There’s not much that makes eating well easier than getting a scary diagnosis! When I realized I was at a higher risk for dissemination because I’m a diabetic and I was on oral steroids for about a month during the initial phase of my VF pneumonia, I decided I was going to eat as well…

I haven’t updated in several days so thought I should.  I won’t remember a lot of the daily details once time has passed.  I have days where I’m pleasantly surprised with how greatgood I feel and then I have days where I can’t really get out of bed.  I’m still sticking to my routine of…

I slept well last night for the first time in a very, very long time. I decided to vary my “foot of the bed” position and I propped myself up on my pillows and an extra comforter. I was able to be upright enough not to deal with the horrid reflux I’ve been getting from…

Ugh.  I’m really having a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that I’m going to potentially feel this way for a loooooong time. I’m surviving.  My asthma/breathing seem better.  I’m less short of breath and cough less often.  I have eliminated my daily afternoon nap.  I’m tired but able to stay awake as…

I have to admit something.  Yesterday was not such a good day.  I got a few things accomplished (made a phone call, washed a load of laundry and put it away, worked on some blog stuff) but most of the day was spent curled up at the foot of my bed feeling sorry for myself. …

…at least for me. Dealing with this has had a lot of ups and downs.  On my best days, I feel achey and fatigued but I get little bursts of energy.  Unfortunately those don’t last long!  They do last long enough to prepare a quick meal or run a quick errand. On my worst days, my…

Valley Fever symptoms can be different for everyone.  Typically, people will need 6-12 months to recover from non-disseminated disease–that’s a long time to wait to feel “normal” again. From: http://valleyfeversurvivor.com/symptoms.html Below is a list of many possible Valley Fever symptoms in humans, although symptoms of Valley Fever in dogs, cats, and other animals can be similar.…

In early March of 2013, I came down with what I thought was a mild cold.  My four children had been sick with varying degrees of upper respiratory viruses so I wasn’t concerned about myself at all.  After a week or so, breathing was becoming more and more difficult, so I went to urgent care where I…

When I moved to the Phoenix area in 2005, I knew nothing about Valley Fever.  I got a quick education in 2007 when our chocolate lab, Brownie, suddenly began to lose weight and experience malaise.  He was diagnosed with Valley Fever and did not respond to the anti-fungal medication we tried.  He died within two…