Seclusion 101 with AnneMarie

Chronic Illness

November 26, 2020November 26, 2020 by annemariedemyen, posted in life

I have gone from having asthma and occasional bouts of bronchitis and pneumonia to having full-blown chronic issues with my lungs. I have joined the millions who have COPD and those who have bronchiectasis (there may be millions of us as well – we just do not talk about it because we cannot pronounce it?).

Having chronic lung issues is miserable – as is having any chronic issue no doubt. One is always ‘sick’ to some degree but there is no cure and no serious relief. Too soon, you get sick and tired of being sick and tired. 🥺

The real kick in the pants is that no health issue, chronic or otherwise, can just stay in one body part. Other body parts have to kick things up in a show of solidarity with the sickly part of you. With my lung issues, the sympathizer has been my sinuses. Seriously – I struggle to breathe and my nose is permanently, continuously plugged. 🤦

Blocked sinuses do not sound so bad, but they are. You resort to mouth breathing – your throat is always dry, you can’t eat without choking, and you get hiccups (WAY too often 😳). You cannot sleep with blocked sinuses because you wake up gasping for air every time you close your mouth. And finally, the pressure in your sinuses builds up to the point where your eyes, ears and brain jump in with their own sympathy pains. 🤬

Modern science has provided us with many means to deal with blocked sinuses. There are a variety of vaporizers on the market (all of which annoy and agitate my asthma). There are numerous OTC nasal sprays (which are basically useless). There are prescription nasal sprays which are extremely effective (and cause massive nosebleeds 😐). Then there is my personal favourite – the Neti Pot. Pouring warm, treated water through ones sinuses is quite effective and brings about serious relief. It is also messy, awkward and seriously undignified. But what the hell – it works. 🥳

Kat is still my best friend – but she is no Neti Pot. 🙂

Have a great day and stay safe (and healthy). Cannot stress the healthy part enough! 💞

Another Day on the Prairies

November 25, 2020November 25, 2020 by annemariedemyen, posted in family

It has been a while since I have posted. Everything changes from one day to the next so by the time I go to write about something, things have taken a turn. 🙄

Our weather goes from snowy to icy to brutally cold and back again. I have all but given up on walking, which of course has been detrimental to my health. I have been working on my meditation, which is helpful and I have been enjoying sourcing out different You Tube videos on that – so that is something!

There has been an uptick of Covid cases, including quite a few at the plant where Dan works (right in his area 🙄). We seem to have dodged it. Personally, I believe Dan and I had it in February, which was when my health went sideways, but they were not testing then. The doctors can tell I have lung damage that suddenly shows up on scans but they cannot tell what caused it.

I went out one day last week to help granddaughter Genie pick out her Christmas present. Our favourite dress shop (Le Chateau) is closing down so we went looking for a dress for son Dan’s wedding and her graduation (should they have one this year).

This is the dress Genie went with. It fit her perfectly! It will look even better with fancy heels instead of fuzzy black socks😂

Then, son Dan called last night to say that due to new Covid restrictions in Alberta, they are postponing their wedding party until next summer. They are going ahead with their wedding ceremony on New Year’s Eve – with just their children, officiate, and the couple who are standing up for them. They have had to wait long enough, they just want to be married already. We look forward to celebrating with them in the summer!

With case numbers going up here every day, we have stayed home as much as possible. We did go to Leon’s and got a new mattress for our bed one day. (Kat does NOT like it). Dan had to go to Canadian Tire so he picked up a new monitor for our computer. I went and did our weekly shopping early Monday morning – by myself. With things being bad at Dan’s work I thought this was our best option. I did amazing btw. There were only 3 items I did not get (frozen okra, oven gloves, and soda crackers) and I only went rogue twice (picked up 4 cans of tomato soup and a container of sour cream). I hate shopping but actually got through it ok – even packing everything up at the cash register. 🙂

Dan is at work starting a new round of shifts today. They are finishing off a couple of orders, then he expects to be laid off mid-January until the company picks up more work. He has been expecting lay offs for about fifteen years and they always come up with something, so who know? We will see when, or if, it happens.

Have a great week and take care out there!

Mental Retirement

November 16, 2020November 16, 2020 by annemariedemyen, posted in retirement

When I contemplated retirement, I focussed on the physical and spiritual opportunities that would become available. Despite the fact that my career had always been mentally challenging, the mental aspect of retirement was not a consideration for me.

Since I retired at the end of March, I have been sidetracked by health issues. I have struggled to tackle any of the physical projects that I had anticipated. This summer, my efforts to improve my health centered around resting, being outdoors in the fresh air and sunshine, and walking through and around our neighbourhood parks. The time in nature gave me ample opportunity to focus on my spiritual well-being.

Strangely, even once I retired, I did not actively pursue or even consider my mental well-being. I was perfectly happy just releasing all of the mental clutter that I had accumulated over the previous decades.

