Greetings,
I don't usually do this, but I figured that I might anyway. This will be a kind of "year in review" but with a bit of a difference. While we need to look at things that have happened, it is also important to look forward to things that are coming, both to prepare for them and to hope for them. One thing that I will say, just sitting here, except for a couple of highlights, here and there 2017 is a bit of a blur now.
Well, 2017 had its upside and sure had its downside. The result being that it turned into a bit of a year with memories which I will keep and some things which I could get rid of, or reverse.
January started as it always does, hot. It also had all of the first month of the year poking and prodding by specialists, just to make sure that everything was going according to plan. There were also a couple of small swordplay things in there as well, just to cap the month off.
February was pretty dull, somewhere either in January or February my neck issue had also risen its ugly head, again. CT done to see if anything could be done, physiotherapy chosen instead. C5 - C7 is a mess and presses on the nerve giving me headaches and pain, real lots of fun when combined with the fibromyalgia (FM), but this is a recurring problem not something I can blame 2017 for.
Good things that happened over the early months, diagnosis of Central Sleep Apnoea (CSA) and a new machine meaning I am now getting real quality sleep, a real bonus. I can tell the difference without it, like a lot. Of course I had to pay for the mask myself which took a couple of months and a couple of hundred dollars.
Oh, yeah forgot, during the storms earlier in the year we got storm damage. It then has took about eight months to get the roof repaired, and the actual damaged part of the front of the house still has not been repaired yet as I am waiting to hear from the builder. Overall, thank goodness for insurance on the house.
The year wore on and I was given a diagnosis of plantar fasciitis, which explained the reason why my feet were getting so sore when I was standing on them for any length of time. Just another one to add to my list.
Went to Great Northern War (national SCA event), which was wet, very much so. Still had quite a bit of fun teaching fencing and also fencing. Won the Powerful Owl Rapier Tournament, which I was quite happy with considering the weather was doing my joints no favours whatsoever. It was also nice to see others fencing so well.
The calendar seems to be dotted with appointments during the colder months which I was not able to make, which was unfortunate, but this is kind of expected. There are also quite a few more doctor's appointments scheduled during this period as well.
Went to Fencing Fest as a paying customer for the first time, which was nice. Still did a class on cutting with milk bottles filled with water which was quite popular again. I will be running the event again next year. In August I also managed to get to fence a friend who I have been waiting to fence for 21 years, Nic Harrison, and it was everything that I had been waiting for.
September was its usual busy self. St Florian Baronial (local SCA tournament) and Swordplay 2017 (national HEMA event) resulted in me being in a wheelchair for the last day of Swordplay having pretty much run myself into the ground, this is called causing a fibro-flare because you worked it too hard. This resulted in me being off my feet for about a week. Due to a repetitive theme of this "week's recovery" every year, I have relinquished my role as Chief Safety Marshal for 2018.
In early October I was invited to join the Order of Defence (the highest level in the SCA possible for fencing), which I accepted. The elevation took place at the Burnfield 15th Birthday Bash, and the event contains memories which I will hold dear. This was a big thing for me. Also this year I sent of the manuscript of my first book to the publisher to be published, so hopefully that will be out this year.
Just when everything looked like it was going rather well, my cousin passed away on 17th December, she died saving her nephews, which is something which I will take with me, always a hero. Just to make it a real kick in the teeth it was the 10th anniversary of my mothers death on the 16th December, so the end of December looked pretty bleak for me and I found it quite hard to get into the whole "Christmas spirit". Casey and I did the easy thing and stayed home and let people visit us.
New Year's Eve was spent playing board games and card games with a few friends. The new year was rung in with relative quiet celebration.
The most important thing to remember is that 2017 is gone, 2018 is here and it is this year that you have to deal with. Yes, there is some fall-out which will brush over from one to the next, but you must move on and move on with a positive spirit. I have heard too many people say "Well, it can't be any worse than last year." Well, actually it can. You should do your damned hardest to make sure it isn't. You have to do your bit too.
Cheers,
Henry.
Showing posts with label consideration. Show all posts
Showing posts with label consideration. Show all posts
Monday, January 1, 2018
Monday, April 8, 2013
Recovery and Inspiration
Greetings,
Well, what can I say, the "crash" happened and I got hit hard. I basically was taken "out of service" for a full week and really I am not back up and running completely again. This was one of those times where the body made the statement that "You will rest." I tend to push myself to breaking point and past it often so this is the result. What can I say? In this particular case the pushing was well worth it.
