Going with my Gut: A Journey to Wellness

Yesterday was a long day of travel, but last night we safely arrived back in the good ole US of A! Boston was so pretty lit up at night and my own bed was great. I'm happy to have two transition days before it's back to work on Monday. Thank you for following the blog while I was in England- it was fun and helpful for me to share my experiences. Since I need to give the process time, this will be my last entry for a while. I plan to post an update again in a few months or sooner if I have news.  Lastly, here are a few pictures from our daily life and our home away from home during the last two weeks.  Love, Steph Eggs for breakfast! Kitchen that our host let us use anytime Garden plots and the back of the house Another view of the garden This wall art at the clinic made me laugh My sticker chart (thanks mom!) A view of Hitchin from Windmill Hill A gorgeous flower shop that sells homemade beeswax candles A view of St. Mary's

I'm sitting outside enjoying the intermittent sunshine in Tish's thriving garden surrounded by bird chatter (perhaps magpies?) and the occasional distant airplane. The garden is a really peaceful place to relax, and there's even WiFi for me to blog (and for dad to play Words with Friends)! It's my last full day in Hitchin and I'm reflecting on the experience and everything that led up to being here. I just filled out a patient feedback form for Taymount and I honestly couldn't think of any suggestions. As I wrote in a thank you card to the staff, they have made me feel welcome and supported from day one, and, in a strange way, I've actually come to look forward to going to the clinic each day and chatting with the nurses and other staff. I have one last treatment tomorrow, but I will miss their humor and genuine compassion. Of course, I'm looking forward to not having treatments for a while, and I'm excited to get back to my life at home. The ci

Today was our last out-of-town excursion. We'll spend tomorrow and Thursday relaxing in Hitchin before traveling home to Boston on Friday. We returned to Cambridge today to explore the city some more.  It was a really wonderful day, except that I had one episode of urgency, reminding me that there will be steps forward and back. On treatment days there is always a goal to retain the implant for as long as possible- at least 1 hour if possible- and sometimes it's longer than others. The part that was scary was that we were walking around the Cambridge Botanic Garden and didn't know where the nearest restroom was and somehow managed to walk through a zillion meandering paths instead. Dad spotted a helpful gardener who pointed us in the right direction and all was good just in the nick of time. Ugh- I hate those moments.  The rest of the day was lovely! We spent two hours at the Botanic Garden, then went to the Polar Exploration Museum, did some wandering and shopping,

Just got back from a wonderful day in London! I came to England for medical tourism, but I feel so fortunate that I have been able to enjoy some regular tourism too. In fact, today was my best health day in a long time (high energy, no bloating, etc.). It's an amazing feeling to be able to walk around freely without constantly memorizing WC locations (well, to be honest, I will probably always be on the lookout for bathrooms, but at least I might not need to use them all). I took a zillion pictures, so here are some highlights! Enjoy! Also, check out facebook for Hogwarts photos! My life is now complete.   Trying to remember to stay to the left! The Tube View from the Double Decker Bus Trafalgar Square London Street near Trafalgar Sq & taxi cab The Queen's guard St. James Park I could have watched these ducklings alllll day!!! Nice view of the city from St. James park Parliament Parliament & Big Ben Westminster Abbey

I am halfway through my treatments at Taymount (5 down, 5 to go) and it's really nice having a lazy day. I slept in this morning, had a late breakfast with my dad and Tish (airbnb host). It's really cold here today- in the 40s and rainy (a few snowflakes were falling earlier!). Perfect day to be cozy and take it slow- just some yoga and reading (it is so nice to have time and energy to read!). This afternoon, we are going to go to the movies in the next town over.  Tomorrow will be a busier day and we're aiming to go to London since it's supposed to be sunnier and dry! Send me a message if you have any recommendations of must-see attractions! I've been feeling good- energy levels are high and no bad side effects from treatments. For now it is like I am planting the seeds and I will need to wait for a long time to see them grow. I have actually noticed some small positive changes, but I don't know if they are random or related. I need to have patience and try n

My first 3 treatments have gone very well! The first two days I took a nap in the afternoon, but today the sun was shining and we decided to go to Cambridge for the afternoon. Now it's almost 9pm and I'm worn out, but tomorrow will be a low key, local day. The town we are staying in is a bustling little village with lots of independent shops, and it's just right for our stay. However, it was neat to see the larger city of Cambridge with a lot more people, stores, culture, etc. I'm glad I'm able to enjoy some sightseeing in between treatments. Here are some pictures from our day trip! Market Center Everyone cycles here! Eagle- the pub where Watson & Crick announced the discovery of DNA The iconic Kings College Inside Kings Chapel, trying to blend into the senior citizen bus tour to learn about the Rubens painting  Punting along the River Cam Typical scene in Cambridge: the mail box, the telephone booth, the bicycle