I know I’ve been pretty much missing in action here on my blog lately but I’ve been in a flare up from my crohn’s colitis. It’s just been kicking my butt. I’ve been trying to get back into the swing of things but it’s been difficult. When you have a disease like this, you don’t JUST GET the disease…you get a ton of other junk piled on top of it. I’ve had muscle pains and aches (waking up and feeling like I got run over by a truck), nausea, low grade fevers, joint swelling and pain, gout in my ankle (YEP, my ankle!), broken blood vessels in my eye from throwing up (I look like a zombie, no Halloween costume needed), and exhaustion. It’s not too bad dealing with just the crohns colitis (pain spasms, running to the bathroom), it’s just when everything else piles on top of it, it really upsets me. It’s an immune deficiency type disease, so anything that can go wrong will, because your body can’t fight it off like when you’re healthy.
This is my first flare up in over seven years. The first time I got sick it was pretty bad (back around 2001 or 2002) and lasted quite awhile. I lost 50 pounds that first time. This time, since I know what to avoid eating and other things to do to get my body back on track I’ve only lost around 15 pounds. I was able to go through my closet and my dresser and remove all the clothes that no longer fit (were too big) and it was fun for awhile..like a few minutes. Then, you realize you’re sick, you feel like crap, and don’t care about fitting into those skinny jeans and going out to do something fun. With the gout I got in my right ankle I couldn’t drive the Jeep so that was a little upsetting. Not that I WANTED to go somewhere, but just the fact that I knew I couldn’t just grab my camera, hop in the Jeep and go out for a few hours to do some wildlife photography was pretty sucky. Another thing that sucks, is I LIKE to eat, I LIKE to cook, I just LIKE food. When you’re sick, every single bite you take you wonder, “Is this going to cause me pain?”, or “Is this going to make me throw up?”. It’s amazing how your attitude to food changes so suddenly.
My ankle is feeling better now (although still swollen), and I’ve been able to drive. I’m hoping to try and at least get out and do a little wildlife photography this weekend.
I’ve been going through my EHD’s and found some printable posters I made awhile back and figured I’d share them. I got the ideas from some prints I’ve seen on pinterest and figured I’d make my own. They are all sized 8″x10″, 300dpi and in JPG format. You can print them out on your home printer or send the files off to your favorite lab. Whatever you’d like. These are FREE and I ask that you do NOT sell them or use them commercially in any way.
The download link is below the preview!
Download all four of the printables —> HERE <—
Enjoy! 
