Getting Back to a Semi-Normal Life with Myasthenia Gravis

It has been a long road these last 3 years with myasthenia gravis. In just the blink of an eye, I have gone from doing whatever I wanted, when I wanted, to doing nothing at all.

Now, this is not the first time a myasthenia gravis flare has done this to me. But prior to my diagnosis, these flares would last a lot longer because I was not on treatment. I have seen a major change since being on the Prednisone, CellCept, and Mestinon. Although it did take a little over a year, I am able to be kind of "normal" once again.

I can do simple things without relying on someone else

While I still must rest at times and take my medicine as prescribed, I have been waking up in the morning looking forward to the day. I am grateful that after the last 3 years of not being able to do anything, I am here. I experience a thrill of anticipation that I am able to do the simplest of things without having to rely on someone else.

Now there is a lot of catching up to do around the house. I have been able to get most of my kitchen cupboards cleaned and reorganized. But the other basic house stuff will have to wait for a rainy day because there is too much to do outside right now. And I prefer being outside and playing in the dirt!

I can take care of my garden

Over the last few weeks, the weather has been nice so I have been outside doing some gardening. I have planted raspberries, grapes, blueberry bushes, rhubarb, and strawberries.

After planting 20 different strawberry plants, I was walking along in another part of our yard when I spied a strawberry coming up. Turns out, it was not just 1, but lots of them! The summer before my myasthenia gravis diagnosis, I planted strawberries there, but they never grew ... or so we thought. Well, I uncovered a strawberry bed that is now about 5 feet wide by 10 feet long.

Planning around the heat

I love gardening, but I do know that the heat, especially when there's humidity, causes issues for me. So this summer, I will have to plan out the best time of day to take care of my gardens. Oh, and by the way, I will plant a vegetable garden - I have already started!

Earlier this spring, I planted tomato, cucumber, and zucchini seeds. They are now all growing and doing fine! I started these in the house because at that time I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to get out and do any gardening due to my myasthenia gravis symptoms.

The benefits of rest

I am going to relate my experience back to the strawberries - I planted them, but they all seemed to have died and did very little. But with a little rest, they slowly and magically came back to life. And they're spreading their joy! So, we should never give up hope with myasthenia gravis because all things are possible!