Life Update and Return to Normality

Good Afternoon everybody!

Finally managed to get this post written up! It's been 4 months and I'm not surprised it's taken this long but still, it's nice to have the time to write again. There's been quite a bit going on lately actually, I've been backwards and forwards from hospital in Birmingham loads but everything is going well so I'm a happy bunny. I've got a good few more posts coming up, 5 or 6 more posts after this one so it'll definitely keep me busy, but for now I though I would give all of you guys a little update.

The last time I was here I believe I was talking a bit about how I was doing a lot of research for my dissertation, I had picked a topic and I was so excited to get started on it, well things changed a little with that because around September time I completely changed my mind about what topic I wanted to do and basically had to disregard the 60 pages of work I had gathered over the summer. Nightmare! I've finally managed to choose a topic that I am settled with and really happy to do, the only problem is I don't think I will have enough words to write everything I want to about it haha! Still I have got about 30 pages of relevant quotes so I am well on my way to getting the research done and starting to write up the first draft of the literature review, woop woop! 

Snowy walk around Hardwick Hall late October

When I actually started back uni in September I was having a really struggle with my mental health and my physical health had been wobbly for a few months, I've started getting palpitations quite regularly, 5 to 6 times a day I get very strong palpitations that make me dizzy, doctors aren't quite sure why its happening because my heart is in pretty good condition and I'm eating and exercising well so I've kind of got to take things easy now. I ended up making a super hard decision to leave uni for the year, so I have taken a leave of absence from early November this year until September 2019 when I'll return to study hopefully in a better state. I have felt that since leaving there has been a huge amount of pressure lifted and I am managing to get my mental health back under control slowly, but I keep trying to push myself to do too much too soon which is never a good thing.

It feels so much better now that I am able to sit and work on my dissertation without the pressure of deadlines because now I know I can take a break or have a couple of days off when I need to recover, so I'm really pleased with that and it means I'm getting to spend more time with my family. Unfortunately since I've left i feel like I might have lost a couple of friends which that's just something that happens in life I suppose, friendship isn't a one way street and I need to remember I'm not the one who has to make all the effort; I've stayed in touch with some amazing people from uni though and I'm so grateful for those people :)

Outside of my uni life I've gotten myself a personal trainer which was a turn up for the books, I'm not at liberty to discuss this fully because of rules of pharma companies and such but I've been doing well health wise other than my palpitations and a chronic sinusitis (since APRIL!!), generally my physical health has improved a little and I have been getting out and about trying to walk more. This has meant that I've seen a good few changes in my body, not all of them good, so I've been trying to build up a bit of muscle and I must say my trainer is awesome, he doesn't work me too har and I'm able to take breaks as and when I need, couldn't ask for someone more understanding and the workouts are actually really fun... the soreness and aches aren't afterwards but hey ho haha. I'm really pleased with my progress and can't wait for my next session. I've been out walking Luna quite a lot, she gets walked everyday for 90 minutes (usually takes me 2 hours to get around mind but still its an improvement) unless its super cold then she shivers until I take her home or Simon takes his jumper off and wraps her up :)

Out new Christmas tree <3

I don't know how I would have managed with the immense pressure I was under if I hadn't had that little one to come home to, dogs are little angels and no house is complete without one. 

I've been working on the Invisible Disabilities and Disorders society at uni while I've been off, trying to help people with projects they're wanting to undertake, there's been a good bit of work on with that trying to talk to the Disability and Wellbeing teams at the uni but so far so good, hopefully we can plan some events soon and I will update you guys about that too. 

The final thing that I've got to update you all on is my absolute favourite thing in the world... CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!! Oh my God, its December 1st tomorrow and I absolutely cannot wait! We have had out Christmas tree up since about November 7th, we had to put it up twice because the first time the lights went off and needed to do it again, then Luna came in and pulled the whole thing down! A chihuahua Vs. a 6ft tree! Last night me and Simon watched The Grinch and tonight we will be spending time with my nana watching National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, so far we have also watches Spongebob Squarepants Christmas episodes, The Simpsons Christmas episodes, Jim Carey's A Christmas Carol and Adam Sandler's 8 Crazy Nights :) 

I love December because on the 14th it's mah birthday, then 17th is Luna's 1st birthday and then Christmas. I love to take my nana shopping eVery year for food and last minute presents so I'll be doing that this year which I can't wait for, I have sorted out my outfit for my big family meal and I and just so excited :) I hope all you guys are super excited too!

For now though I shall say goodbye and let you lovely people enjoy the last day of November! 

