Mountains into Roads

Have you ever been hit over the head by a verse?  Then you go and read the whole chapter and know that it's the place to sit and meditate on for a while?  This happened to me this week.  I was reading in my Streams in the Desert devotional and came across this one on Wednesday- I have parked in Isaiah 49 for the current time.

Stream in the Desert- August 2

This devotion has this verse at the top and as the focus and as I really began to read through it I began to really take the words to heart and think maybe it's time to tell my story- in one place.  The thing about a story that hasn't been finished is that it's constantly evolving and being added on to.  It's been a while since I have told my story so it's time- sit back, grab a cup of coffee/water/tea/etc and take a gander at where I have been and where I am going and those mountains that have been turned into roads.

Mountain #1- We have to start the story by wandering back to November of 2008- Thanksgiving week I ended up sick and had an allergic reaction to a medication.  A week later I ended up with some horrific pain where I could barely drive.  It went away after several hours but I still pondered that pain.  It was the first time I had ever experienced that level of pain.  A week after that I had a routine dr appt for bloodwork and all that jazz.  I mentioned it to her and she ran some tests.  They concerned her enough she got me an appt for a CT scan because she thought I had had a kidney stone.  I went for the CT scan and one week before Christmas she brought me in and told me she was referring me to a urologist because in both of my kidneys were lots of stones.  She told me that she didn't know what he would want to do but there was a chance that I could lose a kidney- I was in denial pretty much all of Christmas break and then in January 2009  I went to that urologist and found out that he's a specialist for a reason 😉.  I was diagnosed with Medullary Sponge Kidney which basically means that my body makes stones in the spongey part of my kidney- sometimes they pass, sometimes they stay where they are.  And, if they pass I may not always realize it because of size.  It's fairly rare and supposedly I was born with it (there's not a LOT of research on it and there's a lot of conflicting information but what I can tell you is that I have it "easy" compared to others with this disease). So knowing that he wanted me to cut back on several foods including nuts and chocolate (boo).  I did well with this and had 2 more painful stones pass in 2010- one in June and one in December.

Road #1- I saw my body respond well to the change in diet except for the two stones and things went along well for a while.

Mountain #2- 2011-2012- in 2011 I had a bulging disc all summer and into the fall and then in 2012 Stress levels were high- so high the district I was in had the school nurse checking my blood pressure every week because it flagged at a school wellness thing they did.  My doctor kept an eye on it as well and in June 2012 I had a variety of things happen all at once.  I went hiking with a friend and saw pictures of myself.  I was so discouraged by what I saw that I knew it was time to make some changes.  At the same time my doctor finally told me it was time to go on blood pressure medicine.  I was discouraged and so frustrated by the whole thing that I began a new journey.

Road #2- this bp issue then led me to begin running, spinning, and taking my health serious (this is important to the future story). I began running 5K's and fell in love with exercising.  I made my health a priority- even after school started. This is big because in 2011 I had that bulging disc and I was told I would NEVER run.

Mountain #3- In 2013 I wanted to take my love of healthy living further and found The Institute for Integrative Nutrition but the cost was a HUGE mountain.

Road #3- BUT God- He provided through a generous gift from someone anonymously and I began studying in May 2013.

Mountain #4- it's strange to say but my mountain then sort of came about because of IIN- while I was learning and taking away so many things I also lost sight of what worked and weight started slowly coming back on- then I had some physical issues that were challenging and eventually led to sinus surgery in 2014.  That mountain is the weight that I have put on.

Road #4- While I would love to say that the mountain has completely become the road- it would be a lie- it's still an uphill battle with my weight day in and day out.  I know what worked for me before and you would think well it should be a no-brainer BUT I became a slave to calories and while physically I was healthier- it messed with my head so I have to approach it a bit different.

Mountain #5- Professional stress which took its toll physically (there's not a lot to say here so...)

Road #5- I moved- got a new job- still have some professional stress but it's different.

AND- since this has gone on long enough- I'm going to stop here and address Mountain #6 in my next post (and I'll write it right now).