Blessings and botox

My hubby got Botox today...But not for the "usual" reasons! (Not that I'm against Botox for cosmetic reasons, but we are NOWHERE NEAR the age to be thinking about wrinkles and sagging, and would never be able to afford this treatment if it wasn't covered by our health insurance.) Botox is now used as a treatment for chronic, severe migraines. So, he got poked a good 20-30 times around the head, neck & shoulders, and we're praying that in the next couple weeks, his headaches will go down in severity and frequency.

Last night was reading around over here and one of the projects this blog is doing is earning money for disabled people in poor countries who cannot even afford a basic wheelchair. One lady wrote about how thankful she was for her disabled daughter to have all of the opportunities for care, therapy, and having any/all medical treatments available here in America. I started thinking how blessed I am, even with all of my and my husband's health challenges at such a young age, to have access to many medical treatments that so many others do not have. Sometimes it takes months, years, to find a treatment or a medicine that works without having too many negative side effects, but we are blessed to be able to try them! I cringe when I look at the possible side effects of certain medicines I'm on, but I also know that without them I would not be sitting here on my couch.

When I think about how there are so many disabled people who do not even have access to a simple wheelchair and end up begging on the streets for money and food, unable to go anywhere unless someone carries them, my heart aches. I am so blessed to live in America. I admit that when I think of living in the U.S. and healthcare, I do not usually come up with the word "blessed". But you know what? It's true! I am blessed to have the health care that I have, even if I regularly pull my hair out over the expenses of it and the way that the insurance companies operate. I am blessed that my health insurance covers thousands of dollars worth of medicine & treatments that weren't even around 10 years ago! It is just a crazy thought.

So, to wrap it up, these were just my random thoughts for today. If you would like to learn about the Free Wheelchair Mission, visit this link. The blog itself (Life Rearranged) was really encouraging to find, because it focuses on having a place where people can come and share their stories of caring for someone with, or having Special Needs. Although I don't really fit into this category, it was inspiring to read a lot of these women's stories about everything they've gone through and how they still have hope through the darkest times in their lives.

If any of you have chronic health conditions, or children with special needs, I really recommend this blog. I do believe that God is good and faithful even through the hardest times in our lives. I believe He hears our prayers and answers them with His perfect timing, and I believe that the hardest things we go through can be the times that we can grow the most in our faith, our hope, and our perseverance.

I do apologize if I was rambling on and on as I am really tired and need to go to bed! I realize this was a rather un-entertaining post, but sometimes I just need to write about what's going on in my mind. I will try to incorporate more pictures and interesting stuff next time I post! :-)

~Melissa