I'll be putting up another post later in the week and will aim to write around 1 blog post per week, apologies if not because I am still doing dissertation research and helping ready the house for Christmas!

Bye for now lovelies xx

Katy. 

Exciting Things Going On!

Good evening all you gorgeous people!

I don't know how many time sI have to say this but I am really sorry for the extended absence, I'm doing my best to stay on top of things. There has been so so much going on lately, last time I posted I think I mentioned that I had finished uni for this year and would be preparing for my dissertation? Well I've finally managed to settle on a topic and have just discovered how much I adore social policy so I'm super excited time 10 to be getting ready for the dissertation. 

In terms of uni I actually found out that I finished my year with an overall first class, same as last year just at a higher degree and I'm hoping to keep that up for my final year and come out with an overall 1st for my undergrad degree. 

At the end of the year I went into uni to have some discussions with lecturers just about how to proceed with research for the dissertation and so on but I actually ended up getting myself and internship throughout the summer which basically involves doing some human rights research and writing a report on particular human rights abuses in a country of my choice. Human rights isn't something I've ever dealt with before but I've got to say it's been heartbreaking reading about some of the atrocities that are happening now throughout the world. Other than difficult and often heavy reading I am really enjoying it and it's something that I can add to my CV. I've also joined the University of Sunderland's Student Blogger team so I've put up a couple of posts for them right now and that's been so fun, I love blogging as you know and I love teaching and my blogging style tends to gravitate more towards academic help and support which is something that I am privileged to be doing and helping others with. 

I've also been volunteering with a company in Sunderland that promoted health and wellbeing and undertaking a few training course, so far I've been trained in emotional resilience and other similar things, I'm looking forward to becoming a fully fledged health champion. I feel like I am doing really well as lecturers at university are wanting to use m work as exemplary for next years students as well as getting some of my work published on the University of Sunderland Social Sciences blog soon so that'll be awesome! 

Unfortunately not everything has been rosy in terms of uni and personal life, I'm struggling with some issues with people in my inner circle, things are being made difficult for me and my mental health is starting to be impacted by it. The only thing that I can say about this topic as, obviously it's very personal to me is that an issue around friendships and supportive relationships becoming toxic to me is getting me significantly overwhelmed so I am attempting to distance myself from situations that I feel will be unhealthy for me. I am actually planning a post about this type of toxicity in your life as soon as I possibly can, it may take a while due to other commitments with the internship and dissertation research but because it's something I feel passionate about it is definitely on of the next posts coming up. 

I have been spending a huge amount of time in hospital lately backwards and forwards from the North East to the West Midlands for care and although I'm not at liberty to disclose any information about what has been going on, I can say that I have never felt this good and things are looking quite positive for me at the moment. I'm hoping to access some counselling services to help me manage my stress and emotions as there has been a significant amount of upheaval in my personal life and with my health and I am a complete advocate for counselling I think it's a wonderful way to relieve stress, learn new ways to cope with changes and sometimes it's better than ranting to family members because at least counsellors are paid to listen haha! I am also planning a post on my reasons why counselling services should be accessed if you're feeling overwhelmed of are struggling because it's a topic that is a real hot one in the media at the moment and definitely is something that needs to be talked about and de-stigmatised, so keep an eye out for that one! 

As you can tell, I have been a bit of a busy been and shall continue to be a busy bee until my feet drop of and my brain melts (if I don't melt before this heat that is) because if I have noting to do I will go mad. I have an exciting couple of weeks planned for self and Simon as we are planning to go to Simon's graduation ceremony for his Foundation Degree on Friday, we have dog trainers out on Thursday (because Luna is becoming a terror!), I'm off to see Pixie Lott with one of my best friends and hopefully another one of my wonderful friends, trips planned to go to Edinburgh, York, Whitby and Beamish open air museum coming up! I'm so excited for the future and honestly, I am overwhelmed at the joy I feel getting to share it with all of my amazing readers. I know I am not the biggest social media mogul or the best, most well known blogger out there but I am grateful for every single person who reads my blogs, thank you all!

P.S. If you would like to see the blog posts that I have created on the University blogging team please go to this link!,

Have an amazing day everybody and Happy Sunday!!!

Love Katy xx

Just me :)

The POMC Series: A Partner's Perspective

Hello everybody!

Earlier this week myself and Simon celebrated our 3 year anniversary of our relationship together, there have been many ups and downs in our relationship but we truly love each other and I wanted to take this opportunity to develop a post that I've been meaning to do for a long time. When I started this blog Simon asked me how he could help. This is his contribution, he has chosen to write and article for the blog outlining what it is like being in a relationship with someone who has a genetic obesity condition, and I myself could not be more grateful and proud of him. I hope you all enjoy his perspective and the next instalment of The POMC Series. Here goes...

