By Your Side

Back from Norman, my two new splints and bitter attitude in tow. I'm looking thru the materials that are much the same as they were 5 years ago when I see that all too familiar list of do's & don'ts. I won't bore you with all of that so I've copy/pasted just a little from the website. My favorite, most memorable part I've highlighted below.


LIFESTYLE
Avoid or reduce perfumes and scented products. These chemicals aggravate sensitive muscles.Don't sit or sleep directly under ceiling fans or vents.Watch head / neck position (cradling phone between head and shoulder).If you are able to tolerate aspirin products, take two tablets of Advil (or equivalent), an anti-inflammatory medication, four times daily. This is taken to reduce swelling and inflammation within the joint. If you are not sure of your tolerance to aspirin-like products or if you are taking any other medication, check with our office or your physician first.Prioritize your activities. Be ruthless…

Today I left my pain release splint sitting on the bathroom counter. The longest day ever and I leave my stupid mouthpiece at home!!! AAARRRRRGGGGHHHHH! Seriously!?
How?-my hubby asked.. well maybe it's because I have a bajillion things on my mind at the moment & trying to make sure I had report cards, conference summaries, retention forms & work samples ready on top of lesson plans, IEPs and oh idk.. LUNCH planned had my brain on overload. Not to mention it being a FD day so I'd have to get Nana to help out after school. So anyway, the point is, I left it.
By lunchtime, I can barely move my neck. I'm gnawing on my lasagna while talking to my pod-pal and I decide that my ibproferen is not going to cut it today. I will take a muscle relaxer as well.  I've done this before, no alarm here. However, as I open the bottle I ask my dear friend, "uh, did I already take this?" She says she's not sure & I shrug as I take it and keep talking. We laugh ab…

I had the best week ever.. like really, ever. I'll tell you why. We didn't do anything special really. We had a few little family get-togethers and such, but for the most part we stayed at home.. just the 4 of us. The Firefighter took two shift days off so altogether he had a 10 day break from the FD. We didn't accomplish much - no big projects or tasks. I worked on report cards one day from home but never went up to the school. The kids didn't do a single activity all week.
We simply allowed ourselves to slow down and do NOTHING! What a concept, I know, lol. We spent our time cuddling on the couch, watching movies, playing outside, laying in the sunshine, eating out, reading, riding bikes, going to the park, and playing games. I loved it. I loved every single minute of it.
It was just the BREAK I needed :)

Right now I'm reading the book "Crazy Love" on my Kindle and this analogy really struck me. Imagine life as this giant escalator going down. You are on this escalator surrounded by people on their descent. To be a Christian, a Christ-follower, you have to be actively fighting against the crowd taking steps up the escalator. If you are standing still you are actually losing ground without even realizing it. It's just like being in the river of life.. you have to keep swimming or the current will sweep you away.
So often I find myself drifting downstream.. or standing still as the escalator moves downward. I am so oblivious sometimes.
The world is going in one direction.. down. There's no such thing as standing still, or being "lukewarm." God says -you are either for me or against me. How can we think we can float thru life? Being a believer is a constant struggle against the world we live in. It is an active decision to keep following Jesus, to seek God&…

I feel so relieved today. Maybe it's because I can see a path toward recovery. Maybe it's because I didn't feel so alone today. Maybe it's because I'm returning to a road I've already been down. It could be a combination things but today, for whatever reason, I have hope.
Today I visited my old TMJ specialist, the first of many 2 hr trips I will be making in the coming year. My hubby took me and was with me thru the long exam process. It's been 5 years since I was treated for my TMD. Doc says that my condition has gotten worse and while I will be going thru the same sort of thing, he reassured me that we are not starting back at square one. We know that the splints work to correct the problem at hand, so I will be going back to them.. a day appliance that I wear at all times and then a nighttime one that I sleep in. However, we also know that this doesn't prevent my jaw from dislocating. I will have the same problems as soon as I stop wearing the splint…

Right now my kids are in lunch and I'm sitting here with tear-filled eyes as I sip my lukewarm chicken broth. I've decided to not work on anything for the moment and read my daily devotional. Now that's done I just feel the need to jot a few frantic feelings down. First of all, my jaw hurts. Okay enough of that, I know. But I just want to feel sorry for myself for a moment. My stomach is growling at the food I haven't ingested this week and I'm sick of the runny muck that I have. Second of all, I'm frustrated. Here it is the start of March Madness for teachers and on top of it all, I can't eat or sleep or think straight. I really don't need this hurdle, it's already hard enough. Thirdly, THANK YOU GOD.. I'm struggling but I haven't lost focus of his grace that it hasn't gotten so bad that I can't even talk. How sad I would be if I couldn't read my beloved Dr. Seuss stories this week to my students. Alright, time to go get my kids…

"Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me; O LORD, be my help. You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever."

We all have our own battles to fight, don't we? Life is full of struggles and chaos and pain at times. It's full of good things too. Isn't it funny that you feel surrounded by people during the good times. It's like when you are feeling great and all is well in your world that is when people come around. What about when things aren't so good?
Maybe it's just Satan getting his victory on me, but I feel so completely alone when I'm dealing with something in my life. I tend to feel down and discouraged and weak. I saw on the 30 day picture challenge that one of the topics is the person who has gotten  you thru the most in life and I immediately thought -God. It seems the only way I ever get thru anything is by prayer and surrender to God.
I try to be there for others. I don't know if that's ever made much of an impact in their lives, but I put my heart into it anyway. I pray for them, listen to them, encourage them, check in on them and just keep them …