I have suffered with chronic health problems since I was 13 yrs old. During my teen years I suffered
with Ulcerative Colitis and joint problems for 6 years. One year after my husband and I married, my condition grew life threatening.
I was in the hospital 7 weeks and ended up having major intestinal surgery. It was a slow, hard road to recovery.
Treatment with steroids led to failure of my hip joint and consequent hip
replacement surgery at age 25. Then 12 years later, the same hip had to be replaced. Now nearly 12 years later both of my hips are giving me trouble at times.
For several years I suffered with Ankylosing Spondylitis, a form of arthritis
that fuses the spine. But in recent years it has not been as active. I have chronic, sometimes severe pain from
inoperable ovarian cysts, abdominal adhesions, fibromyalgia, migraines and arthritis. Due to many years of problems my tolerance level is very low and I struggle with chronic adrenal fatigue. There have been times the doctor said I was in total adrenal exhaustion.
The Lord has used all these health problems to teach me submission and, by His
grace, has not let me rebel. Through my teenage years it was a disguised blessing, for the Lord used it to keep me from
"going with the crowd" and getting into things that I would later regret. My activities now, at times, are
very limited and I still have to give up my "want to" many times. It is not easy and I have to cry unto the Lord every day for more grace.
Meditations