Salty Zebra

I haven't written in a while because I've had covid. I'm still recovering, but doing much better overall. Today a thought from my devotional stood out to me enough that I wanted to share it. I'm studying the life of Joseph in the book of Genesis. Like the famous Job, Joseph experienced one suffering after another for thirteen years, through no fault of his own. Instead of falling into depression or raging against the injustice, though, he just kept doing the next right thing. Wherever he was at, whether sold into slavery or unjustly thrown in prison, he continued to act with integrity and do his best at whatever was assigned him. Eventually, blessing came his way and he was put in charge of all of Egypt. He was given a wife who bore him two sons. The names he gave his sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, show that his blessing outshone his suffering. When he named Ephraim, he said, "Certainly God has made me fruitful in the land of my suffering." In order t

      This post is much more delayed than I had planned for a couple of reasons - it all boils down to I didn't feel up to it though.       The day after my second Prolo treatment I had an appointment with my PCP who was concerned that I was showing symptoms of Serotonin Syndrome and had me titrate off the migraine preventative I was on.  While I'm happy to report that the negative side effects I was experiencing have stopped, unfortunately I've had a migraine for all but one of the last 11 days, my pain levels have been much increased, and my fatigue is bad. I've spent the bulk of every day in bed and I haven't been able to do much at all.     How much of this is what Prolo would have looked like if I wasn't on the meds the first round and how much is a result of coming off them?  I don't know.  Maybe we'll find out next round.     So, like the first round, my worst day was the fifth day after treatment.  Unlike the first round it didn't get signifi

      I didn't plan to write a post about this, but it has become an issue for me and so I thought it might be relevant to someone else as well.        Twenty-one years ago I was pregnant with my middle son at the same time my best friend was pregnant with her daughter.  I had the privilege of being in the delivery room with her, but while I was there I witnessed her getting an epidural.  Knowing that I was going to be having a c-section with a spinal six weeks later, this posed a problem for me.  During my first labor I had a c-section after 17 hours of pitocin-induced labor and any pain relief was welcome.  This time, however, I was having a (semi) scheduled c-section and I wouldn't be in much pain prior to the spinal - AND now I knew EXACTLY what they were doing behind me!  That caused no small amount of anxiety for me as the date approached.     Similarly, prior to my first Prolotherapy treatment I was worried because I didn't know what it would be like.  This time I

      One of the main reasons I am writing this blog is to find my community.  Because of the conditions I deal with, I find it very difficult to get out and meet people and then maintain in-person relationships.  I'm an introvert at heart so being social is draining, but at the same time I have come to realize that it is critical.  It is so easy to become isolated when your health traps you in your home.  Yes, in this post-Covid world we have a bunch of options for connecting virtually like zoom and teams, but it's hard to meet people that way. Also, people around me don't get me.  I look fine, they don't understand why I can't go for a walk or go to a party or volunteer with them.  They don't understand what it would cost me if I did.  Sometimes I do because it's worth it, but I can't do those things on a regular basis.  I'd love to connect with people that get what my life is like, people I can be real with. I've hoped that by putting myself o

      Sorry if the picture is triggering, but much of this post is about injections so... Last Monday we headed into The City for my afternoon Prolotherapy appointment.  I'm going to be very clear in this post so if you're sensitive to this type of thing you may want to stop reading now. For others, like me, who are interested in exactly what a Prolotherapy treatment is like, read on.       They went over last minute questions confirming that I had taken no anti-inflammatories for the last two weeks, had a ride home, etc. Then they had me lay face down on a paper-covered examining table with a face cutout. I lowered my pants to an uncomfortable level, but in order to get at your SI joint a fair amount of buttocks must be exposed 😕.  They sterilized the area and then donned lead aprons, giving one to my husband as well who elected to be in the room.  The doctor arrived at that point and carried on a ten-minute conversation with me during the treatment while I was face down.  I

      Last fall I was diagnosed with EDS.  It's something I've had my entire life evidently, since it's a hereditary condition, but I've only known about it for a little while.  With EDS, Hypermobile Ehler's Danlos Syndromes (hEDS) in my case, the collagen proteins in your body don't work quite right.  This means your joints tend to be more lax, or hypermobile, but it can also affect the other collagen-related tissues in your body, like your GI tract and your skin.  When it comes to your joints, there's no exercise that can tighten connective tissue that has stretched.  Surgery isn't a viable option either.  So what's left?  If I chose to ignore it, then likely my injuries would continue to snowball happening with more and more regularity as different parts of my body stopped supporting the others that were depending on them.  For example, if my ankles are very loose (which they are) then that can lead to a higher likely hood of injury in my knees or

          Let's talk about the Spoon Theory.  It was originally developed by Christine Miserandino and discussed in an article she posted at  But You Dont Look Sick?   It's well-written and very helpful, but I am an incredibly visual person and I never REALLY got the spoon theory until I saw this video by Jessica Kellgren-Fozard.      Essentially, the Spoon Theory is a visual/tactile representation of the limited energy allotted to those with different conditions like chronic illness, disability, mental illness and more.  One spoon equates to a unit of physical/mental/emotional/social energy as all of these are in limited supply for this population.  Most healthy people begin their day with unlimited spoons, the choices and possibilities of what they could do that day are limited primarily by the hours in it, but they're up for whatever comes their way. A person with chronic illness, or one of the other conditions, however starts the day with a limited amount of spoons, a