October

October is upon us; beautiful colors, smells of fall, cool nights. I love it! Fall is my favorite time of year, I just love jeans and sweatshirts! This year however October has a different meaning for me. October as we know is when the temperatures begin to cool which means for lyme patients like me, more pain. The lyme bacteria does not like heat and because of that I feel less pain in the warm temperatures and more pain in the cool. So for people with pain October and April tend to be some of the hardest months.

I have been trying these last couple months to fight lyme hard to prepare for winter, because I know more symptoms will show from the cold and I have been taking a lot of steps forward but sometimes I take steps back. So far October, although the beautiful warm weather, is holding up to its name. 

On Monday I took some big steps backward. My head stuff came back; memory loss, eyesight loss, hearing loss and dizziness. I had all of these symptoms when I was at the worst of my lyme, they left a couple months ago so I was surprised when they showed up again. I talked to my nurse Angela and she recommended a vacation. 

I'm not known as one to turn down vacation! So I am on a medicine vacation, FOUR WHOLE DAYS of no medicine! (Except supplements) Angela said many times the medicine can kill so much bacteria that our bodies cant get rid of it fast enough and we end up getting sicker. She believes I was at this point so here I am. I am on day three and feeling pretty good, my head stuff is still here I am temporarily not driving for my safety but overall I believe my body is starting to catch up to all of the medicine. 

This was a perfect week for me to have a vacation, I am on week eight of school now but I have no idea how I have completed that much! I am taking ten credits of classes, I have to take this many to stay in my program but I wish I could have taken less. I knew it would be hard to get back to everyday life as a lyme patient but I didn't realize how hard it would be to keep up. School work is overloading me, I have a lot of projects this semester and was getting bogged down. All of my free time is spent sleeping, at treatment or therapy. 

If I sound like I am complaining I do not mean to be so I hope that is not the vibe that you are getting I just want you to understand that this phase of life is hard for me and I need your prayers in this. I am struggling to keep up with school, even on a vacation I haven't gotten much homework done. But God is God of all situations, I have confidence He will provide the means to accomplish whatever needs to be done. 

This weekend I am going to a Focus Conference, I am very EXCITED! I am even more excited now that I don't have my weekend medicine because now I should be able to participate in most of it instead of sleeping! I am excited for a much needed get away to focus on the Lord. A break from life, as much as I can get anyway. Please be praying for this conference that the Lord would be moving and revealing Himself to people through this. 

Prayer Requests:

*That I will manage my time well

*That I can keep up in school and not feel overwhelmed

*That this vacation helps build up my body and it will be ready to fight again come Sunday

*That Focus will be an uplifting time with the Lord, that I would feel fresh spiritually

*That I can remain a student as a lyme patient