aspir(al)ing

Anniversary.

Posted by terri | Filed under chub chub, health

Today marks my one year anniversary since being diagnosed with Type II Diabetes. Upon reading a journal that I kept at the time, I seemed hopeful that I would be able to manage my blood sugar and mitigate complications. As hopeful as I was, I have to say that I have exceeded my expectations as far as my progress goes. The fact that I was able to get off of meds and lose as much fat and gain as much muscle as I have is quite remarkable. What’s even more remarkable is that I didn’t deprive myself of much; I just made sure that if I wanted something good to eat, I’d just have to earn it with exercise and that I would always have to be cautious of not overdoing it. And even though it’s been one year, I know this not the “end of the road” — it has to be a continuing journey…
Read the rest of this entry…

The Enbrel Vlog.

Posted by terri | Filed under health, vlog, watashi

I made a video of one of my Enbrel injections. If you are squeamish about needles and stuff like that, this video may not be for you. Granted, you don’t actually see the needle, but the pain on my face is enough to make you cringe!

I normally take my Enbrel injections on Thursdays and I just on a whim decided to make a video with it with my iMac and my point and shoot camera. In hindsight, I shouldn’t have used Photo Booth to take the footage because everything appears flipped, but I’m pretty pleased with it, considering how fast I was able to put it together. Yay iMovie ‘09!

So you may be thinking, why would I put something like this out there? Well, I just wanted to be a face for psoriatic arthritis and for its available treatments. When I was first suffering from the symptoms, I never would have imagined that it would be arthritis. Apparently my primary care doctor couldn’t think of it either as she referred me to a sports medicine doctor for my swollen fingers, thinking that they were just sprained. It finally took seeing four different doctors over the course of three months for me to finally get my diagnosis for my hand pain. And when I was given my diagnosis, I didn’t even know what it actually meant. I thought only older people got arthritis, but it turns out that there are many young adults, even children, are afflicted with some form of arthritis. I came to the understanding there is no cure for this, only treatments. And if they never find a cure, it’s something I have to learn to treat for the rest of my life.

The idea of having to take an injection every week scared me. I first looked to the Internet to see what others going through the same thing were thinking. It gave me a sense of therapy to see other people share their experiences. Sure there was anxiety seen in their faces, heard in their voices, and expressed in their written narratives, but that just told me it’s normal and that in the end, I’ll be okay.

Making the video turned out to be rather therapeutic for me as well. Not sure if I’ll ever make another one, but I’m glad that I made this one. I definitely welcome your thoughts and reactions.

So What’s New?

Posted by terri | Filed under blogmeta, chub chub, health, heart, watashi

There is so much I want to chronicle regarding my journey in managing my diabetes, arthritis, and just my overall well being. I decided to do it in a microblog powered by Tumblr called terri-is.aspiraling. While that blog is meant to chronicle what’s currently going on, I want something on the record to show what I’ve done with myself for the past year as far as my health goes. I decided that I’ll just do the lazy thing and put nearly a year’s worth of updates in bullet points. If I ever find the time, I may, just may, elaborate. And if you have been reading my Twitter (which I update about 5 times a day) you might very well be up to date already.
Read the rest of this entry…

Short Story Long.

Posted by terri | Filed under chub chub, health, watashi

I lately have been oversharing a lot of bits about my health these past several months. When using Twitter, I have been rather ambiguous about my condition, while being more specific in my blog. Unfortunately, my blog has been rather ignored (per usual) and so all there has been lately is ambiguity as to what I’m dealing with right now.

First of all, let me say that I am not going through anything gravely serious. I am not looking for sympathy or pity, because what I’m going through certainly doesn’t warrant it. I do want people to understand what is motivating me to take better evaluation of my health and why I may seem “healthier” these days when in actuality, I am just trying to mitigate any problems I may have in the future due to my current ailments.
Read the rest of this entry…

Unexplained Owwies.

Posted by terri | Filed under health

I unfortunately have been plagued with some issues regarding my right arm and hand. What’s more unfortunate is that I can’t quite recall any incidents that may have caused my right extremity to be so sore. It feels like I am suffering from a sprain or fracture on my ring finger and my pointer, along with a tennis elbow and a stiff shoulder. I was alarmed enough to visit the doctor, but it turned out to be an almost worthless visit. She couldn’t come to any real conclusion except to guess that there were all unrelated things. The only thing I got out of it was having some blood work done and then a referral for a hand specialist. To make matters worse, I have to wait three weeks to this specialist for a problem not quite identified.

2009 has definitely been the year of me realizing my mortality, if you haven’t already figured that out. I can’t ignore every little thing going on with my body like I could before. I’m inclined to believe that this pain in my hand is a bad sign of things to come. I would like to hope for the best, but my recent lackluster medical treatment has left me with little confidence in leading a healthy, complication-free life. Oh well, we shall see what this hand specialist has to say when I see him…

Mandated to be Motivated.

