Journaling & 2026 Health Goals

Journaling used to scare me. I never wanted to be left alone with my thoughts, because that’s when the pain would creep in and take over. I still don’t love being alone with my thoughts, but as I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized that journaling can be a healthy and productive way to get to know yourself and to start writing the future you want into existence.

Now that I’m entering my twenty-fifth year, and my brain is finally finishing up its development, I can actually picture a future for myself. That’s something I wasn’t able to do before. This shift, along with a new sense of optimism, has led me to create goals for myself for pretty much the first time ever.

Most of those goals are health-related, as I continue working to address my heart conditions, chest pain, and ultimately get my quality of life back. I’m sharing them here as a form of accountability, but also in the hope that they might offer some motivation to others in a similar place.

Living with chronic illness and pain for nearly half my life has taught me that my body has limits, and that things don’t always go the way I plan. That’s made goal-setting especially difficult for me. But this year, I want to use journaling as a way to manifest the future I want for myself, starting with setting attainable goals and giving myself grace as I work toward them.

You’ll notice there isn’t anything too extreme on this list, but these are all things I’ve wanted for myself for years. And for the first time, the puzzle pieces are finally coming together in a way that makes me believe they’re actually possible this year.

Without further ado, here are my 2026 health goals:

1. Have my night in the sleep lab, get my CPAP machine to treat my sleep apnea, and get my sleep issues figured out once and for all.
2. Have my third catheter ablation surgery for my atrial fibrillation heart arrhythmia, and take the time to fully heal from that surgery,
3. Once that is completed, I want to get off all the medications I'm on for my heart. They make me lethargic and have no energy, and that's a feeling I don't want to experience anymore.
4. Once my sleep is figured out and I'm recovered from my surgery, I want to get back to moving my body and working out to the best of my ability. Nothing too crazy, but certainly a step up from doing nothing. 
5. Meet with a clinical dietitian who specializes in an anti-inflammatory diet and start consistently cooking healthy meals for myself.
6. Be better about saying no when I don't want to do something.
7. Don't feel guilty for listening to my body.
8. Only put work into relationships that fulfill me. I only have so much energy to give.
9. Heel stretches daily for my plantar fasciitis.

Some non-health-related goals:

1. Finish grad school and get my master's degree! 
2. Read at least 70 books.
3. Start writing on my blog again regularly! 
4. Go to Ireland.
5. No buying clothes or shoes unless absolutely necessary. 
6. Pay off most of my student loans. 

I got a cute new journal to start the year and filled it with all my goals. Years ago, some friends and I attended a talk in college where the speaker, a successful businesswoman, talked about the power of writing things down if you want them to come true. That idea has stuck with me ever since.

I’ve seen it work for the smaller things in my life, but I’ve always wondered about the bigger ones. So this year, I’m really testing that theory. I’m writing down everything I want, without overthinking it. I even started a list of five-year goals that I plan to keep adding to as they grow and change.

Whether it all comes to fruition or not, I know I’m doing everything I can to make 2026 the year I get my quality of life back. And if you’re feeling stuck or hopeful or somewhere in between, I encourage you to join me in journaling and creating the best future we can for ourselves.

Me and my trusty journal!

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Back to School with a Chronic Illness- Tips

 It's that time of year again when all of us students are getting in the swing of school. I know I certainly am. I know better than most people how hard going back to school with a chronic illness is, so today I wanted to share the tips I've developed over the last five or so years of going back to school with a chronic illness.

On good days, try to get a lot of work done so you have more time to relax on bad days- I always try to get ahead on good days because I know there's eventually going to be a bad day where I'm not going to want to do any schoolwork 

See if you can get accommodations through your school- especially if you're in college, I've found this to be incredibly helpful with living and diet accommodations

Dress as comfortable as possible to make it through class- no one's really paying attention to you that much to care what you're wearing (and if they are they need to get a life)

Always have pain relievers with you on the go- whether it's ibuprofen, icey hot packs, or a Tens Unit, I suggest keeping it in your backpack with you at all times in case you start having a flare-up

Let your teachers/professors know what's going on if need be- I have found all my teachers/professors to be extremely understanding when I'm having a hard time (but they can't give you any help if you don't ask)

Get involved in clubs and activities- this has honestly been my saving grace since I was diagnosed with endo! Like I've said previously, being busy is a pain management strategy for me because I don't have a lot of time to think about how I'm in pain. When I don't have anything to do is when I feel the worst.

