Amifer

So I went to the clinic, as promised.

It’s really hard to take care of your health when you don’t have a family doctor (my area is suffering from a shortage of them right now). First, you have to be willing to sit in a clinic or the emergancy room for at least a couple of hours. Most often I’m not, meaning that I leave a lot of health concerns unchecked. And once you get yourself there, it’s hard to sit and talk with a doctor who doesn’t know you, answering questions that your family doctor would just know the answers to. I once had tests done at a clinic by a doctor, came back a few days later and was given my results by an entirely different doctor. It’s so impersonal, and when it comes to your health and well being you want to be dealt with by someone who knows you and you are comfortable with.

Anyway, I got up and went… finally! They think it could be a stomach ulcer which I had showed signs of developing last summer (but the emergancy room doctor sent me home having tested for everything but, saying “Well, I’m not sure what it is. If it gets any worse, come back.” Of course I didn’t) So I may have been walking around with uclers for the last year. They did blood work, and I have an ultrasound scheduled for next week.

I can’t believe how long I’ve been able to ignore all of the signs my body is sending me.

I’ve been ill for at least six months now. I have a low immune system and have picked up so many viruses and bugs in that time, but it’s so much more than that. I’m constantly in pain, very fatigued, and usually dizzy or naseous. Why I’ve carried on as if everything is fine is beyond me.

A chat with a friend gave me the kick in the ass that I needed, and I’ll be leaving work early today to go to the clinic.

Hopefully they can tell me what’s going on, and I’ll be able to get myself feeling the way I’m supposed to… healthy!

CISV is a fantastic global organization that I have recently found myself a part of. They work mostly in running children’s international summer camps, villages, and interchanges. But there is one program designed specifically for volunteers over the age of 19.

And that’s where I come in! I’ll be taking a month long trip to Costa Rica in December with 2 other Canadians, and over 20 other participants from 6 other countries! It really is an oppertunity of a life time.

I feel like CISV is the type of group I’m ready for right now. After only one meeting and a social function, I was made to feel so welcomed and included. I even signed up to head the newsletter and website development!