Living life with a chronic illness is definitely not easy. But I do my best to push through all the barriers this illness puts in front of me! In my heart and mind, I believe maintaining a positive outlook on all situations in life will carry us through to much better times! I hope you find the information that I provide both helpful and inspirational!
It is no secret that we have not been able to do anything in several years besides be imprisoned in our home because of COVID. Recently, we were able to get out of our house and the states we live in to celebrate my husband’s birthday. Of course, he loves doing something extremely cold, and I am not that good at, snowboarding. Even though it was bitterly cold and a long drive, it was fabulous to have a change in scenery and freedom from our home.
Now, one small problem is, what do you do when there is a long drive ahead and you despise driving? I never expect my husband to do all the driving a long drive and will always offer to do some of the driving. My husband is aware of my distaste for driving and tries to not have me drive much. I have two reasons for detesting driving. Driving near the huge 18-wheeler trucks is terrifying and it is extremely challenging for me to see at night. My vision causes me to feel worse than a deer in headlights.
As wonderful as it was to be out of our house for the first time in three years, it was still a little concerning due to the increased number of COVID cases. Obviously, being fully vaccinated reduces the risks, but even those that are fully vaccinated have been falling ill with COVID. I prefer to not be another COVID number and worst-case scenario in the ICU fighting for my life. We have made it during all these years with COVID not getting sick, even when our family was.
Dealing with extreme temperatures is problematic for me. I know it is because of Multiple Sclerosis (MS). My body does not acclimate well or fast. Temperatures are one the enemies for me. With colder weather, we can put on more clothing, but it is still a slow process. Then with hot weather, we cannot take off enough clothing to cool down. I have mentioned previously when I deal with colder temperatures, I have heating pads to help and with hot temperatures, I have cooling products that help some.
There will always be challenges in life and we must find ways to handle them. Life is not going to pause because it gets hard. Somedays, life may seem to be painfully long, but logically it is short. We get one chance at life, so making it the best we can is ideal. We need to fight for what we want in life and never give up and surrender to the challenges.
Thank you for visiting my site today. I hope you are having a good week and enjoyed what I have shared today. I am looking forward to reading your comments and will respond as quickly as I can. I hope you are doing everything possible to stay safe! Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
I hope y’all have had a wonderful week and you are looking forward to the weekend. I managed to fall behind with my blog and still have a few comments to respond to. The past few days I have been consumed with either a migraine or back pain that was so awful I could hardly do anything. Wednesday morning, my back pain was in a different location than normal. On a typical day, it is my mid to lower back that is in pain, but Wednesday morning it was only in my lower back and it took me at least fifteen minutes to pull myself from the bed. This pain was like nothing I have experienced before and had me mildly concerned. I did not lift anything in the previous days, so it did not make sense and I detest when things do not make sense.
I started having another mean migraine on Wednesday that nothing would help it to ease up. Having a migraine and the unusual back pain was extremely frustrating and nothing was making any sense. I detest when things do not make sense because I am the type that needs logical answers. I guess with Multiple Sclerosis, answers are one thing I may never get.
I would assume I know why there were so many issues with pain and a migraine. I do believe I could make an educated guess because after dealing with this unpredictable and hateful illness and knowing my body better than anyone else. My assumption for these issues is none other than stress. I feel like I continue getting bad news daily almost like there is a sign on my head saying, “Please do something that is going to create more problems in life” on my forehead. I mean getting laid off on December 9th and two weeks later having my truck in the shop with an expensive repair, and then on Wednesday learning that my former company is not paying out for the PTO I did not use threw me into the worst stress tailspin.
I was counting on the PTO payout for bills, my husband’s birthday, and a few other things. I cannot say I am surprised that my former company was going to screw me over again. Apparently, my former company thinks it is perfectly acceptable to basically steal money from me and it seems they can do that legally.
I have been constantly looking for another job and it has been beyond frustrating. Many places are hiring for remote positions, but it has been almost a month and I am still unemployed. Being unemployed is causing my personality to change and I do not like it. I feel like my anger about what has occurred and keeps happening is causing me to be a little hateful. I love my cats more than I can explain, but my mood even has me being angry with them and not wanting to be anywhere around them.