"When a person is born into the world, they never have a choice in the cards they hold. Hair colour, the colour of ones eyes, even down to their individual personalities, nobody ever gets their say on what they want. This is no exception when it comes down to medical issues, issues that can be, or is, the bane of our existence. Personally, Asthma is my Achilles heel, one which has affected my whole life (Thank you, asthma!) yet it is a condition which I will never hope to submit to. However, there are some people in this life who really suffer much more that what we could ever comprehend, ones which we could never hope to understand unless we walk in their shoes. This post aims to shed a perspective in the life of my long-term partner, Katherine Simpson. 

The first, and best, picture I ever saw of this gorgeous woman

Me and Katy (her preferred name) have met under weird circumstances but we have that chemistry that just simply took off. No idea how she puts up with my randomness but that’s respect for you! We have had many dates out, however, it wasn’t long until I noticed problems with the way Katy was walking. She needed to stop on occasion and this only escalated the more I’ve been with her. Katy mentioned early early in our relationship that she suffered from POMC, Lordosis and a very unique genetic coding which is beyond my understanding. I have attended multiple doctors appointments and assessments as support and even medical professionals struggle with understanding what really makes Katy tick.

From my understanding, Katy suffers from a what-do-you-ma-call-it genetic deficiency in which her metabolism is permanently off. Because the body assumes that it is starving, fat is biologically formed and stored as a back-up energy source, not a great understanding as I mentioned but I wanted to write this without Katy giving me any direction so as to you you all what I see of this condtion. Due to this nature, the body can never truly function properly and this causes Katy to go up in weight. Newcastle RVI and Addenbrooks, Cambridge, are able to explain to a degree, and its such a difficult thing knowing that the one you love do dearly is not able to get treatment or help for an awful condition. Operations, some drugs and even gym has not worked; I can attest to how hard this sweet woman works, only changing shape but not losing weight whatsoever. I have experienced Katy suffer from an ovarian cyst which further compounds how much exercise and activities she can participate in. It is so upsetting to listen to your partner apologise for being who they are, because a medical condition stops them doing things they they desperately want to. 

Personally, I encourage Katy to the best of my abilities to rest and take breaks, yet she always felt guilty that she cannot have a normal life like everybody else in society. Memories with her are much better than distance she can walk and I have bad  short term memory anyway so there is no likelihood I would remember how far we travel anyway! Walking around places like Newcastle and the Metrocentre has always been a struggle, 10 minutes of walking puts a huge strain on her back, legs and pelvis. She is always hungry and finds it very difficult to manage that, she can eat a bigger portion than me and be hungry again minutes later as if she has never eaten at all!, any deviations can physically knock her sick. This is a medical attribute which I am wholly in the dark about and I am still learning more each day. 

I do feel empathy that Katy, no matter how much effort she tries, will just continually struggle. As her supportive partner, we will fight tooth-and-nail for medical and practical solutions but there are very limited channels open. Aspects of our life together have been negatively affected, I can’t express the pain you feel when you are walking down the street, hand-in-hand, with a woman you see as truly beautiful when she gets some disgusting comments shouted at her from afar. You want to go up to them and tell them the whole story but some individuals do not comprehend other individuals circumstances. Because of this, Katy’s confidence with being around others is shot; I wish she could see herself as the beautiful woman I see her as. A medical condition should be no reason whatsoever to make people feel isolated from the rest of modern society. Despite the medical flaws, her conditions does not own her, she aims to own it!!

One of our best nights together at Russell Howard

When I first met Katherine, it was a first for being with someone with such debilitating medical conditions. I was petrified when her cyst flared up two years ago, now I’m so relaxed she jokes that I’m too relaxed! Truth is, If I cannot compose myself to be of help, I should not be a lover at all. I am not size-ist so I do not judge on weight. However, I have have learnt so much about her and myself throughout the three years of us being together. I have adapted to Katy’s needs and as long as we make preparations, we still enjoy days out, even with back pains and struggles and my asthma! My general rule of thumb on looking after people is this;

• Whoever it is you are with, Love them 120%. Yeah, time management is hard, yet, everyone cares for their love. The addition of unorthodox medical conditions are no exception.

• Always keep calm. Managing tasks and looking after Katy is challenging but we always got there in the end. Patience can be low but do not snap and always try and communicate.

• Never go in a relationship if you are not willing to commit. A no-brainer, this one!

