Friday Thankfuls

So this past week was not at all like I expected as on Sunday evening at 6.00pm we went into lockdown after having 1 case community transmission of Covid. It was so strange to think that not even 24 hours prior I had been having a girls night and having fun with friends and then we were in lockdown for the week. The shops went crazy as soon as the announcement was made despite all food stores being allowed to operate normally. My week got changed and what was a full on week filled with appointments and catching up with friends became a week of rarely leaving the house. Thankfully as of 6.00pm tonight we are out of lockdown and things can go back to semi normal, but we still have to wear masks until the 14th of February which is doable. 

On Monday morning I got a text from my podiatrist asking if I could come in earlier to pick up my orthotics as they were told that they had to close for the week. Then my psych appointment became a telehealth appointment and it was so strange to talk to my psych from my bedroom and not from her office. I hadn't seen my psych since before Christmas so I had a lot to update her on and it's been decided that I will see her every 3 weeks instead of every 4 weeks which I have to agree with. On Thursday I was actually able to have an appointment face to face (well mask to mask) when I saw my doctor, it was 4 weeks since I last saw him and it was great to see him. At this stage we are holding off from doing anymore tests and going to wait another month or so because he wants to be certain that the dizziness won't improve (if it's his theory by the end of March we should start to see improvements though it's not likely as it's continuing to get worse). He also wants to do more research into what other specialists could help me and do more research. We know it's not related to my ears as the ENT took one look at me and referred me to a neurologist who was a disaster and told me it was my anxiety if the medication he prescribed didn't work (which it didn't). My symptoms don't match up with POTS, Vestibular Migraines or Meniere's Disease which are all the standard conditions that cause dizziness. So it's time to get another opinion just who with is unknown. Some part of me knows we are missing something but I'm not sure what and I am praying that something shows itself. 

What was also strange was that in the middle of Lockdown I had an email asking me to complete a video interview (I had to record myself answering questions in a set amount of time) which I did and I honestly thought it was a disaster. Until on Wednesday I had a phone call from the company asking me if I was available for an interview via Microsoft Teams on Monday. I am trying not to obsess over it and just giving it to God. 

Rather than doing Friday Favourites this fortnight I am going to list 5 things I am thankful for as I think we all need the reminder that even during hard times there is something to be thankful about. 

So here are my Friday Thankfuls:

Good friends - for so many years I have struggled with close friends (people move away, lose touch, normal adult things happen etc.) but over the past year I have found "my people". I have friends who I can turn to in the good and bad times and honestly I am so thankful for them. I finally have friends who I can do girls nights with where we chat about anything and everything while eating chocolate and I never thought I would find them. I also have friends who despite living in different states I am close to and I can share all the memes with but can also turn to when things are tough. 

Seeing people come together - so there has been fires burning out of control since Monday and it's been amazing to see so many coming together and helping those who have lost their houses or have had to be evacuated. These are the worst fires in 5 years in my state and it's hard to see all the destruction but to see so many gofundmes, things like pay it forward coffees and meals for people who have been affected by the fires, people offering to take in animals and so on, just goes to show that even in a pandemic in the middle of a lockdown there are people there to help.

Rain forecast this weekend - we so need the rain not just to help put out the fires mentioned above but also to make everything fresh and wash away the Summer dust. I always feel like after a good shower everything looks brighter and I am praying that we get the rain we need. Also you know I love any excuse to breakout my rainbow gumboots.

For having another week to take it easy - this past week I was meant to be getting back into routine and having some sort of plan moving forward but that didn't happen. I was really thankful to have another week to sleep in and take things easy especially as my dizziness hasn't been stable and with that comes more fatigue. Don't get me wrong I did do quite a few things I had been meaning to do around the house but it was nice to just relax and have no pressure to be productive. 

Living in a state/country where Covid is taken seriously - yes we were in lockdown this past week but this was after almost 10 months of no community transmission and our lives were relatively normal. I would rather have 5 days in lockdown than 5 weeks of restrictions and unknowns. No government is perfect but compared to other countries both the state and federal governments have done a decent job (and are learning from their mistakes). Also you will probably hear me complaining about having to scan into every shop and place in the coming week but at the same time if it makes Covid tracing easier then I will do it.