I am trying my best to stay positive, but it is becoming harder every day. I keep trying to tell myself that everything happens for a reason and the perfect job is out there for me and will surface when the time is right. I do not know what I did wrong in a previous life to have to continue dealing with challenges, but whatever it was I am so sorry. I just really need a break and have something, just one small thing happen work out.
I am working on another post and will hopefully have it completed tonight. I have also been working on a short story to help build on the creativity I know that I have inside. Writing has been an outlet for me and even though two of my cats are doing everything possible to not let me write because they want my attention, it is still the only thing that lets me escape from reality.
Thank you for visiting my site today. I appreciate your time and look forward to reading your comments. I will be responding to comments today and tomorrow, so I will be caught up soon. I hope you have a lovely and safe weekend. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
When we can recognize the different types of traits one can have, we can understand those around us better. Through this post, I am going to explain the difference between Introversion, Empathy, and Highly Sensitive People. I know not everyone is interested in this kind of information, but I am incredibly fascinated and hope you will be as well. Once you have read about these traits, you might find you can relate to one of two of them and I would love to know which resonates with you the most.
Over the years the term Introvert has been misunderstood. About 30-50% of the population are introverts. Many believe when someone is shy or antisocial, this means they are an introvert, but this is not always accurate. The truth is many introverts are social and enjoy spending their time with a few close friends. With this understanding, it is important to know that introverts commonly feel drained quickly when they are in social situations and they need a great deal of time alone to rejuvenate their energy. This is the reason introverts tend to prefer to stay in or spend time with one or two people, instead of a big group.
Something I found interesting because I was not aware of it is being an introvert is genetic. This involves differences in the way the brain processes the “reward chemical”, dopamine. Those that are born an introvert do not feel rewarded by external stimuli with things such as large gatherings and small talk. Where introverts lose energy with groups, they get great satisfaction from more meaningful activities such as reading, creative hobbies, and time alone to ponder their thoughts.
About 70% of all introverts are also highly sensitive people. A person that is a highly sensitive introvert may come across as very observant, caring, emotional, and even though others are exhausting, they can read them very well.
Over the years, empaths have taken on several different meanings. It is mostly and most accurately explained by a person with the ability to understand the mental and emotional states of those around them.
An empath would explain they do not just notice another’s feelings but feel the other person’s feelings deeply, almost as if they were their own. They can become overwhelmed with feelings of stress and the empath may experience panic attacks, chronic fatigue, and physical symptoms that are typically used to form a conclusion for a medical diagnosis.
Being an empath, can be thought to be a blessing and a curse for the person. This is often felt so intensely, and the empath is unable to turn it off or ignore the feelings. It can take years to establish ways to turn it down when necessary. This can result in the empath going from feeling extremely happy to being overpowered with stress, anxiety, or other negative emotions because someone else came into the room.
The trait of being a Highly Sensitive Person has been commonly misunderstood. With one word, “sensitive” being in the name tends to leave these people with negative views from others. This does not mean you are made from glass and will break easily or cry at a pin drop. It does indicate you process more information regarding the world than those around you.
Highly sensitive people can be described as the following:
*Process information and notice connections that other people do not.
*Become overwhelmed or overstimulated because the brain processes so much input.
*Like empaths, they pick up on emotional signs and feel empathy for others deeply.
*Conscious of the smaller things that others overlook.
Highly Sensitive people have different emotional elements involved. Similar to an empath, they feel the emotions of others and tend to be sensitive to more than emotions only, but are sensitive to all sensory inputs. They may become overwhelmed in situations where it seems to be noisy, crowded, or too fast-paced no matter what type of emotions they are dealing with.
Thank you for visiting my site today! I hope you are having a great week and you enjoyed the information in this post. I am looking forward to reading your comments on this post and will respond as quickly as I can. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
Slowly we are getting much closer to being able to celebrate and enjoy the holidays, as we did before the pandemic. Thankfully, vaccines and boosters are readily available for everyone over age 5 years old and they are free of charge. Currently, 42.7% of people worldwide have been fully vaccinated. In the United States, where I live 59.6 of the population have been fully vaccinated. I know many that have reservations of the vaccine, but how many people have died from the vaccine compared to those that died due to the virus? Maybe there have been some that died after getting the vaccine, but would they have died regardless of the vaccine?
