I began this blog with the best of intentions. I wanted to share my love of books, of history, and of anything else I encountered. For some time, I was able to do just that. Regular reviews of the books I read, as well as a few other posts about more general things. But towards the end of last year, a few things happened that meant I went quiet for some time.
As regular readers will know, I have some health issues, and my Crohn’s Disease reared its ugly head about a year ago. With the problems that caused, and – as usual – the even greater problems caused by the treatment, I was more or less wiped out for months. Steroids are wonderful drugs; they almost always reduce the active Crohn’s. But for me, having had to take them so often over the last 40 years, they have now become a nightmare.
I started taking Humira in August, and after a slow start, it has been working well for me. But coming off the steroids is another story. My adrenal glands no longer work very well, so reducing the prednisolone is a long, long struggle. And every small reduction comes at a cost; weeks of physical and mental fatigue.
That’s why I have been quiet for so long. I’ve not written any book reviews because I haven’t been able to read any books since about May last year. As you can imagine, this has not been a happy time for someone who normally reads two or three books a week.
Then towards the end of last year, my Mum was diagnosed with an ongoing condition that will slowly progress. So I had to make the decision to move nearer to her home, so that I could give her a bit more support to live independently for as long as possible. So in the middle of trying to get better, I’ve had to move home as well, using far more energy than I actually have.
But now, I think things are finally improving! I’ve moved, settled in, and in the last week or so, started to read again. Although I’m still getting problems from the steroid reduction, I am beginning to feel human again. I have to ration how much I read – and most of you will know how hard that is – but it feels so good to be able to pick up a book, or my Kindle, and lose myself in another world.
That also means that I’ll be writing reviews again; first two or three coming in the next week or so. I hope I’m back for good, but certainly for a while. As long as the Humira continues to work, and I can get off the damned steroids.
