Well, 2 years & 7 months later & I feel so much stronger!

I am now able to enjoy doing most of the activities which I used to but perhaps not at the same intensity. For instance I used to exercise a lot & visit the gym at least 3 times a week. Now I walk my dog loads & maybe visit the gym once a fortnight but frequently its not even that. I really try hard now to judge how I’m feeling & what other arrangements I have before doing anything too strenuous. I feel more like the active person I used to be but am more prepared to draw the line when I am feeling tired, even if that means lying down for half an hour in the day....which is very rare now.

I don’t really examine my face much. However I still occasionally notice improvements even now. For instance how far back my smile now reaches on the affected side of my face. The muscles seem more relaxed now. My eye STILL waters when I eat because the cheek muscle & eye move when I chew! My eye squints a bit when I pull certain expressions, this is most noticeable in photographs. I can’t raise my left eye brow at all but my whole face is so much better than it was back in March 2003 & I really believe acupuncture helped me. I'd also like to mention some healing which I have received (Self Realisation & Meditation Healing ). I believe that that has helped me come to my senses in so many ways.

I have made some big changes in my life since having RHS. They were a little scary but have really helped with my recovery. I felt that I really needed to have a couple of years break from teaching as my recovery seemed to be slowing right down when I returned to school. I was regularly picking up colds, throat infections & tummy bugs at school after suffering with RHS and had no surplus energy to live a normal life. So I resigned from teaching last July & moved from Gloucestershire to Wales nearer to mum & the coast which I love. I have been working in a chemist shop now for nearly 12 months & its a real change which I’m thoroughly enjoying. Since my change in job I have had one cold. My immune system is really picking up. I still go through phases of feeling very tired but its not as debilitating as it was in the early days of RHS. I am kinder to myself now & if I need I little lie down on my day off I accept it....(grrr!)...well try to!

I am coping better with going to bed later now. But still need some early nights.... my body is just telling me that’s what it needs. I hope I will always remember to listen it. I’m experimenting with that. That’s what it feels like now - one big experiment ...what I can do now & what I can’t do.....(just yet...)but its a manageable experiment! One I can live with!

P.s. I have just returned from a short break in North Wales & I climbed Snowdon with my dog, Poppy....we didn't take the easy route either. It was quite an achievement after so much Post Viral tiredness...proof that given time we should be able to return to a normal life. Wow! What a view too!!