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Where to Begin
Want to know a secret? I was supposed to launch this outreach a long time ago. It began in the hospital one February night in 2018. While one could argue it was the high dose of IV steroids I had just received, I knew it was something greater. God was speaking to me, and words were pouring into my heart and overflowing faster than I could get them out. I needed to write. I needed to share these words with the rest of the world. But how? When? Where would I even start? I soon saw that none of that mattered. All that was important was that God had begun…
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Why Weight Loss Matters
How has weight affected your Intracranial Hypertension? No doubt, one of the first things your doctor suggested upon diagnosis was to lose weight. Why? While the medical field is still trying to figure out exactly what causes IH, there seems to be a high percentage of patients with IH who are overweight or obese. In fact, many patients develop this condition after or during a period of significant weight gain. As obesity rates increase, Intracranial Hypertension is being found to be less and less rare. But it’s not just about the weight loss. What’s Causing the Weight? While aiming for a healthy weight in general is always important, doctors will…
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All About Intracranial Hypertension
September is Intracranial Hypertension (Pseudotumor Cerebri) Awareness month! Learn all about this bizarre neurological condition, and help us spread awareness!
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Tearing Down the Strongholds of Addiction
Ever since I was a child, I watched my brother struggle with a terrible drug addiction. I watched him in and out of jails and rehabs my whole life as I prayed for his freedom. When I was 18 years old, he was found dead in his apartment. This year makes ten years since I lost my brother. Addiction was not a stranger to my life. As sheltered as I was, my parents couldn’t keep me from knowing that four of my six siblings fell into its grasp. I saw it destroy their lives. I saw it change who they were, change their appearance and alter their personalities. I couldn’t…
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The End of Addiction
August 7, 2009 I was 18 years old. I was working the morning shift of my first “real” job at a clothing boutique, texting my friends about going to the movies after I got off. My boss stopped by to see how I was doing. She already knew. She didn’t say anything. I continued to blow up my mom’s phone, trying to get her permission to go to the movies. No response. I then received a text from my sister saying I couldn’t go, and she would be picking me up after work. Spoiled, stupid me responded that there better be a good reason. There was. That morning, all was…
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A Day in the Life of Chronic Illness
6:30 am. It’s Groundhogs Day. Has it been two weeks or three weeks of dealing with this episode? I’ve lost track. But I get to wake up once again to the same problem that had me tossing and turning all night. How bad will it be today? That’s all I ever wonder. Will my medicine work right away? Will it all be gone by noon? Or maybe break by dinner? Just please don’t make me to go sleep with it again. Morning At least it’s morning. I can now take whatever medication that is supposed to help relieve the pressure. Please work. I put on my worship music to help…
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In Sickness & In Health
Do you know the scenes in movies where the person is being rushed through the hospital, and their loved one arrives just in time to find them? This is the exact image of what I remember in between my neurologist visit and passing out in the wheelchair on the way to the ER. My husband was there right when I needed him most. I might have been half conscious from the pain, but I will never forget how much love and concern he showed me through those days in the hospital. His support in helping me breathe and cope with every increase of pressure was enough to make me think…
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Calling In Sick
Let’s talk about work. What are you doing right now? Are you happy? Are you satisfied? Do you feel you’re doing what you were called to do in life? Could anything be different? July 2012 I remember the day I got hired for my job – a leasing agent for property management. I was walking on the levee when the phone call came in, and I became so excited that I started running. I was so thankful to finally have a real, full-time, decent paying job. I was considered fairly young for the job, but I made sure to prove myself till I had the respect of the owners themselves.…
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The Broken Body
Do you remember when your body broke? I do. Thursday, January 26, 2017. 9:30 am. It was the day I had my first child. It was the moment I had the epidural that went too far. Sure, that’s a common occurrence. Countless women experience it. The needle penetrates too far into the dura that surrounds the spinal cord and causes spinal fluid to leak out from around your brain. Excruciating headaches ensue. Sometimes the body heals itself before the new mother even notices. Other times, the skull crushing pain lingers for weeks or even months afterwards. The good news is doctors can fix this. All they have to do is…
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“But You Don’t Look Sick.”
Do I look sick to you? Odds are I don’t. But I am living with an invisible illness. I am living with chronic pain. Do you know what unusual mentality comes along with being chronically ill? Paranoia. “But you don’t look sick.” Is a phrase so commonly used among the sick that we begin to question it ourselves. What if it is all in my head? What if it’s really not so bad? What if I could hold a job right now? What if I really didn’t need to cancel plans today? Maybe I’m not that sick after all. How can I be if I don’t look it? I even…