Last year most of us were not able to celebrate holidays or even visit family because of the COVID fears. Hopefully, you were able to spend the recent holiday, Thanksgiving with your family and be thankful for the day! While we were able to enjoy the day, we have many more days ahead of us, especially if we can keep the virus under control. Of course, no one has answers to if we will face lockdowns again and fear for our lives, but we can at least try remaining hopeful.
There have been various challenges we have faced during the eighteen months of the pandemic. Unfortunately, some lost their jobs, which created financial stresses. Holidays can always come with more financial stress, but with the right amount of thought, logic, and planning, it does not have to. To help you reduce your holiday finance stress, I am going to share a few tips that might help.
Take time to give some thought to gifts. Our family and friends have different desires and wants to consider. Instead of going to the stores or shopping online mindlessly, think about each person individually. Does the person have any hobbies? Does the person enjoy personalized gifts from the heart? Does the person enjoy gifts that have other meanings? Children are typically easy to please and just enjoy a physical item they can open. Children also tend to want the newest toy available but might also enjoy arts and crafts. Therefore, a coloring book, crayons, colorful paper, and markers may keep they entertained and happy for hours!
You may also be able to divide people into different categories. This can help prioritize who you are buying for and the costs of what is purchased. With this shopping will become more about giving something meaningful, instead of just buying random items.
Create a list that you can follow. This is like going grocery shopping, which some of you might not make a list before you go grocery shopping. Do you find having something in your hand to shop with is helpful? So, you do not forget things you need or buy things that are not necessary? Creating a holiday shopping list will prevent you from impulse buying. It can be easy to start shopping for family and find something you want, that is on sale.
Creating a list that does not include yourself and stay concentrated solely on your list can help maintain your financial focus. Once you decide who you want to buy for and have an idea what the person would like, you can check things off along the way, which can provide you satisfaction for staying on task and completing an important task.
Understand your reason for holiday shopping. Once you get started with your holiday shopping, you might start feeling overwhelmed. Thoughts such as what and who you should do for, and feelings of stress being to build up inside. When you feel this start, take a step back from the situation and remember why you are holiday shopping. Also try to connect with the moment and pace yourself. Mindful breathing and meditation might help you to stay calm.
After you connect and check in with your body, ask you’re a few simple questions. Why is this important to you? Who and why are you trying to impress someone? Do you think anyone will be disappointed with your gift or are they expecting something different? Understanding the source of your stress may help you to keep it from getting too out of control.
Obviously, no one wants to disappoint someone else, but most of the time your family is not going to be disappointed. Our family just wants the chance to spend time together and creating new memories. Truthfully, it would only be a shallow type of person that would be disappointed with what we give them. Although we do all know someone that would be that shallow and they might be one of our family members, try to not allow yourself to fall into that mindset. Just remember, holidays are not about what you get or how much you spend, it is about being surrounded by loved ones!
I hope what I have shared will help reduce your stress around the holidays. It is supposed to be a time of joy, not unnecessary additional stress. Life is already difficult enough and we deal with other stresses that we cannot avoid. I do look forward to reading what you thought about what I shared. Stress has been said to be a silent killer and I believe this is true. Nothing good comes from stress, but there is a lot of things to enjoy in this short life!
Thank you for taking the time to visit my site today. I hope your weekend begins great and only brings you more joy. The weekends are so short, so they are best spent doing what makes us happy. Even with that said, whatever you do this weekend, please do so in the safest way possible. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
During the past year and a half, eighteen long months we have learned many valuable lessons about the world and those living in it. From coast to coast, throughout every country people have endured the stress, fear, and anxiety from a wildly contagious and deadly virus. Some of the most prominent issues with COVID-19 are the misinformation that has been shared in the news and social media, but also those that are refusing to get vaccinated and or wear a mask. Too many people have politized this virus, which should NEVER have been a political issue because it is science-based. This virus has already killed millions of innocent people worldwide and has not stopped. Throughout this post, I am going to share important information on the complications from COVID and ways we can strengthen our immune system to defend against illnesses and viruses.
COVID-19 may be different for each person that gets the virus, but some are going to be similar. Symptoms may range from minor to severe and even lead to death. The symptom may include fever, coughing, shortness of breath, trouble breathing, fatigue, chills, body aches, headache, sore throat, congestion, loss of smell or taste, nausea, and diarrhea. Some people are asymptomatic, which means they have the virus, but do not display any symptoms and are continuously spreading the virus.
