Good news to report - my air hunger improved by about 90% this month! This is a big deal. If you've never experienced air hunger, basically it constantly feels like you can't get a deep enough breath. I was constantly gasping for breath, and some days it was so bad I was literally aware of it every.single.time I breathed. Do you know how many breaths you take in a day? A LOT. Imagine noticing each one because you don't ever feel like you have enough air. Yeah, it's not fun. That is one of my major symptoms left. It did flare a bit during this full moon (babesia is a parasitic infection, and parasites are more active during full moons) but only a couple days instead of an entire week. So that is good news. The pain in my hip flexors and the muscle weakness both came back in December and still remain. For the most part, that's all I have left for symptoms, so I am not complaining.
I'm still trying to figure out what's going on with my thyroid and hormones. I've been off the thyroid meds for a month now. I still feel like my hair is falling out more than it should be, but otherwise I feel okay. Going off the meds was really just following my intuition, so there's a ton of second-guessing going on, but I'm going to wait it out for a few months and see how I feel. I can always go back on. As for my hormones, I'm still struggling with breakouts and other symptoms of my hormones being out-of-whack. I've been reading up on something called seed-cycling, which basically means eating 2 tbsp of seeds every day, the kind depending on what part of your cycle you are in. The first 15 days, add pumpkin seeds and flax seeds into your diet. These are supposed to increase estrogen. Then the second half of your cycle, you switch to sesame and sunflower seeds to stimulate progesterone. I figure it's worth a shot, and should be fairly easy to incorporate, especially if I go back to making daily smoothies.
I've been busy decluttering my entire house. I find I am so much less stressed when there isn't clutter everywhere, but with a small house, there's only so many places to put things. So the next logical step is to lessen the amount of "stuff" we have. I have a pile of bags and boxes in the basement to be donated. It's had such a positive effect on my mental health that I am inspired to keep going. There are so many things I own that I just have, because I like it, but don't really love it, and it doesn't serve any purpose. Or things people gave me that I don't use but feel guilty getting rid of. I've learned to override those excuses and pass things on for someone else to enjoy. I love the idea of owning nothing that you do not love, or find useful. That's my goal.
I've been feeling the creative spark again. Anyone who is an artist or creative being understands that compulsion and deep-seated desire to create. So I pulled out an inexpensive loom I purchased last year and decided to dive into weaving. I've made 3 so far and I'm really enjoying it. I found December really burned me out with my embroidery. I still like doing it, but it's become more of a chore than a creative outlet. I was thinking about this today, and I think the reason why is because I never really found my niche. I do a little of everything, basically whatever my customers want, but I haven't found what type of embroidery really sparks something inside me. To me, true art is something you do whether you plan to show it to anyone or not. You feel compelled to do it, even if you don't ever plan to share it with another soul. I haven't found that yet with embroidery. I don't want what I do to be all about the money, but that's what it's become. After the way my health took a dive in December, I've already decided I will not do any selling events this year. Roseland Cottage was a great show and I was very successful, but the amount of time spent preparing, and the stress, is just too much for me right now. I'm so close to remission, and I can't keep backtracking every few months because of my business. It's just not worth it; my health is priority number one.
I've also been giving more thought to the idea of becoming a certified Pound instructor. I've been doing Pound for almost 3 years, and I love it so much. It's been a huge outlet for me, and kept me going during my battle with Lyme. I picked it up quickly and it comes very naturally to me as I am musically inclined, and can hear the changing of the beat in songs to anticipate the timing for the next movement. I love encouraging people and supporting them in becoming healthier, so it would be a great fit. But two things hold me back. One - the cost. It's around $250 for the training, plus a few hundred more for sets of sticks. And two - teaching would definitely be out of my comfort zone. I'm afraid to feel self-conscious, and I'm afraid it will add more stress to my life. But on the other hand, I'm trying to push myself to do things that scare me, because that leads to growth and increased confidence. Plus, it's a huge stress reliever for me, so doing it and getting paid for it seems like a great idea. I'm still thinking about it, and I'm interested to see if a door opens for it to happen.
I'm still trying to figure out what's going on with my thyroid and hormones. I've been off the thyroid meds for a month now. I still feel like my hair is falling out more than it should be, but otherwise I feel okay. Going off the meds was really just following my intuition, so there's a ton of second-guessing going on, but I'm going to wait it out for a few months and see how I feel. I can always go back on. As for my hormones, I'm still struggling with breakouts and other symptoms of my hormones being out-of-whack. I've been reading up on something called seed-cycling, which basically means eating 2 tbsp of seeds every day, the kind depending on what part of your cycle you are in. The first 15 days, add pumpkin seeds and flax seeds into your diet. These are supposed to increase estrogen. Then the second half of your cycle, you switch to sesame and sunflower seeds to stimulate progesterone. I figure it's worth a shot, and should be fairly easy to incorporate, especially if I go back to making daily smoothies.
I've been busy decluttering my entire house. I find I am so much less stressed when there isn't clutter everywhere, but with a small house, there's only so many places to put things. So the next logical step is to lessen the amount of "stuff" we have. I have a pile of bags and boxes in the basement to be donated. It's had such a positive effect on my mental health that I am inspired to keep going. There are so many things I own that I just have, because I like it, but don't really love it, and it doesn't serve any purpose. Or things people gave me that I don't use but feel guilty getting rid of. I've learned to override those excuses and pass things on for someone else to enjoy. I love the idea of owning nothing that you do not love, or find useful. That's my goal.
One of my woven wall hangings I made this weekend
I've also been giving more thought to the idea of becoming a certified Pound instructor. I've been doing Pound for almost 3 years, and I love it so much. It's been a huge outlet for me, and kept me going during my battle with Lyme. I picked it up quickly and it comes very naturally to me as I am musically inclined, and can hear the changing of the beat in songs to anticipate the timing for the next movement. I love encouraging people and supporting them in becoming healthier, so it would be a great fit. But two things hold me back. One - the cost. It's around $250 for the training, plus a few hundred more for sets of sticks. And two - teaching would definitely be out of my comfort zone. I'm afraid to feel self-conscious, and I'm afraid it will add more stress to my life. But on the other hand, I'm trying to push myself to do things that scare me, because that leads to growth and increased confidence. Plus, it's a huge stress reliever for me, so doing it and getting paid for it seems like a great idea. I'm still thinking about it, and I'm interested to see if a door opens for it to happen.
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