A Day Late…

24 Feb 2010 Leave a Comment

by Rhea Kelly in Happy Tuesday Tags: , , , , ,

“Happy Tuesday!”
~note my Dad left for me on the table years ago

My friend Danielle posts a note in her blog each Thursday titled “Things I Love Thursday”… and I just love the idea. She posts things that happened to her in the past week that she loves and what she’s grateful for. Ideally we should all do this daily! I noticed that once you decide to sit down, focus, and write about these things consistently, you become more sensitive and attuned to them each day. So from now on I’m going to be posting a “Happy Tuesday” note each week (please refer to title of this post) to publicize the things that I am humbled by and grateful for. Plus, whenever I get a shout-out in Danielle’s’ blog I notice a little voice in my head going “Awww….” and so I think that we can continue this cycle of goodwill by declaring our gratitude for others out loud; or in this case, online.

**Team Blend Blend Apparel is a company based out of San Diego, CA that creates T-shirts with a goal: teach people that they can both blend in seamlessly to their surroundings (thus conserving energy and creating harmony within) AND make bold statements. Their meaning/motto: “Wear We Live”. So, I found this T-shirt back in January and ordered it.

It's been said that her heart is the only place that can hold a paradox. So whether you're feeling totally self-confident and unabashedly beautiful or completely broken and miserably flawed - we know and see you as perfect.

It's been said that her heart is the only place that can hold a paradox. So whether you're feeling totally self-confident and unabashedly beautiful or completely broken and miserably flawed - we know and see you as perfect

I ordered a Medium but it was a little snug for my taste (for those unaware, I prefer my clothes a little on the baggy side). In the package they mailed to me though was a logo decal and a hand-drawn cartoon with a helicopter delivering hearts that read “Rhea’s Love Rescue.” The day I received the package was an especially rough one and it meant a great deal to see this love rescue, just for me. When I returned the shirt I included a letter with a little bit of my history and a thank you for the hand-drawn note.

Last Friday I received another package. In it was the shirt I ordered (now Large), a different shirt that has “feel” written across the top in Braille, seven stickers, a hemp patch (total value of the items they sent me without charge – $57.00)… and this letter (click to see full image):

What company does this? Who is Chad and why did he feel it necessary to write me a hand written letter with doodles and thoughts to let me know everything is going to be fine? This is the kind of thing that reaffirms my faith in good people, brothers and sisters by choice and angels. Chad rocks. This company is amazing and I would urge you to buy something from them if you are ever in the need for awesome, inspiring gifts for yourself or others. By the way, if you are a male who has a woman in her life, than that is reason enough to buy the “IMPERFECT” t-shirt. Just amazing. Thank you, Team Blend & Chad.

**Birthday Cards. Last week friends and family showed their love and support via good old-fashioned birthday cards and overwhelming generosity. Their words, thoughts and gifts completely made my week and have helped tremendously in getting us prepared for the move. I want to especially thank Christina who is thoughtful and generous beyond her 17 years. Kids like her are few and far between and I’m so glad I’ve been able to “adopt” her has my younger sister <3. Also, and this goes without saying – my Memere for her ongoing campaign of cards and love.

**Brother-By-Choice, Kyle. Some people tell you every day and in many small ways how much they care about you, think about you and support you. And then there are people like Kyle who live out loud and make bold statements. He got this “MS?” tattoo yesterday:

In the words of Kyle…

I figured if someone else thats close to me has to deal with the pain of ms, i would like to take a walk in their shoes for a moment and say “hey, im dealing with the pain with you”. and ill have you know that my MS tattoo is my 10th tattoo so im finally in the double digits and its my 6th on that arm alone all done by my good buddy (whom also has MS). which makes this tat that much more bad ass. In closing i would like to say that my tattoos are eye candy because I MAKE THE WORLD TASTE GOOD!!! Get hardcore people!! Oh and most importantly, im living with MS for the rest of my life too. Im with ya sista!!!!

Kyle rocks. Thank you bro! Love you!

**Interviews. Thommy got a call from the District Manager of Dick’s Sporting Goods in response from the resume he submitted for “Store Manager” in one of the Syracuse stores. His interview is this Friday out in Wilkes-Barre. Please say some prayers and send positive vibes his way – this job offers immediate benefits!

**Thommy. I’m obviously going to be thankful and happy to have him around every week and he won’t always get a special mention. This week, it is important I thank him for paying close attention to our injection training that took place last Wednesday. I thank him for really understanding how overwhelming it can be to play “pinch-an-inch” on my hips and for offering to inject me on those days so that I don’t have to. I thank him for making me feel beautiful every time I fall completely out of love with my own body. I thank him for sitting with me while I swear (Tourette-style) for an hour, while we wait for the swelling to go down and the burning to subside…

Arm Site Reaction

Arm Site Reaction


Leg Site Reaction

Leg Site Reaction


Leg Site Reaction

Leg Site Reaction

**Riley. For keeping me laughing – in between the swearing – during the injection process…

MY DRAGON!!

