"Kissing disease"

It is official…. I have mono. It is my third time around with it the first being when I was in fifth grade, the second back in 2003 and now. I have been utterly exhausted for weeks. I chalked it up to stress and depression never thinking it could be a recurrence of mono. Then something struck me when I was at the doctor’s office on Monday…. Maybe it is mono that is zapping me of all energy and leaving me yearning to do nothing more than snooze.

I remember being tired the other two times. I remember barely being able to crawl out of bed. I slept about 18 hours a day. I became my cat.

I worry about this bout because the last time I had mono I packed on about 10 pounds due to lack of any form of exercise. Sleeping does not burn many calories nor does lying on the couch channel surfing. I have worked hard to loose almost fifty pounds over the past two years. I did not gain it overnight so why expect to loose it quickly.

Bottom line, if you see me with my head on the table, don’t bother waking me up. I am too damned tired to care.

Woe is me..

It is just another day in paradise here. I finally have moved along from the depression that was the centerpiece of my existence only to get physcially ill. I carry my stress around quite literally and it often manifests itself into an illness of sorts. I have had my IBS kick in for the past 10 days am now dehydrated and had to call in sick from work today. I have the shakes. I have been in bed since last night around 10:00p. I got up at 3:30 because I know it is the only way I will be able to sleep through the night tonight.

I went to the doctor yesterday to get things checked out. I was referred to a gastro doc and can not been seen until Monday. I am fairly certain there is another colonoscopy in my future. I dread that... Not so much the procedure as the prep. It is horrific and nauseating.

I was also tested for mono. You see I carry the Epstein Barr virus and am prone to mono. I last was full-blown with mono in 2003. I was not contagious (which is strange) and I was off of work for six weeks and slept as much as my my kitty does. It was not a fun time, let me tell you.

I truly hate that my blogging has turned to negative things for this time. I need an outlet to vent. I am sorry my few readers are suffering along with what is wrong with Klinde today. I a praying it gets better.

A journey begins with the first step

When I wallow in my depression I tend to do serious thinking as well. I try focusing on the positive aspects of my life and not dwell in the negatives. It can be difficult but the effort eventually pays off with a bit of respite from the doom and gloom I am mired in. With that being said I have been thinking about my spirituality and my faith.

I was born and raised Catholic. When I do manage to attend, I am still Catholic. My parents and Nana are all practicing Catholics. The German was born and raised Catholic as well. That makes for an easier piece in our marriage as we have very similar beliefs and were raised in the same faith.

Lately I have been putting my spiritual self to the side. I have not been feeding it as it should be. I have not protected it nor sheltered it. I have let it drift. I believe that there are three parts to each of us that must be maintained: Spiritual, mental and physical. I am working on both the mental and physical aspects by trying to get a handle on my depression and by loosing almost fifty pounds in the past two years. I am proud of the weight loss. It was a long process as I did not gain that much overnight; therefore, I should not expect to loose it instantly. However, that is now what this is about… As usual, I digress.

I realize that my journey is not on the correct path. That I have slipped from where I need to be in my walk with God is an understatement. I have not spent the time in prayer and meditation that I used to. I have not been speaking to God about blessings. It has merely been all about me and what He can do for me. There is no other way to put it… I have been a selfish Christian.

I do not like the hollow feeling that gives me. I worry about getting back on track and living what I believe not just thinking about it. I miss the high I get from feeling at one with God after prayer. I miss going to church. That is something the German and I agreed we would do as husband and wife and it has been over a year since either of us set foot in Cathedral. I worry about both of us spiritually. Yes, we say blessings together before meals. Yes, we pray together about certain things but mostly our faith is our own personal belonging.

I need to refocus and redirect my life back onto my spiritual path and back to the Lord. I need to rededicate my life to Him. I know in my heart if I do so all the other things which are overwhelming now will become trivial if I have the courage and faith to put them into His hands. I need to walk the walk and not just talk the talk.

It is not just about me

Sometimes all it takes is a little perspective. A little jolt to realize that when you think you have it bad, you really do not at all.

On my drive in to the office yesterday morning I was having a pity party for one. I was down and letting the blues get the better of me. I was channel surfing the airwaves as well trying to find a morning show that did not bug the crap out of me. I rolled over to 1510AM (not my typical stop) and I heard the following story about how the DJ lost his son in a tragic drowning accident at home. The child was only two and a half...

Suddenly my problems were miniscule. To be frank, I do not even remember what it was that triggered my doldrums. My prayers instead focus to the positives in my life and to the family that suffered such a tragic, horrific loss.

My cup runneth over.

Mixed Signals

I have to bitch about something. This *drives* me insane… It is the fact that people ignore a groovy little device in their vehicle. You see, there is a contraption on the left side of the steering column called the turn signal…. Use it! Remember to turn it off after using it. It is a simple thing but it would save so much grief in my little universe.

Oh, another thing that bugs the hell out of me? Those drivers who can not seem to figure out the difference between yield and merge. C’mon now, yielding means that you yield to traffic while the all-important merge means you go with the flow and actually work your way into the moving cars around you. It ain’t rocket science…. But to some of you out there it must be…

Also, if you are coming from 40 east headed onto 440 west, quit zooming down the left lane until the last possible moment and then cutting people off by crossing the striped lines. When I honk at you it is because cutting me off is wrong… Illegal and dangerous. It does not give you the right to flip me off because you are the jack-ass who did not manage to get into the proper lane. You are not that important. We all have lives and places to be. I would like to get to my destination without having a wreck or a tension headache from clenching every muscle in my body for fear of hitting you or being hit.

*Jumping off of soap box*

Thank you for your attention in these very important matters.

Christmas is over

I never intended to take this long of a break. Life has a habit of getting in the way. Not to mention the whirlwind of emotions which overwhelm me during the Christmas season. The depression took hold with grip like a falcon’s talons. It dug its mighty claws into me and would not release. Faith and prayer is what it took to survive until January 2nd for the season to be at an end and for a semblance of normalcy to return. Not that I had a bad season, on the contrary, it was okay except for the massive dips in emotion. Unless you experience it, it is difficult to explain that there is beauty and good amongst the ugly and bad. That is what keeps you sane even if only dangling by a thread.

That; however, is not what this is about. This is about the positive aspects that come out of living through the darkness. It is the tidbits of joy that you find that help you to focus and hold on. It is experiencing truly beautiful moments with family that you cling to and file away for another time to relive over and over again. It is time with friends that you hold dear to your heart and that you toast with a bit of Christmas cheer. It is the laughter of children as they revel in delight with what the season has to offer. These moments, sometimes a mere glimpse, are what you need to make each day a bit brighter through the harshness of depression and waning emotion.

Perseverance is crucial. Your very foundation can be rocked without it and without the assistance of those you love and surround yourself with each day. I am eternally blessed with loving, beautiful people who try to help me when despair takes over and I start drowning in a sea of emotion. My amazing husband is learning tactics to help me when I am overwrought. My equally amazing mother has been trying to coach him as to how to best handle the situation and help me wade through my depression. Without them both I would be lost. I would cave in and be curled up in a ball in a dark place.

Through the bad I saw the good. For that I am grateful and I give thanks.