Who am I??? THIS is who I am!

I found this while scrolling through old Face Book posts. It is STILL exactly how I feel. Because I feel it defines who I am I wanted to share it to my blog... Right now my favorite line people give me, "You look GREAT! You must be feeling so much better!" Umm... Well that's dependent on the day or the week or the hour or even the minute. NO this is not the flu that you get over in a few days or even a couple of weeks (even with treatment). This is an illness that may never go away completely. I've had this bacteria in my body for 35 years! That's a loooong time for it to get into my brain, my bones, my heart, my intestines, my thyroid, my lungs, my joints, my muscles, and anywhere else it wants to hide. And hide it does. Very well. It is the master of deception and disguise. Does this means the treatment I'm getting now is going to work? Yep! But, to get rid of the bacteria completely? Probably not. I will more then likely deal with "flares" the rest of my life. This is the reality of Chronic Lyme Disease. Do I "look" like I am sick. No. I don't. I totally understand that. But what does that have to look like in order for people to understand you have an illness that makes you spend time in bed, not be able to drive, make you cancel plans with friends, not be able to keep up with the simple things in life such as laundry, cleaning your house and getting dinner for your family? The seizures alone are enough to make most people cancel their life. Not me. I'm a stubborn stalwart idiot sometimes but I am a warrior. I'm a survivor. I will not let Lyme Disease define me as a person or take my identity. I have an infection plain and simple. But that does not mean I am the infection. So I get my body out of bed and push through the stiffness of super sore muscles and joints that don't want to move. Pain? What's that? Oh yeah. Something I've lived with so long I laugh at it and go on about my day doing as much as I can that day until my body says stop. I smile. I serve. And I love. THAT is who I am. P.S. If you're one of the sweet kind people that have said this to me don't feel bad. I understand it's said out of hope and love. Hope that I am getting better. Which I am. I am feeling better but I'm not better. I'm on the road to recovery for sure. But I am still suffering with seizures and pain (as well as other things) I also just want to give awareness to chronic illness and maybe educate what it's like to live with it. I truly do love you all...