work responsibilities is so amazing. Before he left, he not only had to pack for his trip, but also make sure I had all of the things I would need including cooking some of my food ahead of time. My chemical sensitivities make it so challenging to normal every day stuff. I am truly blessed to have such an incredible man. I am excited for my best friend to walk through that door!
The week began with a pretty unexpected scary start. On Sunday night, I was sitting in my living room with my puppy talking to my Mom. I heard a noise outside, but thought it was just my imagination running away with me since I knew I was by myself. This happened at around 8:30pm. At 10pm, I had to take the dog out. He kept going to this one area in the backyard looking at something, but since it was super dark out, I decided to wait until the morning to see what it was. I knew it hadn't been there before, but I thought it was a stick.
I am not having to wake up at 4:30am to work at 5:00am to earn some extra money. Believe it or not, I am starting to get used to this schedule. It's tough, but I am adjusting. Anyways, after my early morning work shift, I took my puppy out. I went over to that area of the yard, and you wouldn't believe what I found!!! It was about a 7 inch knife. I was in shock, and that wave of dread washed over me. Obviously, someone dropped it in our yard the night before. So, there was someone out there! After getting the advice of some people, I decided to report it to the cops. When they came to get the knife, they said that they had a car break-in that night exact night one street over. They weren't sure if the two were related, but told me to call if I heard anything again. I am so thankful for the Lord's protection!
I am not a naturally calm person. I have always battled fears ever since I was little, and since I contracted Lyme Disease, it has intensified the battle with anxiety as it messes with so much neurologically. So, let's just say that this week has been a battle. Each night, I have had to consciously surrender, and trust with everything I have for God's protection. This should be a state that I am always in, but I am not usually very good at. I found these verses and they have been a comfort.
"But Moses told the people, 'Don't be afraid. Just stand still and watch the lord rescue you today. The Egyptians you see today will never be seen again. The Lord himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.'" Exodus 14:13-14
What a precious gift. I love when the Lord speaks to my heart like that. This is exactly the message I needed this week. I won't say it wasn't still difficult, but it helped me make it through.
Health-wise, it's been challenging also. I have had horrible fatigue. I feel okay when I get up in the morning, but starting about 10am, I hardly have any energy to move. I have been sleeping a lot during the day to try help increase my energy levels, but it has still been tough. So, I apologize if I have told you that I would call you, but haven't yet. Working my two shifts is about all I have energy to do each day. I am hoping this improves soon as my last grad class starts in about a week!
Overall, treatment is going well. I am handling the 7 day Rifampin dose pretty well. It's been about 3 1/2 weeks of stead antibiotics without any break. I did start to get pretty reactive towards the end of last week. When the medication builds up in my system, it really sets off my histamine system. I was starting to slip, but I went to my first appointment last Friday afternoon, and it was perfect timing. My acupuncturist is working on helping my liver detox naturally. Sure enough, within about a couple hours, my histamine system stabilized and I felt better! Yay! She is really great. I am so thankful I found her. Brian and I were talking, and we are so thankful for the team of physicians that I have now. It's been a long time since we have had such a wide variety of individuals working towards one common goal. It is obvious that they Lord led us to each one. We hope that God can use all of their wisdom to help me heal!
I have had some old symptoms pop up in the last couple of days, but that isn't surprising. We still seem to be on an uptrend if we could just get this fatigue under control! One thing we did just find out is that the supplement that I use that has helped me detox and has been the key to improving my sensitivities has been pulled off the market. I talked to the company and they said that one of the company's they were getting a particular ingredient from started being too lax in their quality standards. So, they pulled the product and are now looking for other options. This was kind of hard to handle. Since I started taking Toxin Absorbmax, my chemical sensitivities have become manageable. I have been able to go grocery shopping with Brian, and I have handled scents and fragrances so much better. Brian and I had even talked about trying to go back to church in June sometime. I am trying not to get discouraged, and just look at this as a bump in the road. However, it's disappointing when I have come so far. I am going to be talking to my doctor to see if we can find the individual ingredients since there are only 3 and maybe I could just take them separately. Please be praying that God would provide an answer for us. We are supposed to be adding a new one this weekend. If you could be praying for God's protection, I would appreciate it. We couldn't get this one compounded into a pure form, so I am a bit nervous to try it. Plus, it is always hard on your body the more antibiotics you take. I am going to have to up my probiotic dose! :)
I have a phone appointment with the NMD at my doctor's office on Monday, June 6th. We are going to ask him to bump up my dose of Rifampin. We really want to kick Bartonella. The quicker we can get off these heavy antibiotics the better. We have almost one month down, and he said it would take about 4 to 5 months. So, we are one step closer to victory! God can do it! :)
I am pretty nervous to start my last graduate course as this is a course about managing e-learning and instruction design programs. It is a really hard class. We do one group project and that is our only grade. It will be super challenging since I do not have a lot of experience in this area, but I have an amazing team, so I am hoping it will all be okay. Only about two months until I am done with my degree! I can't believe it! I can see the end in sight! Honestly, if you would have told me years ago that I would have a master's degree, I wouldn't have believed you. I am so thankful to the Lord for this opportunity.
