Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Counting the Blessings or They'll Drive You NUTS


My sweet Swissie (nickname tab above) who has devoted her last three Saturdays to the remodeling project told me that I’ve been too self-deprecating in my recent posts.  I promised I’d write something upbeat.  So today I’ll be counting my blessings.  And not the normal blessings, those I’m very aware of (family, friends, food, errands run, laundry done, etc.)  The blessings I'm counting today are the ones that if you look at them one way, make you go stir crazy.  Or, you can focus on the fact that Life is Good, and look at them from that side.  I'm choosing the light side of the Force.  Today.

 I didn’t die.  I didn’t even have to go to the hospital this time.

When you never go outside, you don’t have to wear sunscreen.  My Clinique sunscreen for folks with rosacia costs a million dollars.  Well, if you don’t have a GorgeousGirl as a supplier.  I’ve saved a whole month of sunscreen!

If you’re home all the time, ALONE you have complete control of the thermostat.  The fans.  The airflow.  You can keep yourself as comfortable as possible.  With no one complaining.  I’m always too hot, they’re always too cold.  It’s an ongoing thing…

I’ve renewed my complete and total allegiance to the Costco version of a memory foam mattress.  It’s my sanctuary, my solace, my companion.  Egyptian cotton sheets are a must as well.  If you have to stay in a bed, it better be a damn good bed.  Just sayin'.

I have a dog for two weeks!  We’ve been doing a lot of long term dog-sitting for friends, and right now I have a wonderful therapy dog who has chosen ME as his person.  He’s completely low maintenance, and follows me everywhere.  Not that I go anywhere…but if I do, he’s there.  Sleeps beside my side of the bed.   Sheds like crazy, but I don’t care.  Not allergic to dogs.  Allergic to dust. 

Bedroom remodel is going well.  Texture goes on walls tonight.  All the nasty, time consuming, dirty, tedious (like rewiring the entire room for LED can lighting and internet and cable should the next owners not have a wireless router and choose to have cable) work is done.  Though me moving out of this house I love so much will be a) over my dead body and/or  b) the zombie apocalypse.  Though The Engineer is pretty close to having us off grid if need be…passion of his.  Useful passion.  Never did care for zombies, but my PT got me hooked on “The Walking Dead” and I was sucked in against my will.  Resistance really is futile.  Yes, I'm watching too much TV.  Come on over and challenge me to Scrabble.  You'll win.

I AM recovering.  I’m now off the prednisone.  Soon my brain will return.  Soon I won’t fly into rages over little things (Jake chokes his brother on a daily basis – it doesn’t call for a fit the size of Texas, just a  “knock that crap off”.)  Soon, I can go somewhere.  Soon I can do laundry.  Right now I’m free to walk about the cabin, next week, I get to do a load of laundry a day.  Yippee!

Have you ever been on bed rest?  How did you handle it?  Have you ever had a long-term illness?  Have you ever had to, as in HAD to take nasty drugs to keep alive?  Please share.  After all, I’m just sitting here.  Plenty of time to read and respond to comments.



15 comments:

Brian Miller said...

bed rest would surely kill me...just saying...glad you are making progress...and err....making the most of it...smiles.

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

My wife says I'm grumpy when I'm sick.
Glad you are recovering!
Complete control of the AC sounds awesome. I'd set it to sixty degrees every night.
And if I could avoid going outside, I could save a bundle in sunscreen as well. The sun and my pale skin do not get along.

loverofwords said...

How does one year sound? Yes, when I was in my 20's working in a hospital, I found out that I had TB and was whisked away to a sanitarium. Very hard to find oneself in a 20 bed ward, no privacy. I did have drugs but they still used the old method of rest, rest, and more rest. I read a lot of books and did some knitting. Before computers, etc. Should write a story about it sometime. Tina, you will get better, and that is what kept me going, plus having my 6 year old son on an opposite coast. I had to get better for him and my husband.

Lynda R Young as Elle Cardy said...

your blessings are awesome. And I LOVE having complete control of the thermostat!!!! JOY!!

klahanie said...

Hi Tina,

The main thing is that you continue to embrace all the positive resources and distractions on offer.

