I am happy to report that our latest bout with Covid appears to be over. Al is feeling fine, and I am regaining my energy. Thank goodness for Paxlovid, which began to ease my chills, joint pain, headache, and congestion within 24 hours. It leaves a metallic taste, but who cares? Better that than to […]

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Just when you think it’s safe to go out, here comes Covid, once again. Al wasn’t feeling well last week, but we both thought it was a cold settling in. Not so. By Friday, he was exhausted and slept all afternoon. And by evening, he asked me to give him a Covid test. Usually I’m […]

The post One More Time appeared first on Living with Scleroderma.

It has been pouring rain here all weekend in an unusual early-fall Nor’easter. Lots of wind, especially along the coast. Fortunately, we’re an hour’s drive inland from Boston, so the impact wasn’t as severe here. On Nantucket, winds and surf were so intense that remains of an 1884 shipwreck washed ashore. The storm arrived just […]

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It’s dreary and raining this Sunday afternoon. I’m writing now because Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement and highest holiday in the Jewish calendar, starts this evening and goes through Monday, which is the day I normally write this blog. It’s a somber day that caps a period of self-reflection. We’re supposed to think about […]

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Labor Day has now passed, alas. The school year has already commenced in our fair city. Once again traffic is heavier on the Mass Pike when I drive into Boston for medical appointments and other events, always a sure sign that vacation season is over. Time for sweaters and jackets and warm pants. I still […]

The post At Summer’s End appeared first on Living with Scleroderma.

It always surprises me this time of year to see leaves already dropping from the trees on our street. I mean, come on, it’s still technically summer here in New England! But the days are growing noticeably short, and less sunlight means less photosynthesis. So, yes, the leaves and other green plants are shifting into […]

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I love the ocean. I wish we lived close enough to walk the beach every day. I find the rhythm of the waves mesmerizing, and the moist sea air really helps my dry eyes, nose, and mouth due to Sjogrens. Recently, I discovered a meditation technique called Ocean Breath, or Ujjayi Pranayama. It basically involves slightly […]

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On Sunday, I got totally out of my comfort zone. I’ve been taking acting classes for several years, now, and over the past sic months, have also joined with some acting friends in an informal group working on scenes. This evolved into reading a play by Selina Fillinger, POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are […]

The post The Best Medicine appeared first on Living with Scleroderma.

Over the past few months I have endured a series of diagnostic tests to figure out the cause of my chronic diarrhea. The basic hypothesis is that my scleroderma has caused waste to move more slowly through my gut, leading to bacterial overgrowth. But my GI specialist, Dr. H, has been thorough, trying to rule […]

The post Down the Hatch appeared first on Living with Scleroderma.

There’s a word in Japanese for the light that filters through trees: Transliterated as komorebi (kō-mō-reh-bee), it is made up of the Japanese characters for tree, leaking, and sun—meaning, literally, the sunlight that leaks through trees. Komorebi refers to the ever-shifting way that sunlight filters through tree branches and boughs, creating dancing patterns on the […]

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