Sometimes I hold my breath without knowing it. It’s usually when I’m acutely stressed or deep in concentration. But once I realize I’m not breathing, the sweet release of the long exhale brings me back to the present. Then I take a deep inhale, hold for two beats and let the second long exhale calm […] Read more…
I had acute appendicitis. But I couldn’t get a room in the ER that was filled with Covid patients.
The parking lot wasn’t crowded when I pulled my car into a spot outside the Emergency Room at my local hospital around 2:45am on that Tuesday morning in mid-September. In pain, I hobbled through the automatic doors, hoping that my middle of the night arrival and the nearly empty waiting room would translate to a […] Read more…
Patience: My One-Word Resolution for 2021
In 2017 I decided to ditch the idea of New Year’s Resolutions in exchange for one simple word. That word would carry me through the new year, reminding me of all I wanted it to represent based on my past, present and future. As I continue to collect annual words, they’ve gone beyond resolutions and […] Read more…
My 2020 Year in Review
As we prepare to say farewell to a tough, bizarre year, I’m reflecting on what my 2020 brought me while looking forward to a hopeful 2021. So what did my 2020 look like? The new decade started with a new doctor on my quest to figure out my headaches: a neuro-ophthalmologist. He brought me full […] Read more…
A Pandemic Quarantine Anniversary
When my boyfriend started suggesting date night ideas for our upcoming fifth anniversary of our first date, COVID-19 wasn’t yet a global pandemic. The threat of the new coronavirus hadn’t yet closed schools, canceled events or shut down restaurants for dining in. We were free to plan a fun night out without worrying about quarantines […] Read more…
Coronavirus Diaries: A Month in Quarantine
The coronavirus quarantine officially kicked off for my family when the kids’ schools announced a two-week closure at the end of the day on Friday, March 13, 2020. Friday the 13th. Seems appropriate. Coronavirus was already a scary addition to the daily news by then, but it wasn’t really until the week leading up to […] Read more…