• Take time to understand your partner and what makes them tick. They will undoubtedly feel uncomfortable with themselves and they are humans too. No different to the rest of us!

• People can be abusive, what do they contribute to life anyway? You and your partner will be 100% better people than what bullies will ever be. 

People are still people, those with these medical conditions challenge life in hardcore mode, only strong souls can cope, I don’t believe things in life are given to you unless someone, somewhere knows you can cope. Katy copes so well. It is a strain on our relationship at times because I just want to help her but I know I am limited, if I could wave a wand and change things for her I would. Anybody who cares for someone with a long-term condition who loves them would change it for them. The only thing I can suggest for those living with, caring for and loving people with genetic obesity is be there for them and love them and make amazing memories with them, because just like everyone else on the planet, people with genetic obesity conditions are still people and I will always love my amazing partner and accept her for who she is."

By Simon Steel

And there you have it. My wonderful partner wrote those beautiful words as he writes everything else in his life, with passion and meaning. I hope you all found this post enjoyable and enlightening, I am off to give my fella a massive cuddle!

Katy xx

100th Post - Appreciation and Thanks

Hi everybody!

Image from google

I hope you're all doing well today and making the most of your Monday. So today's post is my 100th post on this blog! It seems to have gone by so quickly and I've had the best time so far writing posts and putting out content for you guys. When I decided to shift the purpose of this blog up a little I knew I would be keeping up the lifestyle aspects and some other aspects of the blog previously but it would be more heavily intertwined with raising awareness for POMC as you all know. Since that shift the reception of this blog, the support I've received from all of my amazing readers has been amazing and I've been able to make some lovely new friends from all around the world!!
I was terrified of the reception I would get by telling my story but I knew how important it would be for all of the other people out there who are either struggling with their weight, long-term condition of genetic obesity conditions, and I am astounded everyday of love love and support given, I've been able to help many people, my email has been relatively non stop since last year! Please keep them coming if you have any questions or want more information please ask, as I always say every little helps in the way of raising awareness for so many misunderstood, heavily stigmatised and awful genetic obesity disorders. 
I thought I thought I would share with you some of the amazing things I have had the opportunity to get involved in thanks to this blog and so many supportive people around the world!

My Invisible Disabilities and Disorders
Community as UoS!

• Took part in an interview with a journalist from the University of Sunderland - nothing came of said interview which was hurtful but still it was a great experience to take part in that I am glad I agreed to.
• Met with the, then, president of the Student's Union to help set pans into motion of a day of rooting awareness for genetic obesity conditions as the University of Sunderland. 
• Got to talk with numerous people from around the world about their experiences of living with and parenting one with a genetic obesity condition. 
• Conversed with numerous people working for awareness organisations and pharmaceutical companies aiming to develop treatments and awareness for genetic obesity conditions!
• Set up a community (a mini society) at the University of Sunderland for individuals living with invisible disabilities while studying at University of Sunderland, at the beginning of the next academic year we will be discussing some changes that we wish to make at the University.
• Become a health champion at a local wellbeing centre, helping to improve the lives of people around me, currently trained  in promoting Emotional Resilience!

Thank you all!

All of the amazing stuff I've been able to do is because of the confidence that my readers give me to keep promoting for these horrible conditions, conditions that impact families, friends, colleagues and most importantly the individual diagnosed with it. If at least 1  of my, almost, 10,000 readers has taken something from my blog then I am doing something right! Thank you so much for being there for me, continuously reading my blog, giving me motivation and support and I can only say that I am SO excited to continue this blogging journey with you as there are lots of exciting things going on at the moment that I will HAVE to tell you all about at some point ;) 

Lovs of love,

Katherine xx

Busy Bee: What I've Been Up To!

Good Afternoon you lovely people!

It's been so long since I last did a post that I've rewritten this several times because I just wasn't getting into the swing of it. I am pretty disappointed in myself for not continuing to blog but honestly I just haven't had much time to myself whatsoever! I'm pay to be blogging agin though and I've got a fair few posts ready to write for the next fee weeks, so lets get on with this one which will basically just been a roundup of what I've been up to recently!

As per the main reason I haven't been blogging is university, I've just finished my second year and will be going into my last year come September which don't get me wrong I am super excited about, but at the same time I really don't want to leave! This is a big change for me as I have hated every single place I have studied from primary school through secondary, sixth form and college! Uni is brilliant though and I love it so much. With going into my last year I've been mulling over dissertation topics for the last few months and after having like 9 different ideas I think I have finally found a topic that gels with me and that I'm really passionate and excited to write! Next year will be heavy but so fun so overall I'm looking forward to it and I'm actually quite optimistic about my grades for this year too, so yey! 