Posted by terri | Filed under chub chub, health, watashi

I haven’t put an entry in over a month. Anyone who reads or subscribes to this blog would think, “Well, you hardly update that often anyway.” What I am happy to report is that I actually have two good excuses. Today’s entry: Good Excuse #1.

Read the rest of this entry…

Twenty-Nine And a Half.

Posted by terri | Filed under health, watashi

I had a good friend who once told me that St. Patrick’s Day is a day that I should celebrate because for me, it marks 6 months until my birthday. That was something I could appreciate because that day marked the longest possible time between my last birthday and my next birthday. On the other hand, I hate being reminded that I am getting “incrementally older.”

Today being March 17th, I am now 29 “and a half” years old. I have been thinking about this day for awhile now. I figured when the day came, I would just be thinking about how I can savor the next 6 months of being a “twenty-something.” The big 3-0 seems like a huge deal to me and I guess it has a lot to do with the unrealized potential I’ve had throughout my twenties and earlier. The sensible part of me says that age really is just a number, and that I shouldn’t let a number tell me that it’s too late to follow my dreams or to strive for something better. Then there’s a passionately sensitive part of me that says that I just can’t ignore the significance of two whole digits changing in my age.

A week ago, I got a HUGE wake up call about how I’ve been living my life these past 5 years. At this time, I won’t go into details except to say that it has to do with going to the doctor for the first time in 10+ years. My outlook on life, in a matter of a 15 minute visit with the doctor, ended up changing entirely. In this past week, I’ve gone through a range of emotions such as embarrassment, disappointment, and sadness. Perhaps a sense of relief came over me as well as I have finally gotten explanation of what was going on with me as mentioned in an earlier entry. I’ve approached the news with humor and also with anger, but I have no choice but to look my situation in the face and just deal with it. So today, instead of thinking of unrealized dreams and lamenting on the past, I ended up thinking of the future — knowing that my situation presents an opportunity I have NO CHOICE but to take.

In realizing my mortality, my thirties are definitely going to be different. It definitely takes something like being told that you can die if you don’t change that can motivate you to realize your potential. I know it’s not going to be easy, and so I’m very grateful for the support system I have and for those who haven’t been so supportive because of their lack of understanding, I won’t take it personally nor will I let it set me back.

I know 30 is really just a number, and when I get there, I probably will think it’s not such a big deal after all. I have friends who are already there who say that ends up being the case. So maybe this news comes as a coincidence coming near my “29 and a half birthday.” Whatever the case, I have quite a road ahead of me.

All pho feeling better…

Posted by terri | Filed under health, tabemono

Just when I write about needing to find a doctor, I find myself getting sick with a scratchy throat. And a scratchy throat can only mean one thing: heading all the way across Ala Moana during lunch for pho. For others, pho is the food of choice for a hangover, but seeing as I don’t drink (um, anymore), it has become the food for relieving symptoms of a cold. Whenever I’m sick, I always find some comfort in some pho. That yummy broth and its rice noodles of that perfect texture taste so good when I’m feeling icky.

Chicken Pho from Bale in Ala Moana

I’m probably going to take this opportunity to find more establishments that serve pho while I’m under the weather as I don’t care to eat it when I’m feeling well. I’ve been to Pho Viet in Aiea and several Bale locations on the island. I have never found a bowl of pho that I didn’t like, but I know some are better than others. Next stop tomorrow on my day off will probably be Pho Five-O in Waimalu. I hope it’s good, and I hope that I can get rid of this bug.

Is there a doctor in the house?

Posted by terri | Filed under health, watashi

Anyone in my closest circle knows what I fear doing the most: going to the doctor. I have indeed gone to great lengths throughout my life to avoid going to see one. It has a lot to do with my self-consciousness and my strong belief that the body can heal itself just fine. On top of that, my very few experiences with the doctor were rather horrible ones. It has probably been ten years since the last time.

I can only hold out for so long.

Lately, I’ve been feeling sluggish and fatigued, and what’s worse is that I find myself having trouble concentrating. Hunny has been telling me time and again to get my thyroid tested as these problems with functioning are symptoms of hypothyroidism. Seeing how he knows what he knows and reading about it on the internet, I am inclined to believe it.

Though I am nowhere near death’s door, I certainly am feeling a sense of my mortality these days. And so, the white flag is raised, and I am making the commitment to finally see a doctor. Hunny has an endocrinologist I can go see, but I also need to make the commitment to find a primary care doctor. Hunny knows first hand that not all the doctors are the same. The problem is, I don’t know where to begin in finding a doctor that is right for me. Best start is my insurance provider, of course, but it still won’t help me narrow it down.

I am open for ideas as I figure this out. I am so down for feeling better.

Aloha!

Hello from the island of O'ahu in the beautiful state of Hawaii. I am terri, a local girl who at 30 is trying to make sure that life doesn't entirely pass her by. I've recently become engaged and am enjoying living a great life in paradise.