Lyme – Page 14 – Jesus is for the Wounded

A different kind of Christmas

Published on December 27, 2015December 27, 2015 by Jesus is for the Wounded2 Comments

Perhaps it is a sentiment of many Dayspring and Hallmark greeting cards to define Christmas as “the most wonderful day of the year.” For a believer in Jesus Christ, the day is one of the most meaningful: celebrating the birth of our Lord and Savior. But perhaps the most significant holiday is actually celebrated on Easter Sunday as we recall the sacrifice that Christ made in dying on a cross for our sins such that we may have everlasting life. No sentiments are implied or required: the truth is that He came to save, the truth is that He is Lord of all!

Isaiah 9:6-7New King James Version (NKJV)

⁶For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
⁷Of the increase of His government and peace
There will be no end,
Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,
To order it and establish it with judgment and justice
From that time forward, even forever.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

I can almost hear the victorious singing of Handel’s Messiah in the background as I read these words. Such is the confidence that we have, the joy we know as believers in Jesus Christ!

Many days when my life is a “nothing burger,” these words are just about all that I have for comfort. My Christmas and Easter in 2015 were not filled with either the people or activities of a typical Christian holiday. There were no church services dressed in better finery, homemade treats enjoyed in the basement afterwards with the dearest of friends, or family dinners filled with laughter and much feasting. The décor around here was the same as it is every day. I could go on with all that was cut due to the ravages of severe illness but I won’t. Perhaps you get the idea Gentle Reader?

I spent each of these holidays staring into nothingness for much of it yet also with nothing to distract me from seeking the face of my Lord. My prayerful meditation was uninterrupted and peaceful. Warm, loving glances came from my beloved Steve whose presence is one of the greatest gifts I could ever ask for in my life. Even our furry friend Elle is always a special delight with the gentlest of brown eyes, the softest of fur coats. I did get somewhat of a break during the middle of the day on Christmas in which we connected with family via Skype and the phone, MacGyvered a tasty meal of sorts, and opened some sweet gifts for our eighth Christmas together as husband-and-wife. Yeah God for special moments like these!

In two days we will continue and conclude as many of these traditions as we can in a gathering with my husbands adult children and their spouses. They graciously will attend to the mold/fragrance-avoidance practices needed for me to host them in our home. Since it may be my only time to see them when they are in town from their respective States and countries, I do pray that I may be able to participate in every moment available. They are wonderful young adults and I do love them so! I have simplified our menu and Steve has begun the preparations. We have spent extra time finding special gifts that would be meaningful; one of them may even serve temporarily as a different kind of “Christmas tree!” We’ll see. I still have to pull that one together! Eeeek!

So if you too have changed things up a bit for this Christmas season, know that you are not alone. I understand completely. It’s o.k.! This holiday along with Easter in the Spring have nothing to do with Santa and the white bunny carrying chocolate eggs. These special days have everything to do with a decision we each make in our hearts about Who we will serve as Lord over our lives. Where have you placed your trust dear friends? With a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, we will have a celebration that will never be limited to a date on the calendar.

Nothing beats a Charlie Brown Christmas message:

And with that decision made to follow Christ, every day will be a different kind of adventure that transcends the moment into all of eternity. Yeah, I’m on board for that one. Will you be along too? JJ

Be true to who you are

Published on December 12, 2015December 13, 2015 by Jesus is for the Wounded2 Comments

This song will make the point of this post more clear. Have fun as you listen to this upbeat tune from the Beach Boys!

<img class=”alignnone size-full wp-image-4432″ src=”https://jesusisforthewounded.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/beach-boys.jpg” alt=”Beach Boys” width=”480″ height=”360″

“Just like you would to your girl or guy. Be true to your school. Rah rah, shish boom bah!” And Gentle Readers I submit that this also applies to US TOO!

In a recent trip to the Emergency Room (yeah same story, different day) I was received by the male nurse who did my initial evaluation less than a month ago. I remembered the gooley, inappropriate look on his face as he handed me a hospital gown and asked me to change clothes then waited for me to do so right in front of him. He had the gown opened just below his eye level. His eyes were staring at my chest. The expression on his face was blank. And I didn’t buy it one bit.

