Facing Forward: Megan

Facing Forward is a series that shares the lives of people living with arthritis and other invisible chronic illnesses. The goal of the series is to see how we are similar and how we are different - and to remind us to keep moving forward because we aren't alone!

Name:  Megan

Location:  Australia

Diagnoses: Fibromyalgia, Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS), Asthma

Age at Diagnosis:  28 for the Fibromyalgia and ME/CFS. I’ve had asthma since I can remember…

How are you currently treating your condition?

At the moment I’ve come off all of my prescribed medications (except for my asthma medication) because I’m pregnant. For me diet hasn’t really made much of an impact on my Fibromyalgia or ME/CFS. The treatments I find most useful are regular acupuncture treatments for the pain, pacing techniques (limiting what I do and trying to have scheduled rest breaks), meditation, and heat in the form of showers and baths. Before becoming pregnant, testosterone supplements were also helping my pain levels.

What are the biggest challenges you have faced since your diagnosis?

Since the Fibromyalgia and ME/CFS, I’ve really struggled to maintain any sort of balance in my life. For the first few years I was unable to do anything I was doing before the symptoms hit. I had to stop working, stop exercising and my life seemed to rotate around medical appointments. I didn’t have the energy to do much socializing. I’ve slowly built some form of balance back into my life but working out a way to do this that lets me live a simple, sustainable, and meaningful life has definitely been a challenge!  

What are your favorite tips and tricks for managing everyday tasks?

Pace yourself and share the load with those around you if you can. I decide what’s most important to me on any given day and prioritize those tasks. If I have enough energy left over after they’ve been completed (with rest in between them), then I’ll consider doing other things. I’ve found it very useful to let go of unrealistic standards I may have been setting myself and to ask for help whenever I can. 

How do you manage to keep facing forward every day?

I try hard to focus on the positive things that are going on. Even on my worst crash day I’ll find one little thing that I can focus on as a positive. It may be time spent cuddled up with the cats, or being able to sit outside in the sun and just soak up the warmth. These days, it can be just feeling my little girl moving inside of me and remembering that this illness hasn’t taken away all of my dreams!

I’ve also been focusing on helping others. I write on my blog when I’m able to (I’ve been less consistent lately because of everything going on) and I’ve written a children’s book to try and help explain invisible illnesses to those around me. Remembering that I can still make a difference, even if it takes me much longer than I’d like to, helps me keep facing forward every day.

If you could go back to diagnosis day and tell your past self one thing, what would it be?

Stay strong and remain focused on what you can change. Try not to worry about all the things that may or may not be part of your future.  

Do you have a blog you would like to share?

Yes, I blog over a liveken.com about my life with chronic illness and about living a simple, sustainable, and meaningful life.

Would you like to be featured on Facing Forward? If so, please send an email to mariah@fromthispointforward.com.  

Product Review: Liberty Lotion's Limitless Lotion

I have been given this product as part of a product review through the Chronic Illness Bloggers network. Although the product was a gift, all opinions in this review remain my own and I was in no way influenced by the company. As stated in my own product review policy, my reviews will always be honest.

LibertyLotion's Limitless Lotion is an all-natural, non-GMO lotion with no artificial preservatives or colors. It is advertised as an effective CBD alternative “for your hard to get pain” that won’t leave a greasy residue or lingering scents. I was intrigued, so I jumped at the opportunity to review this product.

While I will agree that the product doesn’t leave a lingering scent, I do think that the initial scent is quite strong. But while I don’t generally like products with a strong scent, I actually quite enjoyed the smell of Liberty Lotion. As far as I can tell, the scent is mostly lavender, but I think there’s also a hint of something else that I couldn’t quite identify (despite reading the ingredients list). In any event, though I do feel that the scent is a little bit strong – at least at first – instead of finding it overpowering I actually found it very pleasant and relaxing. A bit of aromatherapy too!

As claimed, Liberty Lotion does absorb extremely quickly, so you can put it on and go about your business without having to worry about getting it on clothes or bedding. This does mean, however, that it isn’t a very good option if you are trying to incorporate massage into your pain management routine – unless maybe you used it at the very end of a massage. I will say that a little lotion can go a long way. For me, one or two small pumps was generally enough lotion to cover the area on my body where I wanted to focus. I think the pump is actually a great feature, as it allowed me to get exactly the quantity of lotion I wanted without having to waste any. And the good news is that I didn’t think it was too hard to push with my finger, despite my rheumatoid arthritis.

