A Winning Heart
Welcome to A Winning Heart conversations about being awesome with a disability and raising awareness at the same time and absolutely Yes sometimes you have to say F…..CK you to your own mindset and especially your disability!
A Winning Heart
From Hospital Beds to Graduation Caps: My Journey Continues
After multiple hospitalizations for C-diff infection, I'm finally getting a fecal transplant procedure to restore my gut health and reclaim my energy. I'm also returning to school on August 18th to complete my communications degree with an emphasis in new media, which will support both my growing podcast and my ultimate goal of becoming an Episcopal priest specializing in disability ministries.
• C-diff (Clostridioides difficile) is a highly contagious bacterial infection in the colon that has severely impacted my energy
• My treatment will involve a stool transplant via either enema or colonoscopy (definitely NOT the capsule method!)
• Returning to school for a communications degree with new media emphasis to support podcast growth
• Planning to become an Episcopal priest specializing in disability ministry after completing my degree
• Will continue podcast work and Episcopal Church Disabled Concerns Committee involvement while studying
• We'll take a brief podcast break during my assistant Danielle's "huge play camp" week
• Despite being an auditory learner who struggles with reading/typing, I'm determined to succeed in my studies
Thank you for following us, and we'll hopefully see you next week!
Welcome to a winning hunt, you guys. Okay, where do I start? Where do I start? I start with this. I am going to have surgery to well surgery I shouldn't say that a procedure to clear up the infection in my colon which, for those of you that don't know, I had.
Speaker 1:Well, I had C diff. I still have colonized differential C diff. I think that's how you pronounce it, the full-on word. I had C diff. C diff is an infection in your colon. Basically, it's an infection in your stool. It's nasty, it is. You can carry it from person to person. It's highly contagious and all that good stuff. I've been hospitalized three times. Was it? Twice they didn't know I had it and the third time that they finally diagnosed me with it?
Speaker 1:Well, fast forward. Go to the infectious disease control people down in Arizona who I met with in the hospital didn't think I I need to see them as an outpatient. Turns out they recommend it because my C diff wasn't as reoccurring and I don't want another flare-up. They recommend a stool sample. They recommend a stool sample, a stool transplant, let alone a stool sample. Yes, they recommend a stool sample but a stool transplant. So basically, too much TMI, I know. I know Basically what is going to happen, and I'm not going to do it the third way, because the third way is disgusting.
Speaker 1:Basically, I'm either going to have an enema or a colonoscopy to take stool from a person who has non-infected stool and when I say stool I mean poop. To be graphic, I mean take the healthy stool and put it in me see stool and put it in me. Put it in me via Enma, put it in me via Colin Osby, which, yeah, put it in me Colin Osby style. Put it in me via Enma. I'm not, and this is a gross part that they want me to do. I refuse to do it. I'm not taking frozen stool by capsules. No, no, no, no. That's disgusting, that's disgusting. And if I look at the color of Daniel's shirt, that's how I feel about it Gross me green, gross me green. I don't care. I don't care if your shirt says Virgin Bionics on it. Gross me green, gross me green, gross me green, gross me green. About taking someone else's stool, putting it in a capsule, freezing it, and then you take it by mouth. No, thank you, I don't want to do that with my morning coffee. Thank you very much. I would rather do it via ENVA, via, via, colin Osby. So enough about C diff. C diff is going bye-bye. C diff is leaving my system. C diff is going bye-bye. Enough is enough. I will get my energy back, because C diff whacked my energy Not my knee, but C diff whacked my well, my knee a little bit, but C diff definitely whacked my energy, and so C diff is going bye-bye. So more exciting news. So more exciting news.
Speaker 1:I happen to be I don't know, I don't know how to put this, danny, you know what I'm about to say, something having to do with textbooks and scaring myself. After this, starting August 18th, yes, I'm going to finish my degree, people, my degree in journalism, my degree in communications. I am going to finish my degree this time and graduate with a degree in communications with an emphasis in new media. So new media emphasis, communications emphasis. Here we come. Journalism degree yeah, journalism. Here we come.
Speaker 1:Podcast growing bigger and better and bigger and better and bigger and better and better. And maybe another trick up my sleeve which I have decided. I just, yeah, maybe another trick up my sleeve, I just have to get the communications degree first, yeah, and so I want to give it back, I want. The reason why I'm going to school is to finish my degree and I want to give it back and help the disabled. So my ultimate goal is to be a priest but yes, I said a priest, which is bad Episcopal Church, geez, tongue-tied. But here in the state of Arizona, they want you to get a degree. Well, that's fine. Why don't I get a degree, my dream degree, and move on to my dream career with that degree? And I will still have the podcast. Even though I'll be working so hard, I will still have the podcast. Danielle will still be my assistant and I will.
Speaker 1:Podcast is going anywhere. It's just going bigger and better and bigger and better and bigger and better and bigger and better. Because this is a little green uh, what are we calling it? Little green robot that we can't control and a little green robot that likes to take control of Danielle and I on our busy seasons, especially when I open up Podmatch, which Podmatch is a matching tool for podcasters and guests and podcasters and guests and hosts and guests too. So I'm going to open up Podmatch. The floodgates will open and I'm going back to school and having surgery.
