But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. ~Joshua 24:15
Today marks one month since I am released from the hospital after a harrowing scare with pneumonia. Being home has not been without its challenges in the mission to regain my overall health and stamina.
When I first arrive home, I depend on a walker to get around. Yes, that's how weak my legs have become in three weeks' time.
Oh, how this brings back unwelcome memories of my own mother having to rely on one of these! Simply navigating the stairs, step by step, to make it from our garage to our living quarters seems as daunting as Mt. Everest ascent. Yet, with Danny's help, I conquer that first hurdle.
My computer desk looks like a veritable pharmacy.
So many pills I'm required to ingest, all in the name of recovery! The steroids and my blood pressure medication, unfortunately, cause my ankles to swell to the point where I can't don socks, and even sliding my feet into ample slippers is problematic. This swelling causes the skin around my feet to dry and peel as if days had been spent in the sun. Did I mention, this is uncomfortable?
Finally, my P. A. hits on just the right formula to reduce the abnormal swelling and I'm finally able to ditch the walker for good. And look! Yesterday, at long last, I'm wearing socks and shoes again.
Another anomaly that crops up during this period of recovery is my overwhelming need for either a morning or early-afternoon nap. I've never been a napper in my life, but this drowsiness that descends, unbidden, simply overtakes any will I might have to resist it. I must succumb to this siren call, or suffer deprivation. I'm wondering if this development is due to all the medication, or if my body is demanding that I gain back the rest denied me during those weeks in the hospital? Anyone have an idea?
I give my breathing a daily workout, and register my oxygen levels multiple times during the day. So far, so good!
It's amazing how quitting smoking can improve lung capacity and increase oxygen practically overnight. To be honest, the cravings still haunt me from time to time, but the reasons to stay clean far outweigh any temptation I could possibly entertain.
God is good like that. He reminds me that I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
A month ago, in that darkened hospital room, God gave me a choice.
Whom would I serve?
God, or the world?
I think you all know whom I chose then, and whom I choose now.
I pray you make the right choice, too.
Amen!
Dearest Martha Jane,
ReplyDeleteGlad you're improving and oh, that device for blowing in, as hard as you can for improving lung function is so familiar to me.
Had that to test after I got home from being paralyzed.
Hoping that you soon will be able to ditch all those meds as they will kill your kidneys... Frankly, I've never had to take that many meds in my life, only the Prednisone and the rest I managed by a healthy lifestyle and above all a healthy diet. For example taking
Potassium Chloride ER could be easily replaced by a well-balanced diet.
In 2014, only four years after having been paralyzed, my kidney function was 48% and today only 26%.
Glad you gave up your smoking and you have to stay at it or else things will once again worsen.
May God give you the strength to persevere!
Hugs,
Mariette
Good Lord willing and the creek don't rise, I should be off all the meds soon, Mariette. One step at a time! Right now, all I care about is getting stronger each day; if there's something else I have to worry about down the road, I'll do so if and when that time arrives. No sense in inviting trouble!
DeleteLove and blessings!
🤗
DeleteThanks!
DeleteGrace can be a small thing like wearing socks and shoes. So glad you're on the mend, Martha!
ReplyDeleteAmen, Glynn, so it can be! We forget, sometimes, to be appreciative of all that we have, no matter how insignificant those things might seem. I'm glad I'm getting better, too!
DeleteLove and blessings!
Praise the Lord you are slowly getting better. God has been good to you. May others turn to Him through your example.
ReplyDeleteGod bless, Martha.
God has been so, so good to me, Victor, there are no words to adequately describe His grace shown to me. I pray that what I write here will turn hearts and minds to the Lord. Isn't that what we all want with our Christian message?
DeleteLove and blessings!
Whom shall we serve indeed my friend. So glad to see your SpO2 up in a normal range. Naps are wonderful things indeed ma'am. I've come to become quite fond of them myself. With COPD, my wife has lived with these things and more (nebulizers, etc) for some time. I pray your time in "Pulmonary Land" is temporary. Keep getting stronger with each day and remember your friends are praying for you and Mr. Danny.
ReplyDeleteOh, my, J.D., I didn't realize that you all are living in "Pulmonary Land" with the COPD, etc. I will definitely keep both you and Miss Diane in my daily prayers!
DeleteI have to say, I've grown accustomed to the nap routine, too, and know it's doing me more good in the long run. Here's to sleep!
