vertigo | Anything is Possible!

December 20, 2025
by JoAnna 17 Comments

SoCS: Cookie Dough and NO Vertigo

Today’s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “batter/better/bitter/butter.” Use one, use all four (for bonus points), use ’em any way you’d like. Have fun!

I’ve always liked batter better than the cake or cookies. That’s why I’d like chocolate chip cookie dough, if I were to eat ice cream. My birthday cake had vegan cookie dough frosting, but it got to be too sweet after a while. Cookie and cake batter usually seem a little saltier than the cooked products. Salty and sweet combo is my favorite. Peanut butter is a good choice to add to ice cream, if I were to eat ice cream. There IS vegan ice cream, often made with coconut milk, so maybe I’ll look for some. Maybe they have Moose Tracks which is vanilla with peanut butter and dark chocolate.

The thing I like about chocolate chips is that they are “bittersweet,” which does not seem bitter to me, just not overly sweet. I can’t really taste the chocolate in milk chocolate.

When David goes to the gym, he says he’s going to burn some butter. We both need to go to the gym more often. I usually go on Mondays for my yoga class, and then do a little work on the treadmill with my dizziness exercises where I turn my head from side to side and then up and down while walking on the treadmill. I try to not hold on, but when I go to turning my head diagonally, I MUST hold on or I’ll fall. I’ve gotten over wondering if people think I’m crazy. Mostly.

Last Christmas, I had a terrible case of vertigo for several days and missed church and everything. That’s how I eventually learned some dizziness prevention exercises in physical therapy, starting with the one where you look at the letter X on a sticky note and turn your head from side to side without moving your eyes. The exercises all seem to be aimed at acclimating to things that might make you dizzy like your body doing something different from your eyes.

(I am in NO WAY recommending any of this, because everyone with vertigo issues needs their own health care provider and/or physical therapist.)

Hopefully I’ve built up some tolerance, reduced stress, and this Christmas will be way better than last. It’s all about balance!

May you have peace and balance over the holidays!

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For more about Stream of Consciousness Saturday,

visit our host, Linda Hill

by clicking HERE.

January 4, 2025
by JoAnna 17 Comments

SoCS: Walking, Tolkien, Cooking and Art

Today’s prompt for #JusJoJan the 4th and Stream of Consciousness Saturday is: “in front/behind.” Use “in front,” use “behind,” or use them both in your post for bonus points! Enjoy!

There’s a quote that goes something like…. don’t walk in front of me, I may not follow. Don’t walk behind me, I may not lead. Walk beside me and be my friend.

Let’s see if I got it right.

Close enough.

When the path narrows, we might have to walk in front or behind. That’s okay. If we’re hiking, or walking in the woods, please don’t talk a lot. Talk a little, especially when we stop. I want to see the landscape or where we’re going if the path is tricky, like with roots or rocks. These days, I have to pay close attention.

In The Lord of the Rings, the fellowship often walked single file (maybe it was to hide their numbers, but more likely due to the rocky trails).

To be perfectly honest, I’d rather stay in Rivendell.

Yesterday was the birthday of JRR Tolkien, author of The Lord of the Rings. May he rest in peace or adventure. A little of each would be nice. Can you even rest in adventure? I’d go on an adventure if I could stay in a warm cabin every night with plenty of food and a full bathroom. Plus comfortable hiking boots….

In my first physical therapy session for the recent vertigo episode, there’s one exercise where I stand on a cushion with one foot behind the other, toe to heel, then the hard part: close my eyes for 60 seconds. Sheesh! Right now, I’m working on staggering the feet so that they are not completely one behind the other. I thought I had good balance from doing so much yoga, but with eyes closed, it’s a whole different game. The physical therapist explained that we often become too dependent on just our eyes for balance, and we are working on my body awareness more with this exercise. There was no evidence of crystal dislodgement at the time of the evaluation Thursday, and the therapist said I likely got a virus in the vestibular system which makes sense since I had a head cold the week before it started. Sigh. There’s always something to work on. I’m thankful to be feeling 95% better and for having help.