Speaker 1:I don't know which way is up, people. I don't know which way is up. Danielle's laughing at me, even though she has my commutative because I don't know which way is up. People, I just did my application this morning for school. I start online August 18th. I'm filling out the FAFSA paperwork. Yes, I have to take it alone again for school and maybe it's grant, I don't know and then I will do that and then finish my degree once and for all to make this podcast bigger and better and move on with my life to become a priest with the Episcopal Church, specializing in disabilities, people, disabilities you know me and disabilities. And yes, I will upload my speech. They gave it to me. I will upload it here so you guys can listen to me speak with an actual mic on me and so, yeah, so that does that. So for me, buried under a bunch of textbooks on starting August 18th, I don't know what I did. I think I took the cuckoo pill because when buried under a bunch of textbooks, when writing essays again, yes, win writing essays again, yes, I can do this.
Speaker 1:I am an auditory learner, auditory, my retention rate, as long as it's auditory. I can tell you what a conversation Danielle and I had two years ago, if you ask me and I'm really, really good at auditory but reading I suck at. Typing I suck at. I admit it, I can't type with a darn. So that's why I use speech dictation. So that's why I use speech dictation. And people are amazed at the long emails I can type via speech dictation and so yeah, so we're just getting stuck under the textbooks starting August 18th.
Speaker 1:And, yes, I have talked to the people I need to talk to. Yes, I am. I have craziness going on behind the scenes with my age. Always a struggle with my AIDS. I have AIDS here right now and I record this. She might be out there, but always a struggle with my AIDS.
Speaker 1:It's people who don't want to work.
Speaker 1:I want to work. Which I want to work? I want to make money. So, yeah, that's it. I have decided my dream, decided my calling, and I'm going to actually be doing it. And so yeah, and so yeah, and I'll be still working closely with the Episcopal Church on the Disabled Concerns Committee. Oh yeah, I can't forget that, because I've been called to do disability work as well. Jeez, take me and take me to Arizona, make my plate as full as it can be and then also add a graduation cap on top of it, and so yeah, so that's I'm excited. And, yes, I will hire to the. Yes, I will do the podcast. Yes, I will do everything and I will keep you guys updated on school. And I will just keep you guys updated.
Speaker 1:And yes, and when Danielle has her, I shouldn't call it little play camp because it's big. I shouldn't call it little play camp. Let's say huge play camp, better. I used to call it a little play camp, but now it's huge play camp, so huge play camp, we'll be taking the week off. We'll be taking the week off Because, dan, oh, oh, really what I said when you have huge play camp, we'll be taking the week off Because Danielle can't.
Speaker 1:Danielle, even though she's amazing, danielle can't do it all. Yeah, that's what she. Danny, you can't do it all. Yeah, that's what she said. What's it? I said when I used to call it little play camp, but now I think I have it called huge mess of a play camp. Yeah, huge, huge. You didn't hear the word mess, you heard the word huge. Yeah, yeah, I have to tell you what happens at the region, by a chance. Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy. Okay, it's really fun, but at the same time, danielle, by the end of the week. Wants to fall over? Yeah, by the end of the week. Wants to fall over? Yeah. And when I did it, um, in person, by the end of the week, I wanted to fall over. It was funny because they said a couple times, um, and I had help to listen to, and so they said win. My response was win, what, as I turned around, win, what, win. What do you want me to do? Not in a bad attitude, not in a negative attitude Win. What do you want me to do? I can barely go to the bathroom. Danielle barely goes to the bathroom when she's at play camp. She has fun, but it's exhausting at the same time. What? Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, what, you are right, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, it's fun but exhausting. And when I say big play camp, I mean big play camp. So we're taking the week off. And, yeah, we're taking the week off because, even though Danny is amazing, she can't do it all. She cannot do it all and I don't expect her to do it all.
Speaker 1:On the aspect of school, the aspect of my dream career, the aspects of my health, which my health journey, thank God, is coming to an end, the scares are coming to an end and I started out with back surgery and realized back surgery was going to turn into knee surgery was going to turn into knee surgery was going to turn into um calliphorus, differential C diff, capital C D-I-F-F, c diff, capital C D-I-F-F, c, diff. And so I did not realize that knee surgery was going to take a long time to recover. I think I'm over the hump now from knee surgery recovery because of C diff. So I didn't realize that my body was going to be hanging on for dear life as I was hanging on my own ship with C diff. So I'll keep you guys updated. We will keep you guys updated. We will keep you guys updated.
Speaker 1:I will open up pod match and Danielle and I can do pod match, but the week of Danielle's play camp we are taking the week off because, as I said, danielle is amazing but she can't do it all. So, there we go. No, she can't do it all. So, danielle, I'm going to let you lead us out. Yes, you know me. Oh, oh, what the cute Ronnie said. Thank you for following us, thank you for following us, and I will hopefully see you guys next week. Bye, you guys, bye, thank you.