Of course, the ten-thousand-dollar question is this: does it actually help with pain? To be perfectly honest, there were mixed reviews on this subject in my house. I tried using Liberty Lotion to help with my joint pain, putting the lotion directly on my knees or wrists. I also tried rubbing it on my chest when I was dealing with a particularly bad bout of costochondritis (inflammation of the joint located in the rib cage). I found the experience to be generally relaxing, and overall I think the lotion had a good impact on my skin. Unfortunately, I didn’t find that Liberty Lotion made a huge deal of direct difference in my level of pain. Though, to be fair, I was dealing with rather high levels of pain. This was particularly true with the costochondritis, which I was having trouble controlling even with heavy medication. So that level of pain may have just been too much for any sort of topical treatment.

My husband, on the other hand, has found Liberty Lotion to be very helpful for his low back pain. He’s been asking me to help him rub it on his low back almost every night, and it really does seems to help him be in less pain. Though he does have some issues in his spine, I think a fair amount of his back pain is muscular – which makes me wonder if Liberty Lotion works better on muscle pain than it does on joint pain? All in all, I’m hoping to give Liberty Lotion another try when I am dealing with a less intense level of pain – that is if there’s any left at all when my husband gets done with it!

Facing Forward: Katie

Facing Forward is a series that shares the lives of people living with arthritis and other invisible chronic illnesses. The goal of the series is to see how we are similar and how we are different - and to remind us to keep moving forward because we aren't alone!

Name:  Katie

Location:  Boulder, CO

Diagnoses:  RA (rheumatoid arthritis)

Age at Diagnosis:  6

How are you currently treating your condition?
Enbrel and Arava

What are the biggest challenges you have faced since your diagnosis?

When I was a child, my RA was not very well controlled, as we cycled through many different treatments. I was able to get my symptoms under control when I started taking Arava at age 21.  My biggest physical challenges were definitely when I was a child.  As an adult, my biggest emotional challenges have been concern about the aging "infrastructure" of my body.  I recently had arthroscopic hip surgery, and it looks like that hip will be headed for replacement at some point.  

What are your favorite tips and tricks for managing everyday tasks?

Because my disease is well controlled at this point, managing everyday tasks is fairly easy for me.  If I do start to have a flare, it's important for me to address it quickly, typically with Prednisone. 

How do you manage to keep facing forward every day?

Staying physically active has been very important to me.  When I was a child, my parents shared their passion for the outdoors with me.  They brought me along on their adventures, tailoring them to my abilities.  This meant taking me backpacking and carrying me for parts of the hike, skiing slowly with me and only as much as I could, etc.  I now have the opportunity to share my passion for the outdoors with my children, which is extremely rewarding and provides additional motivation to keep moving! 

If you could go back to diagnosis day and tell your past self one thing, what would it be?
Because I was so young when I was diagnosed with RA, it didn't affect me the way it would an adult.  For me, it was just the way things were.  I try to carry this attitude forward when facing new challenges.  As an example, I developed OA in my foot a few years ago.  I was extremely upset about it.  After complaining to some friends about how I was feeling sorry for myself, a friend of mine said to me "Katie, even if you had no feet, you would find a way to do all the things you love to do!"  This is absolutely true. 

Would you like to be featured on Facing Forward? If so, please send an email to mariah@fromthispointforward.com.  

Facing Forward: Mandy

Facing Forward is a series that shares the lives of people living with arthritis and other invisible chronic illnesses. The goal of the series is to see how we are similar and how we are different - and to remind us to keep moving forward because we aren't alone!

Name:  Mandy

Location:  Savannah, GA

Diagnoses:Rheumatoid Arthritis, Central Sensitivity Syndrome (C.S.S.) with indications of Fibromyalgia & Chronic Pain Syndrome, and Dis-Embarquement Syndrome

Age at Diagnosis: 50

How are you currently treating your condition?

I am taking 200mg/day of Savella for fibromyalgia, 15mg Methotrexate for the RA, and 5-10mg prednisone to ease additional foot and hand pain caused by the RA. Other than this I try to manage my pain through a regular schedule and taking care to not overdue extracurricular activities. Daily gentle movement and stretches to keep the joints and muscles moving helps keep the pain at bay.

