Tag Archives: massage

Home Sweet Home

by
my family

my family

As we pulled in the driveway and unloaded the car all I could think of was sleeping in my own bed. I lugged our bags up the steps, sent Joey up the stairlift, got him settled on the couch with a cartoon and then collapsed in my bed. A few hours later I feel like a new person. I would be looking forward to a good night’s sleep in my bed tonight but instead, I will be sleeping on a bus with a bunch of middle school kids. Wait, I should rephrase that. Instead, I will be losing my mind awake all night on a bus with a bunch of middle school kids.

Oh the things we do for our children! We are leaving tonight for Washington D.C. for the 8th grade trip. We will change in a gas station tomorrow and start touring the city immediately. I won’t see a hotel room until late Thursday night. Attention other 8th grade parents: What were we thinking when we signed up for this trip????? I guess we were thinking we wanted to have this time with our kids.

I’m sure you are all curious as to how Joey is doing. He’s home. He can walk. He’s dragging his leg a little but he can walk And it doesn’t hurt. I don’t know if it was the steroid injection, the physical therapy, the massages, the acupuncture or a combination of all but he can walk without pain and without assistance! We decided to do outpatient physical therapy instead of inpatient rehab. He will have acupuncture, pysical therapy and a massage on Thursday. I really think that we just overdid on it spring break. His body hadn’t done that much physical activity in a long time. Now I know to watch the amount of activity and to get him a massage or other treatment immediately if we do a lot. He’s also going to increase his exercises at home to try to strengthen the hip and leg.

I really don’t know why we had this setback (and neither do the doctors) but we do know that it’s NOT LCH and that’s what’s really important right now. Although I know with my network of friends and family and our doctors at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital that we could defeat Histio again, I really don’t want to take that battle on. And our fight with Histio has prepared us to deal with almost anything else without blinking an eye. We got this!

Joey loves seeing your comments so please leave words of encouragement. Oh and wish me luck on this bus trip!

Be sure to check out Raising2tweens on Facebook.

P.S. If you are on this trip with me, let’s avoid talking about Joey’s condition. I want to focus on Andi for the next few days. She deserves it!

Taking a Break from the Worry

by

As parents I think we forget to take time for ourselves. My family has been a lot over the last six months (See Catching Up).There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t worry that the LCH is going to reactivate in my son Joey. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t worry how both kids are adjusting to our “new normal,” how Joey’s recovery is going or the endless amount of medical bills that have come along with this disease. In addition to that, I worry about the normal things like the mortgage, my job, laundry, cleaning the kitchen, carpools, my friends’ kids (especially one particular one right now – See Pray For Clay), if the kids are eating healthy enough, etc. It seems to be an endless amount of worry.

My worry was so intense two weeks ago that I literally had a migraine for six days. I would wake up and go to bed with it.  Nothing seemed to help. I tried pain relievers, lots of sleep, prescription medicine, acupuncture, massage and chiropractor. Everything would help or dull it briefly but nothing took it away entirely. I know it was a result of grinding and clinching my teeth, which was a direct result of worry.

I try to do little things for myself like get a pedicure every three to four weeks, hang out with friends or have a glass or three of wine. But I never do much more than that. Honestly, I’m very anal and like to have everything in my life planned. Yes, I’m one of those… a PLANNER. It even drives me crazy. I take months and months to plan vacations. I will review hotels for weeks before making a decision. My planning addiction is what makes me volunteer for everything – Girl Scout Leader, Soccer PA, Fundraisers, etc… I am in control if I’m the one planning it. If I plan it, I know what to expect. Yeah, I have issues.

Last Saturday I woke up with a dull headache but had to do a live interview for my employer. So I dragged myself out of bed, got ready and headed to the studio. I had plans to meet my friends Amy and Christine for a pedicure after. On our way to the salon, Christine mentioned there was going to be a meteor shower that night and how she would love to see it. She also mentioned that she had never been to Red River Gorge. Next thing I know, we are heading home from our pedis to pack our bags, grab our puppies and head to the Gorge. I maybe spent 10 minutes packing. I didn’t even take a flashlight.

We loaded the car and were on our way. Once we got to the area, we started making calls and found a cabin. We went on a hike that evening and the next morning. We spent the evening watching the Meteor Shower and seeing at least two dozen stars shoot across the sky. It was amazing. We also enjoyed a soak in the hot tub and just relaxing on the deck of our cabin while our puppies played. Although my children and everything else was in the back of my head, it was so incredibly relaxing.

I felt completely reenergized after that 30-hour trip. My migraine was finally gone and I even felt like a better mom. This little trip reminded me how important it is for parents to take time for themselves. We need to get away from the stress, take a break from the kids and recharge. I am going to try to make a point to do something for myself every couple months. It might not be an overnight trip every time but it will be more than a pedicure. What have you done lately to recharge?