Well, I need to go lay down again. :P I hope you have a wonderful holiday weekend with your friends and family. Blessings to you!
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
A few updates...
Hello all! I am sorry for not making an update last week. I am now taking 7 days straight of antibiotics including the really tough one, Rifampin. I have definitely not felt good. Thankfully, it hasn't hit me as hard as it did when I started the medication. I haven't had a lot of the neurological and breathing issues. I have just had a lot of fatigue and bone/joint pain. It's not the kind where I get a little tired though, it's the kind where walking to the other room looks like a huge feat. That's the reason for the delay in writing this blog post. I am getting used to the fatigue, so it's a bit easier to handle this week.
We are encouraged that the medication is still working. It is good news that I haven't become resistant to it yet which is always a risk when you take antibiotics long-term. We really want to hit the Bartonella hard, so on my next phone appointment (June 6), we are going to ask if I can increase to the full dose. I am sure it will be difficult, but the end result will be worth it!
At the same time as we changed my antibiotic protocol, I had to stop taking LDN (Low Dose Naltrexone) because it was causing horrible insomnia. This is the one medication that has helped me to have energy during the day. It is really amazing; however, one of the not-so-fun side effects is insomnia. Up until last week, I had handled it okay. However, since we increased Rifampin which also causes insomnia, I started not sleeping. I think I went 3 days last week with about 2 hours of sleep. I was so tired, but my brain would not turn off. I can't take sleeping medications because of all of my allergies and sensitivities. We have stopped LDN, and my insomnia has improved, but not having LDN has also added to my extreme fatigue. If it's not one thing, it's another!
We did start treating my adrenals to see if we can correct my cortisol imbalance. This should help my insomnia overtime, but it takes 2 to 3 months for it to work. As far as the other medications and supplements that my doctor gave me to try, I am still working on getting on them. I have had trouble getting NAET appointments, so it has delayed my ability to try the new medications.
I have an acupuncture appointment! My first session is on Friday. So far, God has provided for us to be able to afford the first month of appointments. So, I am going to try it, and see if it will help some of my chronic conditions. I would hope that after a month, I will be able to tell if it's working or not. I am a bit nervous as I have never had acupuncture before, but I want to give it a shot!
Finally, Brian and I had an amazing appointment with a local physician. He is a specialized physician, so I can't see him for regular ailments or Lyme treatment, but the appointment was so encouraging. For the first time, we found a local physician who believes in chronic Lyme Disease, knows how it effects the immune system, why it has caused me to have chemical sensitivities and believes in treating long-term. Also, he asked me how many physicians told me that Lyme was all in my head or that I just had anxiety or depression issues (too numerous to count!!). Then, he proceeded to make an official apology on behalf of the mainstream medical community. He said he felt terrible that no one listened to me, and that I struggled so long before I reached a diagnosis. Our jaws were on the floor!!!! First, I have never found a mainstream medical doctor who believes in Chronic Lyme Disease or who agrees with long-term treatment. Second, I have definitely never received an apology. It was such an amazing appointment. It still brings tears to my eyes when I think about it. God is SO good!!! :)
Brian still has not received the results of his last CPA exam. He got an e-mail that said that he might not receive his score until mid-June. That is such a long time to wait!! I am sure he passed, but it would be nice to know sooner. Brian's work is going well. He has been super busy! He is actually going out of town next week for six days. This is the first time I will be by myself in a long time. We have been so blessed that he hasn't had to travel much up until this point! I never like being alone because my health is always so random, but I have been pretty stable lately. I am sure everything will go smoothly, but we would appreciate your prayers for safe travel, and good health.
Finally, I am still tutoring because I have not been able to find any other opportunities. Work-at-home jobs are very difficult to find. Since I have not been able to earn very much working the afternoon shift, I have had to start working the morning shift also. Normally, this wouldn't be a big deal, but the hours are 8am to 10am Eastern which means that it's 5am to 7am my time. So, Monday-Friday, I have to get up at 4:30am. It's necessary for me to work this shift so we can pay for our monthly expenses, but when I am not able to fall asleep quickly at night, it doesn't help the lack of sleep issue. Sometimes, I fall asleep at 1:00am, and then have to get up 3 1/2 hours later. If I don't have appointments during the day, I can go back to bed, but it's not as good as sleeping during the middle of the night. So, if you could be praying for a new job opportunity, I would appreciate it!!
Thanks for praying friends! :)
We are encouraged that the medication is still working. It is good news that I haven't become resistant to it yet which is always a risk when you take antibiotics long-term. We really want to hit the Bartonella hard, so on my next phone appointment (June 6), we are going to ask if I can increase to the full dose. I am sure it will be difficult, but the end result will be worth it!
