Amazing Changes! :)

Hello Everyone! Well, I thought we have had enough happen this week that it was time to write a post. Of course, it's 1:15am in the morning, and I can't sleep, but I don't mind. I can catch up tomorrow. Overall, I am sleeping better. It seems like if I have stuff that goes late into the evening (online grad school meetings or work obligations) that is when my insomnia kicks in. Usually, once a week I only get two or three hours of sleep before I have to get up for work at 4:30am. However, my schedule allows me to catch up during the day, so it's not too bad. I am just thankful for the other six nights that allow me to sleep like a normal person! :)

The first piece of big news is that on Monday, Brian received a HUGE promotion. He will now be a Senior Accountant at his CPA firm. His manager said that he was the first person in the history of his company to be promoted to that position after only 1 1/2 years. Yay!!! Have I mentioned how amazing he is???!!!!! :) Words can not describe how proud I am of him! He works so hard, and God has blessed him abundantly with this wonderful gift. His review went amazing, and they were so impressed that Brian will be done with the CPA exam by Christmas. That is Brian's goal, and he is working hard to complete it. They wanted him to be finished by December 2012, but Brian will finish one year ahead of time. That's Brian for you! He sets a goal and always accomplishes it. They are so impressed by his ambitions, work ethic and talents. I know he will be AMAZING at this new position.

The second piece of news is that we found out that Brian passed the third section of the CPA exam!!!! Yay!!! Only one more section to go! :) That is so exciting. He is set to take the last section on July 8th. Please be praying for this. It's the hardest section of the exam. He still has a lot of studying to do in the next two weeks. Please pray that God would give him clarity of mind, and that He would multiply his time!

The third piece of news is that my work has promoted me to trainer. This is not a full-time position, and probably won't even be a part-time position, but when they hire new people, I now get to train them. I can't tell you how exciting this is for me. This is what I LOVE to do. Teaching is my passion. I used to think I only liked teaching little kids, but I actually really enjoy corporate training. It's challenging and yet so rewarding. I started working with my first trainee tonight, and it brought so much joy to my heart. To have the opportunity to help others succeed is such a blessing. I will still be tutoring in the mornings and afternoons, but I will train the new employees as they are hired. Also, for awhile now, I have been trying to switch tutoring programs for my afternoon shift because of the lack of students. I found out today that it is in the works, and hopefully, I should be able to switch in the next week. Please pray for that! My current tutoring program has to release me so I can change. My manager is working on it, but we aren't sure if it will happen without some major finagling.

Health-wise, I am doing better. I think we are finally getting the Candida under control. I have lost a lot of weight, but I don't mind. :) I have learned I can't cheat on the diet though. I have to be very careful to only have fruit once or twice a week, and mainly stick to vegetables, meat and a little bit of yogurt. I have been able to have a little bit of carbs in the form of brown rice, but I have to be careful with that too. Thankfully, the fatigue is SOOOO much better!

I have been successfully taking the full dose of Rifampin for 2 weeks now! Yay! I am getting some herx-like reactions, but they are minor compared to what I used to get. As long as I make sure to detox, I am okay. Which brings me to my next prayer request. We are still trying to find a replacement for the current detox supplement that I am taking. It's very vital that we find something that works in order to keep my symptoms under control. I am going to be ordering something that was recommended by my doctor tomorrow. However, it has a few ingredients that are pretty strange, and I am not sure how well I will tolerate it.

We are actually going to try going to church one week from Sunday. I have to train some students who live on the East Coast for work this Sunday. Unfortunately, because of the time difference, it will run right into the time we would be at church. So, we had to push the date out. To be honest, I am quite nervous to go. It's been a VERY long time since we have tried to do this. For about a month now, I have been going grocery shopping with Brian very successfully. However, that is a situation where I don't have to stay in one place for a really long time. My chemical sensitivities are still present, so we don't know how I will react. However, we still want to try! Please be praying for this! It would be such a blessing to be able to worship with other believers and to once again get some Christian fellowship. I don't expect to be symptom free, but I am praying and hoping that the symptoms that come are ones I can push through!

The last piece of news is a fun one! In August, I will be graduating with my master's degree. When I was battling the intense IV therapy and also trying to complete my graduate work, my parents decided to bless me with a goal/gift. They said that they would buy us a second puppy as they know I have wanted one for awhile. He will be the same breed as Toby, a Cavachon ~ hypoallergenic and non-shedding. I am not sure why I am not allergic to dogs when the rest of the world makes me react, lol. However, I have to say that I am SO thankful! I have included a picture on the left. He is SO cute! :) His name will be Jackson. We will get him on July 8th as he is flying in from Iowa! :) I am ecstatic. These little guys are so much fun and bring a lot of joy into our house amongst all the health and life stuff.

