thread for middle age to older Christian women.
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Chris,
I just finished my zoom Bible study. We had a guest speaker. I didn't sleep all last night so I know I was almost dozing off and I imagine everyone could see that. I have been sick and it has been strange. One day I had a bad sore throat and the next day I was fine. On Sunday I woke up with an even worse sore throat and I figured I would be down and out for days. Yesterday I was fine. It has been strange. The last I wrote I had no surgery tape and I ordered some from Amazon and it came the next day. That was a blessing for sure. I just got to see my incision for the first time yesterday. My steri strips came off. The incision is looking good. Today it was a little swollen. It is the area where all the tape has been that is now the issue. I have very sensitive skin and it rebels against any type of bandage so that has been the challenge now. I have a wound check tomorrow and will only see a tech or a nurse unless there is something that looks concerning and then they will have my surgeon come in but I don't expect to see her. So I am doing fine with it. I will be glad when the bandage can come off completely. Thank you for asking.
How are you feeling? How was your Thanksgiving? Is your DD and DGD back home from their cruise. I bet they had a good time.
I can't believe we are in December already. It is very cold here. Our temps at night have been very cold for it not officially being winter yet.
I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving.
Have a good night.
Love,
Nancy
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Teka, you reminded me I still have stocking stuffers to buy! Thanks!
Nancy, hope the wound check goes well. I had the same strange one-day sore throats too a couple of times last week. Maybe it is a different virus this year. Now I have developed a minor cough. It is not constant but is definitely there. My DH and I don't kiss when we think either of us is ill…it has been a while! (tmi I know) My DD and DGD don't go on the cruise until the 13th. I'll let you know how it goes for them. That is why we have been doing Christmas so early. They don't return until the 21st which leaves us little time to prep. I am almost done (except for the stocking stuffers thanks Teka.) I haven't decided whether I can host Christmas dinner this year. I have the larger house with two ovens so it is easier but I only can exert myself for about 15 minutes at a time. I was hoping my PT would help, but it is slow. I start with a new tech today and will begin going twice a week until January so maybe it will help. Still, I can try or my SIL can come here and help. Or maybe I can just beg my DD to dig in this year and help. She hates to cook…
We are having nice weather all this week…yay…but it will snow again on Monday. Such is our life!
Take care. I know we have a couple of newer ladies who don't post often. My prayers cover you too.
Love, Chris
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Teka, I am so behind on everything. I admire your motivation. Filing is at the top of my list for the next couple of days. I never got my windows cleaned. Oh well. Maybe a day in the 60's will miraculously happen in January. You never know. We have been in the deep freeze here for a while.
Chris, my surgeon's tech that bandaged me up initially told me that I would only be seeing him or a nurse on my wound check unless there was an issue and then they would call in the surgeon. I saw a young nurse and she took my bandage off and was shocked at the fact she saw a blister pop. I was having an awful time with my skin rebelling against the adhesives. When she said I am going to get the doctor I was a little concerned.
So when the surgeon came in she said your incision looks great but all the area around it is not good. She said you have some contact dermatitis going on and gave me some steroid ointment to use for a couple of weeks. I was so tickled when she said you don't have to have the bandage on anymore. So hopefully everything will be fine and I will stay well to get to my sisters over Christmas. I only get to see my family once a year now and this is that time.
It is interesting that you had this sore throat thing too. My throat was so bad last Sunday I was sure I would be sick for days and then it disappeared. That is so unusual especially for me. I hope we both stay healthy. I hope your new PT therapist will be good for you. If you do have Christmas at your house hopefully your SIL will be able to be a big help for you. My sister always hosts the holidays because their house was always bigger than my parent's house and I lived too far away so I was always the person who traveled. I know my sister is getting weary of it all now. She is older than I am. I do know they went out to eat for Thanksgiving which helped her.
Take care everyone. Stay safe.