Unfortunately, some people may experience COVID-19 complications that are caused by a condition called “cytokine storm”. This condition is when an infection prompts the immune system to flood the bloodstream with cytokines, which is are inflammatory proteins. These proteins may kill tissue and damage organs, and, in some situations, lung transplants will be required.
The immune system behaves similar to the way a security system we have in our homes does. My immune system does not behave the way it should, which is where my fears stem from. Although, our immune system is complex it is the first line of defense against illness. Our immunes system is comprised of various organs, cells, and proteins that have several vital roles, which include:
1. Fighting disease-causing germs such as bacteria, viruses, parasites, or fungi and eliminates them from our body.
2. Acknowledges and negates harmful substances from the environment
3. Fights disease-causing changes in the body.
Considering how crucial our immune system is and the ways all the variants of COVID-19 are impacting the world, we must do everything we can to keep our immune system healthy. Personally, the medication I take for my Multiple Sclerosis causes my immune system to be weak. Even though I have been fully vaccinated, I work from home, have groceries delivered, and rarely leave the house, I am still worried. On the rare occasion, I do leave my house, I do wear a mask because there is no way to know if the vaccine was effective for me. Also, I would not want to be an asymptomatic carrier and pass it onto someone else, even though they had the option to get the vaccine and did not.
Unfortunately, as we age our immune response capability may become reduced. With cases of COVID from the Delta variant steadily increasing, now is an important time to do everything we can to keep our immune system as healthy as possible. I am going to share several ways to help build and maintain a healthy immune system. Before you continue reading, please remember I am not a physician, nutritionist, or health expert, this is just information I have learned through a little research.
Maintaining good gut health could be the golden ticket! It has been suggested that doctors believe up to 80% of our immune system is found in our gut. A diet that is abundant with plant-based and unprocessed foods such as whole grains, vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, herbs, and spice display a protective effect. Utilizing this type of diet can reduce inflammation and promote good gut bacteria, which establishes stronger immune health.
As COVID-19 continues to mutate into different and more contagious variants, continuing good hand hygiene is crucial. Washing our hands multiple times, a day for at least 20 seconds is the best and most effective way to not spread bacteria, viruses, and infections. You can count to 20 each time you wash your hands, or you can sing happy birthday or Mary had a little lamb 2 times as you wash your hands!
Continue or start taking vitamins daily. Vitamin C supplies immune defense by assisting cell function and defending against environmental contributors. If you do not want to take a vitamin C supplement, there are several natural sources including oranges, strawberries, spinach, kiwi, and grapefruit. Vitamin D can increase the immune response and defend against respiratory conditions. Of course, there are vitamin D supplements, but 10 minutes of sun exposure a day is an effective natural source.
We have all heard many times that stress is a silent killer, but it also harms our immune system as well. Stress can cause us to produce additional levels of cortisol and cytokine, which triggers inflammation. Stress can also decrease the number of white blood cells in our body that help fight off infections. Discovering ways that work best for us will restore much of what is needed for a healthy and fulfilled life.
Developing a schedule to get an adequate amount of sleep every night can help boost our immune system. Research suggests that less than six hours of sleep each night might make someone four times more likely to get sick, than someone that does get the proper amount of sleep. Our body depends on a full night’s rest to replenish cells and proteins. Of course, during the workweek, it is easier to stay with a sleep schedule because we have a set time our workday will begin, but we should use the same sleep schedule on the weekends as well
If you are currently a smoker, it is time to quit. Smoking does so many awful things to our bodies and increases the risk of cancer. There are many programs available to help you quit smoking, but it does take you making the first step! If you drink alcohol, it is best to only do this in moderation. Alcohol not only creates negative impacts on our physical body but also on our mental health.
