en route

It's time for these little ripples to make BIG waves. Water has always been an important part of my life. My favorite childhood memories are of lake life and my passion of waterskiing introduced to me the love of my life, John Lohrmann. That is really a pretty funny story we will save for another time... let's just say it was my first time over a ski jump... We have four amazing children Jadon, Ella, Gia and our newest addition Talise named for the beautiful water. I am a family and consumer sciences teacher at local high school and an ambassador for Food Revolution. I proudly joke about being a hot mess momma trying to balance all these important parts of my life. I am scatterbrained, sometimes delusional about what can actually get accomplished in a day. I try really hard to ignore how I am actually feeling because I fear that I will cause more work for others or start complaining... and no one wants to be around a "oh poor me" attitude. There it is - my reasons or excuses for ignoring my own health for six years.

2011. The year I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's Disease. An autoimmune disease that attacks the thyroid. Following the birth of my second child in 2010, I had what I thought was somewhat typical postpartum symptoms: tiredness, fogginess, weight gain, and so much hair falling out that our shower drain looked like an animal was growing in it... following each shower, but also had this sore throat that would just not go away. After a year in and out of the doctor, I finally got the phone call... "We found something... your Anti-TPO numbers are greater than 1000 - you have something called Hashimoto's Disease. We are referring you to an endocrinologist." I was scared, overwhelmed, anxious, and somewhat relieved to have found an answer to why I was feeling unlike me.

BETWEEN. I am grateful, thankful, and blessed to all that is a part of my life. I continue to take medication, but feel like it is somewhat of a Band-Aid to my symptoms. There are days that I am in a complete fog wondering how I will ever be able to fake it enough without others realizing and that darn sore throat... I struggle with weight gain and feel like I am just not myself. I rely on my TSH levels to determine my medication. I ignore, research, get overwhelmed, and then ignore some more.

2017. The year I focus on my wellness one ripple at a time.