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bloggingchronic illness

Top 10 Posts Of All Time

top 10 posts of all time

It is so hard to believe that A New Kind of Normal has been in existence for over 10 years (almost 10 1/2!). Since thing were so crazy last year, we never really got to celebrate the 10 year mark, I thought I would take a day out of Bloguary to earmark the top 10 posts of all time here on A New Kind of Normal (well, at least they are the top 10 posts for the last 10 years)!

Here they are counting down from 10 to 1:

10) Things To Say (& Not Say) To Someone With Chronic Illness

9) What Is In Your Flare Survival Kit?

8) Mission Aborted: When Routine Procedures Go Wrong

7) Fighting The Tube: Recovering From Bowel Obstruction Surgery

6) Surgery Survival Kit

5) The Bowel Prep Survival Kit

4) One Little Word For 2014: Fierce

3) A Frozen Birthday & Bedroom

2) My Hair Hurts: Dealing With Tactile Allodynia & Fibromyalgia

and….drumroll please…..

1) The First 7 Days After Bowel Obstruction Surgery

 

I Am Bold

It is hard to believe that it has been over 10 years since A New Kind of Normal was born! So many amazing – and challenging – things have happened along the way but I am excited about what is going to happen this year and hopefully for many, many more years after!

 

Here is to Living Boldly for another 10 years!

faith

Thy Will Be Done: Walking by Faith With Chronic Illness

You can call it coincidence, good timing, divine intervention, or God’s will but there are moments in time where in the midst of chaos, rambling around, or just goofing off that the universe hands you exactly what you’ve needed to hear on a platter. I had one such moment this week. It was late and I was poking around on Spotify looking for new songs to add to my playlist and I came across a song called “Thy Will Be Done” by Hillary Scott and The Scott Family.

For one, I had no idea that Hillary Scott (most known for being a part of the country group Lady Antebellum) had a worship album and second, would have probably never found the album on my own.

By the time the song was over, I was in tears. I take that back. Not tears. Sobbing. It would not describe the prayer of my heart more if I had written it myself. Actually, it described it better than I could have ever written. It could be the perfect anthem for trying to standing strong in your faith with chronic illness. It just spills out of my heart.

I’m so confused
I know I heard you loud and clear
So, I followed through
Somehow I ended up here
I don’t wanna think
I may never understand
That my broken heart is a part of your plan
When I try to pray
All I’ve got is hurt and these four words

Thy will be done
Thy will be done
Thy will be done

I was a junior in college when I felt the call to ministry and I answered. However, when I answered this call, I thought it came with a plan. After graduating undergrad, I immediately started seminary where I studied Pastoral Care and Counseling. I absolutely loved it. My health was continuing to decline but as I was working in the hospital during my chaplaincy internship, I finally felt like my pain had a purpose. I was able to connect to patients in a way that I knew that many chaplains were not. My spirit felt so alive. I graduated seminary in 2010. In 2012, I had to quit working and started the disability process. I was finally approved in 2015 and now, here I am preparing to beg my doctor for surgery at my next appointment. How did I get here? How was this a part of the plan?

I know you’re good
But this don’t feel good right now
And I know you think
Of things I could never think about
It’s hard to count it all joy
Distracted by the noise
Just trying to make sense
Of all your promises
Sometimes I gotta stop
Remember that you’re God
And I am not

Lately, I have found it so very hard to stay positive hence why I had to take a little break recently. I love this verse because it is such a powerful reminder that God is so much bigger than my tiny mind can even begin to comprehend and the noise can be so distracting. It is in moments like these that I know that God is good and even when I cannot see what His plan is here in this very moment, I can trust in His character and because He is good, I can find peace and respite in that.

I know you see me
I know you hear me, Lord
Your plans are for me
Goodness you have in store
I know you hear me
I know you see me, Lord
Your plans are for me
Good news you have in store

I will be the first to admit that there have been moments where I’ve been singing this in my truck and almost had to pull over because I’ve been so moved by these lyrics. Yes, I am that weirdo on the side of the road singing at the top of her lungs with her hands raised in her truck but I can’t help it. Even in the deepest depths of my pain, I can find such comfort just knowing that God has a plan for me and that plan involves things that are good and full of hope. And hope is like the wind. You can’t see it but you can feel it.