Staying hydrated might not protect us fully from viruses but becoming dehydrated has many negative impacts on us that can easily be avoided. Dehydration can cause terrible headaches and hinder our physical performance, focus, mood, digestion, heart, and kidney function. I have mentioned before the importance of staying hydrated and provided a few useful tips. I drink water all day and even have a bottle beside my bed at night, so if I become thirsty it is available. I have purchased a few phenomenal bottles on Amazon that keep my water cold all day. I leave one bottle in the freezer, filled halfway with water so when I take it out there is ice in the bottom that helps keep the water even colder! I will share a link to the bottles that I have and hope you will find them as helpful as I do! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0764PGKL4/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I hope the information I have shared will be helpful for you. I know there are many other ways we can work to keep our immune health the best it can be, so if you have other advice, please share with us! I have already said before, the vaccine is free, and everyone needs to get this as soon as possible. Being vaccinated and or wearing a mask will save lives. The people that are not getting vaccinated and wearing a mask are contributing to the death count, which is wrong and selfish.
Thank you for visiting my site today! I hope you are having a relaxing, safe, and wonderful weekend! I am looking forward to reading your comments, which I will respond to as quickly as I can. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
Y’all know I had an appointment with another dentist this week and I must say, she was the first dentist in almost 40 years that I actually liked. I explained to the new dentist my reasons for not taking too kindly to the endodontist, which she understood. She did tell me that was not how he normally acted, but he is one of those perfectionists and just wants to make sure that I am going to do what is necessary to keep my mouth healthy. I told her that I did understand this and normally appreciate people being upfront, but that there is a fine line between being honest and rude, which he crossed that line.
I am going tomorrow afternoon to have my two root canals done and I am not looking forward to this. Next week, I will be going back to the nice dentist to have x-rays done and a cleaning, which will not be too bad. I know how important dental health is and that it does correlate to the heart, so I guess it is good that I like the new dentist and will not fear going to her.
I am not sure how I will be feeling tomorrow after the root canals, but if I am feeling okay, I will try to do a post to update y’all on how it went. I will try to be nice and not bite him for the nasty attitude he had when I first met him. I might give him some advice to go back to school to learn how to act around patients that are terrified of dentists, but it probably would not do any good. Those of you that have seen neurologist know they have a dry personality or more like a personality of a tick and that is how I felt about the endodontist.
Thank you for visiting my site today. This was just kind of an update on my dental experience because I had mentioned the appointments. I hope you are having a good week and you are continuing to stay safe. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
I think it is important to have goals in life, but they can be a challenge to meet. We all have random things that come up daily, which can create distractions slowing down reaching our goals. What are a few of your goals? These can be short OR long-term goals, but it would be interesting to know. What are the ways you set goals and how do you achieve your goals? Throughout this post, I promise you I will share my short-term and long-term goals, but also ways to achieve your goals.
Understand your Emotions:
It has been proven that our success stems from being happy first, and we are not happy only because we succeeded with a goal. This is because our emotions are in a positive and good place. During times when we are in a pessimistic, glass-half-empty mindset, reaching our goals is less likely to happen and we need to discover ways to step in with our mood and discover new habits of gratitude.
Determine your Purpose:
Our goals tend to line up with our life’s purpose. Achieving our goals will be much easier when we know and connect with this purpose. Some goals require us to be more tenacious, but with the right amount of determination, we can accomplish anything we set our minds to!
Ask yourself one question, WHY?
Intrinsic goals are goals that are not set by anyone but us. It is crucial to understand the meaning of every goal we have and how our life will be more fulfilled once we achieve any of the goals we set.
Write down your short-term & long-term goals:
Take 20-30 minutes to think about the goals you want to accomplish. To clarify, the differences a short-term goal is something you want to do in the near future. This can mean today, this week, or even this month. Long-term goal takes time and planning. These goals are something you want to accomplish in the further out future, such as later this year, early next year, OR maybe in the latter part of 2022. Create a commitment to goals and define whether certain goals require changes or need to be removed because they are conflicting with other important goals.
Set challenging and risk-taking goals:
We might not know this, but at the end of each, we look back at key points during the day. Something that has been found is, the things we followed that were outside our typical comfort zone, involved accomplishing something important to us and provided us with “authentic self-esteem”. The more we push ourselves with challenges, the more we will believe in ourselves.
Changing our password
Every day we are prepared all day by words, scents, and sights around us. Something that never occurred to me is to use these passwords to reinforce our goals by changing our passwords using words regarding our goals and characteristic you want to take on. For example, if your goal is to eat healthily, you could use “health” or “healthy” as a password. If we are constantly reminded of one of our goals because it is one of our passwords, we use daily, we will unconsciously find ways to make them happened because they are at the forefront of our minds.