Well, that's all for now! I have to say I really like this post because there are so many positives. It's nice to be able to celebrate for once! :) We serve an incredible God, and we are so thankful for all that is doing in our lives. I hope you have a wonderful weekend! July is almost here! :)

On the Mend

Hello Folks! Well, I think the meds are finally starting to work on the Candida. I am adding another one hopefully by Saturday that will help me improve also. I have realized that my problems are directly related to Candida which is a big relief to me! It's great to still see all the progress I have made. It will be a tricky balancing act with the antibiotics I still must take, but God can do it. In the last day or so, I have been able to add back in a few carbs here and there which make such a difference in my energy level. I am sleeping a ton better too which has done wonders!

All of this is such an emotional roller coaster ride. One day things look up, and the next day you are climbing the big hill before the drop off trying to overcome another obstacle. However, I guess that is life right?!! What has helped me a lot in the last couple of days is to remember where I was two years ago, and now look where I am at. I have come so far. The next mile stone come August or September is to start the taper down process of the antibiotics to see what will happen if I am not taking them. Also, if we can just get my chemical sensitivities under control so I can work out of my home and attend church regularly, we would be set! :) Please be praying for this! We are doing acupuncture treatments which we feel strongly are helping my body learn to detox naturally. We need this to happen so I don't soak up chemicals in the environment like a sponge which is the reason I react so easily.

This leads me to my next prayer request. For awhile now, I have some issues with my current company and their reliability with pay and consistent work. I have also had a lot of trouble with upper management not responding to my e-mails or phone calls. I think I have been consistently trying to contact them for 3 1/2 weeks and have received no reply. In April, I trained for another English tutoring program, and it looked like things were improving. My schedule was full, and I was finally earning what I needed to be earning and loving it! However, with the recent series of events, I am about 95% sure they are canceling this program. There is a mandatory meeting for all phone tutors in Michigan on Saturday. This, of course, leaves me out of the picture since I live too far away to attend. The e-mail message stated that they wanted to discuss the recent events that have led to the "reorganization of the company". Hmm....anyone in the business world knows what that means! :P It drives me crazy how Korean clients pull their contracts from our company. From my observations, my guess would be it's a quality control issue with our tutors. There is absolutely no professional development or performance feedback, and the training is pretty terrible. After working on my graduate degree, and learning to analyze these kinds of problems and knowing what it would take to fix them, it's hard for me not to say anything.

So, I am back to looking very hard for a new job. I am considering going back to my former place of employment, Alpine Access. The pay won't be great, but at least it will be steady and reliable income. Plus, I would have the opportunity for advancement into a supervisor or training position in the future. The latter is something I am definitely qualified for with my graduate degree and something I would LOVE to be doing again. So, if you could be praying that God would open up a door and that they would be willing to take me back, I would appreciate it! Actually, just be praying that God would open up a door at any company that would be a good fit for me. I would love to be able to use my graduate degree, but if I have to start back in the customer service field and work my way up, I will do it so that our family can make ends meet!

6/17/11 - Update - Well, Alpine Access is a no go. It looks like even though I worked for them awhile ago, I am not elligible for rehire. My guess it has to do with the amount of absences I had before I left because of Lyme Disease. It obviously wasn't God's will, but it's a little hard to swallow because I have always been a good employee. Please keep praying that God will provide a job for me. Thanks!
Well, I need to go take some meds. Thanks for praying friends! I will keep you posted! :)

The weight of a boulder...

Well, it's been another interesting week in DeNio land. :) First of all, Tuesday was our eighth wedding anniversary! WOW!! I can't believe that many years have gone by. At times, during our journey, it seemed to crawl at a snails pace as we battled all of my health issues. However, in terms of our relationship, it seems like just yesterday I married my best friend. I fall more in love with him every day! He is one amazing man! I posted one of my favorite pictures of our wedding. This picture was taken right after we were pronounced husband and wife. As you can see, we were both ecstatic! :)

Health-wise, I honestly don't remember feeling this bad. I am sure I did when I started treatment, but when you start feeling well again, you usually forget the icky parts of the journey. I think that is a good thing. :)

My phone appointment with my doctor's NMD went very well. He had a lot of ideas on how to get the Candida under control. He said once I started Nystatin that I could add back in a few whole grain carbs a week and also start my antibiotics again. He also gave me a few ideas to help combat Candida naturally which included continuing on the Olive Leaf Extract and adding in Caprylic Acid. I am just waiting on the latter to be delivered. Thankfully, I am still able to take Olive Leaf Extract. It seriously tastes like I am eating a leaf pile, lol. Hey, if it works, I won't complain! He did adjust my antibiotic regiment by increasing my Rifampin. This is actually what Brian and I requested so that we could hit Bartonella hard, but I am a bit uneasy about how all these antibiotics are going to effect my Candida issue. Obviously, they will compound the problem, but it's our hope that the Nystatin and the other two supplements will help fight back.

