Tis the season of busy

arighino
Nov 23
3 min read

"Make patience and self-acceptance your main practice. And one day you will realize you have changed. You will see that you have become a more mindful person. You get there, not by trying all at once to attain some perfection, but just by the simple daily things…. You get there one mindful breath at a time." ~Thomas Bien and Beverly Bien

It's been busier than normal...hence the delay in writing.

After going live with this site, I've had quite a bit of travel. I went to Phoenix to visit a friend, we went camping a weekend, and then this last week, I drove up to Colorado to help a friend having knee surgery. Next week, we're driving to Austin for Friendsgiving. I'm excited to see friends and get my appointment out of the way, and also dreading the drive, especially with Zie! It will continue to be a whirlwind, and more driving than I've done in a long time, and it will all be worth it!

I'm happy to say that both my friend and my mother- in- law (who had a lumpectomy for breast cancer) are doing well. It's been a transition, trying to be a support to so many people that I love going through things, vs the one going through things. It's good growth for me. Trying to use my experiences and all the lessons to help. I just wish everyone was healthy and I didn't have to!

Alas that is not the way life works, and I'm seeing a need in almost every direction.

My job was extended through February, thank goodness. After Thanksgiving, I'm going to have to buckle down and make applying a priority, which I am already dreading. I had a couple interviews for a full time job at Adobe, but once again I just wasn't the right fit because I didn't quote have the experience the we're looking for. It's so disappointing, and I'm nervous in this economy since it's a tough time to be looking for jobs, AND I'm trying to remember that the right thing will happen and we will not end up homeless which my mean-brain likes to tell me. LOL. I've certainly done harder things.

Medically, things are moving forward and remaining stable, which I'm also grateful for.

I had a pcp appointment and it went well. I really like her and was able to get Jeremy in with her as well, which I'm really grateful for because they assigned him a virtual-only pcp. [WTF?]

She wrote me a referral for a new ENT (I'm way out of the other one's league and they don't do surgery, which I want to have as an option incase). She filled out the application for my medical card here and ordered me a mammogram and breast mri.

I'll also have to repeat the blood work and see a new endocrinologist in December. I'm giving her a shot, as it would be nice to not have to go back to Oregon, but I want to make sure she's seen similar cases and we feel comfortable with her. Fingers crossed.

I'm also excited to announce that the Podcast that I was interviewed is on is now published!

I'd love for you to listen, though fair warning that it's focused toward educating doctors on the strange, disparate symptoms so a lot of it is full of medical-jargon. Nonetheless, it's very exciting and I'm hopeful that it helps a few people not have to endure such a long road to diagnosis of the autoimmune disease that I have. *Note, I used the name "Autumn Smith" because as someone looking for a job, I didn't want this info about my disease to be the first thing you found when you googled my name.

You can find it on the journal website or on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.