Back on the home front, I’ve started my goals to do more home cooking and art. Last night, I made a vegan chickpea sauce in the blender with nutritional yeast for a vegetable pie. It turned out pretty good.

This painting below is something I started a few years ago and just picked back up again with the new year. The three knot holes in the wood inspired faces for the three angels. There was originally a blue/red/purple thing going on, but the red got more covered up. Covering up the red was not consciously intentional. Go figure.

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For more info on Stream of Consciousness Saturday,

visit our wonderful host, Linda Hill

by clicking HERE.

December 28, 2024
by JoAnna 35 Comments

SoCS: A Year of Change

Today’s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “my year.” Use “my year” as the theme of your post. Use it any way you’d like. Have fun!

2024 was our year of changes – for my country and my family. It’s still hard to talk, write, or think about the election, so I’ll likely stick to the personal change of moving to Pilot Mountain, NC after living almost 40 years in Wilmington. I traded the ocean for the mountains. Seems like more people are moving to Wilmington and even Florida to retire. But the mountains were calling and I had to go.

I might have mentioned that I miss my old neighborhood and friends, but it was worth the move to be closer to my kids and grands. It was a surprise how much I enjoyed talking with a couple of longtime friends on the phone this past week. Surprising, since I have embraced my inner introvert and generally don’t like to talk on the phone.

Speaking of inner introvert, my inner ear kept me home a lot over the holidays with vertigo. It got better briefly, then worse after I went to church and sang Thursday night. I’ve read that loud prolonged noise can make vertigo (and of course tinnitus) worse.

Thankfully, I’m about 75% better now and go to physical therapy Thursday. It was disappointing to miss the Christmas Eve service where I’d hoped to sing in the choir. Having been gifted with a halfway decent singing voice, I wondered why God was ~~making~~ allowing me to miss Christmas Eve and other choir opportunities. Doesn’t God want me to share my voice?

On Christmas morning, David, who had gone to the 11pm service said they had trumpet, and it was quite loud. I remember now feeling more and more bothered by the loud organ (and loud noise in general) when singing in choir in Wilmington. The trumpet setting on the Wilmington church organ was like nails on a chalkboard.

Maybe God has been shielding me from more damage to my hearing, as David suggested.

Or maybe it’s a coincidence, except I don’t really believe in those anymore.

My year ahead will hopefully include more artwork which has taken a backseat, home cooking, and gardening. I’m also planning to focus on my health. My friend from high school, Elaine, died on December 17. She taught GED classes in prison and was a person of light, integrity, and insight. I’m hoping I can make it to her Celebration of Life service today.

We don’t know how much time we have. Hopefully, my year ahead will include more quality time with loved ones, like hiking with my daughter and granddaughter:

A song that came along in the stream: Changes by David Bowie

Below are some recent photos I’ve managed to take.

Remembrance Candles – Blue Christmas Service Thursday

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For more about Stream of Consciousness Saturday,

visit our host, Linda Hill

by clicking HERE.

December 24, 2024
by JoAnna 14 Comments

Good News Tuesday for Dec. 24, 2024: Holiday Hugs, Birth Partner Pouch Helps Contact after C Sections, Personal Update on Vertigo, and CNN Hero Helps Pet Parents in Addiction Treatment

Surprise Holiday Hugs

Knowing the importance of hugs, Klick Health joined the Foundation for Social Connection in Washington D.C., to make a video called ‘Holiday Hugs’ with AI embraces for workers who were missing loved ones. Then, they arranged surprised visits and hugs for those with living loved ones they didn’t think they’d get so see. Read more and see the heartwarming video from The Good News Network.