At the same time as we changed my antibiotic protocol, I had to stop taking LDN (Low Dose Naltrexone) because it was causing horrible insomnia. This is the one medication that has helped me to have energy during the day. It is really amazing; however, one of the not-so-fun side effects is insomnia. Up until last week, I had handled it okay. However, since we increased Rifampin which also causes insomnia, I started not sleeping. I think I went 3 days last week with about 2 hours of sleep. I was so tired, but my brain would not turn off. I can't take sleeping medications because of all of my allergies and sensitivities. We have stopped LDN, and my insomnia has improved, but not having LDN has also added to my extreme fatigue. If it's not one thing, it's another!
We did start treating my adrenals to see if we can correct my cortisol imbalance. This should help my insomnia overtime, but it takes 2 to 3 months for it to work. As far as the other medications and supplements that my doctor gave me to try, I am still working on getting on them. I have had trouble getting NAET appointments, so it has delayed my ability to try the new medications.
I have an acupuncture appointment! My first session is on Friday. So far, God has provided for us to be able to afford the first month of appointments. So, I am going to try it, and see if it will help some of my chronic conditions. I would hope that after a month, I will be able to tell if it's working or not. I am a bit nervous as I have never had acupuncture before, but I want to give it a shot!
Finally, Brian and I had an amazing appointment with a local physician. He is a specialized physician, so I can't see him for regular ailments or Lyme treatment, but the appointment was so encouraging. For the first time, we found a local physician who believes in chronic Lyme Disease, knows how it effects the immune system, why it has caused me to have chemical sensitivities and believes in treating long-term. Also, he asked me how many physicians told me that Lyme was all in my head or that I just had anxiety or depression issues (too numerous to count!!). Then, he proceeded to make an official apology on behalf of the mainstream medical community. He said he felt terrible that no one listened to me, and that I struggled so long before I reached a diagnosis. Our jaws were on the floor!!!! First, I have never found a mainstream medical doctor who believes in Chronic Lyme Disease or who agrees with long-term treatment. Second, I have definitely never received an apology. It was such an amazing appointment. It still brings tears to my eyes when I think about it. God is SO good!!! :)
Brian still has not received the results of his last CPA exam. He got an e-mail that said that he might not receive his score until mid-June. That is such a long time to wait!! I am sure he passed, but it would be nice to know sooner. Brian's work is going well. He has been super busy! He is actually going out of town next week for six days. This is the first time I will be by myself in a long time. We have been so blessed that he hasn't had to travel much up until this point! I never like being alone because my health is always so random, but I have been pretty stable lately. I am sure everything will go smoothly, but we would appreciate your prayers for safe travel, and good health.
Finally, I am still tutoring because I have not been able to find any other opportunities. Work-at-home jobs are very difficult to find. Since I have not been able to earn very much working the afternoon shift, I have had to start working the morning shift also. Normally, this wouldn't be a big deal, but the hours are 8am to 10am Eastern which means that it's 5am to 7am my time. So, Monday-Friday, I have to get up at 4:30am. It's necessary for me to work this shift so we can pay for our monthly expenses, but when I am not able to fall asleep quickly at night, it doesn't help the lack of sleep issue. Sometimes, I fall asleep at 1:00am, and then have to get up 3 1/2 hours later. If I don't have appointments during the day, I can go back to bed, but it's not as good as sleeping during the middle of the night. So, if you could be praying for a new job opportunity, I would appreciate it!!
Thanks for praying friends! :)
Monday, May 9, 2011
We're Back!
Boy was that a fast trip to California! I apologize for just writing this post. We were pretty exhausted on Sunday, and even though I had every intention of writing a post that day, it just didn't happen. I didn't get a lot of sleep on the trip because of my insomnia and the chemicals in the hotel. Brian was super tired too as he did most of the driving because of all the meds I am on. I have such a wonderful husband! He sacrifices so much for me, and always is concerned about how I am doing or how he can make me feel better. What a precious treasure! Let me get to the details of our trip...
On Thursday morning, we left at 4am. I know, pretty insane huh!?! It's about a 14 hour drive with stops. My food schedule doesn't fit well with travel since I can only eat specific foods and most have to be cooked. So, it's always important we get to our destination by dinner. We had a great trip! It was wonderful to spend time talking with my husband. We made it to our hotel about 7pm that night. The hotel staff was wonderful. They cleaned the hotel to our specifications (no chemicals); however, unfortunately, if they use an air freshner or clean with chemicals every other time, it still is in the air. Last time, we didn't notice any smell in the room, but this time, it was definitely there. Thankfully, I didn't react too bad. I didn't feel good, but it wasn't debilitating. We were able to stay there without any adverse reactions. The pollen count was extremely high (we could see layers of it on our car), so that compounded the problem. Still, God protected my body from any horrible reactions. I just felt pretty awful while we were there. However, I can live with that! :)
On Friday morning, we were able to go to the Golden Gate Bridge. We couldn't stay there for very long because of my allergies, but we were able to at least see it this time. God parted the fog and by the time we got to the bridge, it was blue sky! We got some pics. I will try to upload those in the future. It turned out to be a beautiful day.
