Answers! :)

It's not just all in my head!  Such a relief to finally have found a doctor who listened to me and cared enough to keep on looking beyond just the surface.  


Living in the Pacific Northwest means it is common for almost all of us to lack somewhat in Vitamin D but for some of us levels can get extremely low... like "dirt low" as my doctor referred to my levels.  

Turns out Vitamin D deficiency can lead to numerous health problems like osteoporosis, heart disease, increased risk of cancers, arthritis, autoimmune diseases, PMS and infertility issues, etc.  

Frequent symptoms that effect those of us with very low levels include: obesity (and subsequent difficulty in loosing weight), depression and other mood/anxiety disorders, excessive fatigue, muscle, bone and joint pain, restless sleep, poor concentration and headaches.

Wow. Seriously.  I'm relieved that there is a reason for so many of the symptoms I've had over the years.  The obesity, clinical depression, headaches, fatigue and daily pain - it's not all in my head. 

 

For more information about Vitamin D deficiency, please visit the 501(c)(3) non-profit Vitamin D Council website here.



An official diagnosis of PCOS (Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome, also known as Stein-Leventhal Syndrome) was also in the cards.  About time.

 

PCOS is one of the most common hormonal endocrine disorders in women but because there are no specific tests that can resolutely end in diagnosis, physicians have to rely on a combination of tests and symptoms to diagnose women effected with the condition.

PCOS is a hormonal disorder which can result in irregular menstrual cycles, cysts on the ovaries, infertility, acne, hair growth issues (excessive growth and thinning), pelvic pain, anxiety and depression, sleep issues, obesity (excessive weight gain and difficulty loosing it) and increased risk of diabetes.  Yikes.

There is no cure for PCOS however there are some things that can be done to help with the symptoms. 

• Lifestyle modification - weight loss specifically in order to keep insulin and glucose levels under control which have been found to directly correlate with PCOS symptoms.
• Birth control pills - the steady hormone levels can help control menstrual cycle issues, lessen acne issues and reduce male hormone levels (androgens) which are a key factor in the development of PCOS issues.
• Diabetes medication - if patient is suffering from insulin related issues in correlation with PCOS.
• Fertility medications
• Topical medicines for acne, hair growth issues. 

For additional information about PCOS, please visit the womenshealth.gov page about the disorder here and the 501(c)(3) non profit called the PCOS Foundation here.



I am sharing my health concerns here as I know I am not alone - there are many other women who are suffering from issues like I am, many probably thinking that the symptoms they are experiencing are "all in their head" and may not feel like they are being heard by their doctors.  

All I can say to you is keep searching, there is a doctor out there who will listen and help and you are most definitely not alone.

High Fidelity - the ladies of early 90's country radio

So yesterday at work I kept myself motivated by listening to my Spotify playlist called "Chick Country."  While it includes a lot of awesome newer artists like Kacey Musgraves, Miranda Lambert, Pistol Annies, etc. it also has a lot of great early late 80's/early 90's classics like Patty Loveless, Tanya Tucker, Reba McEntire and Mary Chapin Carpenter.  

I forgot, until I rediscovered them just recently, how much I enjoyed these talented female country artists - listening to these songs took my right back to my childhood and the country music I grew up enjoying on shows like the Grand Ole Opry, Crook & Chase, Hee Haw and Nashville Now with Ralph Emery.  Ah, memories!   

So here are a few of my favorites for you to enjoy:

Patty Loveless -" I Try to Think About Elvis"

Mary Chapin Carpenter - "Down at the Twist and Shout"  (I also LOVE "I Feel Lucky" but couldn't find a good video of it).

Tanya Tucker - "Two Sparrows in a Hurricane"

Suzy Bogguss - "Drive South"  (I also highly recommend "Someday Soon"  "Aces" "Outbound Plane" and "Letting Go" - have a hankie ready for that one, it always makes me cry)

Pam Tillis - "Maybe it was Memphis"

Reba McEntire - "Fancy"

Trisha Yearwood - "She's in Love with the Boy"

Patty Loveless "Blame it on Your..." (I know, another Patty Loveless but I LOVE this song, if I ever get the guts to do karaoke by myself this is one of my go-to songs)

So - what are some of your favorite songs from the country ladies of this era?

Dear fellow human beings...

Dear fellow human beings,

Yes, I know I am fat.  No, it is not necessary to point this out to me or make snide and condescending comments as I pass by – I’m fat, not deaf.  I don’t ask for any special privileges or do anything to hurt you (besides exist in your world).  If you could just treat me like a fellow human being who has feelings, that would be great – I don’t think that’s too much to ask.

