Sensory Overload: The Surgical Mask

Another week has already come and gone.  Classes start in A WEEK.  How did that happen?  My syllabus is practically done, but I need to start fleshing out some lesson plans.  Next week, faculty are back on contract, so it will be busy, busy, busy for me again.  OH my.

I faded this photo because it gave it an appropriate feeling.  Plus, it makes me not look quite as gnarly as I do.

1)  WHAT I'M FEELING:  sick.  Over last weekend, as you may recall, I started feeling icky.  I thought it was my allergies since I had taken Dinah to the vet on Friday and then Hobie on Monday, but I felt achy and my lymph nodes were swollen.  Finally, on Wednesday, I decided to go to the doctor to see what was going on.  I had them test for strep because it had been going around our office, but the in-house test was negative.  The doctor thought I had thrush since I did have white patches on my tongue and throat, so he prescribed a mouthwash.  If you have kids, you have probably heard of thrush--usually, only babies and older folks get this yeast infection.  But I have a compromised immune system, which means I can be prone to it, too...so it made sense.  I also had a dermatology appointment that afternoon, so I got started on lots of things to clear up my skin.  Crazy things like pills that reduce my sweating and a $50 tube of facial cream.  Fun times.  Then today, the doctor's office called again and told me that the throat culture they sent off is positive for strep.  Joy, joy.  As soon as I found out, I pulled out a surgical mask from my purse, put it on, and then went home to finish up the work day.  And got mad because we paid $10 for the thrush mouthwash, and now I don't need it.  *lol*

I'm also bummed because I'm having to miss Zach's Momo's 93rd birthday this weekend.  I already volunteered to stay home with the cats (who are continuing to misbehave and have tummy issues), so Zach could go.  And now that I have strep, I couldn't have gone anyway.  But.  It STINKS.

2)  WHAT I'M TASTING:  Cheez-Its, lots of Earl Grey, cough drops.  I've been using cough drops and drinking lots of tea to ease my scratchy my throat.  It hasn't been too sore--probably because I got my tonsils taken out 11 years ago; I actually haven't had strep since then.  My appetite has been off the past few days, and the antibiotic that the dermatologist put me on has been making me nauseated, so I have enjoyed potato chips and Cheez-Its the past few mornings.  (I always crave salt when I'm nauseated.  Also--I get so confused over which is correct--nauseous and nauseated and nauseating!)  It's been so long that I'm tearing those Cheez-Its up!

3)  WHAT I'M HEARING:  lots and lots of rain.  This is so unusual for August!  I've also been turning on Dr. Who a bit and finishing up The Secret Life of the American Teenager because I love trashy, campy TV when I'm playing on the Internet.  *lol*  And I started watching this documentary on texting and driving.  It is breaking my heart...

4)  WHAT I'M SMELLING:  not much of anything except for urine.  We're still working on the cats.  YUCK.

5)  WHAT I'M SEEING:  Well, obviously, the shows I'm vegging out to.  But we've been watching our cats like hawks this week.  Oh, and I was paying close attention to my inbox today after I sent out emails to prospective students for our mentor program.  I've already gotten 14 students to commit, 12 from today alone!

And now I'm going to bed.  How do you recover from an illness?

Gratitude Journal: Neighborly Love

I'm thankful for kind landlords/neighbors who blessed us with some of their garden's bounty today.  (They also offered some potatoes, but just yesterday we bought 10 pounds for the first time in forever; and an eggplant, but Zach doesn't like them.  Last year, they kept us supplied in squashes and cukes.  :)  They are DOLLS.)  It only took a few minutes to blanch, package, and freeze twelve ears of corn!  Now we can have some of this vegetable/fruit/grain for a few more weeks.  Thanks, Becky and Tony!

In other news, I found out I'm allergic to cats (Class 1) and dogs (Class 2).  Everyone I told today panicked a bit as if we could ever get rid of our kitties.  Thankful for no major allergies--but my meds may suppress my immune system's response, so they may be higher up AND there may be others that didn't show up.  So I'm gonna start allergy shots in about two weeks.  The allergy nurse is also adding in ragweed, oak pollen, and dust mites to help with those as well.  :)

Are you allergic to anything that makes you sad?  I'm just thankful I'm not allergic to any of the foods I love!

NEWSY UPDATE and Menu Monday is BACK!!!