I really don’t know how I had the presence of mind in the middle of non-stop convulsive episodes and a struggle to breathe to ask him for some privacy. He paused for a moment then looked up at me. “Of course,” he said or something similar and handed me the gown. He pulled the hospital curtain and continued typing on the portable computer just beyond what is also called the “privacy curtain.” My beloved husband, Steve, assisted me in changing my clothing thank you very much! My dignity in an extreme moment of vulnerability was spared. Thank you Lord.

I know that this nurse is a medical professional. He has probably seen thousands of naked bodies and women a lot better endowed than yours truly. In a time of crisis, the medical professional assists a patient in changing clothes as a part of the procedures. Yeah but they are not to do so while acting in an unprofessional manner. He was not going to help me in that moment unless I was dead! Period! The rest of that visit went more cordially and more appropriately. I changed clothing on my own after the assessments and treatments were completed about four hours later, thank you very much.

Flash forward to this past Tuesday night. Mr. un-Wonderful was working the p.m. shift again in the ER and begins his nursing evaluation. I cringe. This time it was a petite, blonde nurse co-worker who asked me to donn a hospital gown. The dude was within arm’s reach of the gurney upon which I am lying. I felt his eyes upon me. In that moment, shaking violently with convulsive episodes and struggling to breathe, I was glad that I had been trained as an occupational therapist and muttered as much. As such I know more ways to dress and undress than the average person with virtually any disability that you can imagine. I laid the gown over my clothing, covering my personhood, and struggled then succeeded to doff my own clothing and get into the approved garb. Steve might have helped some; I don’t know as my eyes were closed. The nurse wasn’t happy but I was. And in doing my own thingy, I remained true to myself.

The rest of the ER visit went as they usually do. After about 750 cc of fluids, IV Rocephin, and a shot of Morphine (my first ever!) I was feeling better. While the second bag of IV fluids diminished the severity of the episodes, the tremulous part of the episodes didn’t stop until after the Rocephin. And that improvement lasted for about a day with barely a tic attack here and there. Yeah God!

Now I am in the aftermath of trying to decide what to do. The prescription Keflex (same cephalosporin drug class as Rocephin) has begun irritating my stomach. While there were findings of a urinary tract infection in the ER, the urine culture was negative. There are still fewer and less intense episodes overall: the hell that plagues my life and keeps me clinging to the Cross of Christ for hours every day. My Doc says to stop the Keflex. I held the herbal Biocidin (anti-microbial) after the ER visit to avoid an interaction with the new prescription drug. What shall I do now? Hmmmmmmm.

I know what my gut is telling me to do: be true to myself. I will pray for the Lord to guide my very wise husband and me. I will strive to be respectful to those trying to care for me with as much courtesy as I can muster in any given situation while protecting my own privacy and integrity when it is all that I have. In due time we will figure all of this out and be much better for the journey the Lord has allowed for His purposes and our good. Of this I am still sure.

And if anyone tries to tear down my alma matter, Mott High School and the mighty Marauders, well then I will be “true to my school” as well. “Go team,” I will shout on high! Lord willing, we are going to win! JJ

A Plausible Case

Published on December 6, 2015December 6, 2015 by Jesus is for the WoundedLeave a comment

As you may have read in the About Julie page of this blogsite, I treated for Chronic Lyme Disease early in the four years that I have been battling serious illness. I had not recovered my health four months after a bout with viral hepatitis and our Family Practice Physician convinced me and Steve that latent Lyme disease was keeping me sick. Then the story changed a few times . . .