But also know your limits- don't completely overschedule yourself so that you never have time to relax because that won't be helpful to your mental or physical health 

Lastly, your health comes first- If you really can't make it to class one day because your pain is too bad, then don't go because you could risk making everything worse. Luckily online class has become very popular, so try and see if that's an option, or just get notes from a classmate. It's really not the end of the world (just don't get into a habit of missing constantly)

I hope all of you who are in school are having a great start to the school year and it has been pain-free so far! If you ever need any advice, remember my DMs are always open :)

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WHAT IS INTERSTITIAL CYSTITIS?

I've been talking about interstitial cystitis (IC) a lot on here, but it's also a disease that many people aren't aware of so I wanted to make a post explaining it all. As you know, I've been going to Boston Children's Hospital to figure out my bladder problems, and right now, they are treating it like it is IC. 

Definition:

"Interstitial cystitis is a chronic condition causing bladder pressure, bladder pain, and sometimes pelvic pain." My chiropractor and physical therapist basically explained it to me like this: since my bladder is so inflamed, it is sending the signal to my brain to empty it before it is full. When you continuously empty your bladder before it's full, it starts to shrink, like a balloon. This turns into a vicious cycle that's hard to get out of. 

Symptoms:

For me specifically, my symptoms include pain that feels like lasers shooting through my bladder, bladder frequency, and urgency. Some other common symptoms include:

• Pain in your pelvis or between the vagina and anus in women
• Pain between the scrotum and anus in men (perineum)
• Chronic pelvic pain
• A persistent, urgent need to urinate
• Frequent urination, often of small amounts, throughout the day and night (up to 60 times a day)
• Pain or discomfort while the bladder fills and relief after urinating.
• Pain during sexual intercourse

Cause:

There is no known cause for IC, but people will IC often have other chronic illnesses with chronic pain. For me, that illness would be endometriosis and it all has to do with my pelvic floor muscles. 

Risk Factors:

• Sex: IC is more common in women than in men. It is estimated to affect 3-8 million women and 1-4 million men in the United States.

• Body Characteristics: Fair-skinned people and redheads have a greater risk of IC.

• Age: Most people are diagnosed with IC in their 30s.

• Having a Chronic Pain Disorder: IC may be associated with other chronic pain disorders.

Cure:

There is currently no known cure for IC.

Treatments:

• Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy: this helps work on the pelvic floor muscles and stretch them out so your bladder can stretch back out again. I can't even describe how much it has helped me!

• Diet: eating an anti-inflammatory diet has also really helped me. Foods such as dairy, carbonation, sugar, and red meat are good to avoid to help ease bladder pain. 

• Biofeedback: Controlling the body's heartbeat, brainwaves, breathing, and blood pressure by monitoring them with sensors. This is a popular treatment method, but I don't have any personal experience with it. 

• Medications: there are certain medications that can be taken in pill or injection form that have been known to help people with IC. I don't have any experience with these medications either.

Source: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/interstitial-cystitis/symptoms-causes/syc-20354357

How I Helped My Bladder Problems!

 If you've been following my blog or Instagram for the last several months, then you know that I've been struggling with severe bladder frequency and bladder pain. This started getting more severe in September after being home from college since March due to the pandemic. I eventually made an appointment at Boston Children's Urology and they've been helping me the last couple of months, however, what has helped me the most is going back to pelvic floor physical therapy when I came home for winter break. I know a lot of people with endometriosis also suffer with bladder problems because it creates a lot of inflammation in that area, so I want to lay out the steps I took to help myself feel so much better in just two months. 

