Tag: health update

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Week in Review: May 31, 2026

As Mental Health Awareness month comes to a close, I wanted to share an update on my own mental health. For those who do not know, I have Bipolar 2 and I am also autistic.

I have been going through a difficult time the last few months. I started to feel easily overstimulated by social events and to feel restless when working or even sometimes relaxing. It got to the point where it took all of my energy to get through my workday, and I had to force myself to keep appointments for myself and my son. I stopped doing anything outside of what was absolutely required, even switching to watching church online.

After some research, it seemed I might have been experiencing autistic burnout, which is usually the result of spending years masking to fit in with neurotypical people. Not everything fit this explanation, but a lot of it did. After allowing myself a lot of time to rest, I started feeling like I wanted to be involved in social activities again, but I still had the sense that it would be too much for me.

Earlier this week, I met with my psychiatrist and I shared with her what I have been dealing with. She asked a lot of questions that didn’t make sense to me at first, but then she shared her suspicion that my symptoms might be related to a medication I was taking. We talked about some options and decided to gradually switch over to a different one and see how that helps.

I am still tapering off the first med, but I do feel a glimmer of hope that things could get better. I am thankful for a mental health professional that understands autism as well as mental health issues and can help figure out what is going on and offer a path forward.

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Week in Review: May 17, 2026

I love this pic of Peanut Butter. I had folded a blanket and left it on the floor, and he partly wormed his way underneath the top layer. So cute!

This week was a pretty good one. I am starting to feel a little bit more like myself again. although some days I have been really tired from staying up too late the night before. Work is going well, and Michael seems to be doing okay at his job, which I am thankful for. I got a much-needed haircut on Friday evening, and I saw my friend Kim on Saturday after a few weeks of us being busy with other things.

I have been doing a lot of puzzling and TV watching lately and not as much reading. I did sit down and write a few book reviews, though, so I will be posting those soon.

My biggest struggle lately has been with impulse control. This affects me in a number of areas and I am looking forward to talking with my psychiatrist in a couple of weeks. I think I may need to adjust some of my meds to help me stay more centered.

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Week in Review: March 29, 2026

The Mother to Mother Autism Luncheon that I am helping to planning is coming up in just three weeks, so now it’s time for me to get working on the program and the items that will be included in the folders and bags we hand out. Thankfully, a lot of the heavy lifting is done by the team at the main site, and I just have to tweak things for our location.

I had some unfortunate dental news this week. On Tuesday, I noticed that one of my teeth was pretty loose. The orthodontist had said my teeth might be a bit wobbly as they moved, but this one was really moving. It turned out to be one of my implants (I have two implants right next to each other). My dentist looked at it and said she believed the implant had failed and that an oral surgeon should evaluate both of them. The oral surgeon said that it has definitely failed, and that the other one would fail as well, due to too much bone loss, which is most likely because the implants were placed too close together.

So now I have to organize getting the implant crowns off and then getting the implants removed and a bone graft done. I need a driver for the appointment, and I need to make sure Michael can get to and from work, and it’s going to cost $3600. I’m also stuck eating soft food for the foreseeable future so I don’t fracture it before it can get taken care of. Ugh!

On a positive note, I took Friday off work to watch the first day of the USA Jigsaw Puzzle Association Nationals. Friday was the individual prelims, Saturday was the pairs and teams prelims, and Sunday is the finals for all three categories. I had purchased a 1500 piece puzzle to do while I was watching, and I ended up staying up until 3 AM on Saturday morning finishing it! I haven’t taken pictures of the puzzle yet, but here’s a picture of the box:

I did get all caught up on laundry on Friday as well, which was good, but I was definitely avoiding a bunch of admin stuff I really need to do. There are a few things on my list which I am anxious about, so it’s really hard to make myself tackle them.

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Week in Review: March 22, 2026

This has been a pretty good week. Peanut Butter turned 13 on Monday. He is still pretty healthy, despite his age, which I am thankful for.

In health news, I had my three-month check-in with the orthodontist, and he was pleased at how much movement has happened with my teeth so far. He gave me trays 13-25, so I will see him again in another three months.

I got to spend time with two good friends this week. Renee came over Friday evening and we ate together and played a bit of puzzle chess and then watched a few episodes of Best Medicine. She is a fan of Doc Martin, so I wanted her to see the new American version of the show, and she liked it. Then Kim came over Saturday for lunch and a movie. We get together every other weekend and take turns hosting. We had a nice time.

I haven’t been reading as much lately as I usually do. I have only finished two books in March, both of which were mysteries. I was about 80% done with a third one and then it automatically returned to Libby and I had to put it on hold again! I am currently about 40% done with another one; this one is on my Kindle so I don’t have to worry about it going away, lol.

Michael seems to be doing pretty well at his job. He feels like he has a good handle on the daily tasks. He has had a few awkward interactions with people, but we talk through them and I try to give him suggestions on how to handle them in the future. I know I have my own share of social issues, but I do have the benefit of a few more years of experiences to draw on.

All in all, a pretty good week!

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Week in Review: February 8, 2026

I have been feeling more stressed this week. I think I could use some of these stress balls! Work is super busy as I am helping out another department, and in my personal finances, I am trying to get some information I need to finalize how to handle something. After several attempts, I think I found someone who might be able to answer my questions (fingers crossed). There is also no news on the job front for Michael.

On Monday, I had a combination endoscopy/colonoscopy. The procedures went well and the results from both were good. I am especially happy about the endoscopy because there were no eosinophils found in the biopsies, which means that my condition is under control with the medication I am on. That is a welcome change from the first 50 years of my life, with a lot of that being before I even had an accurate diagnosis.

