It was always the same…. I dreaded Sundays. Before I started working with Dr. Jack, Sundays always were the worst. I work two jobs. It gets hard to keep up. When you have Hashimoto’s Disease, multiply that times a hundred. And, weekends were the worst, where every thing that you didn’t get to during the week gets dumped. I know some of you are thinking that is true for everyone, but stop to think that during the week, you can’t even keep up with basic tasks. All you can do is literally, get up, shower, work, and sleep. Nothing extra gets done, absolutely nothing.
I Teach middle school during the day, work at Walmart in the evening. My routine was the same each day: wake up to the alarm, but can’t get up, drag yourself to the shower, pack something you can find to eat, drink a ton of coffee to be awake, hit the door running, work all day, but can’t keep up with all school tasks so start piling things, stop for a snack of coffee and some kind of bad carb, or quick trip home and just grab whatever is handy, go to job two, get home, get some work done for school the next day, trying to stay awake, brush your teeth, fall asleep exhausted, sleep with interrupted sleep patterns, fall back asleep around 4, alarm goes off at 5:30, repeat.
I tried during the school day to work on tasks but it was hard enough to just keep up with the day to day. So invariably, every night the list of tasks to get done just grew and grew. When Saturday came, I would try to get a little extra sleep and with every task I did, I needed to take a breather. Clean the bathroom, sit for ten minutes, mop the floor, sit for a few minutes.
So, no matter how hard I tried, there was still a ton left to do on Sundays. After Church, it was more laundry, finish cleaning, groceries, lesson plans, papers, grading, pay bills, task after task after task. Most times I never even finished on Sunday, meaning more was going to be shoveled over to the week. Before I knew it, Monday was back and the little gerbil was on the wheel again, running at astronomical speeds and yet going nowhere.
But it is not like that anymore. So much of my life has changed with Dr. Jack and it isn’t just what I eat. Dr. Jack works on everything, by working on what goes on inside your body. Weight loss is AWESOME and I love it, but to just be relieved of so many symptoms just improves your life a thousand times over. Little be little, I started noticing that as he worked to make me healthier, things got easier and easier.
The first time I noticed the change was literally about two weeks in. I got up one day, packed a nice lunch and was out the door on time. When I got to school, I got copies made that I needed for a few days. I got to my room thinking how good I felt that day, and then I realized how rested I felt. My day went smoothly and I managed to get more done. But the change didn’t stop there. With each passing week it got easier. Suddenly my after school routine seemed to have more time! I managed to sort mail, clean the kitchen, fold a load of clothes, make dinner and then go on to job two.
Once my Hashimoto symptoms started to clear, my energy came back. I noticed that during the day, I could concentrate and focus better so more school work got done at school. I still brought things home to do, but not nearly the volume I had before. Where I typically brought home hours and hours of work, I was down to a bit of correcting or some materials to make.
I managed to get out of bed with the alarm, pain free after a great night’s sleep, have time to actually put conditioner in my hair, and have breakfast in peace. My whole routine is now different! I pack a great lunch, a big container of water, and I am out the door early. I get to school, can do some work before the students arrive, and work through my planning periods with lots accomplished. I drive home, change, manage to get in a bit of exercise, and cook dinner and lunch for the next day. I go to my second job, get home, take a few minutes to read and do something relaxing, like coloring. (I colored long before anyone thought it was sooooo cool, and I use the regular kids coloring books and crayons….. don’t judge me, ha ha…. coloring is actually therapeutic, look it up!)
I also noticed that I was less tired and so I had the stamina to get more done. That was quite a shock to me. Sooooo.. .here it is SATURDAY night. It is 9:00 p.m. I cleaned out three drawers of shirts that don’t fit, and packed up some clothes for charity, I got groceries from two stores. I put gas in my car, and had it washed. I cleaned the house, dusted, vacuumed, cleaned the bathroom and moped the floors. I sorted all the mail items and straightened up a few areas, making two bags of trash. I finished the laundry, folded, put away. My lesson plans are done and I have materials ready for my classes for next week. I went to the store with my daughter, for a few items, and then we went on to another for some shirts she needed. I ironed clothes for work, and I straightened up the linen closet. I made some soup for the week and a yummy stir fry with some leftover vegetables I had. All my papers are graded and I even had time to write this blog!
That means tomorrow, I have Church, a few bills to take care of, and the rest of my day, can be spent doing things I LIKE to do. I love Dr. Jack for giving me back Sunday! Gosh, I LOVE Sundays!!!!!