To be honest, I was never on the greatest terms with my mind. My conscious mind was generally a battleground of deadlines and details, numbers and technology, co-workers and clients, and fear of failure – or in the case of winter driving – fear of possible injury or death. My off work hours focussed on worrying about family, household responsibilities, and personal finances.

My unconscious mind was another matter. I knew in my heart that the subconscious mind was a phenomenal source of power. If I could convince my subconscious mind that I wanted to radically change my life in one way or another, I knew it would be as good as done. Alas, my subconscious mind seemed to be all but unreachable at the best of times.

Eight months into retirement, I have come to make an astonishing discovery. While I have been focussing on my physical and spiritual well-being, my mental well-being has increased to an all-time high.

As I walked, rested, and relaxed, the battlefield that was my conscious mind has cleared. It is not a blank slate. It is this functional space where I have become aware of my surroundings and notice things like birds and squirrels, clouds and trees. These things that I notice trigger a curiousity and interest that sends me searching for more in-depth knowledge of the world that surrounds me. At home, household chores like planning and preparing meals are no longer done on auto-pilot. I actually source out nutritional values, unfamiliar ingredients and new recipes. Now, when I pick up my cellphone, rather than wasting time on mind-numbing games, I find myself sourcing out interesting books to read or intellectually stimulating subjects to explore.

Recently, in an attempt to ease my breathing issues, I have been sourcing out meditations to aid in deep relaxation. I have tried a number of different videos on You Tube, from singing bowls to spirit animals, to various guided meditations, and more. Amazingly enough, I have found myself getting more and more in touch with my subconscious mind. (Apparently, it was always there and it was not being deliberately obtuse. It was just buried under all of the clutter of my conscious mind.) Reaching my subconscious mind has given me so much depth that I have been lacking in my life. It has been an incredible experience.

I am so excited and grateful for this retirement time of my life. For the first time ever I have this opportunity to focus on strengthening and balancing my physical, mental, and spiritual well-being. The more I do so, the more of myself I have to share with others – more joy, more excitement, more compassion, more kindness, more love, more beauty, more of everything that truly matters in life.

The longer I am retired, the more I realize – Retirement is such an enchanting time in a person’s life. 🌟

Holidays

November 15, 2020November 15, 2020 by annemariedemyen, posted in family

Growing up in my family we kept to a fairly predictable schedule. (My mother was a drill Sargent in her previous life 🤣) Dinner was at 12 noon, supper was at 6 PM, laundry was done on Monday morning, and birthdays and holidays were celebrated on their appropriate dates.

When my family was young, our schedule was somewhat predictable. Meals were always at the table. Supper was 6ish, I did laundry once a week, and birthdays and holidays were celebrated on or close to appropriate dates.

Between Dan’s 24/7 shifts, kids growing up and having their own families, and various births and health crises, our schedule has become rather loosely goosey…. We eat, we do a load of laundry when one of us happens to go downstairs for whatever reason, and we celebrate birthdays and holidays.

Last night we had granddaughter Genie and her boyfriend Alex/Ben over. We enjoyed our Christmas turkey supper, topped off with a peanut butter cheesecake to celebrate Genie’s birthday (she will turn 17 on December 24th – and she doesn’t eat peanuts 🤦- I made her a mug cake and dressed it up for the occasion).

My amazing husband who helped make supper and cleared away all of the leftovers. My less than amazing dog lurking for any flying food that Genie lost control over.

Dan is scheduled to work straight through December 22nd to 26th but we will be getting together with Genie and Alex/Ben on the 30th. But, we won’t be celebrating New Year’s 😂 – they are coming with us to son Dan’s wedding on the 31st. New Year’s will have to merge with Easter and Dan’s birthday sometime in the spring.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year’s – I hope you have the opportunity to celebrate the holidays with your loved ones!🌲☃️ And for our southern neighbours – Happy Thanksgiving! 🦃

World Kindness Day

November 14, 2020November 14, 2020 by annemariedemyen, posted in life

Yesterday was World Kindness Day. I am a day late, but if we have ever needed kindness in the world, it is now. So, late or not, here goes!

2020 hasn’t been a particularly kindly year. Everyone has been affected by the effects of a global pandemic – some obviously more than others – but suffering isn’t a contest. It has been hard and we have all struggled at times.

We are always encouraged to be kind and we know that it is never acceptable to be unkind. But let’s face it – none of us are perfect and we have all had our moments this year. We have also been on the receiving end of someone else’s bad moments. Right now, we just have to keep trying – to be kind and to give others a little more leeway when they are not as kind to us as we feel they could be.

This year, and every year, one of the most important things to remember is to be kind to ourselves. We know what we are going through. We know how we are being affected by it. We know others are busy dealing with their own struggles. We need to take the time and make the effort to nurture ourselves so that we have it in us to nurture others.