Much obliged,

Fat chick

P.S.  Yes, I know it is unhealthy to be fat. Yes, I am trying to do something about it and am making slow and steady progress.  Please note, however, that every time someone decides to verbally (or visually) show how much my existence disgusts them it just makes the process even harder as an emotional eater.  So congratulations, you just could have contributed to my being fat even longer (except you won’t because I won’t let you have that power over me.)  So there.



4/9 - Due to the necessity of some people to be complete jerks (all the more proving my point) I have disabled comments on this entry.  People have a right to their option, ie. this post was because "I have a desperate need for attention"... (um, hello - the whole point of this is that I don't want the extra attention!) however the main reason for even writing this post in the first place was simply to be a voice for the other people out there like me who are treated like lesser class citizens just because of how we look and either are afraid to speak up (and who could blame them?) or don't have a medium to do so in. End of story.

Always...

If you are of the same generation as I am, the Harry Potter stories and movies have been a factor of your life (whether you like it or not!).  I won't elaborate on the virtues of the Harry Potter series, because it would make one long blog post, but I will say that they have emotionally affected me (and many others I know) more than any other book series.  Heck, we even had a 50-60 member Happy Potter club (Dumbledore's Army) on my college campus... yes, I was a proud member, have the shirt and everything.  ;)

Are they Pulitzer prize winning fiction?  Nope, but they are encouraging, touching, insightful books with rich characters you as the reader truly end up caring about. Yes, they have magic in them.  No, I do not have a problem with that as a Christian. Good ultimately triumphs evil. Nuff said.

Seeing the books come alive in movie form, while not always executed as well as we HP fans would have liked, was magical because we simply loved the characters so much.  I stumbled across this compilation film on Pinterest today and it was so poignant - it really just emphasizes the attachment so many of us have to these stories.  Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

 

To sum it all up, a quote from the actor who brought to life my favorite misunderstood character, Severus Snape:

High Fidelity - Owl City

I love Owl City's sound.  Lead singer, Adam Young's voice and style of vocals reminds me of Mark Hoppus and Tom DeLonge of Blink-182 (if they did electro pop!) and the upbeat sounds tend to simply make me happy.  I also love the fact that he simply started making music in his basement and is just another newer artist who got his break via myspace music. 

Fireflies

Alligator Sky

Good Time

Shooting Star

Dementia - ft. Mark Hoppus (from Blink-182!)

While I enjoy the above songs, it was stumbling across this that made me decide to do an Owl City post.  Turns out Adam is a Christian and recorded this simple, heartfelt version of "In Christ Alone (I Stand)" which I love. 

Adam Young - Owl City

Blessings

Family.

My sister, Mom, me and Dad.  Could we be more 80's? ;)

When asked what I am thankful for this Thanksgiving holiday, they are the first thing that comes to mind.  But my gratitude and love for them isn't any stronger on the third Thursday in November (or the 25th of December!) than it is any other day of the year.  

I love them every day. 

Me and my sissy

  

I think that Thanksgiving is a gift.  It helps us look beyond the day to day humdrum and take the time to reflect on what blessings we have in our lives.  

I've been lucky enough to have a large family on both the maternal and paternal sides. 

Me, Grammy and Laura on the famous couch

Me and my sister with Uncle Cy and Aunt Marlys (essentially our third set of grandparents - lucky kids!)

Ritchie family Thanksgivings tend to be very full.  Full of good food, full of laughter, full of lots of family (usually 20+) and always full of love.

The Ritchie cousins

I'm thankful, so very thankful and very, very blessed.

Equality?

There are some excellent points here.  

While I realize there will always be some who cannot and will not ever accept the LGBT community as complete equals (cause if you deny them marriage you deny them equality, plain and simple) there will also be those of us who will always, no matter how much you quote the very few words from the Bible about the subject to state your case, support equal (or in this case, gay) rights.  

I do not feel that my personal relationship with Christ is threatened by someone loving another of  the same sex.  Nor do I feel that the future of the "traditional family" is at risk because we allow two men or two women to enter a committed relationship with each other, protected by the same laws that protect straight couples.  

I can support the idea of changing the legal term of "marriage" into "civil union" for all people, straight and gay alike - the civil union term would refer to their law bound rights and, if they are a believer in the religious sacrament of marriage, then a "marriage certificate" would be issued by their religious organization of choice.  It would be a choice of the religious institution to offer the option of marriage certificates to just heterosexual couples or, if they are accepting of the gay community, they can choose to extend this to homosexual couples as well.  

This would not take away from the sanctity of marriage, in fact it would increase it because the term would only be used by those who believe in the religious aspect of the commitment versus being used as a blanket term to essentially mean a civil union.


Well, these are my thoughts on the matter - you are free to disagree (or agree!) as you choose.  If you choose to comment, my only request is that you are thoughtful in your reply and that you be polite. :)