Between the last post and this, the garden has gone from bare and brown, to green with bright spots of color.
Between the last post and this, the birds have moved from building nests to actively feeding their little ones, and the squirrels are frantically digging up the nuts they stored last fall as they feed their own babies.
And between the last post and this, I saw a different doctor from my “old” doctor’s team who was able to write a note to my employer explaining that I really am using sick leave for the right reasons and set me up with a new doctor. And ordered some new tests for some of the issues in advance of my seeing the new primary care doc in a few weeks. And said it was reasonable to redo the celiac testing in a couple more months if I keep eating gluten-containing treats. Which I am doing… with predictable results (but I know it’s temporary, and I know why I feel awful, so I can cope).
I saw my eye doctor last week. Did you know that eyes can change significantly in under a year? I knew they did for children, but not for adults. So now I can look forward to getting new glasses, which should help make reading more enjoyable and knock back the migraines that have resumed.
Life is not “easier” when I get help, or answers, but it becomes manageable.
I see a different specialist this coming week, to try to pin down weird symptoms that may or may not be related to the hypermobility disorder that is causing so much pain and limiting my mobility and strength.
And in June I have scheduled over an hour via zoom with a specialist in hypermobility and EDS who I hope will be able to take on the role of case-managing for me. There are many moving parts, and I don’t know which things need to be addressed RIGHT NOW, and which things can or should wait a bit. I feel so lost sometimes, but I am also feeling less alone.
And also, thanks to the support group this hypermobility specialist runs, I also have had the confidence to advocate for myself successfully, and even despite set-backs, for the first time in my life.
Resting more, setting limits on what I can or will do – and when, and asking for help before things hit a critical load is helping.
It doesn’t “fix” me, but perhaps it will let me stay in teaching – in some capacity – until I am ready to retire. And not early, as I thought I might have to.
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