Turning Lemons into PINK Lemonade

Wowza Wednesday!! To say that I have been overwhelmed by the support I have received is an understatement!! Thank you for the love. I am working on responding to each and every one of you. I am enjoying reading your words of encouragement, love, care, concern and

"GIRL POWER"!!

I have had this idea for years and never took the leap. I concocted every excuse imaginable; I.WAS.NOT.READY!! So, here I am, about to upload my second blog to my website and hope that I shan't disappoint you. I have some beautiful and solid shoes to fill here with all of you. I look up to everyone of you and am inspired by your own stories, your own values, your own career choices, your own posts and witty banter. I adore you all. First, a disclaimer: I was not an English or Communications major; however, I know my way around the internet and websites. And coding for me was Fortran, Pascal, COBOL and C+! So, I'm totally showing my age with those languages!

Let me first start this blog with a wee fun fact: I’m NOT pregnant (thanks for those sweet messages, you know who you are)...that would have been lovely at my age and with grown children, ha! The past 6+ years I’ve been dealing with undiagnosed health issues:

~unexplained weight gain ~anxiety

~vertigo ~mild depression due to the issues

~ringing of ears ~Insomnia

~temporary loss of hearing ~Uncontrolled bleeding

~pain ~ablation procedure to stop bleeding

~IBS ~hormonal imbalance

~rashes and hives ~new food allergies (wheat & soy)

~hot, peeling face ~ a snoring husband !!

My pain tolerance is very high, and I chalked it up to my age and pre-menopause. After all, as women, we have a tendency to put ourselves last and keep moving, powering through everything. I did this for the past decade until I could no longer. I DO NOT recommend this. If we can't take care of ourselves, how can we take care of others?

It was two years ago that I was diagnosed with Meneiere’s Disease (welcome to the club Huey Lewis), and that has been challenging!! It is my hope that Huey Lewis will bring awareness to this incurable disease. For those of you that have no idea what MD is, imagine your ears ringing constantly, even when you try to fall asleep. Although, now I have a valid excuse for "selective hearing"!! ;-)

Now, add to the MD my recent diagnosis of LUPUS...and Woohoo, I'm a W I N N E R!! They think that I've probably had this disease for several years. I have a very dear, dear friend who has Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA), and I have witnessed first hand the effects of an autoimmune disease and how it affects our lives on a physical and emotional level. This not only impacts the quality of life for the individual, it also weighs heavy for their loved ones.  Autoimmune diseases, like Lupus, are very hard to diagnose. Even in my case, I didn't show the typical symptoms until recently (this past April/May). I had an episode, a relapse, and then the infamous "butterfly rash" appeared. Even then, I wasn't diagnosed until recently.

I was relieved to finally understand what was wrong with me. Now I could move forward and try to heal my body. These health issues have wreaked havoc on me both physically and emotionally. Things I used to do...I couldn’t, and the person I used to be...I wasn’t. This was very difficult for me. I became mildly depressed and anxious.

I’ve a tendency to retreat to my safe place...my home, my gardens, my snoring husband, my

Our Guinness Macallan

kids and myself...shutting out the rest of the world (one of my foibles). Why you might ask? Why shut myself out from the world including family and dear friends? The answer for me is easy, yet difficult to explain and challenging for others to understand. I am wired to living my life as if everything is "just fine" and "perfect." I never want to be a hindrance to others...that's just my nature...and I'm incredibly independent! However, I decided that I needed to gain back those things I lost; I needed to move forward and start anew. I yearned to open new doors and live my best life. I’ve always believed in God and have felt his Grace and Love...especially when in need. I also believe in prayer. I’m blessed to have my family and people who “got me” and who have been there for me through my best and worst, without judgement. I have learned from other girlfriends and watched them persevere in the most difficult of times, giving me strength. So, I decided to make a positive change.This blog is one of my first steps embracing that change so that I may help others, if even in the slightest way.

In addition to my supplements, clean-eating, organic “diet” and exercise regime, I felt that my healing could begin through my words and posts. Why? So that I could help someone. Through helping others, I help myself. I know many of us share these same issues (some more, some less), especially as we age. We all deal differently with our issues, but it helps to know that we are not alone. There are others fighting similar battles. Some are fighting even tougher battles. We can lean on each other, be encouraging and motivating to help others

Photography by Priscilla

(and ourselves) start anew. I want to help that person who feels sad, lonely, in pain, hurt, anger, frustrated or just down. There are too many stigmas out there regarding mental and health issues. We’ve all been there, and no one is perfect. I have a loving (snoring) husband and children who love me unconditionally! However, they do miss the old me. Today, I can say that I’m feeling better and more energized.

I’ve have chosen a journey to work with my doctor(s) through clean-eating, supplements, daily exercise, and a lovely PINK drink that has made a world of difference for me (I will delve into this PINK drink in my next blog). My SIL’s younger sister (who is so very special and much younger) had similar issues; I had asked her what she was doing about those issues. I needed a solution because I was desperate. She shared her PINK secret with me,and I haven’t looked back--Merci, sweet Jen. It is my hope that all may share this journey with me as I navigate this road of optimal health and discovery. If I can help anyone, please reach out to me. I can share my plan and what I’m doing to get healthy, gain myself back, and live my imperfect,

perfectly sweet life…This is me turning Lemons into PINK Lemonade!!

I dedicate this, my 2nd blog post, to my dear sister-friend who was diagnosed with RA! C-Bear, you know you have been my saving grace...we get each other...no apologies, no excuses, no judgment--NO PROBLEM!! God brought us together for a reason and who would have thought that we'd get this wild and crazy over AI diseases!! Love you, girly...

Hugs and Love, my friends-

Priscilla xx