Avoiding inflammatory foods such as wheat and sugar is VERY helpful.

What are the biggest challenges you have faced since your diagnosis?
I am quite a social person and had been very active up to that point. Giving up these activities and learning to say "not this time" was extremely difficult for me. Thankfully, my husband is excellent at reminding me of the consequences of over activity. I do go out occasionally but try to keep that to once a week.

What are your favorite tips and tricks for managing everyday tasks?

1. Remember that the world will not stop if you don't get something done.

2. Allow others to be a blessing to you. Let them help. When they ask what they can do, give them a few options. Maybe make a list ahead of time of things they can do to help. Let them do things even if not really necessary. Maybe just ask them to come sit with you, watch a movie, play a game, have tea/coffee.

How do you manage to keep facing forward every day?

I have found things I can do that don't exert a lot of energy. I picked up crocheting again after many years. I can't count the afghans I have made for other shut-ins, babies, wedding gifts. And now am actually making some money making afghans for people. Blogging has been such good therapy for me. Writing about my pain has helped me deal with it and at the same time helps others understand what I am going through and what I am learning through it. These things keep my mind off the pain and gives me something to look forward to.

If you could go back to diagnosis day and tell your past self one thing, what would it be?
Enjoy every minute of your life, right where you are. Don't look to the past or what you hope happens in the future. Every day is a precious gift from God. Don't waste it.

Do you have a blog you would like to share?

I blog at Leaving a Legacy  www.ggmandy.com (GG stand for godly grandmother/girlfriend/guide). I also post about my crocheting at http://legagyphotos.blogspot.com

Would you like to be featured on Facing Forward? If so, please send an email to mariah@fromthispointforward.com.  

How to Talk to Your Kids About Having a Chronic Illness

If there’s one word that parents likely hear about 600 times a day it’s this one: why? But while answering the never-ending stream of a kid’s questions is exhausting for anyone, the questions can be more complicated if you are a parent living with a chronic illness.

Why do you have to take that medicine? 

Why are you going to the doctor again?

Why can’t you play with me right now? 

My newest article for Mango Health has five ideas to help you navigate talking to your kids about your illness.

Facing Forward: Heidi

Facing Forward is a series that shares the lives of people living with arthritis and other invisible chronic illnesses. The goal of the series is to see how we are similar and how we are different - and to remind us to keep moving forward because we aren't alone!

Name: Heidi

Location:  Seattle, WA

Diagnoses: Rheumatoid Arthritis, two rare genetic muscle diseases (Autosomal Dominant Centronuclear Myopathy and Marie-Charcot-Tooth Disease) along with some “mysterious” GI, heart and neurological symptoms. I think they’re all related, but hey, what do I know?

Age at Diagnosis: 

39 and 42 respectively

How are you currently treating your condition?

There is no treatment for my genetic muscle diseases except to manage my neuropathy pain, which I do with gabapentin. As for RA, I started off with methotrexate injections and prednisone for flares. After about six months of losing my hair and no significant improvement in symptoms, I asked to try a biologic. I started out on Humira which worked marvelously for about three months, after which time my symptoms came roaring back. My doc then switched me to Enbrel. The same thing happened with this med, but I did give it a longer try.  After about a year of marginal results, my doctor tried me on Orencia. I’ve now been on Orencia for about a year with somewhat successful results. I’ve been able to keep my prednisone down to 10 mg/day for the most part and really only deal with significant flares when the weather changes or if I’m sick or fairly stressed. 
Besides medication, I started following the Whole30 diet on and off. Although I lost about 10 pounds during the first month, I didn’t see a significant change in RA symptoms. I did feel better, however, in a general sense, so I’ve tried to eliminate dairy, grains, and sugar from my diet permanently, although that’s been harder to do long term than I thought (especially as I stare down a box of Tagalongs girl scout cookies as I write this!) Finally, in the diet and medicine category, I just recently started taking high dose Vitamin D. Yes, I am deficient, which many people living in Seattle are, but that’s not why I take it. There is actually some really interesting research on using Vitamin D as a way to treat leaky gut, which, personally, I suspect as the reason for many of our autoimmune issues these days. As far as exercise goes, I’d love to say I do it, but I’d be lying. I use to be fairly active, running half marathons and ragnars, but no longer do so due to pain and fatigue. I was actually training for a ragnar when my knee began to hurt more than usual, which led to my RA diagnosis. I really miss running, so I try to get out a walk or hike as often as I can, especially during the summer. 
 

