That Time I Missed A Week Of Life & My Birthday

Remember my last post... on the 13th? When Gretchen was just getting better and life was good again? Well, here's the Cliff's Notes version of what has been happening since:

Sunday April 14th: I woke up with achy muscles and within an hour or two was in so much pain I couldn't move. I stayed in bed, delirious, cold (actually very feverish), and in pain. By that night my partner convinced me a trip to emerg was in order. I spend the evening having blood taken and hooked up to fluids via IV. I was sent home with antibiotics for a possible sinus infection. 

Monday/Tuesday: Home, agony, could barely move or talk. Breathing was difficult and laboured.

Wednesday aka my birthday: Another day at home in bed, by that evening I made my second trip to emerg. I was sent home a few hours later with painkillers. The doc told me to wait out the antibiotics. 

Gretchen made me the sweetest card. Rich brought it to the hospital. I missed her so much.

Thursday: A day on the couch, couldn't move, face became numb after taking painkillers, nothing was helping. I booked in for a doctor's appointment that evening. During the appointment, I could hardly speak in full sentences, did my best to explain the week. He sent me back to the hospital. That night is a blur of IV fluids, being locked down in emerg, my friend and then my partner at my side. Antibiotics were started and I drifted in and out of sleep. Thank you pain meds. 

Friday: I woke up to my partner at my side & I was eventually moved from one part of emerg to another. Lots of resting. 

Saturday: Still at the hospital, though I had hoped to go home that morning. Starting to feel more human. I can breathe and speak much more easily. 

 Tea & The Hobbit.

Sunday: Good news. I can go home. I have to be sure my blood count improves this week. I'm so excited to see daylight again.

Goodbye, room no. 7.

So now, Monday. I am very week and easily tired. One more blood test Thursday with a follow-up appointment one week from today. I'm very happy to be out of the hospital. Working hard to stay positive while I get my appetite and energy levels back up to what they were. Today I came into work for just three hours & I even managed to get my plate stickers renewed since I missed doing that on my birthday. 

Thank you so much to everyone for your support and well-wishes this week. Thank you to my partner for running all errands and helping make sure my daughter was where she needed to be. Thank you to Rich, and to my good friend Karen for bringing me food and driving me to/from the hospital and doctor's office. Thank you to the nurses who helped me get well. 

In the end, I think they decided I had some combination of blood infection, fungal infection in my esophagus and just some nasty complications from the fever. It was a bit of a scary week & I've absolutely never felt sicker. 

Looking forward to a 27th birthday re-do. Much love!

If I ever take a week off from life again, I hope it's for a nicer reason.

So happy to be HOME.

I'm Feeling The Magic, Mes Amis

Wow. Honestly, that's all that's going through my head these days. Wow. Awesome. Happy.

This Whole30 experience (today is day 23!) is probably the best health decision I've ever made for myself. I can hardly believe how amazing I feel. Want the list?

Here we go...

• I fall asleep as soon as I decide it's bedtime. My head hits the pillow and in moments I'm in sleepyland. This has NEVER happened to me before, unless I'm dead-on-my-feet exhausted or ill.
• I wake up early and get out of bed. No hitting snooze (I'm usually up before it goes off), no burying myself in pillow, no trying to convince my daughter to snuggle up and stay in bed just a little longer. My eyes open, I sit up, and I'm off to the kitchen to make breakfast. No yawning, no gimmemycoffee, nothing. I'm just awake.
• I never feel stuffed or bloated or ughIatetoomuch after a meal. Even when I eat a big steak and tons of veggies and eggs and a club soda and a handful of dates.
• I don't need to snack all day long to keep my energy level up -- they're perma-up. Three meals a day, minute munching in between (maybe some apple sauce while I'm at work, or a handful of almonds). I don't crave & my emotional attachments to carbs and sugars don't have the same hold on me that they used to.

I've actually tried to test myself on this front a few times... tried to picture having a beer or eating ice cream or munching on a bag chips... and I never feel like I NEED or even WANT those things. I get this little voice saying "that will make your body feel bad" and I can almost picture how I'd feel after. It's a crazy change that's happened. I wasn't entirely convinced that I'd ever feel REALLY DIFFERENTLY about the food I was eating, but WHAM. I do. I really do. 