We could really use some big time prayer about this. The NMD said that because I am on Rifampin, I can't take the stronger drugs to combat Candida (i.e. Diflucan), so Nystatin really needs to work for me. We don't want to have to go off of Rifampin because it has been the bullet that God has used to help me make so much headway. We are praying for a miracle and that God would heal my system!

I have another phone appointment in a month. However, if I get worse this week, I am supposed to let them know so we can change meds around. I think the worst part of this is the horrible fatigue. I am not sure if I can even describe it. Everything hurts, and I am so tired that I feel like I am walking around with a boulder on my shoulders. Every time I move from one room to the next, I am completely exhausted. I have struggled with fatigue before, but this type of fatigue is very new to me. Brian and I went to the store on Saturday morning, and by the time I got home and got into bed, I didn't even have enough energy to roll over on my side to go to sleep. It was seriously that bad.

I have tried not to let all this discourage me after having such a good two months health-wise. It's a big mind battle, but I know with all my heart that we are still making progress. I just think it's masked by this Candida issue. I have to hold out hope that the Lord is still healing my body. So, it's time to press on and forge ahead even though things during the day sometimes look like an impossible feat.

My grad class is going well so far. I have an amazing group for my group project. So, that is such a relief. I think it will be a lot of work, but every assignment can be divided up among our group members, so that makes it bearable.

I am so proud of my husband! All he has left to do is take the final for his accounting class and then focus on preparing for his last exam. He is doing so well. This upcoming CPA exam is the hardest, so please keep him in you prayers as he prepares.

That's our update! We pray that everything is going well for all of you. Please be praying for my body. I want to kick this so I can get back to feeling healthier again. Blessings!

Short Update...

So, this is going to be pretty short. I have not been feeling the best this weekend. Many times when patients take antibiotics too long, the good bacteria gets killed off and the bad bacteria (Candida yeast) starts to take over. Well, up until this point, I haven't had any issues. I have been truly blessed as I have watched a lot of my friends struggle with this over and over again. On Friday, I couldn't say that anymore. I joined the Candida bandwagon. It is SOOOOO not fun. I have felt awful. In fact, now that I look back at the last couple of weeks, I wonder if this is actually why I have felt so terrible.

I am pretty sure it was caused by two things. First, I started taking antibiotics 7 days a week per my doctor's instructions so I don't become resistant to Rifampin. This is necessary and helps me fight the Bartonella better, but it's horrible for Candida. Second, (this is the really dumb part), I added cheese back into my diet. I didn't even think how it would effect my Candida. I just was excited to find something I could snack on during the day. Well, A + B = C (CANDIDA) :P. I have been miserable all weekend. I had to change my diet completely...no carbs and only eat non-starchy vegetables and meat. Time to watch the pounds melt off (not that I have very much to lose anymore). I have had to up my probiotics big time, and I have had to start trying to take some kind of antifungal. I chose to try olive leaf extract because I had it at the house. It seems to be helping, but I think I am slowly becoming allergic to it.

Thankfully, I have a phone appt. with my doctor's NMD tomorrow. I have had this schedule since our trip to Cali, so it is perfect timing. I am hoping I get some answers tomorrow on how to kick this thing. In the meantime, I am pretty miserable with my limited food choices and feeling so awful.

To be honest, I am really tired of taking antibiotics. In July, I will reach the two year mark of my journey. It is hard because I know taking antibiotics so consistently for that long of a time is very hard on your body. My current condition is evidence of that. My doctor thinks my Lyme is in remission, but we still need to work on treating Bartonella. He said I would need to continue to do Bartonella treatment until August or September. However, I am concerned that my body won't be able to take that. At the same time, this particular treatment protocol has helped me so much. It has really helped me make progress. I would hate to quit too early.

So, we really need prayer for the doctor to have wisdom. Also, I need to be able to very quickly take the appropriate medications and supplements to kick this Candida. It usually takes me a long time to be able to take things since we have to do NAET treatments to everything first. So, it will be a challenge this week. Please pray for protection and safety and for available NAET appts.

My college class is set to start on Monday. This will be a marathon, so I need to be feeling my best! Prayers for this would also be appreciated. Brian is doing amazing with wrapping up his class this summer along with studying for the final section of the CPA exam. After July 16th, he will only have one more class to go! I am so proud of him!!

Well, I need to go lay down again. I will try to post towards the end of the week to give you an update on how I am doing and what happened at my doctor's appointment. Blessings!