(there are some journal pages as a bonus at the end of this post!)
As Arizona opened up vaccines for everyone, I signed up for an appointment and went for my first dose of the Pfizer vaccine. The whole thing was like a go-kart track met a drive through; we wound through the serpentine path, the truck in front of me having to go slow and almost back up around each curve.
(My car has an amazing turning radius, thus, my fun was ruined by the giant truck going slow in front of me.)
Each stop on the trip was full of more questions. Do you have allergies that cause anaphylaxis? Have you had any other vaccines? What are you allergic to? My only food allergy is avocados — she asked what happens. “Well, my throat gets a tickle and so I just stop after that.”
“Ah, ok. But like, your throat doesn’t close up?”
“Never ate enough to get there.” But I’ve wanted to. Oh, I’ve wanted to. Guac is…so delicious.
Now, my body is, well, sensitive when it comes to medications. There’s only a 15% difference between a name-brand and generic medicines. And I can’t take the Lyrica generic because it makes me really, really sick. Like, constant migraines, overwhelming fatigue, pain, emotional instability. It took a month and a half to figure out that’s what was causing my issues, and now I have to get a special exception with my insurance to get the name-brand Lyrica that allows me to…function.
So it’s no surprise this shot caused a reaction. As I’ve already had COVID, the first dose put me into COVID-lite. I’m still trying to shake the exhaustion and nausea a week later. And I feel like all this progress I’ve made over the past six months feels negatively impacted. Ugh. It’s a bit disheartening…I’ve spent most of the week in bed. In fact, this is the first time I’ve sat in my recliner in over a week!
My comfort has come from my journal and books. I have done a bit of art every day, and even got some new toys since I last spoke with you all! I’m going to do a video about them, but the hint is I got them from Jane and OMG COLOR! I’m always on the lookout for supplies that Spoonies can easily use in bed or on the couch, and definitely want to share these with you in a video soon.
Anyway, that has been my week since last Friday. I’m a bit behind on projects, but am not going to push myself. I’m listening to my body, trying to take care of it, and not putting any pressure on myself. I don’t need to do anything this weekend…so anything I do is icing on the cake.
Before I go, I wanted to let you know I’m planning on doing some art on stream Sunday morning. I was joined by a couple people last week, so keep an eye on my Facebook to find out more. Or join the mailing list. Or here. I’m going to try to blog more. Wasn’t this supposed to become my very public diary? Time to get focused on what matters!
love,
Samie
An experiment in layers. Watercolor writing, black ink, layer cakes, and collage including resin paper made from Dina Wakley and Tim Holtz tissue paper.