My appointment with my Lyme doctor was at 2pm. It went very well. I think I have mentioned this before, but this is the first time we actually met with my Lyme doctor. I had been working with his PA and NMD up until this point. I don't think I can say enough good things about my doctor. He has a wonderful personality. He is pretty relaxed and really funny. He made us feel at ease right away. He is also brilliant! He had so many ideas for us about how to help me improve. He is very experienced working with people with chemical sensitivities, and his knowledge about Lyme Disease and co-infections is incredible. We feel so blessed to be under his care.
We were told some good news. First, he was happy to see that Rifampin had enabled me to make such great improvements. He feels like Bartonella is the big culprit as to why I still don't feel great. So, we are going to work on that. He addressed my chemical sensitivities, and said that because my chemical sensivities reduce when I do enough detoxification, he doesn't think that my chemical sensitivities are a permanent condition. This was so AMAZING to hear! Brian and I have had this question for quite some time. We were unsure if my chemical sensitivities would be a permanent condition caused by the length of time I have been sick and also how long I took steroids when I first got sick. Steroids and Lyme DO NOT mix. This is when my chemical sensitivities first appeared. However, my LLMD thinks that once we get the infections under control, my sensitivities will improve. That would be amazing and finally allow us to get involved in a church body again. What a day that would be!!!
Another thing we talked about was my allergy to formaldehyde. He actually gave me some supplements that will help draw that chemical and ammonia out of my cells. He said that when you are exposed to formaldehyde like I was in the new construction building I worked in before my health took a plunge, it sticks in your cells for years. So, we are going to be trying to draw that out of my cells in hopes that it will reduce the burden on my body enabling it to heal more quickly.
As far as antibiotic treatment, we are going to stay the course but increase the intensity. I am going to be doing Rifampin for 7 days a week instead of 3 or 4. YIKES!!! I do get to stay at a smaller dose, but I do not get any time off. It will be interesting to see how my body tollerates this. By the end of day 4, I am usually pretty sick. He also wants to add another drug from the same family as Rifampin. This drug actually stays in the gut to fight the bugs that reside there. He feels pretty strongly that is where my main bacteria load resides because of how quickly I improve when I get the toxins out of my system. To be honest, I am dreading adding this drug on top of increasing Rifampin. However, at the same time, he did say that we could kick Bartonella within about 4 or 5 months. That is SUPER exciting!! That will help me push through the not-so-fun side effects. I am excited to be getting to the other side of this! He does think that we have made great progress with Lyme Disease, so we are just on a maintenance protocol for that infection. My doctor also gave us some great ideas to help me detox even more. He said he wouldn't have me get a snake bite at this point (he was kidding), but he did tell me to take some pretty strange stuff including yucca root and a supplement derived from the prickly pear cactus. He is the best of both worlds. He an amazing western medicine physician, but also uses a lot of natural and integrative medicine. It's important to have a good balance on both sides.
Finally, we were told some information that was very exciting to us. As I have written before, Brian and I have always wanted a family; however, with how sick I have been, we have wondered if that day will ever come. We have noticed improvements in the last couple of months, but we have been cautiously optimistic. Before we could even ask, he actually brought it up. He said he couldn't promise what my chemical sensivities would do, but had no problems with once we get the bartonella infection under control if we thought about a family in the future. We were absolutely shocked! There is a lot of literature about pregnancy and Lyme Disease, and if you do a maintenace treatment of antibiotics that are okay for pregnancy, there is a VERY good chance the baby would be completely healthy. We trust his judgement. He has treated thousands of patients. We know that there is always a risk, but I guess in our opinion, pregnancy is always a risk. We aren't planning on pursuing this anytime soon, but it's just nice to know that we don't have to necessarily close the door on one of our dreams.
I have a phone appointment scheduled in about one month with his NMD, and then we will see him again in the office on September 9th. Hopefully, when we take that trip, I will be greatly improved. We have so much hope for the first time in a LONG time!
Now, we do have some important prayer requests. I have to get on quite a few new meds and supplements. Obviously, this is usually pretty difficult for me, so please be praying that I tolerate these as they are all very important for my health. Also, we have been looking into having me try acupuncture. There is a lot of medical reports that it helps in a variety of ways including boosting your immune system (which I desperately need some assistance), helping your body to detox naturally, improving insomnia and also assisting in regulating hormones. We feel strongly this would be very beneficial; however, it is really expensive. We did find someone local who has worked with a number of chemically sensitive patients, but the sessions are between $50 and $75, and once again insurance doesn't cover this type of treatment. I would need to go once a week, and as we assessed our finances, we just can't do it at this point. It would be too much of a hit each month. So, we are going to work on trying to save for this therapy. If you could be praying that God would provide financially so that I could obtain this treatment, we would appreciate it. The World Health Organization and the National Institutes of Health even report the amazing benefits of this type of treatment. All in God's timing!
Finally, if you could be praying for Brian. He was able to study a little bit on our trip, but he has a lot to do in the upcoming two months. He is not behind at this point, but he is traveling out of town for business the week of the 23rd, and he is tired. Please pray that God would give him energy to be able to finish his class and the last section of the CPA exam. He is one amazing guy, and he deserves to finish successfully. I have confidence he will do it, but please be praying for strength and that God would multiply his time.
Thanks for praying friends! We are blessed to have such wonderful support!
