Day 82: The Power of Zs

For years, I lived on borrowed energy. Three to four hours of sleep a night & endless cups of coffee were the normal for me. I wore my sleep deprivation almost like a badge of honor—proof that I could push myself to the limit and still function.

But today was different. After just three nights of five hours of sleep each, I hit a wall. My body refused to cooperate. I yawned through meetings, struggled to focus, and even coffee—the old faithful—did nothing to clear my haze. All those years of neglecting sleep has finally caught up with me.

I used to believe I could bend my body to my will. Now I realize – sleep is not optional. It’s not a luxury. It’s a fundamental need. Without it even the smallest tasks feel monumental.

There’s a strange irony in how we take for granted something so simple. Only when exhaustion becomes unbearable do we realize its worth.

Tonight, I’m choosing differently. I’m giving myself permission to rest—not as a reward, but as a necessity. I hope tomorrow I wake with energy, clarity, and the drive to achieve all that I want. More importantly, I hope I carry forward this lesson: pushing through pain is not strength; listening to your body is.

Sleep, once ignored, has finally demanded my respect. And I am ready to give it.

Day 81: Sparks from Memories

Today, I feel content. I may not have checked every box on my to-do list or been super productive, but I’ve done enough. And sometimes, enough is all we need.

This weekend was a reminder of how joy can sneak back into our lives in the most unexpected ways. On Sunday, I met a close friend after fifteen years. You’d think time and distance might change childhood friendships, but it was as if no time had passed at all. There was no awkwardness, no pauses—just endless conversations flowing from one topic to another. It took me back to those carefree days when my biggest worry was passing high school with good grades.

Later that day, I connected with two other close friends over a video call. Even though we weren’t together in person, seeing their faces and their expressions brought me so much comfort. Back when we worked together, they made the tough days bearable. We had long venting sessions that always ended with laughter, and for a moment, everything felt lighter. That call reminded me of those times, and it filled me with gratitude.

I’m carrying an overdose of happiness from the weekend, and I don’t know how long it will last—but for now, I’m holding onto it. I’ve decided not to give away my happy days to worries that can’t be solved. Today, I am happy. And that is enough.

Day 77: Pain and Faith

Today was gentler than yesterday. The pain was still there—it woke me in the morning and lingered throughout—but it wasn’t as sharp or overwhelming as before.

I began my day with ten quiet minutes reading The Bible. Believe what you may, but I truly felt that those moments with God changed the course of my day. That time of prayer and scripture gave me strength to sit up, breathe through the pain, and carry on.

My mother massaged my stiff joints, and though each press sent jolts through my nerves, the warmth of the hot water bag and her care eased me. It reminded me that healing is not always about the absence of pain, but about finding comfort in the midst of it.

All day I repeated to myself: You are better than you were. Maybe I stumbled in the past few days, but compared to last month, I can walk farther. I can lift my arms a little higher. Progress may be slow, but it is still progress.

I am thankful for today. Even with my failures, I am still standing. And in my standing, I see grace. Thank you, Jesus, for reminding me that I am not alone. Even in pain, You are my hope.

Day 76: Fear and the Desire for Better

Fear. A small four-letter word with the power to paralyze.

This morning, I woke up with pain in my left arm—the only limb that had been free of pain until now. The realization devastated me. I know that if I don’t take care of my health, one day I might find myself confined to bed. That thought alone froze me in place. I couldn’t work. I couldn’t study. I slept through the morning, drained of energy and will.

But somehow, I made it to the end of today. And that matters. Because I don’t want my story to end in surrender. I don’t want my legacy to be giving up. I want to try again tomorrow, even if I fail. Failure is not the end—it’s part of the path.

I want to reach a stage in life where the hopes I once carried are no longer just dreams but realities. I want to be happy, even with the challenges my health brings. I want to be a better version of myself, someone who can look back and say: I changed for the better.

It won’t happen all at once. It will happen one day at a time. Even with pain, I will keep moving forward.

Day 75:When Tomorrow Looks Like Today

I keep telling myself the problem is me. Motivation feels like a foreign language I never learned. Every time I face a challenge, I complain. If I somehow push past the first hurdle, the second one knocks me flat. And then I give up.

By the end of the day, I look back and realize I’ve made no progress on my goals. I think to myself, Tomorrow I will be different. But tomorrow’s me always ends up like today’s me. Hours slip away while I scroll through shopping sites, adding things to my cart, deleting them later when reality reminds me I can’t afford them—not if I want to education bills.

I don’t want to struggle. I want things to just happen. And for most of my life, they did. But now, for the first time, I’m staring at goals that demand effort, persistence, and grit. And I don’t know how to push myself to do it.

Sometimes a fleeting thought crosses my mind: What if I don’t live long enough to see the fruit of my efforts? And then the question creeps in—What’s the point?