At the beginning of this post, I promised y’all I would share my short and long-term goals, the way I will try achieving my goals, and why my goals are important to me. My five-year plan for accomplishing my long-term goals, how I plan to accomplish my goals, and the reason why each goal is important to me.
Put An End To Stress
This goal is important to me because I understand how and why stress unfavorably impacts my health. The way I intend to achieve this goal is to continuously remind myself to not stress over things I do not have any control over. A few of the things I do not have any control over are going to the dentist (I have always had an irrational fear of the dentist0 and have avoided them. I can see when I look in the mirror the large amounts of broken teeth. This issue is not due to me not taking care of my teeth but is because of all the steroids I was forced to take during the times the MS acted up. This goal will hopefully be accomplished by the end of 2021 if not before.
Another one of my long-term goals is to write the book I have dreamed of writing. The reason this goal is important to me is that writing a book has been something I have wanted since I was a young child.
I have been the only person standing in my way of achieving this goal It weighs heavily on my mind because I always tell myself that I am not a good enough writer. The ways I am going to accomplish this goal is to continue writing on my blog and improving and building on the skills I already have. I am anticipating achieving this goal within 5 years. This is obviously a goal that takes planning, organizing a plan and pure determination.
My short-term goals are goals I want to achieve in the next two weeks. One of these goals is to create a plan to eat healthier. I can admit that I do not eat the best food and I do not eat three meals a day. The best-case scenario is I have 2 pieces of toast for breakfast, uncrustable for lunch, and dinner either more toast or macaroni and cheese. I know everything on this list is extremely unhealthy and some will say I eat like an 8-year-old child.
This goal is important to me and not because I want to lose weight (which would be nice), but because eating healthy makes you feel better physically and emotionally. I plan to achieve this goal by making a meal plan that includes only healthy foods and no junk food or fast food.
My second short-term goal is to get my house organized and clean. This goal is important to me because a disorganized house creates chaos, clutter, and stress. I am planning to go through the closets, drawers, and each individual room to put anything not being used in a donations bag that will be taken to the nearest Good Will location.
Thank you for visiting my site today. I hope you enjoyed this post and I am looking forward to reading your comments, and what you goals are. I hope your week is going well and you are staying as safe as you can! Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
Happy Monday y’all! I hope you had a nice and safe weekend. Are you ready for this new week to begin? I guess there is no turning back and we do not have a choice about the new week and just need to embrace it the best we can. Considering my weekend was full of stress because our poor baby boy cat was not feeling well and had to go to the doctor on Saturday morning. Then last week many people lost their jobs with the company I work for, this week has to be a little better or at least that is what I am hoping for. It is sad there were so many people laid off, but I hope this does not sound selfish, I am thankful to still have a job. I honestly could use another weekend to recuperate from the weekend I had, but bring on Monday!
This afternoon I have to go to the one place I dread more than just about anything, the dentist. The endodontist that will be doing my root canals on Thursday wanted me to see a dentist to help develop a comprehensive plan for what needs to be taken care of in my very screwed up mouth. It is awful that I do take care of my teeth and keep them clean, but because of the vast amounts of steroids I have been forced to take when I had relapses from the MS, my mouth is a mess and has many issues to address. I still hate the dentist, but I am sure I am only going to hate them more after this week.
Now that we are starting a new week and a new month, we need to try to stay motivated and optimistic. I cannot even believe it is already May because the first few months in 2021 have gone by super fast. Before you know it we will be saying “Merry Christmas”. Anyways, it is my hope the quote I am sharing with y’all today will provide you with the motivation needed to begin this week and I hope your week gets even better with each day! I would love to read what you thought about this quote and everything I have written today, and I promise to respond as quickly as I can.
Thank you for reading this post and visiting my site. I always appreciate your support and the time you take to read. I hope you have a great day and you continue to stay safe. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
Unfortunately, it is not uncommon to hear about violence taking place in the United States. Anytime we turn on the TV there is at least one, if not more awful things happening. We are constantly hearing about mass shootings, cops killing unarmed people (most often black men), or other acts of violence where innocent people are dying Some people have become desensitized to the various amount of hate-filled violence that occurs, which these acts cause others vast levels of distress and despair.
