If you are not familiar with ME/CFS.

This is only about 3 minutes long & is some very good info if you are not familiar with ME/CFS. It is the recent testimony of Annette Whittemore, founder & President of the Whittemore Peterson Institute (WPI) before the CFSAC. It is estimated that between 1-4 million Americans have ME/CFS.

Sometimes I Feel Like A Ghost

May 12th is International ME/CFS/FM Awareness Day. For the second year I am participating in Blogging for ME/CFS Awareness.

For the last couple of months I've been dealing with the worst relapse I've had in several years. The brain fog has been horrendous....to the point where it didn't feel like I was even in my body. I spent many days wandering in my house...not knowing what I was doing or needed to do, unable to leave, drive, or care for myself. I felt vacant, hollow, numb.....the person who I know myself to be felt as if she were slipping away into a murky realm. I felt like a ghost....

I've improved quite a bit just in the last week....not enough to write a whole lot...With the help of my awesome husband, Tony, he took some photos of me....then I added those to some photos we took in early November 09. It felt good to create a piece of art again, which I haven't been able to do in some time.

This piece was inspired by my wandering our house, feeling like a ghost.

Interesting Article

"They have shown that CFS/ME patients can experience a level of disability that’s equal to that of patients with late-stage AIDS, patients undergoing chemotherapy, and patients with multiple sclerosis." ~Dr. Nancy Klimas, MD

Full article HERE.

What would you do?

2009 was a difficult year. After the twisted ankle in the Spring, I had a hysterectomy in the Fall. My CFS symptoms have been waxing & waning a lot & have kept me from doing a lot of things. I've missed blogging. I'm hoping to be able to get back to it more often in 2010. Just came across this video today & thought I'd share.

1/22/10: I was just looking at this again & I realized I didn't say what I would do if I were no longer sick. SO here's my list of things I would do: Join the roller derby team, rock climb, run Bloomsday, get a tattoo, join a gym, do one of those hook suspensions, clean my house, work in the studio 8 hours a day, do some urban homesteading, be a real gardener with an amazing flower & veggie garden, canning my own veggies, cook, clean, do the laundry, write classes, write a couple of books, take the burden off of my husband, visit friends more, leave the house on my own, skydive, turn the studio into a real live business which would mean also having the clarity to do all the business stuff & etsy stuff, sketch everyday, create everyday, travel, be a better wife & mom, read books more......If I were well...like I was before I got sick...I could take on the world & DO SOMETHING amazing.