Love,
Nancy
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This photo made me laugh out loud. I thought I would share it with you.
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Teka, I bought this same manger scene for my parents many years ago. It had this wooden manger that did not last at all. I have a feeling the owner of this one used a basket replacement. I ended up buying another manger scene for my Mom and it looked the very same except for a plastic manger. Some things are timeless.
Love,
Nancy
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Teka, that sounds really ambitious and I hope you were able to get a lot of things done that you have wanted too!
Nancy, praying that the skin around the incision is healing and that you are feeling better and continue to feel good through Christmas season. Also, that you have a blessed time with your sister and family. So glad that you heard from Carol and shared that. We are continuing in prayer for her and her family.
Chris, praying that you are feeling good and enjoying this time of year.
Hershey, praying that all is going well and you had a good Thanksgiving.
After I got over my cold, I got an infection in my eye and have the steriod drops now for that for a few more days yet. I'm coming to the end of PT and think it has helped. My nurse friend has the shingles, and also last Friday she had an accident, not her fault but another lady ran into her car as she was coming around a corner so she's had a lot of stress. My sister most every night brings up the fact that she doesn't see why she can't go back to the apartment for a little while and scrounge around for anything she might need there. The ironic thing is my BIL is moving from the two bedroom apartment in independent to a one bedroom in Independent next week. So it is going to be a completely different apartment. That was an interesting thought Nancy, that you shared about not driving your mom past her house. My BIL a few months back drove my sister past the house they lived in a few years (maybe 4 years) ago and she recognized neither the house or the neighbor hood. I can tell her memory is slipping more because she can usually tell me what they did in the afternoons but rarely what they did that morning.
Lots of love and prayers for all of you!
Wheatfields
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Nancy, continued prayers for a complete wound recovery. I have to constantly remind the nurses not to use adhesives on me, and I remove bandages from shots within a few minutes! I am happy to hear you will be visiting your family for Christmas again this year. I know how important that is for you.
Teka, good job getting all the chores done.
It is snowing right now and only 22° and I will soon be heading out for my Faslodex shots. Any other appointment, other than scans, and I would probably cancel, but I know these shots are time-sensitive. They do a pretty good job keeping the main roads safe as possible so we will go slow and keep to the main roads. Usually we love to meander the few miles through the forest here as it makes a lovely drive and is really a shortcut for us, but not this time. The older we get the more hesitant we are to drive through this. We do have a good vehicle. When we lived in San Diego we bought a used fully loaded SUV capable of handling all weather just because we wanted to be able to put the scooter in the back. We didn't know we would be moving back to Colorado then, but now we are thankful for this vehicle. Only God knew what we would need!
Take care. Chris
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Nancy, what a sweet story about buying your parents the same Nativity scene (and not once, but twice!). That's a lovely memory to cherish.
Wheatfields, I'm so sorry to read about your eye infection and your nurse friend's bout with shingles. I hope you two are not in any pain or discomfort. My mother experienced shingles on her head and was under the care of an ophthalmologist for several months. He prescribed Acyclovir tablets to treat the infection and prevent the spread to her eye. Thankfully the tablets did their intended job and she suffered no pain, itching, or complications.
Chris, your SUV truly is a blessing in Colorado. God does miraculous things!
Our Thanksgiving was quiet and spent at home. Our weather was not pleasant: cool, windy, and wet. We watched some of the football games and put up Christmas lights in the house. The days of decorating our outdoor trees are behind us (too dangerous for these old bodies!).
Have a wonderful and blessed day and week, everyone.
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Hi ladies,
My last few days have been pretty crazy from fun things like a Holiday open house to a visitation for one of my favorite co worker's husband. I finally made it back to church on Sunday. My incision and the unhappy skin around it are all healing nicely. However I am dealing with horrible diarrhea. I won't go into details but this has been going on for several days and I am drastically changing things up today in hopes of making a difference. I think it is just a really bad IBS flare and not a virus but I don't usually have IBS like this so???? I would appreciate your prayers. I am in need of an emergency plumber as well.
