Today, I’m going to be talking about my Cushing’s story, which still continues, even 8 years after I was diagnosed.
I remember the moment I realized something wasn’t right. Â My mom was taking me to the mall, because none of my jeans fit me anymore. Â She was talking about how she wished I would try to lose weight, because she has been overweight most of her life, and didn’t want that for me. Â But, I needed pants to wear to school, so I bought another size up. Â I remember thinking, nothing has changed. Â I didn’t eat more, or less, I hadn’t stopped any activities. Â Maybe this was just my metabolism slowing down.
Insomnia was one of the first things that troubled me enough to try to get help for with Cushingâs Disease. By my last year in music school, I had flipped my schedule around. I felt best and got more done if I practiced through the night and slept through the day. That year was wonderful for productivity because I was able to do what worked best with my body. A couple of years later, my sleeping problems had taken over my life. I was trying to get a diagnosis. In school for a second and third bachelorâs degree while working at Starbucks, I barely slept. Because I wasnât sleeping, I decided to just keep busy….
We lost a young woman with Cushing’s to suicide in 2014. There are rumors now that another recent loss was suicide as well. In my mind, regardless of what the exact cause was, Cushing’s is at fault. Cushing’s led them to their deaths just as surely as if it had struck the death blow itself. If that is hard for you to fathom, then please allow me to educate you briefly on this dastardly, “most morbid of diseases” and why I feel the way I do.
The original page is getting very slow loading, so I’ve moved my own posts to this newer blog.
As always, anyone who wants to join me can share their blog URL with me and I’ll add it to the links on the right side, so whenever a new post comes up, it will show up automatically.
If the blogs are on WordPress, I try to reblog them all to get even more exposure on the blog, on Twitter and on Facebook at Cushings Help Organization, Inc. If you have photos, and you give me permission, I’ll add them to the Pinterest page for Cushing’s Help.
The Cushingâs Awareness Challenge is almost upon us again!
Do you blog? Want to get started?
Since April 8 is Cushingâs Awareness Day, several people got their heads together to create the Tenth Annual Cushingâs Awareness Blogging Challenge.
All you have to do is blog about something Cushingâs related for the 30 days of April.
There will also be a logo for your blog to show youâve participated.
The more people who participate, the more the word will get out about Cushingâs.
Suggested topics â or add your own!
In what ways have Cushingâs made you a better person?
What have you learned about the medical community since you have become sick?
If you had one chance to speak to an endocrinologist association meeting, what would you tell them about Cushingâs patients?
What would you tell the friends and family of another Cushingâs patient in order to garner more emotional support for your friend? challenge with Cushingâs? How have you overcome challenges? Stuff like that.
I have Cushingâs DiseaseâŚ.(personal synopsis)
How I found out I have Cushingâs
What is Cushingâs Disease/Syndrome? (Personal variation, i.e. adrenal or pituitary or ectopic, etc.)
My challenges with Cushingâs
Overcoming challenges with Cushingâs (could include any challenges)
If I could speak to an endocrinologist organization, I would tell themâŚ.
What would I tell others trying to be diagnosed?
What would I tell families of those who are sick with Cushingâs?
Treatments Iâve gone through to try to be cured/treatments I may have to go through to be cured.
What will happen if Iâm not cured?
I write about my health becauseâŚ
10 Things I Couldnât Live Without.
My Dream Day.
What I learned the hard way
Miracle Cure. (Write a news-style article on a miracle cure. Whatâs the cure? How do you get the cure? Be sure to include a disclaimer)
Give yourself, your condition, or your health focus a mascot. Is it a real person? Fictional? Mythical being? Describe them. Bonus points if you provide a visual!
5 Challenges & 5 Small Victories.
The First Time IâŚ
Make a word cloud or tree with a list of words that come to mind when you think about your blog, health, or interests. Use a thesaurus to make it branch more.
How much money have you spent on Cushingâs, or, How did Cushingâs impact your life financially?
Why do you think Cushingâs may not be as rare as doctors believe?
What is your theory about what causes Cushingâs?
How has Cushingâs altered the trajectory of your life? What would you have done? Who would you have been
What three things has Cushingâs stolen from you? What do you miss the most? What can you do in your Cushingâs life to still achieve any of those goals?
What new goals did Cushingâs bring to you?
How do you cope?
What do you do to improve your quality of life as you fight Cushingâs?
How Cushingâs affects children and their families
Today, I’m going to be talking about my Cushing’s story, which still continues, even 8 years after I was diagnosed.
I remember the moment I realized something wasn’t right. Â My mom was taking me to the mall, because none of my jeans fit me anymore. Â She was talking about how she wished I would try to lose weight, because she has been overweight most of her life, and didn’t want that for me. Â But, I needed pants to wear to school, so I bought another size up. Â I remember thinking, nothing has changed. Â I didn’t eat more, or less, I hadn’t stopped any activities. Â Maybe this was just my metabolism slowing down.
Insomnia was one of the first things that troubled me enough to try to get help for with Cushingâs Disease. By my last year in music school, I had flipped my schedule around. I felt best and got more done if I practiced through the night and slept through the day. That year was wonderful for productivity because I was able to do what worked best with my body. A couple of years later, my sleeping problems had taken over my life. I was trying to get a diagnosis. In school for a second and third bachelorâs degree while working at Starbucks, I barely slept. Because I wasnât sleeping, I decided to just keep busy….
We lost a young woman with Cushing’s to suicide in 2014. There are rumors now that another recent loss was suicide as well. In my mind, regardless of what the exact cause was, Cushing’s is at fault. Cushing’s led them to their deaths just as surely as if it had struck the death blow itself. If that is hard for you to fathom, then please allow me to educate you briefly on this dastardly, “most morbid of diseases” and why I feel the way I do.
From Danielle’s Cushing’s Awareness Challenge Blog
Social media dominates most people’s lives these days. You see what everyone you know is up to, but the problem is, most people only post about the highlights of their lives.
You don’t get to see the low points, the every day struggles. You don’t see what keeps them up at night with worry.
One of my least favorite things about my life with chronic illness is having imaging appointments. Â Whether it’s my yearly brain MRI, or a chest X-ray, the whole process is uncomfortable, and sometimes even painful.
Usually, when a physician wants me to have imaging, they will schedule an appointment, usually the soonest available is a week or two out, sometimes more depending on the test. You usually have to arrive at the hospital 15-30 minutes before your scheduled appointment time, on top of that, there is typically a wait…
Insomnia was one of the first things that troubled me enough to try to get help for with Cushingâs Disease. By my last year in music school, I had flipped my schedule around. I felt best and got more done if I practiced through the night and slept through the day. That year was wonderful for productivity because I was able to do what worked best with my body. A couple of years later, my sleeping problems had taken over my life. I was trying to get a diagnosis. In school for a second and third bachelorâs degree while working at Starbucks, I barely slept. Because I wasnât sleeping, I decided to just keep busy….