And I love it.

I've honestly never felt healthier in my entire life. And as an added bonus, I've definitely lost weight. I haven't stepped on a scale since day one, and I won't til day 30, but my pants don't stay up any more and last week I popped on a pair 3 sizes smaller than the ones I'm wearing now... and they fit. Shock and awe, baby. My reward after this will be a new pair of jeans, for sure.

Now, in one week, after I hit day 30, then what? Well, that's a whole other post, but here's a wee hint... I will NOT be going back to the way I used to eat. I feel TOO GOOD to give it all up.

Stay tuned!

Whole30: Days 1 & 2

I'm two days in to my Whole30 adventure with ZERO slip-ups or cave-ins! I'm optimistic about my remaining 28 days and SO grateful for all of your support! Thank you to everyone who commented yesterday, sent tweets & Facebook messages! I'm surrounded by supportive friends and you're all making me smile. Merci, merci!

Day One
Breakfast: Watermelon, cranberry tea, steak, green & red peppers, broccoli, lemon water, cashews & almonds, scrambled eggs w/ black olives & sundried tomatoes, ground chicken, coffee w/ coconut milk.

Notes
Feeling pretty good, enjoyed a trip to the grocery store with my daughter. Can already feel those sugar cravings & urges for silly things like a diet soda or the popsicles in the back of my freezer. Time to rid my house of temptation. Peace out, Nutella.

Egg Scramble (chicken, salsa), Tomatoes w/ a dash of sea salt

Day Two
Raspberries, avocado, black coffee, grape tomatoes, almonds, strawberries & raspberries w/ cinnamon, egg scramble (above), pitted dates w/ almond butter

Notes
Morning: It took EVERYTHING I had to drag my exhausted butt out of bed this morning. Miss Gretchen was VERY grumpy with a mama who didn't want to get out of bed til 8am. Thank you Magic School Bus for granting me some time to be sluggish. The Whole30 timeline tells me I'm in hangover mode, and they're not joking: "Many Whole30ers report headaches, fatigue, and general malaise during this part of the program. This, my friends, is completely normal." Well, alrighty then. Thankfully, this should only last a few days & I'm stubborn enough to tell my SWEET cravings to piss off. 
Evening: Now that it's nearly bedtime, I can say I'm feeling pretty darn good & already less bloated than I've been feeling for weeks. Well THAT's kinda nice, eh? Dinner was fantastic & I'm feeling pretty happy!

For anyone else following the Whole30 (or thinking about it), here are a few posts I've found ultra-inspiring and mouthwatering!

• My Whole30 Journey via Today's Letters
• Grocery Shopping For Your First Whole30 via The Paleo Project
• Seriously Tasty Paleo Meatloaf via Health-Bent

Peace!

The Whole30: Let's Make A Change

Alright. I know that if I don't say it here, and commit myself in some way, it won't happen. So here it goes: Starting tomorrow, August 19th, I will be doing the Whole30. If you've never heard of it, take a peek over here to see what the heck I'm talking about.

My decision to do this comes from my recent feeling about my health & body. After taking over the shop, my diet and my thoughts around eating were pushed aside. I've been drinking too much coffee, eating out more than I should, and generally just not taking care of myself in the way that I know I can. My weight has gone up, and despite never stepping on a scale in recent months, I know that my clothing is more snug and my energy levels are dropping.

It's time to change some things up.

I know I can eat well. I know I feed my daughter better than I feed myself, and I need to make the time to reconcile these differences. When my daughter is in daycare, she eats lunch/dinner away from home, and I eat poorly while at the shop. I'll just admit that. I shouldn't be living off coffee & restaurants during the week, and eating well on the weekend. It's not good for my body, my mind, or my finances. Since I'm at the shop about 50 hours a week, I haven't been cooking the way I used to. Due to our current schedule, Gretchen and I have breakfast together at home, but I often eat nothing as I get ready, or just sip coffee. I'm not always hungry in the morning, but I know I won't have that mid-morning crash if I eat something fantastically nutritious when I wake up. Gretchen likes fruit & toast, or cereal w/ soymilk, or smoothies, or eggs in the morning. At this time she lunches/dinners at daycare, which means that I either eat nothing for dinner, or I snack sometime after she's in bed, usually around 9pm, which also doesn't make for a happy belly. Starting in September, I've made the decision to start Gretchen at a new daycare (for one last year), a daycare which meshes better with my parenting philosophy. It's been a difficult choice, but I wasn't feeling completely at ease with the current situation and so I've made a change.