On Thursday morning, we left at 4am. I know, pretty insane huh!?! It's about a 14 hour drive with stops. My food schedule doesn't fit well with travel since I can only eat specific foods and most have to be cooked. So, it's always important we get to our destination by dinner. We had a great trip! It was wonderful to spend time talking with my husband. We made it to our hotel about 7pm that night. The hotel staff was wonderful. They cleaned the hotel to our specifications (no chemicals); however, unfortunately, if they use an air freshner or clean with chemicals every other time, it still is in the air. Last time, we didn't notice any smell in the room, but this time, it was definitely there. Thankfully, I didn't react too bad. I didn't feel good, but it wasn't debilitating. We were able to stay there without any adverse reactions. The pollen count was extremely high (we could see layers of it on our car), so that compounded the problem. Still, God protected my body from any horrible reactions. I just felt pretty awful while we were there. However, I can live with that! :)
On Friday morning, we were able to go to the Golden Gate Bridge. We couldn't stay there for very long because of my allergies, but we were able to at least see it this time. God parted the fog and by the time we got to the bridge, it was blue sky! We got some pics. I will try to upload those in the future. It turned out to be a beautiful day.
My appointment with my Lyme doctor was at 2pm. It went very well. I think I have mentioned this before, but this is the first time we actually met with my Lyme doctor. I had been working with his PA and NMD up until this point. I don't think I can say enough good things about my doctor. He has a wonderful personality. He is pretty relaxed and really funny. He made us feel at ease right away. He is also brilliant! He had so many ideas for us about how to help me improve. He is very experienced working with people with chemical sensitivities, and his knowledge about Lyme Disease and co-infections is incredible. We feel so blessed to be under his care.
We were told some good news. First, he was happy to see that Rifampin had enabled me to make such great improvements. He feels like Bartonella is the big culprit as to why I still don't feel great. So, we are going to work on that. He addressed my chemical sensitivities, and said that because my chemical sensivities reduce when I do enough detoxification, he doesn't think that my chemical sensitivities are a permanent condition. This was so AMAZING to hear! Brian and I have had this question for quite some time. We were unsure if my chemical sensitivities would be a permanent condition caused by the length of time I have been sick and also how long I took steroids when I first got sick. Steroids and Lyme DO NOT mix. This is when my chemical sensitivities first appeared. However, my LLMD thinks that once we get the infections under control, my sensitivities will improve. That would be amazing and finally allow us to get involved in a church body again. What a day that would be!!!
Another thing we talked about was my allergy to formaldehyde. He actually gave me some supplements that will help draw that chemical and ammonia out of my cells. He said that when you are exposed to formaldehyde like I was in the new construction building I worked in before my health took a plunge, it sticks in your cells for years. So, we are going to be trying to draw that out of my cells in hopes that it will reduce the burden on my body enabling it to heal more quickly.
As far as antibiotic treatment, we are going to stay the course but increase the intensity. I am going to be doing Rifampin for 7 days a week instead of 3 or 4. YIKES!!! I do get to stay at a smaller dose, but I do not get any time off. It will be interesting to see how my body tollerates this. By the end of day 4, I am usually pretty sick. He also wants to add another drug from the same family as Rifampin. This drug actually stays in the gut to fight the bugs that reside there. He feels pretty strongly that is where my main bacteria load resides because of how quickly I improve when I get the toxins out of my system. To be honest, I am dreading adding this drug on top of increasing Rifampin. However, at the same time, he did say that we could kick Bartonella within about 4 or 5 months. That is SUPER exciting!! That will help me push through the not-so-fun side effects. I am excited to be getting to the other side of this! He does think that we have made great progress with Lyme Disease, so we are just on a maintenance protocol for that infection. My doctor also gave us some great ideas to help me detox even more. He said he wouldn't have me get a snake bite at this point (he was kidding), but he did tell me to take some pretty strange stuff including yucca root and a supplement derived from the prickly pear cactus. He is the best of both worlds. He an amazing western medicine physician, but also uses a lot of natural and integrative medicine. It's important to have a good balance on both sides.
Finally, we were told some information that was very exciting to us. As I have written before, Brian and I have always wanted a family; however, with how sick I have been, we have wondered if that day will ever come. We have noticed improvements in the last couple of months, but we have been cautiously optimistic. Before we could even ask, he actually brought it up. He said he couldn't promise what my chemical sensivities would do, but had no problems with once we get the bartonella infection under control if we thought about a family in the future. We were absolutely shocked! There is a lot of literature about pregnancy and Lyme Disease, and if you do a maintenace treatment of antibiotics that are okay for pregnancy, there is a VERY good chance the baby would be completely healthy. We trust his judgement. He has treated thousands of patients. We know that there is always a risk, but I guess in our opinion, pregnancy is always a risk. We aren't planning on pursuing this anytime soon, but it's just nice to know that we don't have to necessarily close the door on one of our dreams.
I have a phone appointment scheduled in about one month with his NMD, and then we will see him again in the office on September 9th. Hopefully, when we take that trip, I will be greatly improved. We have so much hope for the first time in a LONG time!