Oh the frustrations of a Venflo!

I've had a LOT going on with my health lately, as you can probably gather from the image to the right, so me and Simon have been travelling halfway down the country for tests and things, the hospital appointments are really long and pretty boring sometimes so we are bringing books along with us, games, laptop just to keep up busy. I'm allowed to go for walks between tests so it's not like I'm sat on my butt all day doing nothing. Other than that I have been feeling pretty great lately, our puppy Luna is now letting us sleep until a decent time, usually she gets annoyed at us waking her up! We take her for walks everyday and she is absolutely loving it. So are we!

Like I mentioned earlier not much has been going on other than getting loads and loads of Uni work, revision, placement days, report writing and things to get on with which is all done now thankfully but in our spare time me and Simon have been going out to the cinema, we actually managed to go and see Love, Simon (ironically) on the day it came out in cinemas and Oh My God! That's definitely one of my favourite films I've seen recently, I absolutely love anything romance-ish and Nick Robinson is a fab actor so I just loved the whole thing from start to finish, I then went and bought the book so I'm hoping to read that sometime in the summer. We also went to see Infinity War which was way better than I ever thought it would be! No spoilers obviously, I know people who still haven't seen it, but yeah it was really well worked and considering the amount of different characters coming from completely different movies they gel well together and it is so so so funny in many places. We also went to see Deadpool 2, again awesome but personally I preferred Deadpool the original, in fact I prefer the comics but the movies are still fab, definitely getting all of those on DVD when they come out.

A great book!

I've spent a lot of time reading and taking up a couple of new hobbies. I started reading Pornography by Andrea Dworkin. This is a really really good book if you're interested in feminism and topics around patriarchy and pornography, it's heavy reading but very interesting. I've also been reading Fat is a Feminist Issue but Susie Orbrach and this has got to be the most interesting book I've read in a very long time, fatness and social perceptions of fat people have always both fascinated and enraged me and this book captured my attention from the introduction so I would give this a read especially if you're interested in body positivity and fat acceptance type arenas. 

I've recently also picked up a could of new hobbies, because I obviously can't do a huge amount of exercise because of back pain, and a more recent and happy *sarcasm* addition, leg pain. I've started swimming which really relaxes my my back is still a great way to keep fit, me and Simon have also taken up ice skating recently, which is something I struggle at and have to take a lot of breaks with, it tends to take me and hour to get around one lap of the rink and then I'm done after that but still it's a fun day out and something I could hopefully build upon. 

Afternoon walks with Simon and Luna

Finally, I've picked up a few books and CDs and I'm planning to teach myself how to speak German because it's something I've always wanted to do and I'm passionate about, I love the German language and I have no idea why. Hopefully at the end of my third year at Uni I'll be taking a trip over to Berlin or into the Christmas markets in Germany so we will see how that goes, haha! 

So, basically through Uni, movies, books, ice skating and learning German I've been pretty busy but now it's officially summer I am looking forward to getting back into blogging and will hopefully have another post up on Tuesday. 

I hope all of my readers are doing awesome and will see you very very soon! ;) 

Love Katherine   xx

Hello World! Long Time No See: An Update!

Well good day everybody! 

I hope everybody is doing really well? I am so glad I have a chance to be blogging again, the main reason for my absence, as per has been a mixture of university and my health, it's been pretty crappy all round at the moment to be honest. Here in the UK we were hit by the 'Beast from the East' earlier this month so the weather has been pretty crazy, feels like other than going to university I've been stuck in the house for so long! 

Myself and Simon are doing okay, as usual we are inundated with work, things keep going wrong but at least we are still having a lot of laughs along the way. 

I have so much to tell you all and I know these update posts aren't anywhere near as interesting as the POMC posts but thing is, I'm hoping to convey the message to people of what all aspects of life for someone with a genetic obesity disease is like, but I am super super excited to tell you all about something in particular soon! Some exciting things have been going on lately so I believe it is time to get on with the post.

So, in terms of my health things haven't been perfect but when are they? I'm gaining a tiny bit more weight, most likely not helped by the fact I haven't  been able to do as much exercise as usual because of weather and university taking up all of my time, or it could be the fact that my doctors have started me on a new progesterone medication that's meant that I am more likely to bloat and retain water. Don't get me wrong these tablets aren't as bad for my body compared to the last tablets I was on in terms of getting regular hormones but they definitely mess around with my body and emotions twice as much which is fun for all the family to deal with. Anywho, other than that I've been fighting migraines, sinus infections and some serious back pain lately, in fact the back pain has been so bad I've missed university because of it, a lot of the days lately I seem to be struggling to walk and experiencing more pain, I'm hoping to go to a local chiropractor and physiotherapist in the next couple of weeks and see if they can help with some exercises or manipulate my back. Doctors keep telling me to lose weight and my lordosis will improve... yeah because all of us with genetic obesity know how easy that is. Anyway that's roughly about it in terms of my health, there are a couple of routes I'm considering going down in terms of adding things to my diet and exercise regimen, although those are things for another post.