Just as I'll make a change with how I eat.

This will also mean that after September begins, my little one and I will be having dinner together more ofte. This makes me a VERY happy mama. It'll be great to be cooking again. I've missed it. The slow cooker is coming back out & meal-planning will once again be a part of my life. Thankfully, the little miss LOVES coming grocery shopping with me. She's such a helper.

Now, thinking about the Whole30 brings a few things to mind: What I anticipate will be easy and what I believe will be a challenge. So here we go:

The Easy Bits:

• I am NOT a picky eater. Veggies, fruits, meats, whatever you give me, I'll at least try it and probably I'll like it. Gretchen is this way too. I just don't believe in being a picky eater. Healthy food always tastes good to me, so there's no excuse not to eat that way.
• I WANT to do this. No one is making me. And it's the sort of thing you have to want to want. 

The Tricky Bits:

• I like my coffee with cream & sugar. Yup. And that's a big no-no. So if I really want it, it'll be black. Just like when I was vegan.
• I like my stout. I enjoy a bottle of stout at the end of a long day, but for the next 30 days, I won't be touching it.
• I'm a carb junkie. It's a fact. I adore bread and pasta and all of their glutentastic friends.

However. If you've ever met me, you know how stubborn I can be. Which means I'm going to kick this program's ass and I hope you'll ALL hold me accountable. Send me tweets to check in, pester me on Facebook, email me, shout it from a rooftop. Because I'm doing this. And I'm not going to let myself down.

Have any of you made a big change in your eating habits lately? Have you ever done the Whole30? Adivce, tips, stories, ideas? I'd love to hear about your experiences. Feel free to link blog posts if you've chatted about this on your own sites. I'm eager to get started and to jump right in!

August 19th. Day one. A big change. 

I can do this.

PS. Thank you to bloggers like Nicole who have really given me that push I need to do this. Reading your stories has filled me up with motivation and a craving for change. Thank you.

A Dollop Of Honey

Gretchen is just at the tail end of the cold she's been battling since the weekend, so of course now I have it. Sniffles, stuffy head, all around foggy feeling. 

I try to stay away from taking too many meds when I'm sick, but I will say that a swig of Buckley's sure clears the sinuses when need be. Actually, when my throat is tickling, I'm all about tea, honey, Echinacea, extra doses of vitamin C and lots of veggies. Lots of rest is also high priority, but it doesn't always get treated that way. Busy as a bee.

Thankfully, I've got a steady stream of mint tea happening right now, so that helps. And I believe soup will be my lunchtime fare. 

Hope you're all well, mes amis! These summertime colds are the pits!

Image sources: 1, 2 & 3.

Tooth Update 2.0

Today I had a root canal consult. This means that after my dentist told me I needed a root canal, I had to pay a specialist a handsome fee to tell me the same thing, take a few x-rays, press ice against my sensitive teeth and make me cry.

Needless to say, I'm not having a wonderful afternoon.

The positive side? I no longer have two issues. My dentist believed some of the swelling to be caused by a cyst above my gums, closer to my nose. Turns out it's an abscess, caused by the tooth requiring said root canal. Back to one issue & one solution. One excessively costly solution, but I suppose I'll be happy when it's all said and done.

Sigh.

Say what you will for the benefits of free health care in Canada... none of that spills into dental care, which has such a dear impact on the rest of your well being. But I ought to stop whining about it. If I hadn't let my phobias get the best of me as a teen, I might not have so many problems in this area. I'll just scowl and save my pennies.

Think of me June 21st at 8.10am. And then visit me at the shop... cause that's where I'll be when they're through with me.