When you combine isolation due to COVID and feelings of despair from the violence taking place, the emotional impact can be extremely intense. Of course, working from home is great, but I do feel very isolated and like I am on house arrest a lot. Situations like what happened with George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Rayshard Brooks, and countless others murdered by those that are “supposed” to protect and serve, the police cause me to feel anxious and angry and I am not an angry person. The case against Derek Chauvin, the police officer who murdered George Floyd in Minneapolis had me on edge. When I watched the verdict being read it did give me a glimmer of hope, but there is still a lot that needs to be done.
The recent and senseless mass shootings that have occurred in the United States are heart-wrenching. The one on March 16, in Atlanta GA at 3 spas left 8 people dead, 6 of which were women of Asian descent. It has been stated this murder rampage was due to anti-Asian racism, which does not make any sense to me. These women were innocent and simply doing their job to take care of their families. Atlanta, GA is only about two and a half hours from where I live, but these acts can happen anywhere because the levels of hate and racist behavior are exceedingly high. I do not understand why some many Americans have any issue with people of Asian descent because these people are NOT doing anything wrong or causing any harm to anyone else.
Only six days later, on March 22 in Boulder, CO another gunman went on a shooting rampage at a supermarket. This incident left 10 innocent people who were at a grocery store picking up items needed dead. People that knew this 21-year-old gunman said he was prone to anger problems and his arrest record showed where he assaulted a classmate in 2017. It was obvious this person had issues, so why was something not done to help him?
Less than a month later on April 15 in Indianapolis, IN at a FedEx facility a gunman started shooting people in the parking lot before he continued his shooting spree inside the building. This mass shooting left 8 innocent people dead before the gunman turned the gun onto himself. Not to sound insensitive, but if the end result was taking his own life, why did he not just do that in the beginning and leave the innocent people he killed alive?
There are no motives to make sense of these tragic deaths or to make it easier for the 26 families that lost a loved one. Even though there is not anything we can do for those affected by these events, there are ways we can help ourselves to cope better.
We have all been dealing with the pandemic for over a year now, often fearing for our safety, as well as for those we love because this virus is deadly. Then adding mass amounts of violence can shake communities to their foundations. Whether you live in the United States or another country, how do these situations make you feel? Some of us may feel like we are in danger if we just go to the grocery store or other normal activities outside the home. Other common reactions may include numbness and shock, difficulty making decisions, anger, inability to turn off the images seen on the news, tension, anxiety, loss of appetite, headaches, disturbed sleep and bad dreams, and or worry about future mass violence events.
Just knowing about these traumatic situations can be emotionally draining and cause you to feel unstable with typical life challenges. Issues with work, ongoing issues with the pandemic, financial struggles, or just staying on top of our daily activities can feel overwhelming and stressful. Try being kinder, patient, and more understanding with yourself because you are not alone.
Urgent do not forget to take care of yourself. Everyone reacts to these situations differently. It does not matter if an act of violence occurred where you live or on the other side of the world because our mind and body can react as if it were much closer. The following eight tips are ways we can practice self-care.
1. Safeguard your body’s needs by focusing on eating healthy, get proper amounts of sleep, and spending time outdoors.
2. Stay active in ways you are comfortable with. There is no need to push yourself too far and causing any extra stress on your body.
3. Embrace relaxation exercises such as meditation and relaxing breathing techniques.
4. Maintain a consistent bedtime routine to help you relax at night.
5. Collect information regarding the available mental health services and support.
6. Avoid using alcohol and drugs to help you cope.
7. Take the necessary breaks from watching the news on TV and or social media.
8. Give your attention to things you enjoy such as listening to music, walking, writing, other types of arts and crafts.
I know this post was not very uplifting or positive, but these are real issues the world is facing, and they are upsetting me tremendously. I do not like being negative or angry but wanted to bring these issues to everyone’s attention. This was not to upset anyone or ruin your day, so please forgive me.
I want to thank you for visiting my site today and reading this post. I hope you are having a good week and continuing to stay safe! Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
On Saturday morning, with an incredibly special thank you to my wonderful husband, I was finally able to get the COVID vaccine. If I had waited for either my specialist or the governor of the state, I live in to get this vaccine, I am sure I would have been waiting until at least summer. I do understand the need for front line workers and elderly individuals to be among the first to get the vaccine. However, I also think people with a weak immune system should be able to get the vaccine as well. Truthfully, it is not just because I have a weak immune system but those with a weak immune system can become deathly ill with this virus. I guess in a sense it is a blessing this vaccine was created so quickly, but it is also awful there are so many people that will have to wait to get the vaccine because not enough were rolled out.