What are the biggest challenges you have faced since your diagnosis?

Hands down: fatigue. I have a pretty high pain tolerance, so I am able to push through it most of the time, but I have to say the fatigue has kicked my butt. I have to take a nap nearly every afternoon and sometimes in the morning too. This sometimes means coming home after dropping off my son at school and crawling back in bed for another hour or two. Even though I hate what this does to my productivity, doing so seems to “reset” my body, allowing me to get through the rest of the day. The other really frustrating challenge is my now horrible memory and brain fog. Losing 15 IQ points and literally failing the short-term section of my neuropsych evaluation was a huge blow to my ego. I’ve always prided myself on being smart and capable, so this issue was really hard to swallow. I’ve tried to make accommodations which have helped, but sometimes I still end of going to the store three times to get everything I need. 

What are your favorite tips and tricks for managing everyday tasks?

I try to give myself extra time, ask for help (which I never used to do), create lists, and I use a ton of ice and heat for pain. I also splurged and got myself a membership to Massage Envy.  Giving myself grace to rest when I need to also really helps. 

How do you manage to keep facing forward every day?

I like to make fun of myself. Keeping a sense of humor is very important! For instance, I have “Dory” sign in my house and an “I love Naps” t-shirt I wear often. I also find its important to have close friends to support me who truly understand chronic illness. I have a few friends who have issues themselves, so we support each other a lot. My faith, family and helping others also plays an important role in my well-being. To keep a sense of purpose, I work part-time as the women’s pastor at my church. In this role, I’m able to focus on supporting others in their pain and triumphs which helps take the focus off me and keeps things in perspective. I also keep my hands active (cuz my doc said I had too) by flipping furniture as my body allows. I find great satisfaction in this creative outlet and it brings in a little extra money too. This hobby has also turned into a design and faith blog called “Meaningful Home” which can be found at www.meaningfulhomeinteriors.com. Here I explore ways to bring meaning and beauty into your life through home décor & design. Honestly, both these endeavors were not on my “career plan” whatsoever, but having them has been the life-giving inspiration I need to keep facing forward. Being useful through work is very important to me. Finally, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention how my son and husband keep me going. I couldn’t ask for a more supportive, amazing husband. He helps around the house a ton and puts up with my complaining when it gets out of hand sometimes. He is incredibly understanding! My son, Caleb, is the light of my life and the reason I keep looking forward to the future. He was a true gift from God and is my little prayer warrior. He is always praying for me! 

If you could go back to diagnosis day and tell your past self one thing, what would it be?

Ok, not one, but three things: 1) It’s going to be ok. 2) Be your own medical advocate. I can’t emphasize this enough. Doctors are humans too, they make mistakes and they don’t know everything. I’ve found that patient boards, conferences, and research have helped me diagnose and treat my conditions more successfully than without. 3) God can and will use this diagnosis for good if you let Him. 

Would you like to be featured on Facing Forward? If so, please send an email to mariah@fromthispointforward.com.  

TOTAL March Madness!!

Maybe there's another reason they call this month "March Madness," because this month has been crazy busy!! Those of you who follow me on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram may already know that I've been doing some really exciting things recently when it comes to advocacy! So before I leave on a two week trip with my family tomorrow, I wanted to give a quick update!

The month started out with a quick trip to Dallas, where I sat on a Patient Steering Advisory Board for Lilly, providing insight on potential new programs for RA patients. It's exciting to see pharmaceutical companies paying more attention to the patient voice, and hopefully being involved in this sort of thing can help improve things for all of us in the future. 

I flew straight from Dallas to Washington D.C. for the Arthritis Foundation Strategy & Impact Committee Meeting the following day. This committee reports to the Arthritis Foundation Board of Directors and we are charged with helping make sure the Arthritis Foundation's recent transition and re-branding results in a true outcome driven organization. We're working to make sure the Arthritis Foundation is having the greatest meaningful impact on individuals living with arthritis and their families, and I'm really honored to represent the voice of patients on this committee. 

