Thanksgiving

[maryfw]

As I was thinking lately about how much I HATE my POTS, I also starting thinking about the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. I realize that in spite of my POTS I have so much to be thankful for. I tell people that I have a life altering disorder but it could be worse. So as odd as it may seem I am thankful for the health that I do have. and that is just one of many things I could list.

So who is willing to post with me what you are thankful for?

mary

[JoyNtheJourney]

I have SO much to be thankful for!

I, too, am thankful that even though I have POTS, I could be a lot sicker than I am. I have learned from experience that if you look around enough, you will find someone who has it a lot worse than you! I am thankful that I have a wonderful family, especially my husband, who supports me and is always there for me. Most of all, I am thankful for the Lord above who has given me so much to be thankful for!

Happy Thanksgiving!

[dawn]

I am thankful that my brother had a successful liver transplant in September.

I am thankful I was able to make the trip to Chicago and stay with him post op

in the hotel for 10 days and help care for him.

I am thankful he is showing no signs of rejection and is anxious to start driving

his school bus again.

I am thankful my husband got a job with the Mayo system in a satelite hospital.

I am thankful my 17 year old son likes his new school.

I am really, really thankful I was awarded Social Security Disability after a 3 year

wait and I didn't have to go to a hearing.

I am thankful God loves me.

Dawn

[runningshoe]

I have been noticing more people posting about feeling angry and or depressed. I think the holidays have the potential to either bring us down or lift us up. Not only is it a time to celebrate (and maybe you don't feel up to it) but it is also a marker of time going by (oh look, one more Thanksgiving where I am going to overeat and have a pots attack). I was glad to see your post. I am thankful everyday for my family, my friends, that my husband is not sick and can work full time and support us, for all that I am still able to do, and for medical insurance! Does this mean that I never get bummed out? Not at all. But at the end of the day when I crawl in my comfy bed I am thankful for comfort and caring and love and life!

[nadine]

Thankful for each new day- no matter how bad it may be.

For family and friends and their never ending love and support

Thankful for my freedom- and those who have sacrificed to protect it

Thankful for having enough to meet basic needs of our family

having access to health care- no matter how frustrating it can be. I have coverage and choices and many don't have this luxury.

For my faith and spirit that keeps me going and fighting.

SO very thankful for this forum!!! I haven't been on as much lately-- but everyone is here when you need them to lift you, inform you, encourage you, be your friend, cheerleader, just to support you and most importantly understand!!!! Thanks!!

[bluebeauty875]

I am thankful my POTS is not worse. I've heard some horror stories about some severe cases. I am thankful for my dog Gabby who sleeps with me every night and really has kept my spirits up through all of this. I am thankful for my parents who take care of me and my younger brothers even though they really don't understand my illness. I'm thankful that God knows what is really going on and that he has a plan for my life. Without my faith in him and my family I wouldn't be here now. I'm also very thankful for this forum. It's great to have a place where people understand what i'm going through.

[Rachel]

I am thankful for...

My loving husband who works hard, cares for me daily, and loves me just as I am.

My happy little son who loves to be with me, even when I can't get out of bed.

My friends and family, their love for me, and the many ways they help me out.

God and the countless things He has done for me.

Sufficient food, clothing, and shelter.

A wheelchair to help me get around and a husband to take me places.

A comfortable bed, nice pillows, a heating pad, soft jammies, and blankets.

Good books and craft items to keep me entertained.

Kind doctors and good medicines.

My DINET friends!!! Yep, I'm thankful for all of you.

Simple pleasures like coffee, chocolate, a cookie, a note from a friend, a starry night, the Northern Lights....

...and so many more blessings that are too numerous to count!

[Tammy]

I'm so thankful that I chose to have Jesus in my life. He is all I have to help me through my sufferings of this life and am also thankful to have Heaven to look forward to once this suffering is over.

- Tammy

[Suzanne]

Great post. We do not have Thanksgiving down under, but it is always good to take stock of the positives in my life. Sometimes the negatives take over.

I am thankful for being a child of God and knowing that my suffering will end in eternity.

I am thankful for my husband who works hard to pay for all my medical bills.

I am thankful for my 3 sons who are learning how to care for me and hopefully future wives and children.

