Sunny

The clouds have lifted.

I'm completely off of pain meds (still taking two antibiotics, though) and my ears only hurt a little. My hearing is much improved in my right ear, although the left is still pretty much useless.

Best of all, I'd say I'm a big, happy, "0" on my 1-10 depression scale. I've felt much better mentally for about a week now, which is about the same amount of time I've been completely off the anti-depressants. Apparently I had a pretty adverse reaction to them, if you call suicidal tendancies and the worst anxiety ever "adverse." I do.

I also got a light box yesterday. Light therapy is the #1 recommended treatment for Seasonal Affective Disorder. I'm crossing my fingers that it can keep me off drugs altogether, since my luck with them hasn't been the best. I know that February will be worse than October, so I suppose I'll just have to cross that bridge when I come to it. Until then, I'll use my light, eat well, stay away from sugar, exercise, eat flax seed, wear my voodoo anti-depressant necklace, and do all the other natural things I hear about to keep my pesky brain chemicals in line.

Today I am me. If you've never experienced depression, a learning disability, bipolar disorder, an eating disorder, or any other mental illness, let me tell you--having the "real you" residing and controlling your thoughts and actions is the best!