I'm a social justice junkie and grassroots organizer with a passion for women's rights, mental health, and running. I think a lot about intersectionality. I dig Oxford commas.
How I wound up here:
I fell for Seattle on a solo bike trip from Michigan and moved here to start a marathon training program for homeless recovering addicts -- "Recovery on the Run" -- while working toward my MSW at UW.
Why I'm writing:I started this blog to cope with the pain and frustration of trying to get back my lost love for running. Two months before moving to Seattle, I developed a progressive lung condition that eventually turned into an illness called Histamine Intolerance. I believe it's linked to my birth control; I will write about this a lot. I also work in a field that can leave my soul frayed, and I'm hoping this blog will give me a space to heal and connect with others who believe in bettering humanity, but are at times wearied by the process.
Cast of Characters:Jeff -- My partner, my motivation through each blessed and difficult step in this journey.
Gumbo -- Catahoula and all around Best Pup Ever.
Brother -- Single father, recovering from schizophrenia, and starter of many heated discussions on stigma, mental health, and the men's rights movement.
I came across your blog while hoping to find someone who knew why I suffer a sensation of leg restlessness that sometimes seems like my very blood itches. If I had wanted to find a synopsis of all the strength, illness, determination, and confusion in my life (figure out how to google to find THAT in one page) I couldn't have done better than your blog. I live in fear of homelessness, I have a histamine intolerance board on my Pinterest page, I know from personal experience why women refuse to report rape, and I think I'd rather die than visit another mainstream doctor. Your writing is intense and not even one click below riveting. The humor you inject into desperate illness is the comic relief I lack in my own life. I admire both your skill and your power. I only had one shot of Depo Provera...it never occurred to me that it could have such long term effects. But then, I trusted doctors for twenty-eight years, even as they piled on the prescriptions and devastated my health. There's help out there. You still have some money...get out of mainstream medicine and into alternative healthcare while you still can. Derek Henry, Sara Jo Poff...the two names off the top of my head. I thank God for my troubles, because until I was flat on my back with nowhere to look but up I didn't try to trust Him. Determining to push aside doubts and objections and give my life to faith in Jesus Christ is the best thing I've done. I'm old (62). I've only known the truth for three years. I hope you wise up sooner than I did. God bless your ministry to the unfortunate and the unloved. And thank you...I felt stupid for ending up here. You're definitely not stupid and you're on the same road. I feel less stupid (though its so deeply ingrained I suspect it will linger). I wanted to comment on some of the posts I read but this was the first comment blank I saw...probably because in my poverty I have no Internet connection and live with my smartphone in my hand (praying that the EMF exposure won't "rot" my hand) and I'm too weary to hunt for things I can't find. You go, girl...just change doctoring and faith directions while there's still youth to be enjoyed and benefited from.
ReplyDeleteBless your heart, Kathryn, thank you so much for the comment. I'm working with a new group of women who are without housing, and at our last meeting we were talking about powerful women and what makes us feel powerful. I told them that being able to connect with other women through writing was one of my greatest sources of strength. And your compliments make me both blush and smile, especially when they some from someone who has an obvious talent for writing.
DeleteI have mostly given up on traditional doctors,though for now my insurance no longer covers ND's and to get to a specialist I need to go through my PCP, the gatekeeper to all other doctors. I had always shied away from medicine and doctors, which is why it's so ironic that I would have kept habitually taking Depo for four years without looking into what it actually does beyond its primary function of birth control. But we are not stupid, Kathryn. We are smart, brave women who were acting on the information given us and doing the best we can.
I hope you find answers for your restless, itchy legs. I hope it isn't interrupting your sleep too badly, as well. I know how endlessly frustrating it is to be awake night after night, feeling like fire ants are crawling through your veins. It pains me to know how many are struggling with pain and are unable to access those who may have solutions.
I'm glad to hear that my humor comes through. Sometimes I worry that it may not be enough to balance the subject matter. I am also aware that, despite my chronic health issues and self-doubts, I am a singularly blessed individual, both in the privileges I was born with and the loving people who are now a part of my life.That love, and those blessings, are what I hold on to when I'm struggling with my breathing, or with the concept of a world that profits off the destruction of the poor.
Positive affirmation, Kathryn: You are getting better.
P.S. The subscribe button doesn't seem to work.
ReplyDeleteThanks for letting me know! Also, I can't figure out how to show the comment spaces on the blog, but if you click on the little pencil icon below each post, these dialogue boxes will pop up. Also, if you click on the individual post (instead of scrolling down the main page) then the dialogue boxes will appear at the end of the post. One day I will figure all of that out. Probably after I finish writing my paper. :)
DeleteThank you. Both for the compliment of *my* writing (definitely not in your league) and for the encouragement.
ReplyDeleteIf I've learned anything about health through all this it's that our health is best handled by ourselves and as naturally as possible. Acupuncture is amazing, as are some other modalities, but nothing compares to understanding that corporate profits come ahead of customer well being and forsaking their poisons is key. It turns out God knew what He was doing when He made the foods are bodies were designed to eat. Who knew? Convenience foods are the fast track to ill health. I majored in food and nutrition, intending to become a dietician, and at school we embraced every kitchen shortcut that came along. Not good.
This link is to someone who can guide you to improved health. http://www.healingthebody.ca/advice-from-a-survivor-how-to-live-a-healthy-life/
There's another for feminine health that I like... Healthy Families For God. She specializes in natural hormone health.
If you are still seeing M.D.s, do everything in your power to have a doctor who specializes in Functional Medicine.
Hoping you find your way back to health. God bless you more and ever more.
P.S. I couldn't get the Notify Me button to work either.
Are you familiar with this website?
ReplyDeletehttp://thelowhistaminechef.com/recipe-triple-strength-antihistamine-tea/