Teka, I hope you are getting a lot done on your cleaning spree. Congratulations. You just might win the housekeeper of the year award!!!!! 😀
Wheatfields, I sure hope your eye infection is responding to the drops. Eye infections are no fun and I hope you are not in a lot of discomfort. I am glad to hear your PT is working. I wish I had some words of wisdom regarding your sister. Perhaps as politely as you can just quickly change the subject when she brings up going back home. This is such a difficult disease and I pray God will give you the strength, peace and wisdom as you walk through this time with your sister.
Chris, I hope you are doing okay after your shot. If I am remembering that packs a hard punch after receiving it. Praise God for your all weather SUV which He knew you would need. On the Nextdoor App that I am on many pictures are posted from Colorado. It is really a beautiful state. I hope the cold weather is getting more tolerable for you.
Hershey, good to hear from you. I bet your house looks beautiful with all of your indoor decorations. For so many, many years I went downstate to spend 2 weeks when working and 3 weeks when retired at Christmas time so I never decorated. Now so many of my neighbors have outdoor decorations that I hope I am not perceived as the Scrooge on the block! I don't have room for a tree now that Cammie and her cat condo has taken over my only avaliable space. I used to have a tree in my teaching studio and I had so many ornaments which were all from my students. Those days are over now.
I hope of you have a wonderful time as we approach Christmas day.
Love,
Nancy
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Thanks Teka. I have been on the BRAT diet for a couple of days. That definitely works. You have a great weekend. We are in a warm up to 21 degrees and the sun is out so I am thankful for those things.
Love,
Nancy
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Nancy, praying for relief soon. I am all too familiar with IBS and flare-ups. Hope things settle down so you can enjoy Christmas with family.
Hersheykiss, I am sure your home looks beautiful. We scaled down our outside decorations this year too. I even decided we wouldn't hang the wreaths up in our high windows as our age is slowing us down too. Our neighborhood has an outside decorating contest so everything looks lovely. We still did something small to blend in, but not to the scale of some of the others. Still, we enjoy it.
Well, I am off to take a shower and then to my PT appointment. (At least it isn't snowing this time!) I think it is helping but might be a bit tougher today as I woke with another UTI yesterday. I am a huge fan of virtual Urgent Care and quickly got an antibiotic. Now hoping it helps!
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Chris, my BRAT diet is working and I am a bit afraid to go back to my spinach and berry detox protein powder smoothie and my daily salad. Probably will wait a bit longer.
My sister texted me today and asked if it would be okay to have our Christmas on the 24th because my niece from Iowa has to work on the 26th. So I will be coming back home on Christmas day and not sure how that will be. Probably nothing open to eat and not sure of traffic. It might be very light which would be nice.
I am so sorry to hear of another UTI. I am so glad that you got antibiotics quickly. I was researching one night recently about my fibromyalgia and how that affects the immune system which I just know for me is compromised. I ran into this very interesting article on biofilm. I had never even heard of that word but apparently there is a lot of research happening regarding that. It might explain your UTI's so frequently. You might do a search on biofilm when you have a chance. Your neighborhood sounds lovely with the decorating contest. I am glad that your PT is helping. That is a big plus.
Take care.
Love,
Nancy
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Nancy, I'm glad that the BRAT diet is helping to relieve your symptoms. It's probably wise to slowly reintroduce more fibrous foods.
We traveled to my Mom's on Christmas Day for many, many years. Traffic was always very light with few cars and trucks on the roads. We found many Chinese restaurants to be open for business that day as well as Denny's and Waffle House (they are open year round). Some IHOPs and McDonald's have Christmas hours, too. If you happen to take the Interstates home, truck stops are usually open for gas, snacks, and your bathroom breaks.
