Hi friends! I feel like it’s been a while since I have caught you up on my life. So… lettuce talk! Oh, and I will throw in some pictures of what I have been eating lately too!
First of all, you probably already know I have mono since I mentioned it in my last post but I want to talk about my life before I realized I had mono and what mono has taught me.
About a month ago, I was stressed to the max. Working multiple part-time jobs, not exercising like I wanted to, homework continuously piling up, and trying to maintain a healthy relationship with not only my family and Barrett, but with myself had me feeling slightly insane. Like, my eye was always twitching I was so stressed. My dad kept saying, “You need to slow down. Take a breath. You’re working too much.” And I kept saying, “I’m fine.” But it was more like, “I’m fine?” Like it was a question instead of a statement.
I started having multiple symptoms of what I thought to be panic attacks. Night sweats, being extremely tired, headaches, swollen lymph nodes, a rash on my face, a tightness in my chest, and trouble breathing. There was one day a couple of weeks ago that I could literally not get off the couch. I felt so tired and so overwhelmed. I knew God was saying, “Slow down Anastasia.” But just like I had ignored my dad, I ignored God too.
I kept going full force with work, school, and life and noticed that a knot on my neck had grown a little over the last few weeks. A couple of days later (and several worried tears shed) two more knots appeared on my neck. I finally went to get some blood work done to make sure everything was okay. But I spent a couple of days in such a worried, stressed-out state that while I was making cookies, I cut my thumb open with an immersion blender and ended up with a trip to the ER and 5 stitches. All the while God (and my dad) kept saying “Calm down, take a breath, stop running around.” That was two Saturdays ago.
Last Monday I got a call from my doctor saying my tests said I had mono. They told me not to go to work, school, or exercise for at least a week. So I spent all of last week hunkered down watching Pretty Little Liars (don’t judge…haha) with lots of kombucha and snacks. I didn’t think about all the homework I was missing. I didn’t think about work. I didn’t even think about exercise. I was just simply, in that moment.
Isn’t it funny how I was so willing to listen to my doctor over God or my dad? I am thinking about it now and laughing because I literally was like “I can’t be still right now God, I have like 2149 things to do.” But to my doctor I said, “So can my mom pick up my school and work excuse later today?”
So my point is, don’t wait around until you get sick and your doctor tells you to take a chill pill. Listen to your family. Listen to GOD. I mean, He knows you better than you know yourself so why not listen to Him when He says it’s time to slow down.
This past week made me appreciate mono. It helped me calm down and rely less on myself and more on God.
Have a good week!
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