I may need a hug.

Image source.

Tooth Update

I visited the emergency room for a second time Sunday morning and after a surprisingly quick visit (on a long weekend!), they still think I might have an infected tooth, but now I'm now taking a much stronger antibiotic AND painkiller. It's been a pretty terrible experience, and I'll admit after five days of extreme pain I'm getting a little haggard. My face was swollen beyond recognition yesterday, but thankfully, today I no longer look like Harry after Hermione hits him with that stinging hex. Yikes.

Fingers crossed the dentist will have something positive to say to me tomorrow afternoon!

Green Machine

I'm trying to get back into the green smoothie swing of things and I'm hoping you'll share some of your favourite recipes! What do you like best? What do your kids like best? Tips, tricks?

Thanks!

PS. Remember when I didn't drink coffee for seven whole months? I might give that a shot again. Something tells me I'll feel better with that out of my system for the summer. Tea it is!

Source.

Fawned Friday: The Winter Wellness Edition

Oh goodness. Yesterday, I woke up feeling a bit off, and by the afternoon I was incapacitated, flopped onto the couch, ravaged by some sort of flu-ish monster. My body ached so terribly I could hardly walk... I could hardly move. I've never fallen down a mountain, or been crushed by a whale, but I bet it'd feel similar.

In honour of my body fighting off an army of discomfort, I dedicate this edition of Fawned Friday to home remedies: Natural ways to help ward off and counteract the sicknesses that may plague you this season. Enjoy & be well.

01. Remedies for the winter medicine chest.

02. A lovely recipe for elderberry syrup.

03. One of my favourite sources for herbal remedies.

04. DIY herbal winter medicines and other elixirs.

05. How to create your very own apothecary.

06. Great tips for staying happy and healthy all winter long.

07. The wonders of tea tree oil.

08. Sleep strategies for well-rested mamas. 

09. And just because I think it's neat... have you ever tried this tea?

Hope you're all well, mes amis! I think I'm kicking this thing in the butt tonight... just a bit more rest and I'll be good as new.

Peace & good health.

Get Well Soon

Not even a stomach bug can keep this kiddo from smiling. She's such a trooper, despite the miserable night she'd had prior to this photo being snapped. My little puker seems to be doing better tonight... hoping the sickos will be all gone by tomorrow. There's nothing quite so heartbreaking as a tot telling you "I don't wanna feel sick anymore, mama". We snuggled and nursed all day long, and by this evening she even had some dinner. She did manage to snack a bit during the day, following the bananas/rice/applesauce/toast rule and she told me the "applesauce make my tummy feel better". So far, she's been sleeping just fine tonight, and I'm about to head to bed myself.

Send happy thoughts our way, mes amis. Hoping for a healthy start to 2012.

PS. Apologies for the lack of Fawned Friday this week. It'll be back next week, full force.
PPS. Just so you can have the same song stuck in your head for the rest of 2011...



Peace.

Hematomattack

About a week ago, while playing down on the carpet with my nearly 3-year-old, she managed to land her heel into my gut with a surprising force. She must have been in the middle of one of her dance moves... whatever she was doing, I had to stop a moment. "Whoa, slow down little girl."

It took days before the injury showed its true colours. At first I only felt a lump in my abdomen. This was followed by some terrible bruising and a bizarre amount of pain. One doctor thought it was a skin infection (cellulitis) and sent me home with a prescription for antibiotics.

Two days later, in a considerable amount of pain and getting a bit nervous about the size of the lump in my belly (and the spreading bruise), I saw another doctor, who thought it might be a hematoma... he ordered tests, but nothing could be done til after the weekend. Eventually I took a trip to emerg to get some answers. Three hours later, it was a confirmed hematoma, ie. a pocket of blood under the skin. For the last two days I've been hanging out with a heated rice bag on my belly... right now it's actually tucked into the front of my pants to hold it still. Classy.

The swelling is beginning to go down, and it's finally not causing me constant pain, but still my stomach is sticking out on one side at a freakish angle. The doc said it would be better to rest, keep a warm compress on it and let it dissipate on its own, than for him to go in and drain it.

