Category: Checking in with Michele’s Life and Status
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Vision Interruptions: Glass Splinters
A day in my life is normally full of action, laughter, and joy. Yesterday, I needed to go out shopping to get ready for a very busy week. Wouldn’t you know it, MS wanted to accompany me with yet another annoyance….kaleidoscoping vision, but without the colors of a migrane. The clear glass shards kept moving…
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Stages of Grief and MS
I am an optomist by nature. Facing MS head on reminds me of the seven stages of grief. For me, I keep thinking about these stages and how I will continue to be handling my MS. The 7 stages are: The problem is that once I have thought I have worked through these stages, some…
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Falling into the Season
I have been back at work and that has meant managing unexpected duties, meetings, and ways of working to adjust to. I find the weather to encourage a meditative mindset. Some of my random thoughts: Summer is in the rearview mirror! It can stay there. The oranges of fall make me smile. The heat exacerbated…
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Situational Sitting
I returned to my online post as a college writing instructor this week. The first week back included some meetings, professional development, a welcome address from our college president, and a guest lecturer. All of these meant hours of sitting — three full days of sitting. I am a very active person who is walking…
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Fall is in the Air
Relief is around the corner as the days cool, and the breeze is a little chilly. For those changes, I am happy. This summer’s heat has wrecked havoc with my body. Aside from the downright misery of my extremities’ numbness, burning of nerve endings, and fatigue, the sun is beautiful and life giving. Yes, I…
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Bye Bye Buttons
When it comes to buttoning shirts, I have given up. Most of my button downs are heading to the Goodwill donation bin. This is definitely easier than fighting the mismatched buttons and the frustration of feeding the buttons into the tiny holes. I have been thinking about this for weeks. I have decided that slip-on…
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Living Intentionally Takes Practice
At my last visit with my neurologist, she reminded me to do “one task at a time” and stop trying to multi-task, which I used to have mastered as an art form. This takes slowing down and being intentional. That is really hard for a “Duracell Bunny” who was all over the many tasks I…
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The Consequences of Costco Observations
Last week I went to Costco with my husband. He was waiting in line for an ice cream swirl. Meanwhile, I pushed my cart with my requested “small boxes” of items to my car. I specifically ask for small boxes because I can not pick up the larger and often imbalanced larger boxes–it is a…
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Why I Track My Step Count
I started focusing on my step count as a goal in a clinical trial. I set my goal at 20,000 steps daily. That seems reasonable. So I had some busy days that I did not hit the goal; in retrospect, I decided that, like many tasks and goals, looking at my step data by the…
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Handling the Heat
Heat simply shuts me down. Don’t get me wrong; I love sunshine and the warmth of spring and early summer days. High temps send me running for shade and ice water. MS makes nerves lose their myelin sheath, which is their protective covering, and this loss of sheath makes the nerves more susceptible to heat…
MS Fortunate 