A Look Over the Past 10 Years

 10 years ago was 2016, which was the start of a major health roller coaster for me. In October, of that year, I was referred to a pulmonologist, who did some lung function tests, and told me I didn’t have asthma, like I had been told for years. He needed to do a bronchoscopy to find out what was causing my breathing issues. The bronchoscopy was done, which was extremely traumatic, and I was sent to a thoracic surgeon, who sent me to my wonderful, and amazing ENT. My ENT, Dr. Black, did an in-office scope, which was nowhere near as intensive as the bronchoscopy, and diagnosed me with subglottic stenosis. Essentially my trachea (windpipe) is narrowed just below my vocal cords. Dr. Black also figured out what was causing the subglottic stenosis, an autoimmune disease.   In 2018, I ended up having to have a tracheotomy, which I had for a little over a year and a half. That time was a really big struggle, in so many ways. I have also been diagnosed with dysautonomia, celiac disease, and exocrine pancreatic insufficiency. One of the biggest impacts on my health, other than the subglottic stenosis/trach thing, was that I have lost 135 pounds. Now, 10 years later, I can breathe so much better than I could back then. The subglottic stenosis, and the autoimmune disease that causes it, is fairly well controlled. I’m 135 pounds smaller than I was, my diet is more limited than ever, and my health is still a struggle, but I’m thankful for every day that God gives me. 

Also, in 2016, I had a 15 year old, and a 13 year old(well in Feb of 2016 she was 12), whom I was homeschooling at the time. Now, I have an, almost 25 year old, and a 22 year old, who is married, and has a 1 month old baby, my grandbaby. We also only had 2 dogs, our sweet boy T, and Lucy, who was just a baby at the time. Now we no longer have our T, we briefly had a rabbit, we still have our Lucy, although she is now an old, and cranky, lady, and we have added Ethel, and Bella. We have moved twice, and bought a house in the past 10 years. We live about 45 minutes from where we lived 10 years ago, in a town that we had heard of, but never thought we would live in. So many things have happened in the past 10 years. Some good, and some not so good. God has gotten us through each, and every one of them. We are stronger than ever before, and we are more blessed than ever before. While it doesn’t do to dwell in the past, sometimes it’s beneficial to take a short trip back there, just to see how far you have come. Now, I’m going to look forward to the next 10 years.