Today, January 27 2023, is a red letter day for myself. Today I officially graduated from physical therapy. I can still go in and use the exercise equipment, but I am no longer under doctor’s orders to go to therapy. I have officially been at Genoa Medical Facilities Long Term Care since June 9, 2022. I moved out of my old apartment in Kearney for good earlier that month. It was tough giving up on the apartment I called home for over 16 years. But it was for the best.

I originally decided to give up my previous apartment as a means to effectively treat my congestive heart failure. Since I moved to Genoa, my blood pressure is back under control, I have lost 90 pounds, did several months of physical and occupational therapy, and made several new friends. I have lost 90 pounds since June 2022 but have lost over 170 pounds since February 2020. I think it was the covid pandemic that convinced me I had to lose the weight or die an early death. I treated covid the same way I would had I got drafted to go to war. I got serious about losing weight, I lifted weights three times a week, I quit eating sugar, I quit drinking beer and soda pop, and I gave up most restaurant foods. I’m now at the same weight I was in late 2014. I can walk pretty much anywhere now long enough to find a place to sit. I can easily stand for several minutes at a time. My knees and feet no longer hurt. The weather doesn’t make my joints sore anymore. Even my libido is starting to come back.

Once my stint in Genoa is done for good, I’m moving to Oklahoma City area to be closer to my brother and his family. My brother has agreed to help me out once mom and dad are gone. I never realized until the pandemic just how cool my brother Josh is. Growing up, we hated each other. But it helps that we no longer live in the same house. I also think the ordeals of adulthood forced both of us to grow up and realize how important having family support is. I love you Josh. Please never doubt that.

Ultimately, my goals include getting a part time janitorial job again once I move to Oklahoma City. I’d like to lose another 50 pounds before I attempt that. But at the rate I’m losing weight, I could accomplish this by the end of summer. I also want to get an automobile again. My drivers’ license is still current even though I haven’t owned a car since summer 2019. I also eventually want to publish some of my blog posts in a book forum. Before I started this blog, I self published a book on mental illness essays, some poetry books, and a book of “Hillbilly Wisdom.” Overall I sold several dozen copies of my self published books over the years. I also wrote the rough drafts for two novels. Those rough drafts have been lost to the years, but fortunately I still remember much of the ideas behind the two novels.

In spite of the trials of the last seven years, I never lost hope. Some days hope was all I had left. I had hope that I’d reestablish friendships once the political environment calmed down. I had hope that the pandemic would ultimately end. And it has, at least in this part of the world. And the best part is, I never caught the covid even once. I’ve been vaccinated several times, but I have yet to catch the covid. I never lost hope that I would eventually be able to drive again. I never lost hope that I could get more of my writings published. I never lost hope in this blog.

Even though this blog has never had a large audience, it is documentation of my life with mental illness. I’m so, so thankful I never gave up writing in this blog. I’m thankful that I never gave up on myself. I’m thankful I never truly gave up on God. Even though I haven’t been to church regularly in years, I never did lose my respect for God, spirituality, and the supernatural. As much as I love science, I never lost my belief that some things just can’t be explained by the laws of nature. I am thankful for this process. I feel like it was all worth it. We did it.