Wand:

A wand is a kind of dilator that focuses on stretching the deep pelvic floor muscles. Those muscles are basically responsible for holding all your organs in that region of your body, so when they are out of wack, that can create many problems. The wand is curved so it can reach those deeper layers and I highly recommend asking your physical therapist about it because it has helped me so much with getting those muscles to relax and getting the pressure off my bladder to decrease frequency.

Diet:

I've talked about this a lot on my Instagram, but I started eating an anti-inflammatory diet this summer and have gotten more serious about it lately. The things to look out for the most to help your bladder in this diet (at least for me) are bubbly drinks because of the carbonation and sugar, artificial sugar like in candy, and dairy. I still allow myself to have dairy and artificial sugar every now and then because it's hard not to, but not eating it most of the time has really helped with my bladder pain. 

Cupping:

Starting about a month ago, I started doing cupping in physical therapy. I'm going to do a whole blog post explaining what cupping is and my experience with it, but it's basically little cups that suction onto your skin and they relax and stretch the muscles as well as release all the toxins built up in your skin. This has not only helped my pelvic pain immensely but also my tailbone that has been injured since July. I could not recommend this enough if you have the opportunity to try it out. 

Mind Tricks:

I call these mind tricks for lack of a better word, but they have really made all the difference when it comes to my bladder frequency. The first trick my physical therapist taught me is to ignore the first pee signal your bladder sends you to see if it goes away. When you have bladder inflammation, your bladder is swollen so it thinks it's full when it's actually not. This turns into a nasty cycle because when you start emptying your bladder when it's not actually full, then it starts to shrink which is what was happening to me. By ignoring that first signal, you might get a longer stretch between empties which will help your bladder stretch back out. The second trick I use is when I get the signal to go to the bathroom, I tell myself that I don't need to go, especially if I just went. I normally do this at bedtime when I have just gone to the bathroom and it helps. Sometimes all it takes is making yourself think otherwise to help :)

Cranberry Supplement:

This is a very simple one, but cranberry is known to be very good with urinary tract health. Cranberry juice is not good in this situation because of the sugar, so a cranberry supplement is a great choice! It's a small thing that can make a big difference for your overall health. 

If you are struggling with bladder issues like me, I strongly recommend all these strategies to combat it. Going back to pelvic floor physical therapy is the best decision I've ever made for myself because it has helped me so much with all my problems, big or small. I understand not everyone is lucky enough to be able to go to physical therapy, but there are a lot of things you can look up online to help yourself. And as always, feel free to DM me on Instagram @endoisnottheendblog if you are experiencing any of these problems and want someone to talk to who understands!

My Health Goals for 2021

 Happy New Year everyone!! 2020 was a hard year for everyone around the world but now is a chance to start fresh and create some goals for the coming year. The second half of 2020 for me was focusing a lot on my health. In the context of this post, health means my chronic illnesses, my pelvic floor dysfunction, and eating an anti-inflammatory diet. I plan on making 2021 a year about focusing on my health, listening to my body, and hopefully minimizing my pain. So, for my first blog post of the year, I wanted to share some health goals I have for myself!

1. Continue going to pelvic floor physical therapy regularly 
2. Do all the stretches, exercises, and techniques my PT gives me every day
3. Try harder to eat an anti-inflammatory diet (it was so hard around the holidays!)
4. Talk to my college's dietitian about foods I should eat while at school that won't work up my dairy, sugar, and gluten sensitivities 
5. Get out for walks more
6. Drink 64 oz or more of water every day
7. Continue taking the supplements that are helping my urinary tract health
8. Get plenty of sleep every night
9. Make sure I don't overly stress myself out since that works up my endo pain
10. Continue writing and posting a blog post every other week
11. Bonus: Try my best to achieve all these goals, but not be too hard on myself if I miss a day!

If you want to focus on improving your health like me this year, then I recommend making a list like this and sticking to it. I chose goals that I think are attainable for me because I have already been doing them, so make sure you are making goals that are attainable to you, and don't be too hard on yourself. I make a to-do list every day because it keeps me motivated to check things off my list and so I know I've completed everything I wanted to for the day, so I recommend that too. I hope you have had a great start to the new year and I'm wishing you all happiness, safety, and health in the year to come!