a year ago, a month from now...
just over a year ago (4/13/02), i sat for the nat'l counselors exam (NCE) and passed with flying colors, thereby earning board certification. a year ago, i was enrolled in a post-master's course on substance abuse theory. i completed it with an A.
a year ago, i was also on crutches. that was because (the likely culprit prednisone) thinned out my bones. in december '01, i broke my foot without doing anything out of the ordinary. i was just walking around on it when it broke, leaving me in pain and on crutches for a good portion of early '02.
one year ago, i was started on sulfasalazine to slow the arthritis in my hip joints. i also learned that my (renal involvement) had worsened a bit. so i was started on another new medication for that.
now a year later, a lot of things are the same. i'm still learning to take everything one day at a time--baby steps--while watching everyone else's lives seemingly change by leaps and bounds. and yet, i see that i, too have moved forward in some ways. i continue to try coming to terms with all of the changes in my life. i'm trying to get rid of blind spots and work on myself a bit and grow from all of my experiences. because i really do want to come out of this (even if it's not by way of a full remission) stronger than ever. maybe i can't and shouldn't ask for more. i need to learn to appreciate small things. in the past (nine) years that health problems have loomed so large in my life, i have learned what my priorities are in life, and also learned to appreciate things i used to overlook.
what is also different this year: i have a professional credential to go with my name. i am no longer on crutches and am slowly rebuilding bone density. i'm able to run to the extent that fatigue, my injured foot, and my hip and knee joint pain allow. i managed to lose the corticosteroid weight i never thought would come off.
i'm getting acupuncture, which keeps my baseline a little bit higher than it was before starting treatment.
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exactly one month from today: is my birthday...i'll be 29. i want 29 to be a good year. that's a promise i've made to myself. instead of panicking and focusing on the big 3-0 on the horizon, i want to enjoy this upcoming last year in my 20's to the fullest. my 20's are almost over and i do agonize every day over having lost those prime years to poor health. but i have to remind myself there's still one more year to come. i want 29 to be a great one--even better than 28. i hope that's not asking too much....
more later....