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New Pouch Helps Babies Get Skin to Skin Contact from Birth Partner after C Sections

Midwife Stacey Boyle of Scotland invented a special garment allowing birth partners to give important skin to skin contact to babies soon after cesarian sections. The Cozy Cuddle Scrubs are comfortable and safer than moms trying to give skin to skin contact right after surgery. Read all about how this invention helps families in this article from The Good News Network.

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Personal Update: The Vertigo is Beginning to Subside

In personal good news, I’m starting to recover from vertigo and can turn my head slowly. Primary Care prescribed stronger meds including short-term steroids that I had no idea would help. Herbal oil drops behind my ears have helped some too. Thanks very much for all your hopes, prayers, and good vibes!

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CNN’s Hero of the Year Helps Care for Pets While Addicts Seek Treatment

Stephen Knight, a former addict, started the nonprofit Dogs Matter to foster pets when their owners are seeking substance abuse treatment. Stephen was named CNN’s 2024 Hero of the Year and will receive over $100,000 to continue his work. The Good News Network has the story which includes the video below.

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Got Good News?

Feel free to share in the comments!

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, &

Best Wishes for the New Year!

December 21, 2024
by JoAnna 21 Comments

SoCS: Wishing I was back to “Normal”

Today’s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “wish.” Use it any way you’d like. Enjoy!

I don’t know if I can do this wonderful prompt justice. The truth is, I wish my vertigo would go away. Go Go Go away now and don’t come back!

I’ll take the “normal” aches and pains of being 69. You know, the ones that are manageable and don’t hold me back much. Funny how we don’t appreciate those normal everyday ailments till something worse comes along that keeps us practically glued to the couch. I do appreciate my husband helping out a lot. Left alone, I’d have gone through all my granola bars by now. I’m also grateful for easy TV and movies I’ve recorded to distract me.

There are loftier wishes I could make, but right now, that’s the one that is forefront in my life. I tried the maneuver and got worse. Maybe didn’t do it right, but not willing to try again right now. It’s worse than ever before. Got a primary care appointment for Monday and a full evaluation with an ENT in February since I’ll likely still have my tinnitus then. Anyway, I don’t feel like typing anymore. Pass the ginger candy.