MY DRAGON!!


Can I Help?

Can I Help?

**Final Thoughts. Rich’s petition for Thommy to attend the MACY*s Christmas party (yes, in February) and his eagerness to give us a tour of my beloved Penn State campus… Meg’s message on my Facebook wall wishing me a Happy Birthday (in French)… Date Nights with my husband that include popcorn (Shutter Island was amazing)… Space Saver bags (which actually do save room, until your cat scratches them and then you waste $60… for that I am not grateful)… Zuma & XBox for numbing my mind and keeping me occupied at 2am…

LASTLY. I’m thankful that my Dad left that note on the table so many years ago. I still carry the sentiment with me and think of it most Tuesdays. True Story.

First Day of the Rest of my Life

17 Feb 2010 5 Comments

by Rhea Kelly in Uncategorized

I think there are certain things in life, procedures mostly, that if a person is forced to endure should only take place in the morning – bright and early. For instance: spinal taps, always a “first thing” kind of event; root canals, something you normally don’t want to hang around until 3pm for; surgeries, that are barbaric enough on their own without the added pleasure of suspense; and finally, learning how to inject yourself with a caustic medication such as Copaxone. I am personal witness to all the above events and today I have the pleasure of experiencing self-injections. Originally, the Nurse (Shelby) was going to be out here at 10am but needed to reschedule until later in the day. Of course, because tacking on an extra three hours of wait time before learning how to do these injections is no big deal at all. Really, I have patience; I can wait. (lies)

From the Shared Solutions website: “Copaxone is believed to change the way the immune system reacts to MS by preventing harmful cells from developing and by stimulating beneficial cells in your body. These “good” Copaxone-activated cells then enter the Central Nervous System and help reduce damage at the site of lesions.”

So the goal of therapy is to prevent the lesions from spreading, and some people on daily injections report not having any relapses in over ten years. And Copaxone is superior (so says my Neurologist) to other long-term medications like Avonex, which is injected only once a week, but is intramuscular rather than subcutaneous like Copaxone. Also, Avonex causes flu-like symptoms after injection; vomiting, nausea, cold chills and fever are common for the first few months. With my medication, the most serious side effects are (again, according to Shared Solutions) “redness, pain, swelling, itching, or a lump at the site of injection, flushing, chest pain, weakness, infection, pain, nausea, joint pain, anxiety, and muscle stiffness. These reactions are usually mild and seldom require professional treatment.” Sounds fun, right? But wait… they left out one of the most common side effects- permanent indentation in the skin due to destruction of fatty tissue.

Obviously for me, the last side effect is the one I get most bummed out about. First of all, I find it highly disturbing that I need to find injection sites on my body that have enough fat to pinch together 2-3 inches and then inject. I doubt this is a big hang up for most people but for me, as for anyone with body image/eating disorder issues, I find it hard to believe this aspect of the injection will ever become routine. Second, I really worry that this daily scavenger hunt for fat will trigger hyper-vigilance with my diet and an over-sensitivity to perceived imperfections of my body. Just as I start to feel a little more comfortable in my own skin; “here, have some permanent indentations.”

My goal with Shelby today will be finding injection sites (you need 7) that will not be as prone to these indentations. I’m hoping the hips and thigh areas will be sufficient so that I can leave my arms and stomach alone; pinching for fat here will be both unproductive and somewhat traumatic.

So, here we go. This morning was the last morning I get to wake up and not take the injection out of the fridge, put a warm compress on the injection site, inject, press with cotton ball, ice and then bandage. They say that after a few weeks/months the routine becomes second nature. In the meantime, Thommy and I bought some champagne and orange juice for the next couple mornings. When I was a kid and deathly allergic to just about everything, my parents gave me $1 and my Dad bought me ice cream after each allergy shot. Grown up, but still a little bratty in my own special way, I see nothing wrong with bribing myself to be a big girl and just doing the damn injections.

Here’s to second nature and being a brave little toaster… CHEERS!


“Autobiography in 5 Chapters”

14 Feb 2010 Leave a Comment

by Rhea Kelly in quotes Tags: , , , , ,

This is a classic! While numerous sources attribute it to Portia Nelson, I can’t confirm that. Regardless, I think we all can relate; plus, if my Mom liked it, it must be great and definitely worth passing along here.

I

I walk down the street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk
I fall in.
I am lost … I am helpless.
It isn’t my fault.
It takes me forever to find a way out.

II

I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I pretend I don’t see it.
I fall in again.
I can’t believe I am in the same place
but, it isn’t my fault.
It still takes a long time to get out.

III

I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I see it is there.
I still fall in … it’s a habit.
my eyes are open
I know where I am.
It is my fault.
I get out immediately.

IV

I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I walk around it.

V

I walk down another street.

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