In May 2016, I landed in the hospital for a week. Doctors wanted to find out how I had managed to gain 26 pounds from fluid retention in just two weeks. For 12 hours, Sunday night doctors and nurses poked, prodded, and questioned me. Then their shift changed, and…
A while back, I shared a mantra I learned in the military years ago that’s been echoed by many. I had realized that the phrase I’d been indoctrinated to believe — “pain is weakness leaving the body” — is, for lack of a better word, hooey! Another nonsense phrase…
Last January, my visit to the U.S. turned into one of my longest hospital stays since my lupus diagnosis. I associate a lot of fear with that stay. Once it was under my belt, many changes lay ahead. For the first time in over a year, I was optimistic.
It has been a long journey to get to where I am as a person, and I have experienced many transformations. I spent a significant period of my life as an introvert. I wanted to talk to people and had plenty to say,…
I research every medication I am prescribed. I have doctors explain my test results as if I am 6 years old. I ask questions and when doctors don’t answer in a way I fully understand, I rephrase and research. I weigh the benefits and risks before deciding to take…
At one point or another, everyone realizes that pleasing the masses is impossible. With that realization comes freedom. The freedom to finally live the way you have always wanted. The freedom to stop caring about what anyone else might think of you. Most people reach the “I don’t…
There are days when my life feels like a Milli Vanilli song; it’s being faked, but it’s known for the part that is fake! Unfortunately, lupus is very real. There has been a lot of rain lately, and as I move through my home I realize I am hurting…
As of May 22, 2020, I have lived with my lupus diagnosis for four years. I have commemorated the past three anniversaries on their exact date with a photo and paragraph. Half of me has always loved celebrating on the actual date of my anniversary. That’s partly because in…
I was awake for half the night. This is not unusual, but often I am coming up with topics to write about in this column or speak about on my YouTube channel. Instead, I was traveling down memory lane to things I have tried to avoid and misconceptions I…
I have thought about death and mortality more than the average 20-something. In fact, I love nothing more than debating the philosophy around it. To me, death isn’t a cause for anxiety or fear; it is a fact of life. A fact I have been at peace with for some…