It typically takes 5-10 years to create a vaccine and yet the COVID vaccine was done in less than one year. I know I did just get the vaccine, but one of many reasons why I was so hesitant about getting the COVID vaccine was because it so fast. I was obviously concerned about the side effects it might have that they were unaware of. I do not think there were enough tests completed, but during this pandemic with so many people dying each day, I guess there were not many options.
We have all been living in fear for so many months and most of us have been staying at home to be safe. This past year has created the feeling of isolation, which can feel very lonely. Many of us missed out on celebrating the holidays with our family because of this virus. I do still believe that if everyone had followed the advice from experts in the beginning, things might have been better. There was a lot of misinformation being released from the government, which as y’all already know had me feeling terribly angry. It will not be a surprise to any of you that have been reading my posts during the Trump administration, but I think the way the pandemic was handled or rather not handled was all wrong.
I do passionately believe that if there had been someone else in charge in the beginning of the pandemic, things would have been handled faster and more efficiently. We were all told so many lies about the virus either not being that serious or that the virus was a hoax. Many people never thought anyone could put the lives of other human beings in danger, but that was not the situation. Unfortunately, the former president of the United States did not have any concerns about anyone but his own safely.
I know y’all are not reading this to hear about what I think of the former president or the ways this virus got so out of control, but I do want to let y’all know how my experience was getting the COVID vaccine. I am not going to lie to y’all I was very nervous. As I already said one of my biggest concerns was the possible side effects of a new vaccine. Another concern I had was any potential interactions with my MS medications. The Nurse Practitioner at my specialist’s office told me some of the other patients on Gilenya did already get the vaccine and did not have any side effects. I also called the manufacturer of Gilenya to find out if they heard of anyone taking this medication getting the vaccine and having a bad interaction, but with the vaccine being so new they did not have any information. I am also very aware that no two people will probably experience the medication, the vaccine or the two together the same way, but I had to cover all basis before I got the vaccine.
Before I even got the vaccine, I was already dealing with a nasty headache, but I think it may have been caused by stress and lack of sleep. After I got the vaccine on Saturday morning, my husband and I stopped to get some breakfast because I was so hungry. We just went through the drive-thru and took the food home to eat. My headache did not ease up and I was exhausted, but again, the night before I hardly slept at all. Overall, besides the fatigue and headache, I did experience body aches all weekend. To be completely transparent, I could not tell if the body aches were from the vaccine or the rainy weather we were expecting. On most days I do ache from head to toe, but the aches seemed much more intense.
Much to my surprise, I did not have any severe side effects from the vaccine and even have the second one scheduled for February 13 at 9:00 AM. I prefer to do things like this early in the day and when I have a day or so without having to work just in case, I end up not feeling well. I think another reason I was so terrified of the vaccine is because I never even got the normal flu shot because of possible negative interactions with my MS medicine.
My husband has already had his 2nd COVID vaccine and even after I do as well, we will continue to behave as if we did not get it. We will both continue to wear masks, social distance, and sanitize everything because we both feel that you can never be too safe. It is awful that thousands of people are still dying daily because of this virus and upsetting how many others still refuse to wear a mask. I will never understand why people cannot see the increased numbers of new cases and deaths, and still think a mask is too uncomfortable to wear. In my eyes, a little discomfort for a short amount of time is worth it if it will save lives!
I am not going to be one of those people that says you must get the vaccine because I think you need to be comfortable with this. Nothing I have said in this post is meant to be medical advice and I would still advise you to consult your physician before getting the vaccine. Yes, I think it will keep you safer, but even after getting the vaccine you can still get COVID. I was told if you have had the vaccine and get the virus, symptoms might not be as severe. Unfortunately, with this virus and the vaccine still being new, I do not think anyone really knows answers to be 100% true, but they are working with the information they do have.
I would like to thank you for taking the time to read my post today! I guess this topic can be controversial, but I did want to share my vaccine experience with y’all. I hope you enjoyed what I have shared and hope it will help you to make your own decision to get the vaccine or to not get the vaccine. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
Fightmsdaily 