I want so much out of life. Yet the moment I hit a barrier, my motivation evaporates. Today was another day of failure. Another day where I didn’t just stall—I took a step backward, even as my conscience kept nudging me not to.

I am praying to my one constant. My Father in heaven please help me I am failing, I am falling and I feel like I cannot get back up.

Day 74: Bad Day, Shaken Hope and Still Trying

This morning I woke up with pain sharper than it’s been in weeks. For a moment, I panicked—was I slipping backward again? The thought drained me. All the hope and motivation I’ve been clinging to since my diagnosis seemed to vanish in that instant. I couldn’t help but ask myself: What’s the point of all the pills, the careful eating, the effort—if I’m not getting better?

I never imagined that “being normal” would become something I yearn for. I hate the limp. I hate the fear of falling. I hate rushing to a chair every ten minutes because standing any longer feels impossible. And being obese makes the weight of it all heavier—not just physically, but emotionally. I worry people look at me and think, She’s fat, of course she has health problems.

Part of me knows these thoughts live mostly in my head. I know not everyone will understand my situation, and I can’t expect them to. But even so, the fear of judgment lingers, and it weighs me down.

That’s why I’m writing this today. Putting my emotions into words helps me release them instead of bottling them up. It’s my way of lightening the load. Maybe tomorrow I’ll wake up still in pain—but hopefully I’ll also wake up with a little more hope, a little more strength, and a reminder that even on the hard days, I’m still moving forward.

Day 66: Gone in a Flash

There are days that feel strangely heavy, even though nothing much happens. Today was one of those days for me.

The morning began with a power outage, which meant no work could get done. Truthfully, even if the electricity had been there, my motivation wasn’t. Instead, chose the ever “productive habit” of endless scrolling of YouTube shorts. It ate up hours of my day but do I remember anything I saw? Absolutely not!

Later, I found myself browsing through stationery websites, adding pens, notebooks, and organizers to my cart. It felt like I was about to make a purchase, but deep down I knew it wasn’t because I needed them. It was boredom disguised as desire. Thankfully, a moment of clarity struck before checkout. I abandoned the cart, realizing it was just impulse shopping waiting to happen.

Now I am drained. Not from work, not from effort, but from the doing “nothing” all day. I am exhausted. and all I want now is the comfort of a warm blanket & soft pillows.

Day 64: Getting back on Track

I am back! Finally after days of wanting to get back to writing my blog. I have finally done it! Even today as I sat to write my blog today I kept thinking “one day won’t matter right?” But, given my procrastination behavior I finally have forced myself to get started.

I have missed this! I think things are finally turning around. My health is getting better. My pain is at a manageable threshold. I have finally finished organizing all my stationary. No more stationary strewn on the floor. I table top is not piled up. I actually even started de-cluttering other areas in my house. I have started letting go of things that at point was unimaginable for me. I took a proper emotional hit for me to set my priorities straight.

I am not doing everything that I am supposed to. I feel like I have finally started to at least see the things that I have been missing. I don’t every want to feel that out of control again. I never wants to loose perspective of what matters again. I want to be happy. And life may not always give me reasons to be happy about. I am going to keep trying. I am going to snatch any happiness life can give me. Even if I don’t deserve it I still appreciate it!

Day 49: Cold – 1, Productivity – 0

Have you ever had those days when you feel busy the entire day, yet at the end you realize nothing has really been accomplished? Today was one of those days for me. I woke up with a blocked nose and constant sneezing. The cold has really taken hold and seems to be in the “getting worse” phase. I absolutely hate catching a cold.

Putting the cold aside, I didn’t get much done today—not even the bare minimum. I had planned to start studying this weekend, but even on good days I get distracted easily. Add to that the headache from the cold, and I just didn’t feel like doing it. I wanted at least one small achievement for the day, so I renewed my car insurance, and that was all I managed.

The rest of the day I spent talking with my family and watching Netflix. I really hope the worst of the cold is behind me and that tomorrow I’ll feel better.

Day 48: Fighting Through the First Chill

I always enjoy organizing things—it feels almost therapeutic to me. I love working in silence and taking my time. In an effort to do a “wardrobe purge,” I have officially succumbed to the first cold of the year. When I was younger, I wasn’t as affected by dusting. But nowadays, anytime I dust without a mask, I end up catching a cold.

I have always been accident-prone, and with my autoimmune condition, I’m not exactly in perfect health. On the other hand, I would take physical pain over the sort of torture that comes with a cold. The headache is simply unbearable. I hate taking medicine, and I become extremely cranky—more cranky than usual. I can’t do anything, and all I want is to lie in bed the whole day under warm blankets.

Fingers crossed for a quick recovery. I have a lot to get done, and I cannot let a small cold stand in my way.