Sunday, January 4, 2009

The fourth of the new year

The good news is that there's little to report. It appears that we've found a reliable mix of meds - Emsam and Seroquel, along with a decent sleep aid - Temazepam, and a few basic CBT principles to keep my moods steady and positive.
Sleep can still be an adventure. This morning, for example, I woke at 3. A few other nights, I've slept right through. Next Sunday evening, I'm scheduled for a sleep study that may help us identify if there's anything else going on. (Sleep apnea is a common culprit.)
I'm very grateful that we've found treatments that have improved my quality of life. For lots of folks,  not only can they not find treatments that work, but the science around treatments is still pretty messy.
In the meantime, I've started to take on projects and responsibilities that have many of the attributes of what life had been:

  • I'm participating in two non-profit organizations - Joseph's Project, an organization that delivers food to families in need, and the Queen Lake Association, an organization that supports recreation and environmental quality of Queen Lake.
  • In addition to my personal blogs, I'm a regular contributor at the Real Worcester web site.
  • In a few weeks, I'll be starting back to school, taking one course on Legal Research and Writing at our alma mater, Mount Wachusett Community College.
  • I've even been kicking the tires on a couple of open-source projects that need technical documentation help.
  • I've been participating in family gatherings around the holidays, including Christmas parties and a trip to First Night with our three youngest granddaughters.  Today, we take our oldest granddaughter to Boston to see Blue Man Group, a tradition that takes place when a child turns 13.
It wasn't all that long ago that the activities of daily living (ADLs) were all that I could handle. And even now, a tough day or two will catch me by surprise. Usually, the tough days are triggered when I get too far out in front of myself, getting too ambitious or excited and then losing my footing. It's a solemn reminder that I'm better, but not all better.

Onward, then.

1 comment:

eba said...

Thank you for keeping us posted. I am tremendously grateful that your life has been improving and that you are maintaining that tricky balance on most days. I continue to send you much support.