Treatment for Lyme disease, Candida, mold exposure, mercury toxicity, gut parasites, and infected root-canaled teeth has still left me with the following symptoms four years later:

Hours of daily convulsive episodes, every single day
Headaches
Painful shoulders, forearms, hips, neck, jaw, and more
Ringing in my ears
Multiple severe chemical, mold, and sound/light sensitivities
Significant nutritional and hormonal deficiencies
Fatigue
Episodic cognitive and emotional setbacks
Periodic night terrors, nightmares, waking terrors
Weakness and deconditioning
Air hunger and chest compression symptoms
Neuropathies
Severely disrupted sleep/wake cycle
Food sensitivities despite a restricted diet
Gut dysbiosis
Inability to consistently perform activities of daily living or work
Social isolation
Intolerance to treatment

So in other words, my life is kinda hellish a lot of the time! Today was no exception. Then right in the middle of the trauma there were tender encounters with the sweetest man on the face of the earth: my Stevers. We talked in between seizure attack episodes, he provided care when I could not move, and we made the most of a low-key day. It was the “same story, different day” around here. And something else happened too: I may have discovered another piece of this wretched illness mystery: Latent Lyme Disease can affect the gut which in turn can contribute to neurological complications much like the ones that have eluded all of our attempts at recovery.

No, it’s not systemic Candida as I suspected when I wrote my last Treatment Update. It’s called “Bell’s Palsy of the Gut,” a term coined by Lyme Literate Medical Doctor (LLMD) Virginia T. Sherr. “Gastrointestinal Lyme disease may cause gut paralysis and a wide range of diverse GI symptoms with the underlying etiology likewise missed by physicians,” states Dr. Sherr in the April 2006 issue of Practical Gastroenterology (p. 74). There are tests that can be performed to determine the presence of Borrelia burgdorferi along with other microbial pathogens transferred in tick saliva after a bite. In two weeks I will have a diagnostic procedure in which these tests could also be performed. Whoa Lord. Is that why I felt led to add an anti-microbial to my anemic treatment plan?

God is good. All the time. God is good. Today I felt led to add back a probiotic that I actually was able to tolerate this time. The new information about Lyme disease may explain the increasing gut inflammation this past year and my supremely negative response to a trial of a far-infrared light treatment to my abdomen. Or to any abdominal exam. Or to physical therapy to the hip flexors in the lower part of the abdominal wall. Or to certain foods. At any rate, a new door has opened and there are new possibilities for getting well. Perhaps it is time to re-visit the diagnosis of Lyme disease.

Stay tuned. This exquisitely wild roller coaster ride of recovery from serious illness is about to reach a new station. In the meantime, please pass a spoon and 1/2 of a carton of Siggis plain, grass-fed, organic and Icelandic yogurt. We’re going to get this thing right or keep screaming all the way to the bottom of the next hill until we do! (I told you that I worked in an amusement park one summer didn’t I? Yeah, Cedar Point is really cool!)

Cedar Point gatekeeper_wallpaper

It Just Doesn’t Matter that much anymore

Published on November 1, 2015November 1, 2015 by Jesus is for the WoundedLeave a comment

What others think of me, especially online, used to concern me to the point of scrutinizing every typo and punctuation mark! Tell you what, it just doesn’t matter that much anymore (IJDMTMA).

Keeping in mind the reason for every significant action in my life so I can justify it, rationalize any lapse in judgment, or simply give me another reason to criticize myself occupies less of my mental space these days. It takes too much energy. Any other reasons would go against what I just said! IJDMTMA.

Cataloging significant records that document the divorce I endured, the major court case I lost, the medical conditions that have come my way, too many artifacts and photos of special events, and purchasing new file cabinets to keep track of these events and more (I have 15 packed drawers in various lateral files, desk drawers and file cabinets, plus quite a few plastic bins around!) involves more-purging-than-storing these days. If I need it that badly surely I can find it online somewhere, right? IJDMTMA.

I now live in a town where the cost of living is so affordable that a few people I know have a second home just to store their stuff! Or folks rent storage spaces in addition to their primary residences (and I am not talking about those living in an apartment or condo!). Gratefully my husband, Steve, and I live in a modest home that requires us to purge stuff periodically! We don’t want to keep accumulating stuff! This Christmas I will need to discard numerous Christmas decorations that were up before we remediated our home for mold damage. The most treasured items will be consolidated into one bin. I’m going to have to get tough and proclaim: IJDMTMA.