Today, I was invited to go to a performance of Hadestown: Teen Edtion. The performance was incredibly good; it was hard to believe some of the cast were really teenagers! I did find the event quite draining, however, especially sitting in the loud, crowded auditorium before the play and during the intermission. I would have loved to have some noise canceling headphones at those times.

I have to go into the office Monday and Tuesday to do some training, so those days are going to be quite busy for me. I’m hoping things will quiet down a bit after that.

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Week in Review: January 11, 2026

Peanut Butter has been enjoying the winter sun when he can, and he seems to really like my soft winter blanket.

This has been an interesting week. Michael’s dad is retired now and is trying to figure out everything with insurance, which affects us because Michael will be on his insurance until he turns 26. He did get the health insurance squared away, but we are still waiting to hear on prescription, dental, and vision. Michael did see the dentist this week, but it was to get his permanent crown, so the cost was already covered under the initial crown appointment last month, thankfully!

I am on tray #3 of my Invisalign, and that seems to be going well. They said I could leave the trays on an extra day if they still seem tight, but I’m not very good with vague instructions like that. I have taken it to mean that if I can’t get the new trays on, I should hold off on them. So far I have been able to use the new trays on time.

Below is a picture of the puzzles I purchased over the last few weeks of 2025. I am currently on a puzzle buying moratorium because I started the year with 71 puzzles waiting to be done and they no longer fit comfortably on the shelf I have set aside for that purpose. My goal is to not buy any new puzzles until I have my to do list at 50 or below. It will be a challenge for sure!

Yesterday was a busy day for me. I get together with a friend every other Saturday for lunch and a movie, and this time it was my turn to host. We watched People We Meet on Vacation and both really enjoyed it.

In the evening, I went with a friend from church to see comedian Josh Johnson in York. We had a good time. It was a powerful show that touched on some timely issues.

This morning I went to church, which was lovely. I connected with several friends and was very moved by the service. And now I am enjoying a relaxing Sunday afternoon!

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Week in Review: December 28, 2025

What a nice week this was! I enjoyed having the extra days off for Christmas. Outside of the holiday, the biggest thing that happened this week was starting my Invisalign treatment. It has been a big adjustment, but not as bad as I thought it would be. The trays don’t hurt while they are on, but there is some discomfort right after I take them out to eat. It is daunting to think that this will be part of my life for the next eighteen months!

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Merry Christmas Eve/Michael Health Update

Merry Christmas Eve! Michael finished his Minecraft Lego advent calendar today. He really enjoyed discovering each new item as the month progressed.

Here is the finished display:

A little over three weeks ago, Michael had a manometry study to test the motility of his esophagus, in an ongoing effort to discover why he has trouble swallowing food. The results of the test were apparently normal, but they did make a note that there was “absence of contraction in the skeletal portion of the esophagus.”

Based on this finding, they have referred him to be assessed for possible neuromuscular disorders. Unfortunately, the first available appointment with that department isn’t until September 2026.

It is confusing to me why this is not considered a GI issue, but we are seeing the GI doc in January so hopefully can get a better explanation then. From some reading I have done, it may also explain his chronic constipation issues.

Thankfully, he is able to swallow as long as he has enough liquid to help get it down, so he is okay for now.

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Week in Review: December 21, 2025

L to R: Chris, Evan, Michael, Hans

I had a good week overall. I had a few moments when I felt overwhelmed by everything I needed to get done, but there were also some really good things. I had a couple of good doctor appointments, and Michael had some dental work done successfully with the help of a little sedation.

On Friday evening, my friend Suzanne came over for dinner. We usually work on a puzzle together, but this time she needed to get home to help her son with some renovations he is doing to her house so that he can move in with her.

Then on Sunday, my friend Renee, her boyfriend Chris, and her two sons Evan and Hans came over to celebrate Christmas with Michael and me. We had a really nice time. We ordered Chinese food, and I had made a couple of treats that I remembered from my childhood – sour cream cookies and a Heath-inspired dessert bar. We also exchanged gifts, and Renee gave me a puzzle that she picked up at a farmers’ market. ☺️

After dinner, Renee asked to play puzzle chess, and we played two rounds of that. We used a couple of the cereal puzzles I got earlier this year, and we each won one round. Here are the puzzles we did:

This week I only work Monday and Tuesday, and on Tuesday I will be off for a couple of hours to get my first Invisalign trays. Michael is going to stay at his dad’s Wednesday and Thursday night, so I will have a quiet Christmas/birthday and will celebrate with Michael on Friday.

Merry Christmas to all who celebrate!

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Week in Review: December 7, 2025

I had a good week with just a couple of appointments. I went to the orthodontist to get prepped and scanned for starting Invisalign. The appointment was a lot longer than it was supposed to be because their scanners were acting up, which wasn’t helped by the fact that I have a very small mouth that is hard to maneuver the scanning wand in.

I also went to the optometrist. I was happy to be able to go to the one that I prefer due to an insurance change, and he updated my prescription and added prisms to make it easier for me to focus. I will go back in six months for the diabetic medical exam.

Michael did not work again this week. He was originally scheduled for Wednesday, but that morning they texted him that they were low on product and he did not need to come in. His job coach’s manager is going to contact them to see what their plans are for his employment, so hopefully we will find out more information this coming week.

I started doing Christmas puzzles this week and have completed three already. I have also finished five books so far this month, as well as a short story called Goblins & Greatcoats. The story is by Travis Baldree and is set in the world of the Legends & Lattes series. It is a fun story that features Zyll, a goblin who appears in the most recent book, Brigands & Breadknives.