This is the not so welcome sign on my hospital door the week of Thanksgiving… No sooner did I finish the previous blog post about being in the hospital during holidays did I start to feel a little “off”. I landed in the hospital after collapsing with sudden dehydration and the need for several bags [...]
Archive for the ‘Coping’ Category
Isolation and NPO…not such a welcome sign
Posted in Coping, Notes from the hospital bed, Resilience and Grace, tagged dedydration, Holiday, NPO, ostomy, Thanksgiving on December 8, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
if you’re feeling sketchy…try this
Posted in Coping, Resources, Thrifty and Nifty, tagged Arts, Cartoons, ostomy coping, People, Recreation on September 13, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
I stumbled upon this spontaneously as I was feeling sad tonight. I was literally thinking about missing people I love and feeling apart from any connection. I was feeling lost and needing some creativity. Draw cartoons, art, brainstorms, anything. It made me feel better. Give it a shot. No one needs to see it but [...]
The road to resilience
Posted in Coping, Resilience and Grace, tagged American Psychological Association, brain cancer, Coping, death, pain, recovery, resilence, road to resilience, sadness on June 9, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
I recently lost a very dear friend to brain cancer. I watched her health deteriorate, she maintained the strength to fight. Because of my own experience with my body letting me down, I initially was able to identify with her discouraging moments. After a while though, death approached and although I was not able to [...]
Twilight Dreams
Posted in Coping, Travel on February 28, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Sometimes there seems to be nothing to do, nothing going on and boredom sets in. I was in Phoenix recently and plans were altered due to rain. Rain we seemed to bring with us from Seattle. Usually this happens when I’m a little depressed and I allow myself to sit and stare. Don’t get me [...]
How to be alone
Posted in Coping, tagged activities to do on the weekend, boredome, how to be alone, sadness, weekend events on February 25, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
No weekend plans? Me neither. Sometimes it makes me feel lonely. Then I allow my mind to wander to insecure places of doubt and sad memories. This video views being alone in a lovely and nurturing light. I have weekend plans now: to be alone.
How often do I think about my bowel bag?
Posted in Coping, Tid Bits, tagged bowel bag, diary, hospital, illness, ostomy journal, pain, rememberance on January 25, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
How often do I think about my bowel bag? Enough to write about it in journals for 12 years. And another 15 before that, documenting my illness, disregard of my illness, depression and exhilaration. Adventures and stories. Research and library visits (before the internet) had me reading up on all the things I’d be able [...]
Mercy’s video
Posted in Coping, Help Others, tagged appliance, bowel bag, For Positive Living, Heidi Yssennagger, ileostomy, illness, mercy video, ostomy, ostomy lifestyle, OstomyAid, stoma, support, surgery, Tim Bedingfield on December 2, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
For Positive Living shows a short film by Tim Bedingfield about artist Heidi Yssennagger’s work creating “Mercy” for OstomyAid. I was moved by the quiet grace of this art project, along with the story about woman suffering globally. Using appliance materials, an artist with a stoma has created a piece in response to her research [...]
A new door opens
Posted in Coping, Help Others, Resources, tagged hospital, incision, ostomy nurse, post operative care, recovery, surgery on December 2, 2009 | 1 Comment »
Today I opened a new door when I spoke before a group of nursing students about living with an ostomy. Because of my fondness for those in health care, I immediately felt a sense of safety and comfort. After I shared my story, I answered questions ranging from diet to intimacy, to my wardrobe and [...]
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