Works for me.

I'll be incredibly happy once the hard mass leaves my abdomen. As one friend described, it feels like there's a bar of soap under my skin. It's that hard.

Seriously. I look el preggo on one side only.

So, that's pretty much the story of my bizarro injury. The little miss keeps asking, "What happen to mommy's belly?" Such a sweetheart. I can't tell her she practically dropped kicked me.

"Mama just bonked it."

Today when I saw her after work, the first thing she said to me was, "Mama? Your belly feels better?"

She's a doll. A complete darling.

"Yes, baby. It's feeling better."

The Sickness That Took Over The House Of Fawn

If any other families out there are battling colds, I feel for you. We've spent weeks passing some miserable sickness back and forth and all around. I just can't seem to keep all thee of us healthy at the same time. Grumble, grumble.

Thankfully (and I'll knock on wood as soon as I type this) Gretchen seems to be doing MUCH better today. She's got a pesky eye infection (probably from, you know, jamming snotty, sick baby fingers in there all day long) so she's on drops to fix that up before I send her back to daycare later this week. I've also stocked up on all the essential oils that I've been running out of... eucalyptus, rosemary, lavender, peppermint, lemon & tea tree. Mmmm, it all smells so wonderful. Do you ever use essential oils? Which are your favourites?

I hope this answers the "where has she been for three days?" question... I didn't meant to leave the blog so unattended, but alas, I'm sure you understand. Any downtime (and there hasn't been much) has been spent tidying, or writing, or indulging in a little Will & Grace, which I've starting watching from the very first episode.

At this very moment, the babe is napping and the house is quiet while the boy runs some errands downtown (in the freezing cold). These past few days have been the coldest this year... -32 the other morning was just about as much as I could handle. I didn't even want to open the door to grab the mail. Currently it's just -16, so perhaps the frigid spell is over. I'm suddenly craving spring showers and flower buds and green grass to run my toes across. Soon. It'll all happen soon enough.

Things are looking up. Just a few more days to recover & the three of us will be happy & healthy once again.

Wishing you all a lovely Monday. Peace.

So Lucky

Oh gosh, to spend hours like this.

And we have.

She enjoyed a lot of time at my breast this week. I swear, she must have known that I was under the weather and that her best protection was to nurse as much as she could. And it has proved well.

She's healthy. And mama's on the mend.

Thank goodness.

And thank goodness for my partner who has been helping me rest, and running my baths and pouring my glasses of wine. Never before has it been the case that mama is the only ill one in the house.

And so, we nursed. And snuggled and nursed. And sang songs and nursed.

And all I can think about is how lucky I am to have her.

Goodnight, mes amis.

PS. This post brought tears to my eyes. A must read for my mama friends (and beyond). I think you'll understand.

From SAD to Rad?

Lately our days have been looking like this. Charming, eh?


Actually, today was the 1st day in FIVE that the sun dared peek out... and just for a few hours. Enough to give us hope. Enough to psychically brighten my spirits.

Some sort of miserable flu-like demon has taken over my entire body... head, back, neck, legs.. they all ache. Thankfully, things are looking up tonight, but this nagging cough won't quit. It's nearly comical (or would be if it weren't getting progressively more painful). This morning, I managed to soak in the tub, along with some eucalyptus & rosemary oils, as well as a handful of stinky muscle soak salts. It was delightful.

Please cross those pretty little fingers of yours that this dreadful feeling will go away with tea & long baths, instead of morphing into the oh so dreaded bronchitis which will have me in perma-grump til springtime.

Harumph.

Is anyone else feeling the full-on winter blues? How do you combat it? Do you use SAD lights? Do you take lots of vitamin D supplements?

I always know that this time of year is coming, and I've manged to stay pretty peaceful about it until now, but this sickness/sunless combo has me feeling down this week and I'm trying to shake my funk.

Been making lots of soup, trying to keep the house bright, sipping tea, taking echinacea... but the cabin fever vibe is a little overwhelming.

Anyone else?

Feel free to offer your best tips (or to commiserate) in the comments. I'll meet you there.