Me and the babies, Dusty left, Luna right.

In my last post I mentioned that our dog Bella sadly passed away, she's left a huge hole in all of our hearts but thankfully we now have two little things to take our mind off of it. Myself and Simon are now the proud parents (yes I said parents, I DON'T CARE IF YOU JUDGE US!) of a beautiful 14 week old little Chihuahua girl we have named Luna. She is THE most adorable little puppy in the world! We love her so much but she is definitely a lot to handle, at the moment she is waking up us every single night between 2 and 4 and then wakes up properly at 7am. Not fun on a Sunday morning I'll tell you that. She has a good little voice on her and will bark at you if you tell her not to do something which I find adorable, but she has an even better appetite, so far she has managed to drink coffee from Si

Our baby Luna on her first day home!

mon's unattended cup which he left on the table and she jumped over to get, she's stolen fish, cheese, toast, tomatoes, carrots, cake, popcorn, carbonated water, milk and lots more! None of this is ever given to her willingly either she's just like a little acrobat when she wants something!

Luna is the first pet I've been completely responsible for and I think me and Simon are doing pretty well so far. My Nana and Grandad have also adopted a 14 week old Chihuahua and Jack Russell Terrier crossbreed called Dusty, he is a total fluff ball, he'll sleep anywhere, loves a good cuddle, is very very noisy, has the personality of an old man and has a huge overbite which Simon says makes him look like he is constantly biting his lower lip in excitement which is hilarious. If you want to see a picture of another adorable puppy I highly recumbent heading over to Instagram and taking a look at the profile Tunameltsmyheart, because that dog is probably the sweetest little thing ever to exist and I live for that IG account. The puppies a

Nana's baby Dusty on his second day at home!

dore each other, they are honestly the best of friends and share the same food bowl, sleep together and are currently having an argument with one another while I write this. 

Other than rubbish health, adopting two puppies and stalking Instagram puppies I have actually been attending university haha! At the moment we are nearing the end of the second semester and it's scary how close we all are to dissertation time next September! At the moment I'm taking 3 modules, one on Medicalisation of society, another on a research module, a third is a placement module with a self-directed research study which I am really enjoying because I have been seriously considering a career in social research. I've got a fair few assignments due in, I started one yesterday and have pretty much finished so I've got through that one quickly, I have 2 assessments for each module so I have 6 things to hand in before the end of May, lots going on heck which is why I have had so little time to blog with university and new puppies. Hopefully I can get all of those assessments in well before the deadline and can finish pretty early, fingers crossed. A few nights ago I had a crisis, well two actually, recently my car has been playing up which has meant I have had a battery change and breakdown recovery out more than I care to think about, and the other is that when I sat down to write my essays up my laptop completely died on me so I had to head out and buy a new one complete with Microsoft, security, an external hard drive and everything else that goes along with a new laptop. Admittedly it is amazing compared with my old one but I bought an Acer and have never ever had an issue with an Acer laptop, in fact I think they're the best type to get for uni and college, just my personal preference mind you. 

My new laptop - Image from Google

Anyway back to the topic of university, last year I mentioned I had a few things happen, such as a meeting with the president of my students union and an interview with a journalist, unfortunately the journalist let me down pretty badly, after giving out personal information for a good cause you kind of expect something to be done about it but at this point I'm so annoyed I don't even want to be involved in it anymore. 

The meeting at the union went great but because of timing and things we never managed to get an awareness day for genetic obesity running. HOWEVER... me and my friend who runs another blog about living with her own rare disease, we have decided to come together ad there are a number of issues at our university which mean people with invisible disabilities are not catered for as much as visibly disabled individuals would be. To myself and Annie this just isn't acceptable, in a world where disability rights movement is pretty strong, people shouldn't have to justify their disability simply because it isn't visible.

Official logo for out new community at uni!

 Therefore, we have developed a community at university, similar to a society, specifically for individuals with, people caring for or those interested in invisible disabilities and disorders; we are known as the Invisible Disabilities and Disorders Community, or I.D.D. for short, we aim to provide a safe space for people with invisible disabilities to socialise without judgement, we want to make people's university experience much more empowering and we want to make changes to the university to ensure it is more inclusive to everybody who wants to attend! I think this is a huge step for the university as well as a major step for myself as this is something I've been passionate about for years and honestly can not wait to get started! 