It is okay to need kindness in these troubled times and it is ok be the kindness we need. 🤗

Winter Wonderland

November 9, 2020November 9, 2020 by annemariedemyen, posted in nature

We missed out on the blizzard this weekend but we got a good dump of snow last night. I have been out shoveling this morning. I am feeling better today than I have for a few weeks but have to take it pretty slow. Dan went out and did a stretch because he doesn’t think I should push myself too far. It doesn’t look that impressive on these pictures but the snow is a good foot deep and HEAVY. I will be busy all day. 🌞❄️☃️

This Week in the Weather

November 5, 2020November 5, 2020 by annemariedemyen, posted in nature

We seem to be on the fast track to some seasonal changes in our weather this week.

We started off with a couple of warm, sunny days.

Yesterday, Dom and I spent a while at a neighbourhood kiddie park. It seemed a bit chilly but Dom had a great time on the equipment and even took off his shoes and socks to play in the sand.

Today it is supposed to be 21 above Celsius. It seems rather cloudy but their are periods of sunshine. There is also wind! 54km to 74km winds. Kat and I have not ventured out for our walk. I am a bit concerned that one or both of us might get blown away (or blown over).

The exciting part is that starting tomorrow the mercury is supposed to drop out of the thermometer and by Sunday we should have one to two FEET of snow. With strong winds, they are also warning of white-out conditions across southern Saskatchewan.

To be honest, I have really been looking forward to snow this year. I will not have to go out and drive through it, in pitch dark, on my way to work. The fresh new snow will cover up the endless greige of autumn in Saskatchewan. Plus, and this is a big plus, I will be home so will have a chance to shovel it before Dan gets to it! I just hope I will be able to. Being out in the cold is hard on my lungs at the best of time and these last few weeks haven’t been the best of times, where my lungs are concerned. I can only take it slow and hope for the best. ⛄

Hope your weather is good and your spirits are high!

Breathe Easy

October 31, 2020October 31, 2020 by annemariedemyen, posted in life

I have spent a lifetime dealing with breathing issues. Asthma, allergies, bronchitis, pneumonia, empyema, COPD, and now bronchiectasis. Acute attacks of any, or all, of the above can be triggered by seasonal colds or flus, air pollutants, stress, or the weather. One condition can lead to another. It is all rather stressful and varies from annoying to totally debilitating at times.

I have found things that are helpful in avoiding flare ups and dealing with them when they inevitably happen. Hopefully, some of these can help someone else (even with a seasonal cold or flu) or if anyone else has any suggestions, I am always open to trying something new.

1. Get active – keep active. I generally find that the worst thing for me is to spend any amount of time laying down. There is almost always something I can do to keep active, especially now that I am retired and away from an 9 to 5 office job!

2. Dress accordingly. I wear loose tops, especially when I am dealing with a severe flare up. I have a lot of camisoles and sweaters – my go to wardrobe!

3. Relax. Different people have different ways to relax. I have a few things that generally help me, depending on the day and time. I will take a walk, meditate (recently I have been spending time listening to ‘singing bowls’ on You Tube and that definitely helps my meditating), read, have a warm bath, or have a glass of red wine. I wouldn’t recommend self medicating with alcohol for any purpose but it definitely helps once in a while. And it is wine 🙂

4. Laugh. Laughing helps a lot. I have a sister who sends me a humorous meme virtually every day. They generally involve flatulence 🤦 and they generally make me laugh. Thank you, Sis – way to keep me breathing.

5. Deep breathing. Recently I saw my specialist and he said while all physical exercise is good for the lungs, deep breathing exercises are particularly useful in maintaining lung function. He advised inhaling through my nose, pursing my lips and exhaling out of one side of my mouth. (This is helpful in releasing all of the air from the pockets in one’s lungs). So I tried it.

I showed my husband and he said I should alternate which side of my mouth I exhale out of. So I tried that…

The other side of my face doesn’t work. 🙄

6. Clean, fresh air. This one should be a given but, when you have bills to pay and your career takes you to office work in a construction company, that isn’t always a given. My advise here would be – if you are young, just starting out, and have vulnerable lungs – choose your career accordingly. A dusty, air conditioned office will eventually lead to serious problems.

7. Doctors, specialists, therapists, inhalers – whatever you need – get it and take it. The trick to respiratory conditions is to do everything in your power to control them and to avoid the acute flare-ups that cause permanent damage. On top of prescribed medications, I take a vitamin D supplement. Since I starting taking vitamin D, I seldom get a cold or flu, which is a good thing with my already compromised lungs.

8. When dealing with any health issues, what works for one person does not necessarily work for everyone. However, regardless of what health issues a person has, there are always things that one can do to make the situation better and things to avoid as they will make matters worse. Just keep trying until you figure out which is which for you.