I started to keep a journal of every weird symptom that was happening and scheduled another appointment with my naturopath with the list in hand. He finally pinned it down to adrenal failure and that somehow it had compromised my thyroid, which essentially made my auto-immune system attack itself. See more information here. Explains the full range of totally bizarre symptoms, including exhaustion, blindness, eye pressure, massive headaches 24-7 and a whole range of other splendid goodies. I've been put on a very strict, boring diet that includes a whole lot of 'no' (no sugar, wheat, corn, potatoes, peppers, milk, cheese, red meat or alcohol [waaaahhh]), I take an epic cocktail of naturopathic drops and consume an entire school of fish oil/probiotics/vitamin D daily. In the week that I've been on this program, I'm improving drastically every day. I can look at the computer without pain, can stay up past 8pm and I'm finally driving again (although the chauffeuring around town was starting to grow on me). The cause was a perfect storm of extreme stress, poor eating and getting sick (so... Christmas).
Being partially blind, trapped inside in the dead of winter and having no joy in anything I was eating gives you good perspective on life. Like how had I managed to get on SEVEN volunteer committees? Why was I continuing to work 70 hours a week, then coming home to blog/tweet/pin/FB about it? Then proceed to spend entire weekends running around the city trying to find the perfect shade of teal for a pillow for my couch sandwiched between endless kids activities, birthday parties and playdates...
My entire 2013 has, by brute force, slowed me down - I'm down to one volunteer position with a group I really value and enjoy, I've started a meditation course with 'Ginger' at the Canadian Meditation Institute (it's seriously the hardest thing I've ever had to do - I have to sit. still. for 1.5 hours with my eyes closed) and I've streamlined my online use to things I really love, like this blog (and pinning - hot damn I love Pinterest).
As part of the 'slow life' program, we decided to convert the office into a chill room - think mounds of gooshy pillows, layered rugs, Buddha statues and a new pallet couch that H made from a bunch of free pallets and a futon mattress. For the first time in my life, I painted out an entire room in white, including trim. It's killing me to not have a coloured feature wall. Have you seen the new deep green hues this year? Plus we diverged from our usual mid century style into an eclectic ethnic mix with some traditional elements (GASP!) mixed in. Here's the inspiration (I'll update with photos of the room tomorrow - it looks better in the sunshine).
Pallet Couch. Source: French By Design
Layers and animal heads - surprisingly tough to find in Alberta. Also French By Design
Blocks of wood for tables. Soucre: Daniella Witte
Art. I love every single one of these prints. Source: River Luna on Etsy
Leather butterfly chair, ethnic rug, and piles of books. And that green wall. Swoon. Source: SF Girl By Bay
Possible light. Satellite 6 Pendant by Schoolhouse Electric - they ship to Canada - yehaw!
I'm really happy with the final design - such a departure from my mcm 'esque-ness - plus turned out to function perfectly as an oasis from the frenetics of daily life.
LP