Update

I’ve been planning to update this a while now, but things have been busy!

I had a good talk with my doctor and he agrees that we should try to avoid cortisone as much as possible. There will be times, however, when high doses are necessary to break the inflammation. Well, so be it. Hopefully it will be a looong time until the next time! All the tests looked fine and hopefully the medication I am on will prolong the period between flare-ups.

Physically I am feeling back to normal. People who haven’t seen me since I got sick sometimes comment on how skinny I look, but I think I look almost back to normal. I have gained back most of the weight, but have been stuck at about 4 pounds below my original weight for the past month or so. This past week I have been running at paces and HR similar to before the hospital. That feels fantastic! I am not really training for anything specific now, but will start preparing for Stockholm Marathon by the end of January. I *really, really* hope I will be able to run that!
My period is back too, and I am really happy about that! I think that is the most important signal that my body is finally healthy again! Emil is happy too, since he wants kids so badly. I have promised him that we can start trying for real as soon as I have run another marathon. There are some things I need to get out of my system before I can devote my body to growing another human being and nursing it for the next year(s) to come. I still have unfinished business with the 42.2 km.

Mentally I am still more tired. I feel like it takes more work for me to stay focused at work, and I don’t feel quite up to speed on my work load yet. But every week it gets better, so I know I will get there. I am looking forward to the Holidays in a week from now and then coming back full of energy in the New Year.

Sometimes I think back at the time in hospital and it is almost like a “that really happened to me?” feeling. I get reminded of it when I drink a certain tea that I drank as soon as I was allowed to drink clear liquids, or when I see the left-over medicine in my medicine cabinet. I am incredibly grateful for the treatment I got, but at the same time I am sooo happy to be out of there.