Now, we do have some important prayer requests. I have to get on quite a few new meds and supplements. Obviously, this is usually pretty difficult for me, so please be praying that I tolerate these as they are all very important for my health. Also, we have been looking into having me try acupuncture. There is a lot of medical reports that it helps in a variety of ways including boosting your immune system (which I desperately need some assistance), helping your body to detox naturally, improving insomnia and also assisting in regulating hormones. We feel strongly this would be very beneficial; however, it is really expensive. We did find someone local who has worked with a number of chemically sensitive patients, but the sessions are between $50 and $75, and once again insurance doesn't cover this type of treatment. I would need to go once a week, and as we assessed our finances, we just can't do it at this point. It would be too much of a hit each month. So, we are going to work on trying to save for this therapy. If you could be praying that God would provide financially so that I could obtain this treatment, we would appreciate it. The World Health Organization and the National Institutes of Health even report the amazing benefits of this type of treatment. All in God's timing!
Finally, if you could be praying for Brian. He was able to study a little bit on our trip, but he has a lot to do in the upcoming two months. He is not behind at this point, but he is traveling out of town for business the week of the 23rd, and he is tired. Please pray that God would give him energy to be able to finish his class and the last section of the CPA exam. He is one amazing guy, and he deserves to finish successfully. I have confidence he will do it, but please be praying for strength and that God would multiply his time.
Thanks for praying friends! We are blessed to have such wonderful support!
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Another Week of Adventure!
So, once again, we had another week of adventure in our household. I am not sure why we can't have a boring life. I would gladly trade with anyone who does. Our budget can't handle any more of these crises, so we are praying big time this was the last of them. I will give you an update about our week, and then we have some major prayer requests as we will be traveling to California on Thursday for a Friday appointment with my Lyme doctor.
Where to begin... First, I am going to warn you about this tidbit of news that you may or may not think this is strange. Those that have had experience with muscle testing (muscle kinesiology) are probably much more likely to be a believer than those that have not experienced it. For Brian and I, it took us awhile to believe that it was fool proof. We did a lot of blind tests with my practitioner, but soon became a full believer that God has given us tools besides western medicine tests to figure out what is wrong with our bodies. I think I have talked about this before on this blog, but once a week, I do NAET treatments. These are acupressure (kind of like acupuncture, but without the needles) allergy treatments. They really work and have been a major blessing from the Lord. God has used this to help me to basically survive over the last 4 years.
Anyways, the way that she tests to see what is wrong with my body is through muscle testing. She can find out all sorts of things like what I am allergic to, what vitamins I am low in and also what is wrong with my body (disease, illness, pain etc.). She never tells me what she is testing for and will actually do a control each time she tests. So, I never know what she is asking until after she finds out the results. We have done it with allergens where she will test a group. I know what I am allergic to, but don't tell her and she doesn't tell me until the test is done. It's been 100% accurate. When I struggling with an allergic symptom, she can figure out what it is, I take it out of my diet or get an NAET treatment and my symptoms go away. It's amazing how God has enabled our bodies to function in this manner. We serve one awesome creator.
Well, I wrote all this to say that on Monday, I went to my appointment with the intent of figuring out what happened to me last Friday when I ended up in the ER. She did a bunch of testing, and guess what she came up with...yep, a blood clot in my lungs was the cause of the pain. Scary!! She did say it passed pretty quickly which I had suspected because my pain and the horrible breathing issues only lasted a couple of hours. I think I already knew this was the cause of the incident. I am used to chest pains and breathing issues because of Lyme Disease and the lovely co-infections, but this was completely different. I haven't ever experienced anything like this. Plus, I took 3 days of Rifampin again, and it didn't effect my breathing at all. So, it looks like Mr. Bloodclot took up residence in my lungs, but thankfully didn't stay long. :)
However, even though Friday was past, I still had a rough week. I had a lot of chest pain and shortness of breath. Not the scary kind like last Friday, but a big nuisance. I couldn't walking very far without my heart rate increasing and feeling like I wasn't getting my usual amount of oxygen. I was only getting a couple of hours asleep a night also. I couldn't lay flat without feeling like it was hard to breathe. Since we are leaving this coming Thursday to travel a long distance in a car where there is nothing but desert for hundreds of miles, we thought I should probably go get it checked out.
My appointment was on Friday morning. After seeing the doctor, she was concerned that I still had a clot in my lungs. She did an O2 test while I was in the office. I had to walk around with a machine that measured my oxygen. When I sat, it was a 100%. When I got up and walked around, it was 95%. Now, that still seems like a good number, but they don't like it to go below 98%. No wonder I was short of breath! She wasn't too thrilled to see what my stats were doing. She wanted to test me for a blood clot. I can't have the Cat Scan IV Dye because I am allergic to it (surprise, surprise, lol). So, she had to send me to get a nuclear scan. This will be my 3rd one in a month. I swear I must be glowing. Plus, every time I have this test done, it's $400. You can only imagine the bills piling up. However, blood clots are not something you mess around with, so off I went to get nuked again. :)
This time, I was sent to the University Medical Center because the hospital near our house was booked. This is the best hospital in Tucson, so I didn't mind. Little did I know what was in store for me when I got there. Again, never a dull moment! My friend Candice, who has Lyme Disease, Multiple Chemical Sensitivities and Dysautonomia like me, gave this adventure a clever title "Chapter 28473: The Day I Almost Went to the Morgue". That made me laugh. You will see why.