I'm somehow settling into my new schedule. *lol*

I have just been worn out the past two weeks. A lot of my being tired can probably be attributed to that fact that I've gotten out of the habit of socializing all day, every day. I'm a quiet person by nature, so when I was home all day, I was usually fine with it. I enjoyed visiting with family and friends, but I didn't mind being alone that much. Now that I am working again, I am talking all day AND I'm constantly meeting new people and introducing myself all. the. time. When the weekend comes, I don't really get a break because I am training to teach at University of Phoenix, and training takes place every Saturday morning until the end of April. On top of that, we have had lots of visitors lately, and have been doing lots of visiting lately. I'm really enjoying have a more sociable life again, but I have to admit that I am looking forward to a quiet weekend at home...at the end of May. *hehe* Something will probably come up before then. :)

In other news, it turns out I was allergic to the balsalazide I was taking as part of maintenance treatment for my Crohn's. During my first week of working and training to teach, I noticed my joints got a lot more sore and that I started to itch after taking my medicine. But I didn't think I had hives, so it wasn't anything to worry over. Each day both symptoms increased until I could hardly walk and was constantly scratching myself. I thought hives were always weals because I had weals once from a freak allergic reaction, and the E.R. called them hives. When Zach finally saw the rash on my arm, he said that that was hives. So I stopped taking my medicine as directed on the literature. After researching, I found out that steroids (the Entocort I was taking during the first week I was on this) can suppress your body's allergic reaction, which explains why I didn't start suffering any allergic reactions the first week. Besides from the reaction, balsalazide can make your symptoms worse. Hip, hip, hooray.

Thankfully I am back on the Entocort, and it is working wonderfully, as it did when I first started on it. (Praise. the. LORD.) I still don't know why I had a minor flare the last few weeks I was on it, but I feel so fortunate it is working, even if it costs more. *lol* (It also stopped my allergic reaction. YAY! :)

I am really enjoying my job, though I never know what to expect or what I should be doing. *haha* Fingers crossed, it will continue into the next fiscal year. We were a little nervous over the government shutdown because my position is under a federal grant, and we had a heard a rumor that the budget would consequently be cut by 25%. I guess we will see...

I'm getting very nervous about teaching...

I'm glad I will be getting a paycheck this month, though I think it will only be a little more than what I made as a graduate assistant. : / At least I got to go shopping...for some work clothes! But hopefully we will be able to ease our budget a bit. :)

The most joyous news I have is that Zach's sister Erin and her boyfriend Josh got engaged over the weekend! He proposed to her on their anniversary, and they are getting married next month in Biloxi. She asked me to be her matron-of-honor, and I'm very excited for them! We figured it would be happening soon, so it didn't come as much as a surprise. But it's always nice to have a big event to celebrate. I'm even a little excited to be going to beach, even though I am not really a beach-y person. I think it's because Zach and I have never been to the beach together...!

Anyhooooo...now that I am getting better, I am trying to try new recipes again. I definitely don't want to get into the habit of eating out or grazing on junk food all evening because I'm too tired from working. Over the weekend, Zach's former roommate and his wife stayed with us, and I think one of them mentioned MEATLOAF. For some reason, that sounded soooo good! (I get weird cravings sometimes. *lol*) So I decided to whip up one. It is Paula Deen's recipe, and I think it turned out well. I'd definitely say it's one of her healthier recipes i.e. NO BUTTER! It didn't stay together as well as some, but then again, I'm turned off my gelatinous meat. *ugh*

MEATLOAF

First of all, I had to get The Young and the Restless going. (Don't judge me.) Victor, Nicki, and the rest of the Genoa City crew keep me company in the kitchen.

I chopped up 1/2 cup onion and 1/2 cup green bell pepper.

I added 1 & 1/4 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. black pepper to 1 lb. ground beef.

I added in the chopped veggies--my favorite. :)

One egg had to be slightly beaten...

...and added in.

Then I added in 8-oz. of diced tomatoes (juice and all) and 1/2 cup of quick-cooking oatmeal. I couldn't find an 8-oz. can, so I bought a 14+ oz. can and used over half of it. (I'm saving the rest for our Greek salad later this week! I. can't. wait.) I also didn't have Quaker oats or anything, so I just used our Scottish oatmeal because it's quick-cooking, too.

I mixed it all together with my hands. (I decided it looked too gross to post a picture. *lol*) Finally, I pressed it into a loaf pan and started on the topping:

1/3 cup ketchup

and 2 Tbsp. brown sugar

and a Tbsp. of mustard

I mixed it all together and spread it on top. MEATLOAF baked for an hour plus some change at 375 degrees.

[1 loaf]

I served it with mashed potatoes and corn--nothing like home-cookin'!!

As my husband says, "Everybody Poops," OR Boring Health Junk and Frustrations

I haven't written since my last post because I had a cold and some tummy troubles, then we lost my granny and had to go out of town for her funeral; afterwards, we have had visitor after visitor, and now I am sick again with tummy problems and sinuses. *bleh* No me gusta, as a friend from my study abroad trip used to say when something was wrong.

If you have been following my blog, are my friend on facebook, or know me in real life, you know I love food--talking about it, cooking it, eating it. Yet food is a frenemy to me.

I was diagnosed with Crohn's Disease in 2003. That first major flare-up probably lasted about two years (counting the year pre-diagnosis when I started having symptoms), and it was a perfect storm of disease when I was hospitalized as I simultaneously had a bacterial infection from visiting the Floridian beaches and ocean that summer, H-Pylori (a bacteria that causes inflammation), and a bleeding ulcer. If you don't know much about Crohn's, it is the inflammation of the lining of the colon and is often seen as an autoimmune disease because you body basically attacks itself (along with food it views as invading enemies). Someone--I can't remember whether a nurse or a doctor--described Crohn's as if you had a really bad sunburn inside your colon. My daddy was diagnosed with Crohn's in 1989 or so, when it was fairly unknown. He suffered indescribable pain that was exacerbated by his alcoholism. (On the other hand, the alcohol helped him handle his pain). When I started having symptoms and my first G.I. test came back negative for Crohn's, I researched the disease and said, "No, I do have it." Turns out, I was right.