Similarly, musty memories, painful flashbacks, grief beyond what most must endure, and the drag-me-down burdens that comprise life’s worries have come to the surface with the wretched convulsive episodes of the illness I have been battling. I simply could not stop the process if I tried. Perhaps these came as a consequence of a few illnesses that have affected my brain? No one knows. What I do know is that If there are to be any redeeming benefits to the nightmares of these past 4 years it must include the involuntary healing that came as these demons were set free. Yes, the seizures helped release some bad stuff going on in my head. Carrying this mental baggage has gone down immensely along with the emotional pain. A different kind of healing has occurred as a result. Joyfully, IJDMTMA.

The losses of what I once held so dear (i.e. many relationships, my occupational role of 32 years, more financial freedom, certain activities, physical fitness, and the ability to function normally) has been heartbreaking. But just like learning to let go of other people, places, and things in my life, these intangibles had to be released to the care of my Heavenly Father as well. At this point I do not know if any of them will come back. Amazingly I have discovered that I still can have some good moments, make new friends and memories, have everything that I really need, and experience love like never before even with a total life makeover. To the need for having things be just so I say, IJDMTMA. Life goes better when held more lightly in the wonder of the moment . . .

How do I convey that “IJDMTMA” is a relatively peaceful, not a sad or angry place in which to be? I simply have to be here right now. This attitude has become like a protective coating to keep me from falling apart, from losing what is left, from thinking that my Jesus has abandoned me. He has not! IJDMTMA is the construct into which I must retreat lest the grieving of what is no longer here overtakes me and blinds me to the goodness that still remains. In Ezekiel 3:8, the Lord shows His prophet that He will indeed allow him to become “hardened” so that Ezekiel may not lose heart as he carries out the work of ministering to the nation of Israel still in exile. Wow! A God-ordained rebellion of sorts will help keep Ezekiel from discouragement. A toughening will help him and his gifts to continue to be used for God’s glory. Yes, I want the will and glory of my Lord too. In the cocoon my Lord has woven for me I can say to all that other stuff: IJDMTMA.

It just doesn’t matter that much anymore that things aren’t the way they should be or used to be. I am still here and that matters to me. Much goodness still surrounds me as I look around this room where I am sitting and see the pictures, handiwork, awards, furniture, and records that tell the stories of Steve and Julie. Cool beans. Better yet, just look into our eyes or sit and chat a spell to see more closely what real life looks like in those who are grounded in trusting the Lord for each hour of the day. It isn’t perfect. We don’t want our lives to be perfect anyways. I have a sense that maybe yours isn’t perfect either. It’s going to be o.k. for those who are in Christ Jesus. One day soon we will be in His presence and the real stuff of life will be revealed. And with His glorious light shining all around us we will be with our Lord and Savior for always . . .

Coming to faith in Christ does matter to make this all possible. Dwelling in the presence of the Lord for all time will bring lightness of heart for all of eternity. I will be there. Will I get to see you there too Gentle Reader?

I’m tired. Goodnight all. JJ

From the Do It Sick Chef: Oatmeal!

Published on October 26, 2015October 26, 2015 by Jesus is for the WoundedLeave a comment

Hey there Gentle Reader: we all gotta eat right? Well who likes a one-bowl meal that will satisfy your cravings for something sweet, savory, fatty/rich, and satisfying? Me!

Check out this version of oatmeal that is good enough for a breakfast, lunch or dinner feast from the Do It Sick Chef (aka Just Julie).

https://youtu.be/UoLc9AzTczk

To follow all of the Do It Self Chef videos and join in the chat, “Like” my Facebook page at Hope Beyond. I’d love to hear from you and the strategies that are working for you while recovering from serious illness or just life in general, eh?

By following this blog and clicking on the Do It Sick Chef category, you can also keep track of the latest meals, tips, and survival strategies.

Lord willing, we are going to get well!

Take care, JJ