By Main Man on 8 February 2010
I fully realize that the eastern seaboard of the United States has received more snow than the Midwest (at least this year), but I must declare that winter in Minnesota is awful. We are in the midst of yet another snow storm, and my driveway is full of snow. Unfortunately, our snow blower is on [...]
Posted in Balance, Depression, Driving, Eastern Ideas, Exhaustion, Frustration, Loss, Narcolepsy, Travel
By Main Man on 23 October 2009
I awoke this morning in a huge hotel room. The national Narcolepsy Network patient conference begins today in Jacksonville, Florida; I arrived late last night (technically, early this morning). While I remain uneasy about being here, I must confess that my beautiful view of the Saint John’s River certainly makes me glad for the [...]
Posted in Depression, Education, Emotions, Exhaustion, Faith, Frustration, Honesty, Loss, Narcolepsy, Narcolepsy Network, Relationships, Sharing, Support
By Main Man on 20 October 2009
One thing I know helps me is a set routine. Unfortunately, I do not feel like that has happened since the previous school year ended. I have come to expect that my summers will be all over the place. Because I teach an intensive creative writing course and then we travel, summer tends to be [...]
Posted in Confusion, Depression, Exhaustion, Fear, Frustration, Honesty, Illness, Loss, Narcolepsy, Stupidity
By Main Man on 19 October 2009
Although I seem to be handling my struggles better, I find it infuriating that my narcolepsy seems worse than ever. I know that my condition moves in cycles, and I am clearly in a down turn at this time. Still, getting up in the morning is more difficult, and my evening peter out far sooner [...]
Posted in Emotions, Empathy, Exhaustion, Frustration, Healthcare, Honesty, Loss, Medical Research, Medication, Narcolepsy, Narcolepsy Network
By Main Man on 18 October 2009
Somehow, I have managed to let another month pass without posting. Writing about this crazy condition is vitally important to me, but the “basics” of my life have felt horribly overwhelming. I also think that either my narcolepsy is intensifying, or my amphetamine is diminishing in its impact. of course, there is actually no way [...]
Posted in Anger, Confusion, Depression, Education, Exhaustion, Family, Friends, Frustration, Honesty, Loss, Narcolepsy, Narcolepsy Network
By Main Man on 2 August 2009
I am struggling to believe that I went aq week without posting. Sadly, that is in fact the reality, though. I found myself overwhelmed by meetings and events for most of the past week, and on Friday morning we departed on our trip. The strategic planning meetings on Monday and Tuesday were incredible, but they [...]
Posted in Balance, Chores, Depression, Driving, Exhaustion, Family, Fear, Frustration, Honesty, Loss, Narcolepsy, Relationships
By Main Man on 23 July 2009
Seven weeks ago, I got a letter from my sleep doctor’s office. Bluntly, it told me I better get in to see him, or they would stop filling my prescriptions. I called immediately, and today was the earliest appointment available. Given the tone of the letter, I checked if an appointment today would suffice. The [...]
Posted in Anger, Confusion, Depression, Exhaustion, Fear, Frustration, Healthcare, Honesty, Loss, Medication, Narcolepsy, Stupidity
By Main Man on 5 July 2009
What a difference a day makes! I knew that I would pay a price for staying yesterday (and for not worrying about the energy that I was expending), but I had no idea that level, extent, or immediacy that the payback would affect my entire family. Narcolepsy reared its ugly head and brought along some [...]
Posted in Depression, Emotions, Exhaustion, Faith, Family, Fear, Frustration, Honesty, Humility, Loss, Marriage, Narcolepsy, Parenting, Rage, Sharing, Stupidity, Wisdom
By Main Man on 30 June 2009
I truly love that even the transition into summer break takes days of adjustment. One would think that a guy with narcolepsy would find it thrilling to begin a month and a half of relaxing. If only it were that easy. As I continue to remind myself, ANY change in my daily routine throws me [...]
Posted in Exercise, Exhaustion, Family, Frustration, Honesty, Humility, Illness, Loss, Marriage, Narcolepsy, Parenting, Relationships
By Main Man on 21 June 2009
Today is Father’s Day, and yet the only real emotion I have managed is frustrated anger. We went to a Minnesota Twins game last night to see an old friend. The game was good, except that the Twins lost, but we got home late. Because I had food at the game past 8 p.m., I [...]
Posted in Anger, Confusion, Depression, Emotions, Exhaustion, Family, Frustration, Honesty, Loss, Marriage, Narcolepsy, Parenting