I lost fourteen pounds in two weeks at the height of my flare-up, which would have been great if I could have gotten out of bed for activities outside of going to the bathroom for various reasons. I was in the hospital for three weeks and three days, and it could have been much longer. Except for the last few days, I was on TPN (total parenteral nutrition)--that is, I was nourished through an I.V. All I could have were ice chips. Once I was released from the hospital, I changed my eating lifestyle, avoiding such things as raw fruits and vegetables, nuts, and fried foods. (The first time I had McDonald's after changing my diet I definitely could tell a difference in my poop.)

I have had a few minor flares since being diagnosed, but they were easily treated with short term prescriptions of prednisone and Flagyl, an antibiotic that can cause you to be very, very sick if you have any kind of alcohol, including mouth wash. Thankfully I had insurance when I was diagnosed; after I turned 19, my minor flares were treated by the Student Health Center at UCA. I came close to being referred during my last year as a student, but luckily Asacol, an expensive medication covered by a prescription program, took care of business until recently.

Once Zach got his job in November, we got insurance, which didn't go into effect until January.

Now insurance is great and all, but it's still not perfect. Out-of-pocket costs can still be very expensive, especially as I have been unemployed for four months since Zach got his job at NWACC. I know, I know, it would be A LOT worse if we didn't have insurance. (As a kid, I was on ARKids First, and it covered everything, thank God. So this kind of insurance with deductibles and whatnot is new to me. I think Zach gets frustrated with me because I don't know what questions to ask when it comes to payment plans. *lol*) We were so afraid that my Crohn's would not be covered because it was a pre-existing condition, and fortunately I had not been treated within the year before our insurance went into effect. Why is it that the people who need insurance the most cannot access it? I could go on and on with the problems with healthcare and attitudes regarding healthcare and the problems regarding said attitudes. But I won't (at least not today).

Crohn's is something I will always have, so it's important for me to always be under a doctor's care. (It's also important to go to your dentist. I'm paying for years of skipped check-ups now.) That just wasn't possible when I was in school, even when I was working. My mama has always told me that good health is your most important asset, something this country doesn't seem to prioritize. Thankfully, with Zach's insurance, I was able to find a new gastroenterologist here and get started on maintenance meds. I started having a few problems after stomach bug during Thanksgiving that continued until my primary physician put me on a short run of prednisone and Flagyl in January (January 4th, to be exact--I wasted little time getting into a doctor once our insurance went into effect.) Then she referred me to Dr. Stagg. (BTW, Dr. Stagg reminds me of Dr. Stengel, my undergraduate thesis advisor. *lol*)

I had a colonoscopy in January. (Oh, the joys of that!) It came back with fairly good results; I had some inflammation in a few spots, but nothing major. So Dr. Stagg started me on Entocort, a steroid (Oh, the joys of that!), and an enema to treat my sigmoid colon, which is the lowest part of the colon (Oh, the joys of that!). I had a check-up a month after my colonoscopy, which I reported I had a lot of gas that was making me rather uncomfortable. I've never had much gas, so this was a little worrisome. I assumed that was from enema because it was a side effect. As things seemed to be going well otherwise, I got to stop the nightly enema. (Did I mention it was nightly? Oh the joys of that!) Once I finished the Entocort, I would start Balsalazide, similar to the Asacol I had while at UCA that fixed me up right except this med is cheaper. :)

The gas continued, and, after some research, I saw that gas was also a side effect of the Entocort. So I assumed it would stop once I stopped the Entocort. Well, I had about two weeks left when I started noticing blood in my stool while the consistency of my poop went downhill. (I wish I could be constipated one day. ;) So I have been checking in with the nurse. During my first call, my doctor decided to go ahead and start me on Balsalazide while I finished the Entocort. A week later, still no improvement. At this time, we decided that since my sinuses sometimes upset my tummy, as does a woman's monthly visitor, we will wait it out another week or so. (My cousin has a very funny name for her monthly visitor, but I can't remember it now.)

I have felt awful the last few days. I feel week and achy, the weather changes have flared up my sinuses, and my tummy feels the need to keep going. I start my job at NWACC on Friday, and then I start training for my part-time instructor position at University of Phoenix Saturday. We also have a friend staying with us this weekend. I am hoping and praying I get better in the next two days. Zach is out of town for a conference, so I am lounging around the house and working hard to take care of myself. It's really frustrating that my maintenance meds don't seem to be working and that I felt better before I started on them, which means I may be going to see Dr. Stagg sooner rather than later. At least we have met my deductible, so we shouldn't have to pay anything but co-pays now. But who knows? Every time we talk to Blue Cross Blue Shield they tell us something different from the last person with whom we spoke. *argh*