Sunday Snippets - 4th October 2015

It seems to have been an extra busy week for some reason – a collection of university lectures/work and various medical appointments, making me well and truly exhausted. I was just starting to get over the bug I mentioned last week, then a few days ago I woke up with a really sore throat, muscle aches and feeling fluey, so I’m yet again trying to dose myself up on medications to keep me going! Typically I feel like death warmed up for my birthday (today) but it hasn’t stopped me from enjoying my day. I will write a few separate posts to let you know what I’ve been up to for that very soon.

I shared this photo on my Instagram (Jennycole1988) on Monday, but it was actually taken on Sunday night. This is my sister, Rosiie, with her dog, Freddie – I thought it was really cute! On Monday I had a really interesting Law lecture at Uni, in preparation for our visit to Basingstoke Magistrates Court tomorrow. We had a bit of a challenge trying to access the room though and I ended up making a grand entrance when the caretakers had to roll out a massive metal ramp to get me down the stairs! In the afternoon I saw my bladder nurse, who changed my catheter. I asked for her advice on UTI’s because my consultant is reluctant to give me long-term antibiotics, so she’s going to have a chat to him about putting me on a special bladder treatment that you use weekly and gradually space it out. It’s been found to help repair the lining of the bladder, which they believe will help recurrent infections.

On Tuesday I had my STEPPS group as usual, but on the way out I bumped into my old GP, who left the practice about a year ago. She was the one who set me on the right track for getting my EDS diagnosis, so it was lovely to catch up with her and fill her in on what’s been happening. In the afternoon I had a back massage, which I really needed as my neck and shoulders were really painful and had so many knots. I try to have a massage every three weeks – I alternate between just having a back massage and having a full body massage. I think it does help with my pain a bit, but it also really helps me relax, which is something I always struggle to do. My Mum and I then popped to our local Tesco so I could choose my birthday cake, and I saw this canvas, which I thought was really pretty. It’s out of stock online unfortunately, but they had quite a few in store.

Wednesday was my only day this week that I had absolutely nothing planned. In retrospect it would probably have been a good idea for me to just rest at home, but I’m not great at listening to my body, so decided to do something with the family. My Dad, Brother, Auntie, Grandma and I went back to the Farm Shop for a spot of lunch. Again, it was really lovely and this time I went outside to see the ducks and chickens, who were snoozing in the sunshine. Unfortunately, I really didn’t feel too well though, so wasn’t able to enjoy it as much as I would have liked to.

Thursday was my full day at university, so I didn’t have much chance to take a proper photo. But when I got home and chilled out on the sofa, I was browsing through Pinterest and discovered all these cute cartoons by Chilbird. This ‘Friends’ one in particular made me smile, as I wasn’t feeling great mentally and it reminded me of my lovely chums.

Unfortunately, Friday was a pretty crap day from the moment I woke up. You know when you just think it would have been better if you stayed in bed? It was one of those days. It didn’t help that I was ridiculously busy, with the Pain Management course, a session with my Learning Mentor (which was actually really useful), a very heavy and confusing lecture and an appointment with the nurse, but I think even if it had been completely free it wouldn’t have made any difference. However, the dress I ordered for my Mad Hatter’s Tea Party at the end of October arrived, so I took a little sneaky peek photo for people to see.

This year my Mum has decided that I should have a birthday month, instead of cramming everything into one day and making myself feel even more ill. Of course, I didn’t refuse a whole month of birthday-ness! So yesterday my Mum, Dad and I had a lovely drive through the Hampshire countryside as we made our way to Long Barn in Alresford. I’m planning a separate post about our day, so I’ll just say that we had a really lovely day and are hoping to go back in the summer to see the lavender in full bloom.

I don’t usually end up talking about what I do on a Sunday because normally I write this post on a Sunday morning. But today, being my birthday, things have been a bit different so I’ll add it in. Around lunch-time we headed over to Alton and boarded a steam train to Alresford on the Watercress Line. Unfortunately neither of my sisters were able to make it, but the rest of us had a lovely day in the sunshine. This evening we are having a big family meal with birthday cake and maybe a few presents if I’m lucky! I can’t believe I’ll be 30 in 3 years – is it bad that I’m already planning how to celebrate?! I’d like to do 30 different things, so I’ll need to start thinking now! But I’d definitely like to have a big Disney themed party and would also absolutely love to go to Disney World, Florida, but need to find someone to come with me!

I know I mentioned this before, but just wanted to remind you that I recently started a second blog, which will just focus on my health in more depth than I talk about it here. I’ve mainly set it up for friends and family to follow and keep up with what’s going on, but if it’s something you would be interested in reading as well, you are more than welcome to follow me over there. It’s called Unicorns and Floral Crowns and you can find it by clicking here. I’m also trying to post on Snapchat a bit more, so if you fancy following me, my username is Jennycole44.

What have you been up to this week? I always enjoy hearing about your news and adventures!

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