So, all in all you can see its been a pretty busy month! I am glad to be able to blog again but again, my posts will be sporadic until I am able to get all of my inversely work sorted or at least a bit more manageable, I truly do hope you all have found thing post interesting because I enjoy telling you all when is going on in my life! I would love to hear thing things that you've been getting up to this month! If you have anything to say leave a comment or reach out to me as I'm always here to listen! 

Have an awesome day everybody!

Love Katy! xoxo

My Reflections: 10 Things I've Learned in 10 Years!

Good Evening everybody,

I hope all is well with everybody and you're all taking care of yourselves. This past couple of weeks has been pretty difficult for us as a family, something that you should know about us is that we adore dogs. Any breed, size, age, ailment or temperament, we will take them all and this week our beloved Bullmastiff dog Bella passed away, my whole family is devastated obviously, and we all need some time to get over it because she was simply amazing and she was like a person in a dog's form.  I've also started back at university and I'm properly in the swing of things now, looking forward to assignments and praying as hard as I can to avoid drama but that's clearly not working at the moment haha!

The past couple of weeks I've been doing a lot of reflections, looking at my life, my attitude and things I've been through, I've been thinking of making some changes and looking into the possibility of maybe moving house at some point but nothing will be rushed. So, all of that reflections led me to think about everything I have learned form my experiences and wow was I surprised to say the least! We go about our daily lives spilling out the wisdom we've learned to people who need it, want it or who just will listen to it but we never really stop to think "where did that come from?" or "what led me to this?". Therefore I would like to share some of the rings I've learned with you and maybe some experiences that led me to these points. 

It's okay to have no clue what you want to do with your life - This can be an issue for a lot of people to be honest and I've had friends and ex-friends who simply have no idea what they want or can do with their qualifications and experiences but to some extent that's okay. There are people with numerous degrees who still have no idea what they want to do, but sometimes if you just take it a day at a time and just try and enjoy what you're doing as you do it then things will usually fall into place. I must say if you don't enjoy whatever it is that you're doing then you need to leave it, even if that's a relationship or a job just get out because life is far too short to waste being unhappy. 

Not having a boyfriend/girlfriend in school, college or uni isn't the worst thing - For many people this can be pretty much a confidence killer, just as being virgin through school or not going to any crazy parties can make you feel like a loser, not having a boyfriend/girlfriend throughout school can be a major confidence killer. It's not the be all and end all of everything though, think of it this way the more time you spend swooning over a guy/girl the more you are doing yourself a disservice, you would be focusing on YOU! Learning your own boundaries, finding new and fun hobbies, time with friends and family, working harder at school and getting better grades is an amazing achievement. Also most people in school who say they have a BF/GF that they love will likely split up as they aren't mature enough* at that point to hold a relationship down AND those people saying they have lots of awesome sex... yeah? No, they usually aren't and even if they were nobody is amazing at sex the first time they have it, so stop worrying!

Me being a happy and semi-confident person!

Staying true to yourself makes you a much happier person - I can't say much about this one as it is what it says on the can. If you are true to yourself and take part in the things that you like, if you hang around with the people you love, listen to good music, watch awesome movies and wear the soothes you are comfortable in then you will have a much better life, nobody wants to be stuck in clothes they can't stand, listening to God-awful music with people they don't get on with do they? Exacly! I actually learned this when I hit 18 because I had been trying so so hard to fit in at college with the girls in my class and I just kind of realised one morning while the girls talked about sex positions, modern music I had no idea about and what they were doing at the weekend that I thought "my god I'm 18 trying to be 16 and I would be happier at home this weekend with a book, completed coursework, candles on an laughing with my Mam and Nana" so that's what I did and I was totally bloody happy with it!

Making time for friends and family, even if you're super busy or stressed, is usually **always worth it - I included this one because a few weeks ago I met up with my oldest and greatest friend Leanne (Leanne, if you're reading this I still can't believe we have been friends for 10 years!). She signed herself up for the 3 years of gruelling mental torture known as university, although our courses are very different we do know, and anyone else who tries super hard to do well at uni, that uni takes up a high amount of our time and can be difficult to arrange get togethers but she told me that she always made times for her friends and family which is something I struggled with, if i have work that usually comes first so I don't stress about it, but lately I've been arranging more time out with friends, family and  generally just for myself too because honestly it's a welcomed break away, the work isn't going anywhere but time with friends and family is so precious.

