It's that time of year again...

Fall.  Well, maybe not fall, but the end of summer.  It's here again.  Kids are going back to school, parents are breathing a sigh of relief, vacations are being wrapped up and Halloween, Thanksgiving, and, yes, Christmas decorations are working their way onto the shelves of your nearest big box store.  I love this time of year.  It's always full of possibilities.  Full of excitement for what's to come.  And back to school clothes. 

I've changed gyms and now workout at nearby UMKC.  The students have flooded back with their 100 pound backpacks and their wide eyed optimism.  It's a nice environment to be in every afternoon as I make my way to the fitness center.  When you enter the campus you leave the politics, economics and personal medical issues of the real world behind.

I'm slowly building up my strength and endurance (yet again) just by keeping at it every day.  If I don't get to the gym I'll walk around the park or go for a long bike ride.  Things I couldn't do before having my hip replaced.  As I get stronger I feel more rejuvenated.  Expending energy is giving me more energy to keep going.  How's that for a self-fulfilling prophecy?

Unfortunately my Cushing's is still not cooperating.  One week my cortisol level is up, the next it's down.  The tumor is in control and my endocrine system is just along for the ride.  The good news is that my cortisol isn't getting anywhere near as high as it was when I first started my Cushing's saga.  Metty is seeing to that.  But the fact that the level can still get high shows that Metty is losing the fight when the tumor really wants to produce.  We have some options to add in additional toxic drugs to try to control the level of cortisol, but until the tumor decides to stabilize it's output we are working against a moving target.  Unfortunately the drugs can only work on the cortisol, not the tumor. 

So I'm just taking things one day at a time.  Some days I feel great, some days not so much.  But there are always those out there that have it worse than me even on my ickiest day.  I shall continue to plod along retaining all of my fabulocity and regal Princess qualities until further notice!  That much I can guarantee!