Love and blessings!
Our body heals when we sleep--listen to it!
ReplyDeleteSo thankful you are mending! Be patient--it will come!
Blessings!
Yes, Lulu, I will definitely listen to what my body is telling me, especially now. If a nap is called for, so be it! Healing will come in time.
DeleteLove and blessings!
Delighted - and relieved - that your recovery continues with complications. :-)
ReplyDeleteIt continues, Frank, and that's the good news. Every day that passes, I feel just that much stronger and that much more "normal." God is so good!
DeleteLove and blessings!
Oh Martha, I pray that God will continue this wonderful work He has begun in you, I know He will. I am so thankful you are making such good progress! As far as naps go, I require one every afternoon right after lunch. It could be because of the past couple of years of surgeries and other issues that wear me out, but I am also exploring other possibilities involving a particular medication that I have been taking, which I believe is causing other unpleasant side effects. It is something I am going to discuss with the dr. next time. meanwhile...there is no shame in taking a nap. Jesus wants us to rest our bodies and be fully restored. Don't fight it. Your body is healing. God is restoring you completely. Rest is a major part of that process. One day at a time!!!(((hugs)))
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad to know, Pam, that I'm not the only one who really, REALLY, needs a nap during the day. They are absolutely restorative, and I couldn't function these days without one.
DeleteI think you're wise to consult your doctor, though, if one of your medications could be adding to this need; I truly have to do the same thing with mine, at least to let him know what's going on that is different than the pre-pneumonia me.
But with your surgeries, my illness, and just our age in general, naps do seem like a natural progression in the vast scheme of things. God does have it all in control, and I trust completely in what He is accomplishing in both me and you, my friend.
Love and blessings!
Bless your dear heart, Martha. I am so happy you are able to wear shoes again. It is a hard thing to bear when you start recognizing your parents' health issues in yourself. I have been going through that very same thing, and I look back now and wonder if I had the patience and grace I should have had with them when their health was failing so. I mean I know I felt so incredibly sorry for them and did all I could for them, but only now am I really understanding at least a fraction of what it must have felt like for them. The circle of life - it is quite daunting when it comes around to our time to experience certain things. I am so thankful you are continuing to improve and trust the Lord will just bless you to heal completely and restore your strength to you. I am so proud of you on not smoking - I am not dealing with that, but my dear sister is, and I know how hard it is for her. God is able to help us through our every struggle. He is so faithful!
ReplyDeleteOh, Cheryl, you so touched my heart with your admission here of how much you were or were not able to commiserate with your own parents when they were facing these major changes in their health issues. I can only pray for the same - was I patient enough? Did I truly understand? Or did I just want to advert my eyes and not admit to how much, and how quickly, they were aging. Maybe, we will never know, but we can pray that God let them know how much we cared about them through every stage of their lives.
DeleteThanks for all your prayers, my friend. I'm getting stronger and better every passing day, and I owe it all to the Lord's grace and providence. Who knows? I may feel well enough to resume using the treadmill next month. :) That would be a great way to celebrate my upcoming birthday.
Love and blessings!
Thanking God for all He's done ... and continues to do on your behalf! My Tom was asking his doctor just last week, "Why am I still so fatigued?" Not unlike your own perilous journey. She only said, "Your body's been through a lot. It needs time." Blessings!
ReplyDeleteAh! Tom's doctor's advice is truly timely, Myra. Our bodies have been through so much, haven't they? Rest is the cure for so much of what ails us, but too many of us don't take the time to listen to our bodies. Fortunately, right now, I have no choice. Tell Mr. Tom that I'm rooting for him to improve in health with every passing day!
DeleteLove and blessings!
I love your faith-filled, positive attitude, Martha. Some folks in similar circumstances to yours would be asking, "Why God? Why do I have to put up with a walker and all these pills, exhaustion and everything else?" But you keep focused on progress and best of all you still see God's goodness in your situation. Kudos, Martha, and thank you for your example!
ReplyDeleteGod's goodness is in every situation, Nancy, even, and perhaps especially, in those dark nights at the hospital. We have to open our eyes and our hearts to see Him moving mightily, willing us to look on the positive side of things, knowing He is always in control, no matter what might befall us. I do hope the examples I've given here will encourage others to look on God's bright side, too. Thank you!
