My Story (Revised)

(I have just made a discovery that those, who were interested in "My Story," rightfully went to the said blog entry. However, the posted "My Story" from Dec. 2006 is outdated, now 4 yrs. old and my illness journey has had many turns since then. Thus, a new "My Story" is in order, and I will make the adjustments as necessary, considering that a) we know a lot more about my illness now, and b) a lot more has happened since the beginning of this blog. So - here is "My Story," again, which is very similar to the first, but updated and revised where needed. Enjoy!)

For the past 8 years, I have endured a traumatic cycle of "systems" failures. In the spring of 2002, I suffered a near fatal bout with food poisoning, E. Coli, that went undiagnosed, then misdiagnosed, and the delay of treatment and the mistreatment resulted in digestive system failure. In the process of recovery from this predicament, I entered into another long season of illness in 2004-2005, with the failure of my adrenal glands and the malfunctioning of my endocrine system as a whole. Following a miraculous rebound from this somewhat frightening experience, I entered into yet another process of perseverance in health crisis; the summer of 2006, both my immune and endocrine systems, once again, fell into rapid decline, with the thyroid and adrenal glands being the main causes of concern. My recovery from this "crash" (as we began to call them), was slower and in stages; and when I finally began to reach a functional level of "normalcy" by summer 2008, I was blind-sided by yet another relapse (or "crash"), which lasted almost an entire year - this last one being the most severe symptomatically, most life-threatening, and has been the most difficult to overcome.***

What is this strange ailment???? It's called "Adrenal Insufficiency," (see update below) more specifically "cortisol resistance," in which my body neither absorbs, nor properly uses, the hormone cortisol. For those with some medical background, it's akin to Type 2 diabetes, except, instead of the pancreas and insulin being the targets of malfunction, this involves the adrenal glands and cortisone. It took 7 and a half yrs. of my illness to finally "nail down" an official diagnosis, especially since there were many complications that occurred as a result, in addition to the fact that this condition mimics a wide array of autoimmune illnesses and diseases.

Unfortunately, with the nature of my illnesses being somewhat unique (and rare), the discovery of the diagnosis was extremely difficult for medical professionals. Thus, throughout these seasons of sickness, I have endured unbearable abdominal and bodily pain, unrelenting nausea and disorienting dizziness, oppressive fatigue and muscle weakness, all under the scrutinizing eye of disgruntled, baffled, and sometimes judgmental physicians (with the exception of 2 or 3 God-sends), who could offer little relief or answers except, on occasion, their somewhat degrading opinions and humiliating advice.

The prolonging hours of suffering thrust me into pressing-in to discover the truth of the Word of God. I knew and loved the Lord, but never in the capacity that I could have possibly imagined until I faced these trials of faith. His Word is Truth. If the Bible says God is good, then God is good! If His Word says that He will never leave me nor forsake me, then He is here with me in my suffering. If He says that He will walk me through the Valley of the Shadow of Death, then that is exactly what He is going to do. I have come to the understanding that even if He doesn't answer my prayers the way I thought He would or should, it doesn't mean that He hasn't. In fact, God is always speaking, always listening, always persevering with us. We just have to come to the place where we can trust that He is Who He says He is, regardless of where we are or what we're going through. God is still the same; He doesn't change. When all else falls away, He is our Stay.

***This last crash was the most painful and critical, lasting from Aug. 1, 2008 to June 18, 2009, in which I was in varying stages of grave incapacitation, including quarantine (for safety). June 18th was when I left my wheelchair and began the hard road to rebuilding my body in every area, retraining it to literally do what bodies do naturally (digestion, compensation of weather changes, adjustment to different "energies" of different social exposures, among others). This rebuilding has been slow and arduous, and by the Fall of 2009, I had plateaued. On Dec. 3, 2009 - I received prayer for my illness, and have sense made leaps and bounds in my progress of rehabilitation. Now, though still on medication, I am making higher/quicker climbs out of the "pit," not quite back to normal, but able to do what others might say is impossible to do with my medical history and status. Who knows? Maybe God is making a "wonder" out of me after all - all for His glory, Amen?

"It is my pleasure to tell you about the miraculous signs and wonders that the Most High God has performed for me. " (Dan. 4:2)

(New update posted Jan. 2011: Spring 2010 - we discovered that the Adrenal Insufficiency was being caused by Lyme Disease, contracted when I was a child that directly attacked the adrenal glands. This immediately resulted in different minor, semi-major health issues that progressed in severity throughout my preteen-teen years, yet went discarded and overlooked as anything serious until the food poisoning incident of 2002, in which the adrenal crises began to occur. Having found the root of the ailment, I have begun treatment that has dramatically improved my energy and strength, which I have not experienced in years. Again, I am still on medication for pain and endocrine support, but with the root discovered, a mostly normal life is on the horizon!)