Life, lupus, and the pursuit of happiness.

My Mom has been extreme couponing for as long as I can remember, certainly before it became trendy. She did it as a necessity to help provide for her family. Most of the time during my childhood we didn’t have two nickels to rub together. Couponing for my mother was a survival mechanism.

I learned from a very young age that sales and coupons were my friends. Why pay full price when you don’t have to? Using coupons has helped me to provide for myself and others. Couponing is a fabulous way to treat yourself with a new lipstick and not have to pay for it!

This evening at CVS, I purchased $87.18 worth of items with tax. By shopping the sales and using my coupons, I only paid $9.67. I also received $14 in CVS ExtraBucks. Technically CVS paid me $4.33 to take the items from them.

My Mom and I have a saying that we joke will be on our tombstones, “It was on sale and I had a coupon.”

-Erika

That happens to me all the time. “You can’t be sick, you’re too pretty.” Well, it turns out I can be both, I’m good at multitasking.

-Erika

(Source: theretiredbridgeburner, via beccaisstellar)

The past 24 hours have been like a roller coaster. I’ve gotten some really great news and I’ve had some terrible incidents happen to me.

The Upside

Yesterday, I found out that my dental insurance is going to help pay for the lower jaw reconstruction surgery that I need. Thanks to my systemic lupus erythematosus, heavy doses of prednisone, methrotrexate, and arthritis in my jaw, I have to get bone and tissue implanted in my lower jaw. While my dental insurance is only paying a small portion, any little bit helps.

I also got a wonderful surprise from the surgeon who will be reconstructing my lower jaw. He is essentially only going to charge me for the cost of materials (the lab generated live tissue and bone). He isn’t going to charge me for his time and talents that are involved in performing the surgery. It basically means my surgery will be half of the original proposed price.

I was overjoyed when I received this news. I started to cry on the phone with the patient coordinator I was speaking with. My surgery will be in mid-June, I have to stop my MTX treatments before I can have the surgery. I’ll be out of commission for a few weeks, I won’t be able to talk or really move my mouth. A straw and smoothies will be my best friends.

The Downside

I was in a pretty bad car accident late yesterday afternoon. I was driving on I-64 West and I was involved in a multi-vehicle accident. I didn’t hit anyone, but other cars hit me. The police said that the other drivers were following me too close and when I braked, it caused a chain reaction.

I was taken to the hospital via ambulance while being restricted to a backboard and neck brace. Due to my pre-existing conditions, the police and fireman insisted that those precautions should be taken.

All of the ER doctors and nurses were incredibly sweet and gentle with me. I was so nauseated from my methotrexate treatment I did the night before and the doctor was so kind to give me a Zofran melt away tablet. I had to be on the backboard for quite a long time and in the neck brace for even longer. Luckily my fiancé was there to hold my hand and talk to me.

After a CT scan and a few X-rays, I was able to be taken off the backboard and to have the neck brace removed. I have muscle damage in my neck and upper back. I have to meet with an orthopedic surgeon on Monday to see what my treatment plan needs to be.

I was sent home with pain medications and orders to take it easy. I’m not supposed to drive for the next few days which is hard because I get motion sickness if I’m the passenger.

According to the police, I’m really lucky I wasn’t hurt more.

By the way, HAPPY WORLD LUPUS DAY!!! The photo on the right side shows me wearing one of my favorite lupus shirts and while doing the lupus hand sign. I’m very fortunate to be here today and to have such amazing doctors who care about me as a person, not just my diseases.

Have a safe and wonderful weekend y’all!

-Erika

Engagement: What It Means To Me

Having been engaged for a few months now, I can say that it’s very different than dating. When you’re dating, it feels much easier and relaxed. It’s all about getting to know each other, having fun, and hopefully falling in love. Engagement is a serious commitment and the beginnings of planning your life together. It can be very stressful on both persons involved.

The way I see my engagement to Josh, is that it is practice for marriage. This is our time where we are able to work out little issues before they become big ones. We now have the opportunity to fully put our trust in each other. Josh and I have made the promise that we will one day be married and we will have the rest of our lives to nurture and love each other.

Being engaged takes two things, practice and patience.

Every day I get with Josh while we are engaged is practice for marriage. I am not the same Erika I was when I first met Josh, and the same goes for him. I am practicing ways to understand him, care for him, and love him better. Some days I do better than others, I know that Josh experiences that too. That’s when patience comes into the picture.

There are some days when I know I drive Josh absolutely crazy. And there are some days when Josh is difficult for me to deal with. But when we have those moments, it’s important that we both need to try to be patient with each other. When we listen to each other instead of talking over each other, when we actually know the facts instead of assuming what may be false, those are the things that help to keep our relationship in tact.

Josh and I still have some challenges to get through before we get married. Our relationship is far from perfect and no relationship can ever be perfect. All we can do as an engaged couple is to continue to give to each other. I believe the more good that you put into the world, even more good will come out. I apply that theory to my relationship with Josh, the more goodness I bring to him, the more goodness that will bless us in return.

-Erika

Happy One Year!

-Erika and Josh

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“OH HEY I HAZ DOGGY FROYO!”

~Chester

Sometimes a $10 bouquet of flowers is the best form of therapy.

Flowers remind me that in my world of constant sickness and being surrounded by hundreds of pills, that there is in fact a bit of light and joy that God put on this earth just for me to experience.

-Erika

(via beccaisstellar)

I related so much to Fantine’s character.

-Erika

(Source: survivorsupport, via beccaisstellar)