No one thing defines me!

Let me tell you just a few things that I have overcome in my life, so far (in no particular order):

*Being born the youngest of 6 children
*Marrying my high school sweetheart way too young
*Divorce
*Abusive relationship
*Single motherhood
*Rape victim at the age of 14
*Nursing school survivor (Which is complete hell anyway but did it as a single mother of two and working made it hard. I also was the Student Nursing President because I felt the need to punish myself that much more. Thank goodness Justin helped me out)
*Worked two years of night nursing (all while fighting fatigue, pain, and headaches)
*Have had headaches for 32 years, body aches, and fatigue my entire life.
*Chiari=low-lying cerebellar tonsils= hindbrain descends into the spinal column
*Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome=Connective tissue disorder that makes your joints painful and dislocate. It also makes my skin hurt. There is no other way for me to describe it
*Tethered cord=the connective tissue at the base of the spinal cord is attached too tight. It is related to spinal bifida and is a neural tube defect.
*Neurogenic bladder=due to the spinal cord being pulled down to tight, spinal cord damage has occurred. This is permanent nerve damage causing urinary problems.
*I have lived through years of doctors tell me I had anxiety. Guess what? They are right, it makes me anxious that they never found what was wrong with me until I was 32I was born with all of this!
*Had to deal with "The mind can be a powerful thing". AKA, "it is all in your head" It is in my head, my brain is bashing my skull! They were right, just not in the way they thought!
*Had to deal with the feeling of having to prove myself over and over to the doctors even after I just returned from NY


Am I going to let those things define me? Hell no! But they sure have made me who I am today. I am a smart, confident, mother, sister, daughter, wife, and nurse. That is who I am! I stand tall (Although, a little shorter than I used to hee hee). I may have an illness that is knockin me down but it will not keep me down. Look out world, you will not know what hit you when I feel better. I am going to be shouting from the rooftops. Our healthcare system needs to be re-educated. It is clearly a deficiet when it comes to Chiari. There needs to be re-education in the Emergency departments, primary care, radiology, hospitalist, neurologists, and so on.

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog! I love hearing from you. Go out and have a wonderful week.

“Loving people live in a loving world. Hostile people live in a hostile world. Same world.” -Wayne Dyer