How about a song.

~~~

For more info, visit our host, Linda at the link below.

The Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS Dec. 21, 2024

January 8, 2022
by JoAnna 13 Comments

Physical Therapy Rocks into the River of Dreams

Our prompt for #JusJoJan and Stream of Consciousness Saturday is: “In the.” Start your post with the words “In the” – that’s the prompt! Enjoy!

For more info on #SoCS and #JusJoJan, visit our host: Linda Hill by clicking HERE!

In the beginning, I thought of a couple of song titles like ‘In the Middle of the Night,” “In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning,” and “In the Year 2525.” The latter is a somewhat depressing song, but I liked it when it came out in the early 70s maybe? I have to check…… Well, I was close. It was 1969. My first car was a ’69 Doge Dart. It was used of course. That car took a lot of neglect from me, but it was still running when I sold it a few years later. A lot of crazy stuff happened in that car. I should change the subject, now, quickly, before I reveal too much.

I want to make sure I share about my physical therapy for mild vertigo. But I also want to make sure I thank Maggie, who blogs at From Cave Walls, for encouraging me to get to a physical therapist soon. My dizziness was relatively mild, but she encouraged me to nip it in the bud.

What I learned was fascinating. I might use that word too much, but I like it and so does Mr. Spock. Where was I?

I did not have the common crystals run amuck in my ears. The problem was with my vestibular nerve. Maybe there was a virus or something that triggered the dizziness. But I’ve always been “motion sensitive” getting motion sickness since childhood. The PT exercises I learned over four sessions involved a lot of head turning. But first there was the test where you read an eye chart while the physical therapist shakes your head back and forth. When I first went in, I failed that test miserably. (The therapist did not say this of course.) Most people can read 2 to 3 fewer lines on the eye chart while their head is turning compared to when it is not. I had a difference of 8 or something. I could barely read the second line with my glasses on! After the fourth PT session, which is what Medicare would pay for, the re-evaluation test revealed that I had a difference of only one line! I did almost as well with her turning my head as with my head stationary! I was ecstatic! I asked her, “Were you turning my head just as fast?” She assured me that the head turning part was the same. I hadn’t done all my PT exercises every day, but I did some of them on most days, and it paid off! The dizziness is rare now, and much less noticeable. Doing the exercises on my own occasionally should keep the dizzies away or at least under control. They might even help with motion sickness, but I’m not taking any chances if I go on a boat or plane.

Good thing I stepped out of the stream for a minute to look up the song, “In the Middle of the Night.” Good ol’ YouTube showed me that it’s really titled, “River of Dreams.” All these years, I liked that line, “in the middle of the night,” and didn’t really know what the song was about except that I liked the sound of it. Turns out, it’s a good song, and very fitting for the stream of consciousness.

Below: one of my pieces of physical therapy equipment and goats at the sanctuary.

My PT equipment. Some training required.

Remember to visit Linda’s post at the link above for more info and streams of consciousness!

October 30, 2021
by JoAnna 23 Comments

SoCS: No More Scary Ghosts!

Today’s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “boo.” Find a word with the letters “boo” in it or use “boo” as is and base your post on it. Enjoy!

Knock, knock.

Who’s there?

Boo!

Boo who?

Well, you don’t have to cry about it.

Ooooold joke. Works best when spoken, with a grandchild, niece, nephew, or someone who likes simple silliness.

I haven’t cried in a long time. Not real crying where I need to remind myself to breathe so my stomach and head don’t hurt. I know how to do that. I mastered the art of real crying at the turn of the century. Thankfully, no need lately. Oh, I’ll tear up a bit at a TV show. Just yesterday, watching a Blue Bloods episode I’d even seen before, I got a tear in my eye. It doesn’t take much.

Whining is another matter. I try not to whine out loud, except to the cat. But I will whine in my head. Why did I have a touch of vertigo yesterday? Am I not able to bend over and arrange my little pebbles on my winding pathway just the way I want? Is it a sign that I am being too precise. Funny how I want a pebble just a certain way, in a certain place, but it’s gotta look wild and natural at the same time. That’s my landscaping style. Maybe this stream will come back around with some photos.

I don’t like to be scared. Maybe there was a time when I liked scary movies. Now, I’m ready for the Christmas movies. Remember when we could scare ourselves silly as teenagers at sleepovers? Or later going to visit the old railroad tracks? There was this thing in North Carolina called the Maco Light. It was near a railroad station in Maco, NC. The name is similar to my maiden name with one less c, but definitely no relation. Some guy lost his head in a train accident. He was workin on the railroad trying to warn an oncoming train with a lantern. His head was never found, or so the legend goes. When I was in my late teens, it was said that you could see old Joe looking for his head, swinging a lantern along the train track. A bunch of us convoyed to Maco one night to look for the light. We didn’t see it, but we scared ourselves silly walking along the track in the dark quiet near midnight. We screamed when a generator came on. Or was it really a generator? I have no idea. That was what? 1975? We had fun with just our imaginations. (Okay, maybe some beer, too.) I think they tore up the tracks after that. Keep those crazy kids from comin out disturbin the peace…

Now, I don’t want to be scared. Ba Humbug on scary movies and headless railroad ghosts.

I do like my neighbor’s decorations though.

Neighborhood Decorations. I like smiley ghosts.

And then there are Patrick Swayze ghosts. The movie Ghost wasn’t that scary, except for the bad guys. It was more of a romantic comedy about a ghost. I might watch that one again.

Getting back to the winding path….

It’s taken me a few months to get my winding path this far. I had a lot of roots to dig through and work around for the bricks. It’s till a work in progress. Maybe I’ll add some bottle caps and melted marbles. A little at a time.