I was able to stick around Washington D.C. for two more days to attend part of the Advocacy Summit. I always love the opportunity to connect with others who are living with RA - and it was great to get to see some of my favorite people! The advocacy goals this year were (1) to ask our Congresspeople to join the Congressional Arthritis Caucus, (2) to make sure the Department of Defense maintains funding for arthritis research, (3) and to ask our Congresspeople to safeguard our interests when it comes to drafting new healthcare legislation. 

In particular, we're concerned about what happens to people with pre-existing conditions, the possibility of lifetime caps on coverage, the ability of kids with JA to stay on their parent's insurance plans until they turn 26, and overall affordability of healthcare. Unfortunately, I didn't get to stay for all the meetings on the hill. (Remember my past life when I got a law degree and a masters in environmental policy? I had to get home to finish a book I've been working on!) But I did get get to meet with Colorado Senator Bennet - the day after the ACA replacement legislation was introduced, no less! So that was exciting. 

Last week, I turned my attention to legislation at the state level, as there was a step therapy bill being introduced in Colorado. Step therapy is a practice used by insurance companies that requires patients to try and "fail" lower-cost medications before the medication actually prescribed by their doctor will be approved. SB 17-203 set out to require an override for situations where the step drug is problematic for patients and also to protect patients from having to go through the step therapy process all over again if they have to change insurance plans. 

Since I recently experienced step therapy first hand, I went to testify at the Committee meeting at the state capitol in Denver. If you're interested, you can check out my op-ed for Cybermed News, which is basically the same argument I made in my testimony. Though the bill did pass through the Committee that day (and, in fact, passed through the Colorado Senate today) unfortunately some amendments were made that makes the bill less useful for the patients affected. But as the bill heads over to the House, patient organizations like the Arthritis Foundation and the Chronic Care Collaborative continue to fight for improvements. 

Then (remember, I told you this month is madness!!) I hopped on a plane to Philadelphia for the Health Union Connexcion Conference! I've been working with Health Union since RheumatoidArthritis.net launched in 2013. Though I work primarily on their RA site, many of my legal articles have been published across their other platforms, such as MultipleSclerosis.net, HepatitisC.net, COPD.net, CrohnsDisease.com, and LungCancer.net. This conference was an excellent opportunity to meet many amazing advocates in person, to learn from each other, and to brainstorm how to keep moving forward. 

Though it has been really exciting to be involved in all of this, I must say that I'm really looking forward to spending some time with my family in Hawaii and California for the next two weeks! Heaven knows I could use a vacation!!! And hopefully when I return I'll be rejuvenated enough to hop back in and keep fighting for better outcomes for patients living with chronic illnesses.

Facing Forward: Elizabeth

Facing Forward is a series that shares the lives of people living with arthritis and other invisible chronic illnesses. The goal of the series is to see how we are similar and how we are different - and to remind us to keep moving forward because we aren't alone!

Name: Elizabeth

Location: Denver Metro Area, Colorado, USA

Diagnoses: The ones that impact my daily life the most: fibromyalgia, dysautonomia - postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) & inappropriate sinus tachycardia (IST), joint hypermobility syndrome (JHS), complex allergies, eosinophilic esophagitis (Eoe), irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-C), depression

Others that still impact my health, just not to the same extent: asthma, attention deficient hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), migraines & chronic headaches, temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMJ) 

Age at Diagnosis: Fibromyalgia = 22 years old; Dysautonomia = 24; JHS = early 20s (unsure exactly when the Dx was made because I wasn't told about it until much later); EoE = 24; IBS-C = 25; Depression = 14; Allergies = 2 (still searching for what complex condition it is)

Asthma = 5; ADHD = 14; Migraines = 19; TMJ = 22 

How are you currently treating your condition?

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Fibro: I take a muscle relaxant some nights, to ensure I sleep well. Meditation and Pilates have helped me immensely! I also take magnesium every day (which is actually for IBS-C now), it definitely helps.

Dysautonomia: Right now, I’m just on a beta blocker because I want to have children relatively soon. I try to make sure I keep my fluid intake high (I drink a minimum of 2 ½ liters of water a day, usually closer to 4 liters; “8 glasses a day” is 1.89 liters). My dysautonomia is not under control.