Chris, I'm sorry that you're dealing with another UTI but very glad that an Urgent Care medic prescribed an antibiotic. I hope that the medication quickly stops the infection in its tracks.
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Hershey, thanks for the tips on Christmas Day driving. My BRAT diet is questionable at this point. I did reintroduce some unseasoned chicken last night and I am not sure I can tell if it was successful because it wasn't great. One of my email friends who tends to always see the glass half empty told me she didn't ever know of anyone who had been successful with the BRAT diet. So I will take that with a grain of salt.
It is a dreary day of predicted rain all day but we do need rain.
I guess the predicted tariffs from the new administration has already had a negative affect. I order most of my things now on Amazon and it occurred to me that maybe I should stock up on some things so I ordered some toilet paper. Wow has that price gone up. I was relieved to find some because I didn't know if we were going to have a repeat of the pandemic nightmare of not being able to find toilet paper anywhere.
On a good note I was thrilled that my Medicare Advantage plan added dental to our benefits starting in the New Year. I have been paying for my own dental insurance through this same company so I was thrilled to be able to discontinue that. I will save quite a bit of money from that benefit.
Have a great weekend.
Love,
Nancy
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As we approach Christmas Day and I pray eveyone has a chance to reflect on the impact of that Christmas Day in each of our lives. Jesus not only gives us salvation but he brings peace and joy with it. This Christmas scene is so peaceful. I pray each of you have many peaceful days ahead.
Love,
Nancy
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Nancy, looks like a Kincaid painting. Lovely!
I decided to go ahead and host Christmas dinner…who knows how many more of these I can do (I say that every year!) We will split the menu between my SIL and I, and it will be all hands on deck to get this house cleaned.
It is so quiet with the DD and DGD gone. They dog is going crazy. Every noise that starts to sound like the garage door makes her jump up and run to check. I have had to relearn how to sleep with a dog on the bed!
PT wiped me out today. I am hoping it is helping. So far I can't tell but I can go longer on the recumbant bike so maybe… I always do more than I think I can and push through my initial fatigue. My DH calls my recliner my docking station. I get up and do something and then return to rest and recharge. lol But now I am totally done for the night, so goodnight!
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Chris, yes it does. BCO doesn't allow enlarging anymore so these are tiny photos but hopefully they still stir our hearts of that first Christmas Day.
I will pray that God will give you the strength to host Christmas. I am taking a break from cleaning. When I leave for Christmas I have a neighbor that comes in to be sure Cammie has food and water. You would think I was hosting for the whirlwind of cleaning I do but I never want to come back to a house that needs cleaning so it does help in that way.
I pray that all of you dear sisters are enjoying the hustle and bustle of this time of year. We had snow last night and I have to admit that it lifted my spirits to see snow still on the ground today. I watched It's A Wonderful Life last night. That is my tradition. When it said it was an abridged version they cut out this huge part so after watching that one II found another version and I am not sure what happened but I woke up at 1:20 am never seeing the part I had missed. LOL oh well.
Enjoy the season even though I know it is exhausting for many.
Love,
Nancy
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Nancy, it is unseasonably warm for us in Colorado Springs: in the low 50s. Since we get a lot of snow, I'll take it! We actually still have snow on the ground on the north side of the buildings from a week ago since it still freezes at night. My DD and DGD get home tomorrow from their cruise, and will return from paradise to this weather. At least they won't have to fight bad weather. The puppy keeps wandering around and doesn't settle for too long. She misses them!
I am feeling a lot better and plan on attempting some housework today. I made a smoothie this morning and need to adjust things as I put in too much ice. It is more like a sorbet! But healthy. I can't eat it all at once so I hope it will keep in the fridge and I can "snack" on it throughout the day, so I guess I need to make a normal lunch. Oh well…I am still learning things.
Praying everyone has enough energy to celebrate Christmas without overdoing things. I just found out my oldest son is planning on a visit in January so I am happy.