DeleteLove and blessings!
Your post brings not only compassion for what you've had to endure, Martha, but memories of my time following five joint replacement, months of greatly reduced capacities and the weakness that follows. I know what the walker and the frustrating loss of the ability to do normal, simple things. I love the fact that your faithful trust in God didn't waver in the process and that recovery is happening. Letting patience do its "perfecting work" is easier said than done, my friend, but you're doing it and I rejoice with you. Thanks for bringing us into your heart and home, especially in circumstances like those you've been going through.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Ron for your encouraging words and your willingness to rejoice in my slow, but steady, recovery. Boy, do I ever hear you when it comes to the complications of joint replacement - I can only imagine how long that procedure would leave one incapacitated and incapable of doing the simplest of tasks. All the more crucial to thank God for the abilities with which He has graced us, and give thanks for every little improvement we notice. I cannot begin to tell you how this humbling experience has brought me closer to Him - that's the best!
DeleteLove and blessings!
I believe it's the blood pressure medication that causes tiredness. Unless you are overweight. Then it might be a host of issues.
ReplyDeletePraying that the Lord's will continues to strengthen you!
My doctor has taken me off the usual blood pressure meds (quitting smoking pretty much makes it irrelevant), and placed me on twice a day Carvedilol, a Beta blocker, which seems to be doing the trick, but could also be inducing the need for naps. It's okay. If my body is getting the rest I need to heal, Ed, I'll take it. And no, I'm not overweight; in fact, I've lost about 7 pounds during this illness, and really need to pack the pounds back on in the days to come. Thanks for your prayers!
DeleteLove and blessings!
Oh your body has been through such a trauma, friend. Do give yourself the grace for a bit of a nap each day. I had to do that for quite some after bouts with illness and dealing with new meds.
ReplyDeleteAnd I still head to the sofa with a quilt quite often mid-day.
You're inspiring more people than you realize. Your story touches me.
Thank you so much for your kind and encouraging words here, Linda - so appreciated! Yes, I guess this is all fallout from the trauma of illness, and I'm so glad to know that I'm not alone in the nap department. In fact, the couch is calling me as I write this - lol! Let's all decide to enjoy a good nap when we can get it.
DeleteLove and blessings!
So glad to hear you are on the mend Martha and keeping with your vow. Given time I'm thinking you will suddenly find energy you thought you'd never have again and a feeling of freshness in every smell. God definitely isn't done with you yet.
ReplyDeleteNo, God's not done with me yet, Bill, of that I'm sure. He has lots of work to do before I'm ready for home, and I need to be as pliant as clay in His hands. I do think you're right about the eventual return of energy, too. Just hard to be patient some days . . .
DeleteLove and blessings!
Martha, I'm so thankful for these hurdles you have overcome with the help of Danny, the Lord, and your choice to quit smoking for the sake of your health. A thousand Hallelujahs!
ReplyDeleteAmen, Karen, amen! Thanks for your kind and encouraging words, not to mention the Hallelujahs. :)
DeleteLove and blessings!
I totally empathize with you, as I’m going through some of the same things. My ankles look like balloons, and my legs are so week. I’m glad your recovery is coming around. Age goes against you when you experience long illnesses. May God’s Grace cover us through all of this. We are so fortunate to have God to rely on. I pray you will be up to par soon. Blessings and hugs.
ReplyDeleteOh, Nells, I pray that you are up to par soon, too! I can fully commiserate with ankles looking, and feeling, like swollen balloons - it's both ugly and painful. Plus, it does make our legs feel weak and useless - that's not good. Oh, I pray that God's grace is covering you, my friend, and that you will see improvement very, very soon. God does so care about each and every one of us.
DeleteLove and blessings!
I celebrate these amazing steps toward recovery with you, Martha! I'm sure it is disconcerting to not be back to normal, but you are getting there, friend!
ReplyDeleteYes, Lisa, with God's help, I'm certainly getting there. Rejoicing all the way!
DeleteLove and blessings!
God IS so good and I am thankful you are healing!!
ReplyDeleteYes, Jean, God is ALWAYS good! And we know He is in the business of healing.
DeleteLove and blessings!
So glad that you are on the mend.
ReplyDeleteYour faith is inspiring, Martha.
Stay strong!
Thanks so much, Veronica!
DeleteLove and blessings!