JHS: Weekly Pilates based physical therapy sessions, weekly group Pilates classes (when my therapist clears me for them, right now I can’t). I also use OTC pain killers (Aleve is the main one) when my pain gets out of control.

EoE: I take Zantac twice daily. Avoiding known triggers is the best treatment however, and they can be extremely difficult to track down. Right now, we know dust, pollen, and several foods trigger it. However, sometimes it still triggers without a known cause. I have two reusable respirators that I use when it flares up (or if I know I’ll be around environmental triggers).

IBS-C: Currently we’re trying a dramatic change in my diet (the low FODMAP diet) and increasing my magnesium dosage. Daily high dose probiotics have definitely been helpful.

Allergies: I currently take three different medications to specifically treat my allergies: Nasacort (nasal spray), Xyzal, and Singulair. My allergies are not under control, so I’m seeing the immunology department at National Jewish Health at the end of January; NJH is a specialty referral center, so hopefully they’ll be able to figure something out.  

 

What are the biggest challenges you have faced since your diagnosis?

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The diagnoses I’ve received as an adult came as a hard blow (with the exception of IBS-C, because I’ve had it my whole life). I had to completely change a lot of aspects of my life, and give up many of the things I loved. Grieving my old life, without wallowing, was the initial challenge. Now, however, it’s remembering my limitations and having to sit out on things I really would love to be doing. Having to miss out never gets easier, and it has caused me to lose many of the people I used to consider friends. It also kills me to have to tell my husband that I can’t do something because I’m in too much pain or too dizzy, because I know it upsets him to see me hurting. We’re still struggling to find “safe” activities I can do, so we can still get the most out of our lives.

What are your favorite tips and tricks for managing everyday tasks?

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Think everything through first, so you can do it as efficiently as possible. Examine your daily routines, and determine if there is a more efficient way to do it. Once you get diagnosed with chronic, energy zapping conditions, everyday becomes a balancing act. Remember, you can’t do what you used to (at least, not without paying for it severely); it’s okay to only get one load of laundry into the washing machine.

Don’t be stingy on your health care. I put off buying a transport chair for much longer than I should have, because it was about $100 (and I didn’t want to admit I needed one). I didn’t purchase it until my pelvis started dislocating when I would walk too long. Now that I have it, however, I have significantly less pain! I also have a lot more stamina; I hadn’t realized how much energy my dysautonomia would zap from me while I was on my feet. I know being chronically ill is expensive, but if something is going to make your life infinitely better, than it’s probably worth the money!

Find new hobbies that you absolutely love, that you can do during all sorts of different health conditions. Coloring/drawing/Zentangle is great for bad days where you’re trapped on the couch or in bed, so is reading! On my good days, my husband and I love going to the museum (it has to be a really good day). On my so-so days, we love to go for drives around beautiful Colorado and find picnic spots or scenic overlooks.

How do you manage to keep facing forward every day?

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Some days it’s extremely difficult, admittedly. However, I always have my wonderful husband, Dan, to remind me that it’s worth hanging on! My husband and my two adorable kitties are worth more to me than they realize, and they’re my main reason for moving forward every day.

My mindfulness meditation (daily) practice has also helped dramatically. Meditation has helped me reprogram my brain a little bit, and I no longer view negative things as harshly as I did before. I highly recommend it to everyone! Erasing several decades of programming takes time, but after just a few months I did start to notice a difference. Now, several years later, the difference is dramatic!

If you could go back to diagnosis day and tell your past self one thing, what would it be?

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“It’s not the end of the world.” The fibromyalgia diagnosis was the first (big) one, just a few months before my wedding, and it was extremely difficult on me; I think I spent about two days on auto pilot, and cried a lot. However, as time went on, I learned how to manage it and now I don’t get much pain from it. Each diagnosis since then has been easier to handle, and I’m learning a lot about my strength and how to navigate the world with my illnesses. I’d definitely tell myself that “it’s not the end of the world” because it wasn’t!

Do you have a blog you would like to share?

--> I blog about the craziness of juggling all my illnesses with a “normal” life on Finding Life’s Silver Sun. I don’t post exclusively about my illnesses, and often scatter in recipes, art, and fun things that I got to go do. My blog is all about trying to live my best life possible!

Would you like to be featured on Facing Forward? If so, please send an email to mariah@fromthispointforward.com.