Please welcome
Tanya from The Fruitful Home
(and please leave her some comment love below)
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About Me:
Hello, I’m Tanya, and I blog over at The Fruitful Home and Mothering from Day to Day. I have two wonderful teenage children and have been married for twenty-one years. Some of my interests are scrap booking, decorating, crafts, and reading. I also enjoy connecting with others and encouraging them.
About My blogs:
About The Fruitful Home: The word fruitful means conductive to productivity; causing to bear in abundance. There are many ways to do this while living on a budget. I am always looking for new ways to save money and make my house a home. I don’t only want my home to be pleasing to the eye, but I want my family members to feel loved and appreciated.
My other blog is called Mothering from Day to Day. It is about my struggles and triumphs with living with Fibromyalgia. I haven’t blogged over there lately, but hopefully there are still helpful and encouraging words.
My Story:
Today I wanted to share with you a little bit about my journey with Fibromyalgia. Twenty-one years ago, I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. I was a new wife and mother. My journey started shortly after the birth of my first child. When my daughter Kaitlyn was six weeks old she became seriously ill. We found out she had a virus called CMV. I also had the virus. I found out later that it may have contributed to my Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. I’m sure my illness was greatly impacted by the health of my daughter and all the emotional stress that went along with that. It’s hard sometimes for me to separate the two events. My daughter fought hard, but lost that fight when she was only 2 ½ years old. That was nineteen years ago.
They say stress can increase Fibro symptoms and an emotional trauma can be the thing that triggers it. I certainly had both. I was very blessed to have a supportive family and in-laws to help me with cleaning, hospital visits, and taking care of Kaitlyn. It was a very difficult time to say the least. I felt so guilty when my illness sometimes prevented me from taking care of Kaitlyn the way I wanted to.
I now have a beautiful teenage daughter and teenage son. Life has had its ups and downs trying to parent while having a chronic illness. My biggest challenge is trying not to compare myself with others. I recently came across a quote that said “Comparison leads to two things: pride or discontentment.” I’m not sure who said it, but it spoke to me.
The world can be so fast paced at times. It doesn’t slow down for people with limitations. When you feel like everything has been taken from you, you really learn to lean on God. I started questioning my worth. Scripture like Deuteronomy 14:2 started becoming more meaningful to me. “For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. Out of all the peoples on the face of the earth, the Lord has chosen you to be his treasured possession.” God reminded me that our worth comes from who we are in Christ, not how much we can get done in a day. Zephaniah 3: 17 also became a scripture that held meaning for me. It states, “The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.” The fact that God takes great delight in me despite all my shortcomings and limitations comforted me. I could picture God standing over me so lovingly and enjoying me. Wow, the God of the universe enjoys me! He adores me. So many times I feel so inadequate. I wonder if He can still use me. The world places so much emphasis on job titles, accomplishments and rewards, than the worth and character of a person. In the end these will not mean anything. If God uses broken things, then I certainly qualify!
When you feel like everything has been taken away, you really learn to lean on God. He became my everything. I can’t say that I’m glad these things have happened to me, but I am glad for the spiritual growth and lessons I’ve learned because of it. I don’t think I would have had that if I had been healthy. If you are struggling with illness, or any hardship I encourage you to cling to the One who made you, and adores you! None of your experiences or pain will be wasted!
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You can connect with Tanya at the following locations:
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Thanks again for joining us, Tanya!
Here's your badge, if you'd like to use it.
Thanks again for joining us, Tanya!
Here's your badge, if you'd like to use it.
(This
post was originally posted on my original site, Fibro, Fit and Fab!)
I'm so sorry for the loss of your daughter, Tanya. What a difficult time to go through! You're an inspiration!
ReplyDeleteThank you Ginny. I'm sure we all have a story we could tell about our journey.
DeleteThank you so much for sharing your story, Tanya. It brought tears to my eyes. I'm so sorry for the pain that you've gone through.
ReplyDeleteThe quotation about comparison is just so true. I'm going to have to remember that because it's just so perfectly put. --Lisa
Thank you.
DeleteI relate a lot to your story Tanya. I also have CFS and Fibro and am attempting to raise two kids. Thank you for sharing and encouraging us :)
ReplyDeleteYour welcome. It can be quite a challenge at times, raising kids while having limited energy. Hopefully are kids will be able to cope better with challenges because of our illness.
DeleteThank you again, Tanya, for sharing your story with us. It reminded me that, when I can't, God can - and that's the best place to be in life. Thank you for that!
ReplyDeleteAmen!
Delete{Melinda} Thank you so much for sharing your story. I am struggle with chronic illness -- autoimmune related. I have good days and bad days and it feels like such a terrible burden sometimes. But, just like you, I know that God has taught me lessons I wouldn't have learned if I had been healthy. I am so sorry for the loss of your sweet child.
ReplyDeleteThanks Melinda. I pray that God will see us both through.
ReplyDeleteTanya, I'm so sorry for your loss and is if the emotional loss wasn't bad enough, you have the physical aftershocks to deal with the Fibro and CFS. After my son was born, I got sick with strep throat but didn't get it treated in time. My immune system revolted and I developed Rheumatoid Arthritis and once you've got it, it doesn't go away. I lost a daughter too at 20 weeks of pregnancy. She was our only daughter, and since I've been blessed with 3 active little boys. Glad to get to know you better :)
ReplyDelete