Letting go, dumbest thing ever, and more

It's been a while since I have blogged.  As much as things have changed, much has remained the same.  John is continuing to have very hard days.  He's very tired and has roving joint pain still.  We ran blood work and found low vitamin D again and low iron.  His thyroid looks good, so it's just the nutrient deficiencies and the Lyme issues.  The constant fatigue is tough to deal with, so he decided to  take a hockey break. He handled it better than I did, as I cried on and off for days.  It wasn't that he isn't playing hockey... it's the fact that he even had to choose to give up something he loves.

We read in our local Lyme support group on Facebook that someone had cancelled an appointment with our doctor, so I tried to take the appointment 11 minutes after I saw the cancellation.  Nope.  Taken.  That quickly.  But, there was another slot, Tuesday at 9.  It took me 2 hrs 10 min to get to the clinic during rush hour.  Yuck.  But Dr. K as worth it.  She was impressed with John's determination.  She said all the Utah treatments were more than most people can power through.  Her recommendation was that we continue those treatments for the scheduled 1 more month, and we could expect his system to recover about 3 months after that.  Come on, January!  In the meantime, we added back probiotics, Restore for gut health, and were to continue on with homeopathics.

I mentioned to Dr. K that John seems to feel better every time we are by an ocean.  She suggested we add sea salt instead of Epsom salts to his bath.  Also, she recommended we try adding powdered kelp to the tub.  After an Amazon prime delivery, we were ready for ocean simulation.  Opening the box must have been a sensory delight for our dogs, who are fans of seaweed snack.  Noses glued to the powdered kelp package, I headed for the tub with a pair of wagging dog butts in tow.  No doubt.  Opening the kelp bag, it was uber stinky.  Pour a tablespoon into the hot tub and you have amplified sea food smell.  Gross.  The water was murky, and brownish green.

John came into the bathroom.  His only word:  seriously?!?  Yeah buddy.  Dr. K uses kelp too, so how bad can it be?  He reluctantly climbed in.  "You know.  This has to be the dumbest thing I've ever done.  What have I done that is worse?"  Honestly, under the pressure from his dirty look and drunken stupor from the stench of the ocean, I couldn't come up with a reasonable answer. I secretly wished John had seen the episode of Seinfeld when Kramer had invented the beach cologne.  At least then we could've made some light of it.  Let's just say the kelp powder experience wasn't nearly as fun or relaxing as playing in the ocean at the beach.  I wasn't expecting it could compete, but it was worth a shot.

I really want to take John to the beach (teleportation would be awesome, amiright?). Paul and I discussed a possible camping trip for just John and Paul. However, it's not really feasible right now.  I wish I could whisk him away to the coast anytime he needs it.  A couple of days of heavy sun and ocean water would do him wonders.  Hopefully his immune system will start getting stronger, but the digestive issues are returning, so it will be a while.  Immune issues start in the gut. Bad gut = not breaking down vitamins and minerals = weakened immune system = setbacks.