2015

As I write this we have just under one hour to go of this year. In some parts of the world it is already the new year. For me, it has been a "challenging" year with only slow, slow improvements in my stroke. My voice is still poor, I still have problems with many drinks and I have not made the full recovery by now that I was hoping for so much. I just hope next year is better, or at the very least that I can better adapt to the "me" I am these days.

Stroke update

As it is the first day of the new year,  2015, it is time for some new resolutions and a health update. The latter is for me really so I can calibrate future improvements that I hope to see during the year.

Health update
Currently, I have 4 main issues. When walking or doing anything physical I get very tired.  I get giddy when walking. Drinking thin liquids (e.g tea or coffee) is hard and only possible in small sips. My voice is very poor and speaking tires me. I get breathless.  People find me hard to understand.  This is very frustrating as, to me, it sounds loud and clear. Although I am allowed alcoholic drinks, wine tastes sharp and I do not enjoy it. Most food is now OK. I can drive but, by and large, I have only driven locally.  Improvements have slowed considerably in the last 6 months.

Resolutions

• To do exercises so that when I speak I can be understood;
• To continue to improve my stamina;
• To be able to drink wine again;
• To be able to drink water, tea and coffee normally again;
• To take a picture for my 365 project daily;
• To do field experiments on my radio before Easter;
• To visit the South Hams. Last year was the first time ever I'd not been to Devon.

More than anything, I want to get back to normal health again. 2014 was disappointing as I was hoping to be fully fit again by now.  Perhaps I was being naive and did not realise just how lucky I was to be as good as I am? Anyway, I really hope 2015 will be the breakthrough year.

Happy New Year

May I wish every blog reader a very happy new year.  None of us knows what the future holds - as far as we are able, the future is ours to determine unless health issues scupper these.  Whatever your circumstances, I wish you best wishes for a happy, healthy and fulfilling 2015.