UPDATE on skin and life!

A lot has been going on around here.  For anyone not familiar with my blog or has not kept up - here is a brief rundown on life for me:  My husband and I purchased 68-70 acres 3 years ago in Kentucky.   Our dream is to basically live off the land as much as possible.   For the last 5-6 years I have studied alternative medicine and nutrition due to my ever worsening "eczema" and health problems.  We have drastically changed our diet and have slowly become more healthy.  My kids used to get the average 2-3 colds/illnesses per year when they were younger, but now are rarely ever sick.  If they get a cold once a year, even that is a lot for them!  But anyway, my husband and I are both nurses....working as traveling nurses around the country the last 7.5 years.  We had planned to move to our property last year and start building a house and starting our small farm.  But alas, TSW had other plans for us.  So now with me back to work, we thought we could try going out there this spring.  We went there last week for interviews and to look for a place to rent or buy  near our property so we can get started.

The trip was a success in that we were offered jobs in a few places.  Unfortunately with  being off of work all last year, financially it may not yet be possible to move.   We are still discussing this and will decide soon, but it is possible we will continue to work here in NY for another 6 months or longer.  I would be upset if we don't make the move, but moving with less money would create its own stress.  So we will see....

As for my skin...doing GREAT!  I had a mini-flare on my neck and forearms while in Kentucky.  I am sure stress played a role!!  But it has started healing nicely already.  My hands continue to do really well! I tried to find my camera this morning to take pictures, but my camera for the moment is lost.  I have a lot of cleaning to do and re-organizing so I am sure I will find it soon!  Still itching more than usual at night, but sleeping decently with only 1.5 tabs of benadryl and nothing else.  My ankles  look wonderful!  They have been healing a lot recently.  My mini-flare on my belly button from over a  week ago has not healed well....I think it has something to do with wearing jeans and sitting down driving for such long stretches!  Hopefully it will heal this week.

As for how well things really are....here is a clue:  Hubby had to work Friday last week.  I left Friday morning for Kentucky and he was going to drive in on Saturday.  I took all 3 kids and 2 dogs.  I packed the truck myself with everything we were going to need for everyone.  It did NOT overwhelm me at all.  I was fully packed and ready to go Thursday afternoon.  I had cleaned out the fridge and made sure I had all contact information for our interviews.  I woke up at 6 am Friday and on the road by 6:30.  Our 2 dogs are long-haired German Shepherds.  One is 3 years old and acts like a teenager still.  And the other is a 4 month old puppy.    The first 15 minutes of the trip I spent yelling at the 3 yr old dog.  He whined like crazy!!  My husband has spoiled him rotten by always keeping his window down so he can stick his head out - even in the dead of winter....freezing the kids out!  It was 38 degrees out and there was no way I was rolling down any windows!  So he sat there whining like crazy!  I threatened to leave him on the side of the road, but he wasn't hearing me (haha!).  I then pulled over and decided he needed some training.  We use a prong collar for him for control at times.  He has super long hair and while the prong collar is meant to pinch the skin, it actually pinches his hair which he hates. So it is very effective without being cruel.  So I attached a leash to his prong collar and VOILA!  No more whining with only 2 small tugs on the leash!  It was a beautiful ride the rest of the way!!  He got greatly rewarded for this wonderful behavior and was a whole different dog in the car!  I think twice he nudged my arm to say "Hey it's been awhile since you last opened the window for me"...but other than that it was great!

So why am I telling you that story???  Because if you have TSW and are in the throws of despair from being in a bad flare, you can imagine that a trip like this would be entirely IMPOSSIBLE!!  There is no way I would have managed a 12  hour drive with 3 kids and 2 dogs by myself. Let alone unpacking at midnight and making sure everyone was fed and had  potty breaks, and dealing with whining from a dog no less!  I am telling you this so that you can visualize that life WILL go on and you WILL get better!!   That the little things that bother you today  will not bother you in the near future!  That you will focus on so many more things than your skin one day!  I will be 14 months into TSW soon....and doing amazing considering my usage history and significant physical problems I had (like liver problems and adrenal fatigue).

Hoping you are all doing well today!  If  not, please know you  will feel normal someday- hopefully someday really soon!