Back to Blogging: Updates and Changes

      I realize it's been years since I last published a blog post! I guess my life got more busy and there were more demands on my time and energy and this got pushed out.  It's sad, really, because a lot has changed since my last blog post.
      I'm still homeschooling my children.  I have one in third grade, one in first grade, and one in pre-kindergarten! I am starting a local homeschool support group, so I plan on doing lots of blog posts on home education. Stay tuned!
      I had another baby! Baby Ocean Christian was born at home, unassisted, in April of last year.  He's already crawling and cruising and keeping us all on our toes! He's an incredible, smart, sweet, happy baby who has brought so much joy to our lives already.  His birth, while beautiful and amazing, was also difficult and complicated and definitely deserves its own blog post.  I'll type up his birth story when I feel ready.  Every time I start, it just brings back a flood of emotions...
      I am enrolled in midwifery school and my plan is to graduate next year! I'm also attending home births as a student midwife, although we are taking a break starting in April for at least a year.  We've been so busy for so long and it's hard on us and our families to be on-call all the time.  I'm going to enjoy the family time and use the time to focus on my studies as well.
      Another big thing that's changed lately is my health.  Last summer, I was starting to feel so incredibly fatigued, it didn't matter how much sleep I got, I was exhausted all the time.  I was eating well and exercising regularly, but I hadn't lost a pound since Ocean was born.  I was becoming increasingly depressed and my anxiety and panic disorder symptoms were becoming more frequent.  I felt like I was falling apart.  I started seeing a new doctor who diagnosed me with Hashimotos Thyroiditis.  It is an auto-immune disease where the body attacks the thyroid, causing a whole range of symptoms.  My new doctor is unique in that she incorporates Western and Eastern medicine practices to find the best treatments for her patients. She's very modern and current with her research and very successful with her patients and even has a high success rate at reversing Hashimotos!
      Another health issue I've developed is what's called "transformed migraine" or "chronic daily
migraine".  Yes, you read that right.  I basically have had a migraine every day, all day, for almost five months.  It took a while to get a diagnosis.  My other doctor wanted to rule out things like brain tumors and aneurysms.  So I went in for an MRI and an MRA and, when those came back clean, this was basically the diagnosis.
      I will be doing more posts on what it's like living with chronic pain, how I've been treating my auto-immune disorder, as well as updates on our crazy family! Thanks for following. Blessings.