Friday, 24 September 2010

Tarnation ... Hibernation

It's been a while ...and this post will be short, I am afraid.

I have no idea yet why I am so tired. Teaching four days a week is undoubtedly a factor, but this exhaustion far exceeds normal tiredness.  I was felled by a short but severe case of food poisoning the Saturday before last, and since then have faded a little more each day.

I finally went to the doctor on Wednesday and she suspects anemia , a possible side effect of the food poisoning as I lost quite a startling amount of blood.  I can't get  blood tests done here until mid-October so am going in to town on Saturday to have them done ... (have to fast for 12 hours so can't easily go tomorrow after class ... but that is a possibility since I am up in the middle of the night) .  My blood pressure keeps falling to about 102-110/ sixty-something  as well, so the next step if I am not anemic would be to adjust my blood pressure medication again.

Right now I am teaching a lovely thoughtful man about my age from a town just 200 kilometres away from my family's roots in Germany  ... and next week the other teacher and I will switch, I think, and I will work with his friend who is a Swiss German and very different ... bubblier and much more carefree.  I like them both but when they are together Helmut is as silent as a spring, and Ottilia lapses into German rather than attempting to work her way through things in English.   I think we will switch each week so that they have two different kinds of teaching throughout their four weeks.  I wish I had more energy because I do love teaching.

I will be happy to get to the root of this sudden exhaustion for a number of reasons ... not the least of which is that I hate the state of my house these days.  Kenya will be delighted to have regular and strenuous exercise once again.  (She is reacting to my inertia by being very naughty when she does get out with me ... Yesterday she pulled me right off my feet when she went streaking after one of Rowboat Flo's cats.  My weakness and the wet grass were also factors, but the main one was that she has an excess of energy as a result of my energy deficiency. Today she took off halfway home from Rowboat Flo's where we had had dinner, and returned to Flo's to steal one of the bones put out for those same cats.)  My students who likely have no idea what they are missing will also benefit.  And I guess my loyal readers will be glad to have me back blogging ...

So ... not much of a post ... just an explanation for my absence.  There will be another hiatus ... to be broken when there is either a recovery or I have something else to add.

2 comments:

kingmisha said...

I'm really glad to read a post from you, but very sad that you are so unwell. I've had anemia so bad, that walking across a room the size of your living/dining room would exhaust me. Mine was caused by prolonged exposure to toxic fumes. So toxins from the food poisoning could be the culprit.

Take Vitamin B-12 and ferrous sulfate supplements. If you're not anemic, these supplements can do you no harm.

Recovering your energy can take time so have patience and don't push yourself to be more active. It doesn't help and can overtire you.

Take care of yourself.

Oma said...

Thanks for your concern and for the advice, Claire ... appreciate both ...