Jeremiah 29:11 "For I Know The Plans I Have For You"

I am so glad I happened to be up browsing Spotify that night so I could find this song. It has truly changed my heart and has helped me regain some perspective on my current situation. Though it doesn’t feel good right now, God is good and He has good in store for me and it is from there that I can draw my strength. I have put together a playlist called Strength For The Journey that you can check out if you are on Spotify and hopefully these songs can offer you some strength and encouragement as well!

What is a song that has been keeping you going?

P.S. If you are on Spotify, leave me a link so I can follow you!

bloggingchronic illness

Making Some Changes & Life Updates With Chronic Illness

If you haven’t noticed, A New Kind of Normal is currently undergoing a minor facelift! I’m working on tweaking the design and layout so thank you in advance for your patience!

While chatting about the changes, I thought I would give you a few life updates with chronic illness. I didn’t plan to disappear after this year’s Blogging for Endometriosis campaign ended but life got a little crazy (even more than usual)! My health really tanked and we’ve had a couple of scares.

While we were on vacation, we went go-cart racing and on one of the family tracks, Abby and I got nailed hard. Thankfully it was on my side of the car so I took the brunt of the hit. It was not a normal bump and crash. We were hit so hard the suspension of the car broke and we were complete sitting ducks. In all, the attendant counted that we were hit by at least five different cars (it was the first one that did the most damage). Needless to say, my body wasn’t happy so I got checked out just to be sure but thankfully Abby wasn’t hurt at all, just shaken up. If the jerk had hit her side of the car, I might have ended up in jail.

On top of that, a few weeks ago I discovered a lump in my right breast. With my family history and my own history of having an abnormal mammogram and having a total hysterectomy at 26, we didn’t want to take any chances so my doctor rushed a mammogram and ultrasound. Thankfully, we got some good news and it was only a cyst so the girls are A-OK! Praise the Lord!

Then, in addition, I have been having even more trouble with nausea, stomach pain, and not being able to keep food down. Gastroparesis has been an issue for some time now but after needing to remove several adenomas during last year’s EGD, my GI wanted to go back in to see what was going on so I had an EGD last Friday. The only thing about EGDs that make me nervous is getting the IV. There is no prep other than not eating or drinking after midnight so the process isn’t quite as anxiety-inducing as a colonoscopy but with my terrible veins, I hold my breath until that IV is in place and then I’m golden. I always warn the nurses and usually they laugh and say they hear it all the time but never have a problem until they go to stick me. Then they believe me. My nurse this time around was amazing. She had to search and search (and search!) for a vein but once she found the pitiful thing, she hit it first try. It wasn’t ideal and it hurt like nobody’s business but it got the job done. Thank God for vein numbing medications! The whole team was amazing, took great care of me, and the procedure went smoothly. They had to remove two more polyps (we won’t know if they are adenomas until the pathology comes back) and they did the routine biopsy to monitor my Celiac disease but the doctor did note that there was some liquid still retained in my stomach during the procedure so I am not sure what that means. I should be receiving my follow up information and biopsy results any time now so I will keep you updated!

Hopefully between the tests and visits with my doctors, we will be able to get a better handle on my health and things will fall back into place. I am ready to get back into a routine, not only with blogging but with life in general. I cannot believe that Abby’s last day of school is next week and I will no longer have a kindergartener! The year has flown by so fast but we are ready for some summer fun!

Thank you guys so much for sticking around and for all of your support! You have no idea how much it means and how it keeps me going!

disclaimer

Information posted here should not be considered medical advice. It is not intended to replace consultation with physicians or other healthcare providers. A New Kind of Normal covers my personal experience and because every person's experience is unique, it should not be relied upon as a substitute for professional healthcare.

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