I traveled to Glenworth Valley on the Easter weekend via Sydney and Gosford for one day of a week-long medieval festival which happens around Sydney each year. My purpose was to examine a Guildmaster's Prize, which is essentially the last examination for the top grade in a Western Martial Arts organisation I am a part of. It was a lot of fun, but taxing on the body. Ok, so it was not just the Prize it was the "pick-up" fights which I spent most of the weekend fighting and the traveling that really did it, but it was fun so I have no regrets.
So I mentioned "inspiration" in my title. The source, here: http://positivityinpain.wordpress.com/2013/04/07/a-letter-to-my-condition/. This is a blog written by a lady with fibromyalgia like myself, and reading it I found a little inspiration to explain a couple of things which may not be as apparent as they might be. These are some things about my life, so you will forgive the "thought-writing" process that follows.
I have had fibromyalgia now officially for about a decade or so. It has torn my life apart. It has ruined opportunities and plans which I had in place for many years. I do not doubt that it has also destroyed some friendships and also made some of my friends look at me quite differently. It causes me pain on a daily basis and makes my activity levels so random that is difficult to plan anything ahead. It causes me to be inactive for weeks on end causing me stress and feelings of uselessness. I have no doubt that some of my friends have abandoned me due to the random nature of my condition, and also due to a lack of understanding of what I go through.
My condition has placed lots of stresses on my personal life and interactions as well. I believe that I have had relationships end due to the effects of the condition and the resulting limitations of it. My wife is one of the most understanding people in the world, she understands some of what I go through. She hates my pain almost as much as I do as it limits our interactions and what we want to do. My family has always been supportive, but I suspect that they do not always understand what is going on with me and do not understand the things that I do. I hope that one day that they will.
However, my condition has also changed my life and changed the way that I view my life. I do not have a "normal" life. I do not get up in the morning and go to work. I do not even get up and look for work. I do not have work in the traditional sense. My work consists of researching pieces of history and Historical European Martial Arts in order that I can teach my students the things that I have learnt. My work consists of going to training and teaching students the arts of the Renaissance period. My work consists of writing my blogs of which I have three, this one and two others; one is about fencing and the other is about Elizabethan language.
If I did not have FM I would be at a job every day of the week. Instead I spend my time doing things that I can and more importantly things that I love. My condition has resulted in me changing my life and focusing on the things that I can do rather than the things that I cannot. I do not doubt that without my condition I would not know my fencing as much as I do, nor would I be as skilled as I am. I would not also have students whose achievements are a source of pride.
Sure FM has closed a lot of doors and caused lots of issues, but it has also opened other doors and allowed me to experience life in a different but valuable way. Doors which have opened would not have otherwise been opened. My life is different from the "normal", this I know and accept. I live my life as it is and get as much enjoyment and fulfillment out of it as I can. Everyone should seek to do the same.
Cheers,
Henry.
Well, what can I say, the "crash" happened and I got hit hard. I basically was taken "out of service" for a full week and really I am not back up and running completely again. This was one of those times where the body made the statement that "You will rest." I tend to push myself to breaking point and past it often so this is the result. What can I say? In this particular case the pushing was well worth it.
I traveled to Glenworth Valley on the Easter weekend via Sydney and Gosford for one day of a week-long medieval festival which happens around Sydney each year. My purpose was to examine a Guildmaster's Prize, which is essentially the last examination for the top grade in a Western Martial Arts organisation I am a part of. It was a lot of fun, but taxing on the body. Ok, so it was not just the Prize it was the "pick-up" fights which I spent most of the weekend fighting and the traveling that really did it, but it was fun so I have no regrets.
So I mentioned "inspiration" in my title. The source, here: http://positivityinpain.wordpress.com/2013/04/07/a-letter-to-my-condition/. This is a blog written by a lady with fibromyalgia like myself, and reading it I found a little inspiration to explain a couple of things which may not be as apparent as they might be. These are some things about my life, so you will forgive the "thought-writing" process that follows.