I've gone through many a year of being a virtual recluse and finding, at times, that my bed was the only freedom that I knew. I had to take nasty drugs, with awful side effects to keep alive during the days I nearly died from excessive alcohol consumption.

Mostly, through visualising a better life and moderating medication on the advice of my prescriber, my life has gotten better.

And sorry about this. However, I am still in a state of shock that some folks think I don't use paragraphs when I actually do. I just don't usually leave a space in between like I have in this comment :)

Tina, life is good and you know you have my ongoing support and encouragement.

In kindness,

Gary

Jenny said...

Oh girl. I'm sorry to read this.

If you email your address I'll send you some magazines! Although after awhile it's hard to even do that!

One of things I really liked when I was laid up was watching PBS's Frontier Village.

I have the VHS tapes.

If you have a VHS recorder, I'll send them to you.

I guarantee you will pass at least a half day glued intently.

Sending a gentle hug and a giant prayer your way.

JoJo said...

I'm glad you are getting better! Wasn't on bed rest per se after my breast reduction, but I couldn't go to work or do anything around the apartment and I went stir crazy.

The memory foam though....aren't they hot? I'd like to try one but I can't stand a hot/moist bed at all and I would think that foam would retain body heat & feel humid.

Amanda Lee said...

Oh my gosh! Total control of the thermostat! That would be amazing. Yes, I have been on bed rest, the days seemed like eternities.... Totally agree about having a good mattress and sheets. I'm a high thread count sheet, Stearns and Foster mattress kind of girl, myself :)

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Tina .. sorry hadn't realised you'd been confined to bed - but glad to see you're starting to recover - look after yourself.

I haven't ever had to be on bed-rest as such ... but after an op I'll collapse happily til the time to get on with things ...not like you with sorting your allergy body out.

Your dog-sitting sounds therapeutic ... especially if they're all as happy as this latest one seems to be ...

Haven't tried those memory foam mattresses .. but can't live without Egyptian cotton sheets and a good mattress ..

Look after yourself - cheers Hilary

shelly said...

Hugs and chocolate to you!

Shelly

http://www.shellysnovicewritings.blogspot.com/

Julie Kwiatkowski Schuler said...

Bed rest sounds so tragic and romantic! I would get a long nightgown and pretend I was a TB patient at some upscale sanitarium in an exotic location, falling in love with a mysterious, handsome patient.

Marianne (Mare) Baker Ball said...

Back surgery. Before....pain - after...recovery. I was down for about 3 months. It was depressing for me. The world seemed to pass me by, and the dust just piled up. I think you are a doing very well! As for drugs, after wisdom teeth removal, I was given percocet, and now know what "high" feels like. It was scary, so I dropped it. I never would have been a good drug experimentor in the 70's. :-)

Hart Johnson said...

Oh, man--you ARE dealing with a lot! I hope it sorts. And it DOES help to try to look at the bright side, if only to help you laugh about it a little. My only bedrest was 2nd pregnancy--I started contractions WAY too early. I should have had about 4 weeks of it but it was only about 1.5--son came early anyway (though 4 weeks early was a lot better than 5.5, so it helped some)--I HATED it. TV and reading, but mostly just annoyed.

Arlee Bird said...

My attempts at bed rest have never lasted long. I feel trapped if I'm in bed too long.

It's better to count your blessings other wise the scales would probably tip in favor of all the bad stuff.


Lee
A Faraway View

Debra Harris-Johnson said...

I'm a diabetic so I know chronic. I have little needle marks permanently etched in my fingers. My tummy is black and blue from shots. Eat too much, high blood sugar, feeling yucky the rest of the day. Eat too little, low blood sugar, feeling yucky the rest of the day.
Every time I test it cost a dollar a strip. My first diabetes medicine I put on 30 lbs, the latest I've taken off 30 pounds. How do I deal with it? I embrace it!!! Despite all of the above, I am actually healthier than I've ever been in my life because I have to know how and what to eat. I now understand how my body works and how we have more control over it then we imagine.
Tina remember you have a creative mind, after all you ARE a writer. Take this time to read the bible, work up some story lines. Ask someone to bring you pretty stationary and write some love letters to your husband and children. Know that everything we go through good or bad has a purpose and prepares us for what comes next in our life. Cheers to you my friend.