Wishing you all Happy Holidays

Hi, everyone. I know I’ve been gone a long time, and I hope you don’t hold that against me. This past year has been unbelievably busy and stressful but also really fun. I spent the entire month of August in Poland, participating in a language and culture course called Polonicum at the University of Warsaw. It was amazing, and I highly recommend the program to anyone interested in learning about Poland and the Polish language! There are many different kinds of scholarships available as well, and all ages are welcome.

However, through all of this, my back pain did not subside. I was on pain killers the entire time I was in Poland. Actually, at some point I thought my pain was going away. I thought I was getting better but when I returned home, I noticed there was something wrong with my right leg. I went to my Neurosurgeon and told him about my symptoms and he scheduled me for surgery immediately. My nerve was dying. I had an operation on my back in September and was in the hospital for a week. Afterwards, I spent a month in a rehab center (I was on the waiting list for three weeks first), just focusing on strengthening my back and healing. I have to say, without rehab I wouldn’t be as far as I am now. I am still considered unable to work and I have a doctor’s note until January 12th, but I feel stronger and healthier than I have in the last two years.

Sometimes, when I think about the pain I went through and dealt with, I start to tear up because I had begun to believe it would never end. I was incredibly depressed, and even though I wasn’t suicidal, I often questioned the point in living if I had to deal with excruciating pain all the time. I am young and unless they were paying attention to how I moved and walked, most people could not tell that I was in so much pain. It made me feel weak and useless. I’m sharing this because I want anyone else in this situation to know that the pain can end. But most importantly, I want to remind everyone how important it is to listen to your body. If I’d done that in the beginning, and I’d gone to the doctor right away instead of being scared and hiding my pain from my family and friends, maybe I’d have never needed surgery.

Anyhow, that’s what I’ve bene up to lately. As far as sims go, I still pop on The Sims 4 sometimes. In fact, I’m planning on purchasing Get Together . I haven’t pre-ordered yet because I’m being stingy about money, but I like what I see in the expansion. When it comes to the Sims 3, however, don’t expect anything. I uninstalled it months ago, and to be honest, I can’t imagine myself sitting at the computer to program anytime soon.

Happy Holidays!