Blessings, Chris
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Teka, yeah, I guess no one ever says boy you look like you lost a lot of weight in your ears. LOL
Chris, I bet your puppy does miss them. That is what makes me feel bad about leaving Cammie. It is nice to hear someone is having some nice weather. I think we start a warm up after Christmas. I heard a long term forecast for the whole country and much of the states will be above normal temps from Jan - March. That was my Christmas present right there!!!! I am glad you are feeling better. I keep praying for that.
Take care everyone. Have a wonderful Christmas. I won't be posting for a few days. I am coming back on Christmas Day as my niece is as well. My sister told her husband it feels like a drive by Christmas this year.
Love you all.
Nancy
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Praying for each of you to have a wonderful Christmas and a peaceful time with family and friends.
Nancy, do have a safe trip and be careful! That is the best news, warmer weather Jan- Mar, which should take care of a lot of things! Chris, we'll be praying that you feel real good and enjoy your family.
Love, Wheatfields
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May God's peace be with all of you this Christmas knowing that Jesus is our Savior and King.
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Well, change of plans since my DGD and I both have colds. My BIL and his wife don't want to get sick—I don't blame them. So it will just be the four of us. That's okay…I won't have to worry about sanitizing the house this way…less pressure. I have enough food so we will be fine and we'll have a relaxing Christmas day. Afterall, we are all experts in flexibility.
Merry Christmas everyone.
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@teka Thank you for thinking of me. Feeling better this morning.
@bandwoman1234 Nancy, yes, have a safe trip.
Merry Christmas to everyone here. May your dreams come true and all prayers answered.
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It is after midnight. Santa hasn't come yet because my DGD is sick and is having trouble going to sleep so her mom can't come upstairs and finish under the tree. But I wanted to share the note she left Santa. Hope it brings a smile to your faces… it brought tears to mine.
Dear Santa, This has been one of my favorite Christmases so far. I’m excited for tomorrow or today if it’s after midnight. I know I will love all of my presents. But there are two more things that can’t be wrapped. I hope on Christmas day I don’t wake up feeling crummy and I hope my Nana gets better. Thanks!
From, Bria
Merry Christmas!
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Chris, such a sweet and loving note to Santa from Bria. I can see where it would bring tears to your eyes.
Teka, it sounds like you had a white Christmas!
Nancy, praying you enjoyed Christmas with your family and had a safe trip home.
Wheatfields, how was your Christmas? I hope you and your nurse friend are well.
My husband started feeling under the weather on Monday evening. By Christmas Eve morning, he was running a mild fever (99.6 degrees), coughing, and sneezing. He has tested negative for COVID and will test again tomorrow. We watched Christmas Eve service online, watched the first half of "A Christmas Carol" with George C. Scott, and went to bed. It's been a very quiet, reflective Christmas in our house.
All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”). ~ Matthew 1:22-23 (NIV)
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Dear sisters,
I just wanted to write a very short post for now and let you know I made it safely back home. I got in last night and driving on Christmas Day was a breeze compared to normal driving. We had a great time and had some moments of side splitting laughter which is great for the soul!!!
I have read all of your posts and I hope to write more later. I fell asleep last night in front of the TV and again missed the end of the movie and woke up at 3:00 am. I couldn't get back to sleep and finally went back to bed after 8 am and now the whole day is pretty much goofed up as I sit here in my night clothes.
I pray for ALL sickness to be gone!!!!!!
Love,
Nancy
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Nancy, I'm so glad that you are safely home and enjoyed a wonderful Christmas at your sister's house. It's a blessing to be able to share good laughter with family. I can imagine that Cammie was excited to see you walk in the door on Christmas night, and I hope that you're relaxing and catching up on your movie.