Anyways, back to my story...I get to the hospital and start the check in process. Afterwords, I am told to go the basement to the nuclear radiation area. So, I go down the elevator and the doors open. Within 30 seconds of stepping off the elevator, I flush from head to toe. I am one bright red blotchy itchy rash, and I have the not-so-fun feeling like I am about to pass out. I have absolutely no idea what is causing this and haven't reacted like this to something in my environment in a LONG time. The nurse takes me back, and I get that all to familiar look of "I am not sure I want to touch you". However, I knew the test must be done, so I told her lets proceed on and I'll let them know when my body can't take it any longer.
About 15 minutes into the test, we were talking about allergies, and she mentions how she has trouble whenever she comes to work. She said that she doesn't know what it is, but guesses it might have something to do with the morgue next door. BINGO!!! I immediately knew that was the source of my issues. I am deathly allergic to formaldehyde not to mention all the other chemicals they probably use in there. So, I had my answer. It was the morgue that was giving me such a bad reaction. I made it through the test. I think what helped was that for a large part of it, I had to be hooked up to oxygen. Plus, once I got back to the area where they administer the test, they have a pretty good filtration system to filter the nuclear radiation out of the air. So, I survived. Seriously! Of all the locations that nuclear test area could have been. I told the story to my Dad, and he thought the irony was pretty funny. Ha...ha... It is pretty ironic if you think about it.
Well, thankfully, the test turned out normal. No more blood clots. Later I found out from my primary practitioner that often when port is removed because it has clotted off, that as it's pulled out, small blood clots can break off and travel into your system. So, it would make sense why this happened to me. I think I am just in awe of the Lord, and how He works behind the scenes. It turns out that one of the supplements that I have been on for 6 months to help control Candida (the bad bacteria that grows when too much of your good bacteria is killed from taking antibiotics) is a natural blood thinner. It's a protease enzyme which breaks down fibrin of cells. Fibrin is what makes up the cell wall of clots. I was dumbfounded when I realized this. I know God protects us, but to see it played out in such a real and tangible way was overwhelming. We serve an AMAZING Savior! We would have probably had a very different situation on our hands if I had not been on this supplement.
We think the shortness of breath and chest pain are just residual effects of the incident last Friday. It is slowly getting better, so we are guessing it will just take some time. We will be so glad to have these two weeks behind us; however, we are coming up on a big 3 weeks schedule-wise. Let me get to those prayer requests since this post is super long already!
Where to begin... First, I am going to warn you about this tidbit of news that you may or may not think this is strange. Those that have had experience with muscle testing (muscle kinesiology) are probably much more likely to be a believer than those that have not experienced it. For Brian and I, it took us awhile to believe that it was fool proof. We did a lot of blind tests with my practitioner, but soon became a full believer that God has given us tools besides western medicine tests to figure out what is wrong with our bodies. I think I have talked about this before on this blog, but once a week, I do NAET treatments. These are acupressure (kind of like acupuncture, but without the needles) allergy treatments. They really work and have been a major blessing from the Lord. God has used this to help me to basically survive over the last 4 years.
Anyways, the way that she tests to see what is wrong with my body is through muscle testing. She can find out all sorts of things like what I am allergic to, what vitamins I am low in and also what is wrong with my body (disease, illness, pain etc.). She never tells me what she is testing for and will actually do a control each time she tests. So, I never know what she is asking until after she finds out the results. We have done it with allergens where she will test a group. I know what I am allergic to, but don't tell her and she doesn't tell me until the test is done. It's been 100% accurate. When I struggling with an allergic symptom, she can figure out what it is, I take it out of my diet or get an NAET treatment and my symptoms go away. It's amazing how God has enabled our bodies to function in this manner. We serve one awesome creator.
Well, I wrote all this to say that on Monday, I went to my appointment with the intent of figuring out what happened to me last Friday when I ended up in the ER. She did a bunch of testing, and guess what she came up with...yep, a blood clot in my lungs was the cause of the pain. Scary!! She did say it passed pretty quickly which I had suspected because my pain and the horrible breathing issues only lasted a couple of hours. I think I already knew this was the cause of the incident. I am used to chest pains and breathing issues because of Lyme Disease and the lovely co-infections, but this was completely different. I haven't ever experienced anything like this. Plus, I took 3 days of Rifampin again, and it didn't effect my breathing at all. So, it looks like Mr. Bloodclot took up residence in my lungs, but thankfully didn't stay long. :)
However, even though Friday was past, I still had a rough week. I had a lot of chest pain and shortness of breath. Not the scary kind like last Friday, but a big nuisance. I couldn't walking very far without my heart rate increasing and feeling like I wasn't getting my usual amount of oxygen. I was only getting a couple of hours asleep a night also. I couldn't lay flat without feeling like it was hard to breathe. Since we are leaving this coming Thursday to travel a long distance in a car where there is nothing but desert for hundreds of miles, we thought I should probably go get it checked out.
