New Year.... New Beginnings

Hopefully everyone had a wonderful Christmas.........


I have to think that the single greatest thing about this time of year is the promise and the hope that comes with it. So 2007 wasn't what you had hoped for due to many reasons and not necessarily as an end result of something you did. (Jo note: I find it comforting to know that I am not the direct cause for all of the screw ups in my life. Sometimes they are actually brought on by outside forces.)


New Years is just a few days ahead of us. A New Year that can bring new beginnings. A chance to step back and take a long look at last year to see if we can figure out what went wrong and what went right and the whys of it all. A fresh chance to regroup and start again, one step at a time. Actually these things can be done at any time during the year, but it just seems right to save it for the New Year.


As for the infamous new years resolutions..... I have none. I quit doing those a long time ago. What a way to start a new year. I would set new goals for myself, try to accomplish what I had set out to do for a few days or a few weeks and fall way short of my goals. I finally realized that there probably is no better way to start the new year on a downhill note than with a new years resolution. Why tell myself I am going to loose 30 plus pounds this year and then get depressed and eat my weight in comfort food! Why not just weigh myself and watch what I am eating on a day to day basis instead of starting the year off with pressure. (Jo note: Didn't we just go through the stress and pressure of Christmas and all of that shopping, baking, entertaining and now have 'The Tax Man' to stress over for a few months? Who needs more pressure?)


We still have Britt's birthday coming up on New Years Day. After that, I plan on watching the OSU ~vs~ LSU game on TV. (Jo note: I am a Buckeye and JD is from Louisiana so it should be an exciting game. I will probably end up cheering for both teams.) I have knitting and crocheting to do. And I will gradually get everything gathered up for taxes.


We wish you a good start to the New Year with lots of wonderful surprises in store for you as the year progresses.

Once Upon A Time......

Once upon a time in Cyberland there existed a blog that went by the name of 'Moodscapes'. The hand that penned this blog belong to (ME!) and I was delighted with the outlet I had created for expressing myself. No matter what the mood, I could express it there and for the most part everyone respected my feelings and my thought process.

I have a condition that many people suffer from, called fibromyalgia. What a dream come true when the FDA approved a drug that would take care of the pain that fibromyalgia brought nearly everyday. Lyrica was the name of this drug. Memory takes me back to thinking how musical the name sounds. Music for most people is a source of relaxation so therefore it is a fitting name.

Oh, the first few weeks of taking this new drug was wonderful. Although there was still a certain amount of pain it was very bearable in comparison to the pre-Lyrica days. After reading the side effects flyer that came with the Lyrica, things looked even more promising because the worse thing listed was dizziness. No big deal. After all some had accused me in my younger days as living in a permanent state of 'Dizzy".

As the days marched on, I started having fleeting bouts of depression. Well, it is the season for depressions for one thing and depression rides in a side car with fibromyalgia for the other. Therefore not much thought was given to the depression.

However on one bright sunny morning, my world exploded on me. I don't even recall now what sparked it. I do recall thought, that not a soul was safe from my mouth and verbal ravings. Anyone that dared get in my path heard ranting and raving from me that I am sure they never in their wildest dreams thought would come out of my mouth. I hurt several loved ones that day and I will forever pray for their forgiveness. I also clicked delete on Moodscapes, as well as my Grandparents blog.

During one lucid moment I knew this was all terribly wrong. I went online to check out the side effects of this miracle drug more thoroughly. I found a web site that not only lists the common side effects (these are the ones we get as a print out with the medication) but it also listed the uncommon side effects. I could not believe what I was seeing. In the uncommon side effects (effecting 1 in 1,000) was a list of every strange behavior I had experienced over the past few weeks. At that moment, I decided I had to get that garbage out of my system. So I just stopped taking every drug that was prescribed to me. (special note: not recommended) I was very fortunate that I didn't suffer any ill effects from doing that.

All I was concerned with was purging my system of these chemicals and becoming a human being again. I am happy to report that it seems to be working.

As a result 'Moodscapes' is just a memory and I now attach my thoughts and memories to 'Bits and Pieces'. It is very important that when given a new drug, especially one that is praised as a miracle drug of sorts, that you check out as much information on it as possible. Although Lyrica is working for many people and making a huge difference in their lives, it doesn't work for everyone. I am proof of that. I would prefer to deal with the pain of fibromyalgia than to live through another nightmare like the one 'WE' experienced.

.............. And they all lived happily ever after.

Now you know the rest of the story.