I have had fibromyalgia now officially for about a decade or so. It has torn my life apart. It has ruined opportunities and plans which I had in place for many years. I do not doubt that it has also destroyed some friendships and also made some of my friends look at me quite differently. It causes me pain on a daily basis and makes my activity levels so random that is difficult to plan anything ahead. It causes me to be inactive for weeks on end causing me stress and feelings of uselessness. I have no doubt that some of my friends have abandoned me due to the random nature of my condition, and also due to a lack of understanding of what I go through.
My condition has placed lots of stresses on my personal life and interactions as well. I believe that I have had relationships end due to the effects of the condition and the resulting limitations of it. My wife is one of the most understanding people in the world, she understands some of what I go through. She hates my pain almost as much as I do as it limits our interactions and what we want to do. My family has always been supportive, but I suspect that they do not always understand what is going on with me and do not understand the things that I do. I hope that one day that they will.
However, my condition has also changed my life and changed the way that I view my life. I do not have a "normal" life. I do not get up in the morning and go to work. I do not even get up and look for work. I do not have work in the traditional sense. My work consists of researching pieces of history and Historical European Martial Arts in order that I can teach my students the things that I have learnt. My work consists of going to training and teaching students the arts of the Renaissance period. My work consists of writing my blogs of which I have three, this one and two others; one is about fencing and the other is about Elizabethan language.
If I did not have FM I would be at a job every day of the week. Instead I spend my time doing things that I can and more importantly things that I love. My condition has resulted in me changing my life and focusing on the things that I can do rather than the things that I cannot. I do not doubt that without my condition I would not know my fencing as much as I do, nor would I be as skilled as I am. I would not also have students whose achievements are a source of pride.
Sure FM has closed a lot of doors and caused lots of issues, but it has also opened other doors and allowed me to experience life in a different but valuable way. Doors which have opened would not have otherwise been opened. My life is different from the "normal", this I know and accept. I live my life as it is and get as much enjoyment and fulfillment out of it as I can. Everyone should seek to do the same.
Cheers,
Henry.
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Update and a Small Rant
Greetings,
Update time...
Excitement plus as I had a gastroscopy and colonoscopy on Monday... ahh the joys of recovery from such a proceedure. They may only give you a little anaesthetic but hell if it doesn't beat you around. Also had a headache for about two days straight, from a combination of dehydration, lack of food, oh, yeah and a lack of caffeine. Anyway, very much back on the mend... again. Results will not be exciting at all, was mostly just to have a look and make sure nothing horrible hiding.
Respiratory specialist seen today, things looking good. Will be continuing to reduce the prednisone gradually until I am off it. Lungs are clear again. Lots of good news on that front, still more tests to come to make sure it is all going well. Hopefully this means that I am well on the mend.
On another subject...
We have had some inconsiderate person decide that parking across our driveway. So we have called the police, and they are going to come and have a look. I am not sure that it will do anything, but we are following the rules. Sure we live next to a train station and expect some erratic parking but this is beyond the joke. So I don't know whether this is going to cause real issues but, the license plate of the car is a Victorian one, WPJ 108. You know who you are. If the owner of said vehicle happens to read this I have a message:
Try and think for other people and stop being such an inconsiderate individual. Parking across someone's driveway is inexcusable, especially as it blocks access by emergency vehicles to the house.
Cheers,
Henry.
Update time...
Excitement plus as I had a gastroscopy and colonoscopy on Monday... ahh the joys of recovery from such a proceedure. They may only give you a little anaesthetic but hell if it doesn't beat you around. Also had a headache for about two days straight, from a combination of dehydration, lack of food, oh, yeah and a lack of caffeine. Anyway, very much back on the mend... again. Results will not be exciting at all, was mostly just to have a look and make sure nothing horrible hiding.
Respiratory specialist seen today, things looking good. Will be continuing to reduce the prednisone gradually until I am off it. Lungs are clear again. Lots of good news on that front, still more tests to come to make sure it is all going well. Hopefully this means that I am well on the mend.
On another subject...
We have had some inconsiderate person decide that parking across our driveway. So we have called the police, and they are going to come and have a look. I am not sure that it will do anything, but we are following the rules. Sure we live next to a train station and expect some erratic parking but this is beyond the joke. So I don't know whether this is going to cause real issues but, the license plate of the car is a Victorian one, WPJ 108. You know who you are. If the owner of said vehicle happens to read this I have a message:
Try and think for other people and stop being such an inconsiderate individual. Parking across someone's driveway is inexcusable, especially as it blocks access by emergency vehicles to the house.
Cheers,
Henry.
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