My appointment was on Friday morning. After seeing the doctor, she was concerned that I still had a clot in my lungs. She did an O2 test while I was in the office. I had to walk around with a machine that measured my oxygen. When I sat, it was a 100%. When I got up and walked around, it was 95%. Now, that still seems like a good number, but they don't like it to go below 98%. No wonder I was short of breath! She wasn't too thrilled to see what my stats were doing. She wanted to test me for a blood clot. I can't have the Cat Scan IV Dye because I am allergic to it (surprise, surprise, lol). So, she had to send me to get a nuclear scan. This will be my 3rd one in a month. I swear I must be glowing. Plus, every time I have this test done, it's $400. You can only imagine the bills piling up. However, blood clots are not something you mess around with, so off I went to get nuked again. :)
This time, I was sent to the University Medical Center because the hospital near our house was booked. This is the best hospital in Tucson, so I didn't mind. Little did I know what was in store for me when I got there. Again, never a dull moment! My friend Candice, who has Lyme Disease, Multiple Chemical Sensitivities and Dysautonomia like me, gave this adventure a clever title "Chapter 28473: The Day I Almost Went to the Morgue". That made me laugh. You will see why.
Anyways, back to my story...I get to the hospital and start the check in process. Afterwords, I am told to go the basement to the nuclear radiation area. So, I go down the elevator and the doors open. Within 30 seconds of stepping off the elevator, I flush from head to toe. I am one bright red blotchy itchy rash, and I have the not-so-fun feeling like I am about to pass out. I have absolutely no idea what is causing this and haven't reacted like this to something in my environment in a LONG time. The nurse takes me back, and I get that all to familiar look of "I am not sure I want to touch you". However, I knew the test must be done, so I told her lets proceed on and I'll let them know when my body can't take it any longer.
About 15 minutes into the test, we were talking about allergies, and she mentions how she has trouble whenever she comes to work. She said that she doesn't know what it is, but guesses it might have something to do with the morgue next door. BINGO!!! I immediately knew that was the source of my issues. I am deathly allergic to formaldehyde not to mention all the other chemicals they probably use in there. So, I had my answer. It was the morgue that was giving me such a bad reaction. I made it through the test. I think what helped was that for a large part of it, I had to be hooked up to oxygen. Plus, once I got back to the area where they administer the test, they have a pretty good filtration system to filter the nuclear radiation out of the air. So, I survived. Seriously! Of all the locations that nuclear test area could have been. I told the story to my Dad, and he thought the irony was pretty funny. Ha...ha... It is pretty ironic if you think about it.
Well, thankfully, the test turned out normal. No more blood clots. Later I found out from my primary practitioner that often when port is removed because it has clotted off, that as it's pulled out, small blood clots can break off and travel into your system. So, it would make sense why this happened to me. I think I am just in awe of the Lord, and how He works behind the scenes. It turns out that one of the supplements that I have been on for 6 months to help control Candida (the bad bacteria that grows when too much of your good bacteria is killed from taking antibiotics) is a natural blood thinner. It's a protease enzyme which breaks down fibrin of cells. Fibrin is what makes up the cell wall of clots. I was dumbfounded when I realized this. I know God protects us, but to see it played out in such a real and tangible way was overwhelming. We serve an AMAZING Savior! We would have probably had a very different situation on our hands if I had not been on this supplement.
We think the shortness of breath and chest pain are just residual effects of the incident last Friday. It is slowly getting better, so we are guessing it will just take some time. We will be so glad to have these two weeks behind us; however, we are coming up on a big 3 weeks schedule-wise. Let me get to those prayer requests since this post is super long already!
- Thursday, we are leaving for San Francisco, CA for an appointment with my Lyme doctor on Friday. If you could please pray for safe travel, no allergic reactions to food or my environment (my allergies have been a lot worse lately because all of the stuff I have been exposed to and also the pollen count), and a good Lyme appointment. This is the first time we will be meeting with my Lyme doctor (I have been working with his PA and ND). Please pray that we will get all our questions answered, and that we will get a plan for the future. I am tricky since I have so many allergies to herbs, supplements and drugs, so we are really praying that he will have wisdom. Also, I have been on antibiotics for 2 years now, and we are wanting to know when we will be able to stop. We don't want to stop too soon where I will relapse, but we don't want to keep taking them for years on end because it's not good for my body.
- Please be praying for Brian. We have had a VERY stressful two weeks. It's been hard for him to find time to study, and he is really tired. He is the one who does most of the driving on our trip, so please be praying that God will give him an extra burst of energy and that his sleep would be multiplied.
- We just found out that Brian is going to have to go out of town for a week starting on May 16th. This is not the best timing with all that has happened with my health, how busy Brian is and also how tired he has been. It is also not great for his study schedule either. However, he has to go, so please be praying that God would protect us both.
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