Thank you for your prayer, Nancy. I also pray that everyone feels better soon. My husband did test positive for COVID on Thursday, and I tested positive this morning. Our doctor has prescribed Paxlovid for my husband but has chosen to treat my symptoms with Flonase and Mucinex (I'm only experiencing some mild sinus pressure and a dull headache). He said that COVID has become less and less severe, and they are seeing fewer and fewer people who require hospital treatment. That was encouraging to hear.
May you ALL enjoy rich blessings today!
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Hershey, I'm praying that you and your husband are feeling better! That is encouraging to hear about the COVID virus.
Nancy, so thankful you had safe travels and a wonderful time with family.
Chris, praying that you are all feeling better and you had a great Christmas.
Teka, we haven't had any of that snow yet, but that is okay.
I seem to be rolling from one thing to the next, first it was a cold, then an eye infection, now it's a sinus infection and I had to go back in because the first antibiotic wasn't working. So I have a new antibiotic and steroid pills for a few days. I have a sensitive body that breaks out easily from meds so it's hard to find an antibiotic that works. This one is a cousin to penicillin and that's on my do not do list, so hopefully it works.
I'm looking forward to visiting my sister mid January and BIL. My nurse friend is still struggling with poor sleep and not feeling real well, but she does have a couple appointments set up in February that we pray are helpful. My sister has been kind of sad because one of their group of 4 friends passed away just before Christmas.
Praying that you all have a blessed New Year!
Love, Wheatfields
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Chris, I hope you and your family members that were sick are feeling much better now. I hope you had a nice Christmas even though it wasn't what you had orginally planned.
Hershey, I'm sorry to hear you and your husband have Covid. I know you had mentioned he had been sick a while not that long ago. Interesting that your doctor chose to take different paths in treatment for both of you. I hope both of you recover quickly. Is this the first time for both of you?
Wheatfields, you have had your share of medical issues. I sure hope the new antibiotic works without any adverse effects. I used to get sinus infections a lot and I went to an ENT who wanted me to do this Neil MD nasal rinse morning and evening initially and now I just do morning but I am very religious about doing it every morning. I have not had any sinus infections since I started this protocol which has now been several years. Just a thought if you are bothered by them frequently.
Does your nurse friend have any allergies? I have found a solution to my insomnia which has worked so well I have fallen asleep watching movies before getting to bed. I take a very small portion of a low dose antihistimine pill as they put me to sleep with a whole pill and then hung over in the morning. It has worked so well for me. I have struggled with trying to find something that would work. I still take my concoction of prescription night meds and some other supplements for sleep.
I hope you will be completely well before visiting your sister in mid January. I'm sorry to hear that one of your sister's friends has passed away. Just in the three years my Mom was in her facility this happened several times. I think my sister and I took it harder than my Mom as she was unaware. I hope it is not too difficult for your sister.
I wish you all a Happy New Year! I am always anxious to turn the page and feel like I am working with a clean slate.
Love,
Nancy
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Nancy, I am glad you made it safely back from your sister's house. I trust your Christmas was good this year. I take half a Benedryl before bed and it helps me so maybe it is similar to your nighttime pill. If I have a doc appointment or something else important the following day, I take a sleeping pill. I respond well to it but don't want to get addicted so I am careful.
My family are all sick with a cold virus. My DGD is the sickest. Usually she kicks it quickly but not this time. My DD took her to the doctor's and he said it was just a cold and wouldn't give her anything, but she is not doing well. Fortunately my DD doesn't work until Monday night so she can keep her downstairs and take care of her. My DH and I only have mild cases so we shall muddle through although I am struggling because I also have to wear an oxygen canula. I have more energy lately and think it might be the results of my PT. I have six more weeks of treatment so I am hopeful I can gain even more. I was doubtful it would help at first, but I am coming around.
Hershey, I thought we might have Covid as we have sinus issues and headaches also, but we don't. It is interesting how the doctors are responding to Covid now. I will pray you and your husband respond to the treatment quickly.
Wheatfields, I am sorry you are going through so much lately. I pray the New Year treats you better.
Blessings, Chris
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