This too shall pass...

I sit this morning, thinking and trying to be thankful to God, for what I am this morning.
Even though my mornings are hard, typically with outstanding amounts of pain, so much, words cannot escape from my mouth. I sit in stillness waiting. Waiting for the pain to pass, today, and everyday. It usually takes me a good full hour for the brunt of the pain to subside. I look forward to it, wait for it. Today, like everyday. I sit and reflect on mornings of the past. The past where that pain doesn't pass. I sit and be thankful that I anticipate today is going to pass. I have come a long way. I can function and I thank God for that. I know now that I'll journeyed to a point where I can almost guarantee the awful amount of pain will pass, and for that, I'm thankful. Now, and everyday. I wait for it...I have confidence it'll come, and I wait for it.

In the storm

Hello friends, your crazy Shell Lady has been busy busy the past month and I haven't had a moment to stop in and say hello. My personal struggle with illness continues its stormy path, but finally have received some hopeful news from my doctors. Simply by chance, seems we've stumbled across a medication combination that seems to treat (temporarily) my ongoing chronic condition. I had the need to be put on antibiotics over the Christmas holidays this past year for pneumonia. While on those, I had a severe allergic reaction to something in my studio and was given a simple steroid to treat the reaction. Shortly after being on the two medications (while taking my normal prescription regiment) I had a brief month period of complete and utter healing! When the illness reappeared in February, we didn't think much of the medication change. Then, once again, I was out back on antibiotics for another bout of pneumonia. As it worsened, the need to add another simple steroid was prescribed.  I again quickly regained my strength and my overall symptoms disappeared. The dosage was not as strong as the holiday period, but I was again pain & symptom free! Over the course of the next several months this happened one more time! Hoping three times a charm, my doctors have decided we're going to try to treat my mystery auto immune disease with the same combinations at a low dose and see where I stand in the next month. 

I'm sharing some photos today of a thunderstorm that rolled into Padre & Mustang Island. It reminds me of the storm I feel I have walked through for so long now! Here's praying (& praising) to God for the revelation hopefully in my long battle with this debilitating disease. Whatever freedom that is coming over the horizon to God be the glory! Hope y'all enjoy the photos & continue to lift me up in your prayers & thoughts. Thank you all for being by my side and cheering me on while I was 'in the storm'...