I am forever thankful that I look out from my bedroom to my tropical backyard and the tall gums in the distance.

I am thankful for my church family who support me when my own doesn't.

And thankful for the forum to learn, share, and vent.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all.

[jjpots]

I am thankful for my faith,

I am thankful for my family,

I am thankful for my friends,

I am thankful for this site and the great people on it,

I am thankful for a warm house as the wind is blowing cold outside,

I am thankful for a full tummy and

I am thankful for the florinef helping with my rapid heart rate.

JJH

[shannon]

Among many other things, I am SO very thankful for this website and the support I feel here. Thanks to all of you!

- Shannon

[maryfw]

I am thankful for Life

I am thankful for Family

I am thankful for my Faith

I am thankful for my what I have

I am thankful that I live in a wonderful country

I am thankful for this forum

I am thankful for a diagnosis (I finally know)

I am truly blessed.

mary

[Mrs. Burschman]

I second the thankful for a diagnosis part! Along with many other blessings!

Amy

[lthomas521]

My thanks go to the National Library of Medicine, funded by me and my fellow U.S. taxpayers (thanks, folks), for compiling MEDLINE and making it free to anyone with Internet access.

I would also like to thank the Falls and Syncope Service, Institute for Cellular Medicine, Newcastle University, Newcastle, UK, for testing a new drug, ivabradine, specifically in people with POTS:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?D...Pubmed_RVDocSum

I'm also grateful for my family and friends, who cut me lots of slack when I'm sick.

[Sophia3]

Grateful for many things! all my senses so I can see, hear, smell and taste and touch the world around me!!

For a warm bed and shelter, my cat children, my generous room mate, the family members that get my illness (well, the best they can) my friends though I mainly visit on the phone these days or see a few times a year face to face

Many things I am grateful for are personal but they are always there.

I try to say THANK YOU in the morning no matter what. Not that I am any idiot Pollyanna but try to keep things in perspective.

As we age, our loved ones die and the family get togethers get smaller and smaller but I try to remember the happy memories and be grateful for those....and make new ones. . .

Easier for some of us I know..and more difficult for others.

I loathe and detest the crass commercialisms of all the seasons and try to remember what they are "all" about.

I try to remember the most basic of the basics sometimes.

Also watch funny old shows on DVD and talk to friends that pick me UP. or make me laugh.

I am grateful for my ability to ignore the need to BUY GIFTS to show love...well, my cash flow does not allow it but still

Grateful for the good things and magic the Internet brings...like great moderated websites like this one...and email.

The ability to talk to people in the middle of the night when I can't sleep from a different time zone by typing in PM or email.

[Guest tearose]

I've been thinking about this for days. It is harder question than it appears.

The only way I can sum it up is to say...

I am in awe and appreciative for the ability to find many things to be continuously thankful for and appreciative of.

Happy Thanksgiving dear dinet family.

best regards,

tearose

[ajw4790]

Let's see...

I am thankful for so much I am sure I will forget a lot!

I am thankful for....

My family

My friends

To be able to still be able to stay in school

To find some help with the daily struggles

To finally find some answers

A warm (but not too warm!) and comfortable roof over my head

For people who listen to what I have to say (Drs etc), b/c it makes all the difference

That things seem to be coming together relatively well.

And of course this forum of very helpful and caring people!!!

I am sure I will think of more later!

[BuddyLeesWife]

I am thankful for many many things but related to this disorder, I am currently most thankful for

the 14 months that my husband has not had a syncope or pre-syncope event and,

the fact that his brother was just approved for Social Security benefits.

THANKYOU.........ThankYou..........thankyou............

[jhjd]

Let's see...I, too, am actually thankful for my health, because it could be a whole lot worse. Plus, I'm thankful for having health insurance that gives me access to physicians and drugs, and I'm thankful for living in this time, when such things exist. I'm thankful for my family (especially my husband), and for great friendships. I'm thankful for having all my needs and at least some of my material wants met on a daily basis. I'm thankful that I've had the opportunity to pursue my dreams, and I'm thankful for the dreams and hopes that I have for the future.

Having listed all that stuff, and realizing how many people in the world don't have what I have, I suppose that the biggest thing is this: I'm thankful to God for providing all of this, even though He knows that I don't really deserve it any more than anybody else!

GREAT POST!!!