DishydroticEczema

I haven't journaled, haven't been making art, it's been -34F wind chill days of blizzards, the apartment we moved into had bedbugs and we've been fighting them since before Halloween. I legally lost my ability to drive myself and my 3 kids places with the idiopathic cns hypersomnia and epilepsy diagnoses. This time of year is tricky bc of my miscarriage at Christmas a few years ago. Our two bedroom, 850sq ft. apartment feels claustrophobic and the holidays were sandwiched between two of my kid's birthdays. With out of pocket meds, my expenses are bigger than child support. I can't work right now and spend my days in PT and to attend specialists. Basically, I feel like even with progress, I'm barely keeping it together. And then on December 16th, I caught COVID for the 4th time and I still have it. I am so tired and discouraged and I feel stuck. Yesterday, I finally had enough energy to try to draw. My hands haven't been working right in months, after the last round of seizures, so it made me feel pleased to see this little bit of peace on paper. #EhlersDanlosSyndrome #InterstitialCystitis #Fibromyalgia #ComplexPosttraumaticStressDisorder #majordepressive #Vestibulodynia #idiopahiccnshypersomnia #Epilepsy #DishydroticEczema #Miscarriage #COVID19

Things I never before thought I would celebrate include: Doing a load of laundry, showering, getting dressed even if it doesn't happen until noon, going on a walk with my rollator, completing a grocery run, taking care of my pets, watering my plants, cooking a meal, and being a present parent for my children. I am thankful I can do some of these things some of the days. At first when I was told everything is a victory I was inwardly a bit skeptical (me comparing my present self to my ambitious past self). But last night I took a shower and I felt genuinely proud of myself.