I was going to call the doctor on Thursday, but I apparently slept through quite a bit of it. I didn’t call the doctor today either. Somehow, it just slipped my mind. It seemed like I would do okay, but about an hour and half ago, my coughing fits seemed to get worse. I also noticed that I had started wheezing. So, I have to try to make it through the weekend, which is going to be fun since clinics and physicians’ offices will be closed Monday for Labor Day. If I get too wheezy or short of breath, then I will go to the ER. (Of course, the thought of doing that on a holiday weekend is a bit scary.)
Another scary thing will be happening this weekend, the beginning of college football. While I am okay with expressing adoration towards the Auburn football team when they aren’t playing, I am terrified during the games. My dad, the Auburn superfan, will possibly get angsty or even extremely angry. If the game doesn’t go well, then he will complain quite a bit. I hope it goes well. Last year’s season was relatively smooth for us, but that makes sense because Auburn ended up winning the National Championship. While it is possible for them to win again this year, I know that it is not something that I should just expect to happen.
Oh, in happier news, earlier this week TIME magazine asked their Twitter followers what their favorite non-fiction books were. I, of course, said that Prozac Nation by Elizabeth Wurtzel was my favorite book. Since she has a Twitter account, I also mentioned her account in the response. Anyway, she thanked me. So, this is one of those moments that I am squeeing like an absolute fangirl. I’ve had celebrities add me on Twitter or respond to things that I say before, but I don’t think that I have ever gotten a response from someone I consider to be one of my absolute favorite writers. I know that she can be a controversial person and that some people think that she is whiny or self-involved or various other unfriendly descriptions, but this was the first woman (outside of my family) that I had seen go through some of the very same mental health issues that I had been going through. It helped me to feel like I wasn’t alone and that such intense bouts of depression and mood swings weren’t something that were just isolated to families in the southeastern United States. Her books inspired me to start talking even more openly about my problems, so I really admire her.
In non-health, non-sports, and non-Twitter related “news”, lately Xander (my 11-year old dachshund/golden retriever mix) has been super cuddly. He always liked to be cuddled when he was younger, but after we got Molly (and the other girls) he just kind of started hiding out. Now, he’s decided to get in any laps that he can get in. It is really nice, because I missed having him in my lap during his almost total boycott of lap-lounging. (He would get up in my lap every once in a while, or he would get where he knew I would be sitting and guilt me into picking him up and holding him. The latter was a lot less common, because it took a lot out of me.) Anyway, him being in my lap so much has kind of lowered my stress and anger levels, which is pretty damn cool. Of course, I’m still a frustrated, angry girl sometimes, but I feel a lot calmer than I have in a very long time. And he actually calmed my dad down the other day, which was nice to see. I just hope that this isn’t some sudden shift in mood that indicates something is wrong with him. I’m hoping that it just means that he missed being cuddled.
Oh, last week, Nana called and said that my aunt (the one that still isn’t communicating with me) had laser eye surgery. She apparently had a retinal detachment or tear. Her normal eye doctor didn’t think anything major was wrong, but she started having floaters plus flashers in her vision so she went to a clinic in Birmingham and found out what was going on. I’m glad that the Birmingham doctor figured it out. Not treating retinal detachments/tears can cause very serious problems.
My mom has also had some (not-so-fun) health issues lately. She’s always got health problems going on, but the past two days, she has woken up with a blood sugar reading under 65. Last night, she lowered her nightly insulin dose a little, but her sugar was lower today than it was yesterday. I really hope that she isn’t going to have another bout of hypoglycemia. I had hoped that she might consider at least calling a nurse at the UAB Clinic to see if they had any ideas for how she could keep her blood sugar high enough so that she didn’t risk going back into a low blood sugar state. I guess she wants to give it time. I shouldn’t critique that decision, since I’ve put off getting help for my own issues so many times.
Oh, if you aren’t living in the southeastern part of the United States, then you might not know that there is a Tropical Storm in the Gulf of Mexico. Tropical Storm Lee is right under Mobile, and it is practically sitting there, not moving much at all. That might not seem major to those of you who saw how stalling out basically weakened Hurricane Irene, but in the Gulf of Mexico there is a lot warmer water. The storm can probably sit just off the coast for 72-hours and still get stronger, then come inland and cause major damage. So, I’m hoping that it isn’t too bad. On the other hand, it would be nice to have some rain around here. I just hope it isn’t enough to cause flooding, which is probably an unrealistic hope for me to have.
I hope everyone has a nice weekend.
P She doesn’t want me to have to stay at school alone for two hours because she’ll have to drop me off at 2 so she can go to work…So, now I may have to go to school at 8 in the morning. That really doesn’t thrill me, because it’s about an hour from my house to the campus. NO FUN!!!!!