People are cruel/assholes/ignorant... at EVERY age - Can't express how many times I want you to read and re-read that back because it's so true, there are so many nasty, cruel people out in that work that it's impossible to shield yourself away from them so growing a thick skin is essential, I'm still working on mine so I am in no position to preach at all but my God what I have definitely helps! Nastiness and childish behaviour doesn't stop at a particular age, it isn't just reserved for children, some of the most digesting comments I've ever received have been from young and older adults... Imagine a child's vocabulary with more swears basically. This kind of this does need to be ignored if it's nothing too serious but discrimination and ignorant comments need report in in the right circumstances such as at work or in a public situation if there is anyone available to report it to. Keep yourself right and safe at all times thought. Also as a side note to this one, if you have friends then they, even after a long time and lots of memories can still turn their backs on you and vice versa. 

Believing in your own strength and abilities is essential if you want to do anything in this world - This one for me, is pretty much the follow on the the above point, hence the structure of this post. If you are going to meet assholes at every stage in your life then you're going to meet barriers to what you're wanting to do, you'll need to overcome barriers and fight for what you think is right. A recent problem with my consultant who diagnosed my POMC has fought me this mores than ever; if you spend your whole life thinking that you can't do something or that you're not good enough then that's all you will ever be because you will never go outside of your comfort zone or gain confidence. If, however, you work hard and believe that you can be do something, even if it is as simple as talking to someone over the phone to order something or ask something then you have taken that step to increasing you confidence, each time you do that it will get easier, you will know that you can talk to someone on the phone and then on to the next challenge it is! If you think that you do have the strength to carry on when you're having a stressful day then you will get through it and getting into bed at night will be much sweeter. 

Money has no meaning outside of its purpose - I like this one. In fact this one is my favourite because it took me longest to realise to be frank. I didn't have many friends throughout school, the ones I did (excluding a couple) were pretty shitty and made my life hell most of the time, but I was so scared of being alone that I would spend a huge amount of the money I received in trying to buy their affection. I would take them on days out, buy them whatever they wanted, make sure if they didn't have enough money I would give it to them. I have needed fuel money to take friends places and asked for help if they took me out of my way but when they didn't help I let it go because hey that's money they could spend on themselves and I'll manage somehow... But the thing is money has 0 value if it's not being used for its original purpose which is to purchase goods, so all of that money I spent on "friends" didn't miraculously help improve our relationship, it just meant they took advantage of me and some of my friends are still doing that now just not necessarily with money but emotional support. The friends and people that mattered didn't care if I had no money at all, we could have a day in the house baking or cross-stitching or reading or even just sitting in silence and that was enough. I wish I'd known that earlier. 

Working hard always pays off in some way - I promise that this is true! If you work hard at something, even if you're rubbish at it then it'll pay off somehow, it might just pay off because you feel good about yourself for working hard but it definitely pays off, and working hard at something will give you a sense of achievement which in turn definitely helps building confidence and self-esteem!

Nothing comes before your health - This is something that I learned far too late in life. Something to know about me is that I went to an absolutely awful comprehensive school, the pupils there were evil, the teachers sub-par and didn't care about anything that was going on. I remember that after being diagnosed with POMC when I first started comprehensive school that my parents got a nurse form the RVI into school to explain to the class and teachers what exactly was wrong with me, one fact being that I would need to eat regularly and drink more, one rule in our school was no drinking in class so I remember getting my water bottle taken away from me and one particular teacher ripped up my toilet pass (a card that lets you go to the toilet whenever you need, no questions asked). My Mam went up to the school and went crazy with the teachers after that because by the time I got home I had held my need to use the toilet so long that a couple of days late i developed a kidney infection and I was so dehydrated I couldn't talk properly. It was then (in year 10 when I was around 15) that I literally vowed never ever to let somebody get me into that situation because no 60 minute lesson about WW2 is more important than my health. The same goes for you, nothing is ever more important than your health, so if you're very ill, mentally needing  break or physically unable to do anything then you have to take that time away, schedule it in if you have to to make sure you get everything done that you need doing but always make sure you have good health because you can't do very much without that on your side. 

You have got to think of yourself - For a lot of people this can be pretty difficult myself included because some people have a natural instinct to look after other people before themselves. I suppose that this point is the accumulation of all of the other points all rolled into 7 seemingly unimportant words. I don't mean that you should take being selfish to the extremes but I do mean that in everybody's life there comes a time when you simply have to put yourself first. There are so many reasons people can choose to put themselves first, some people do it when they're sad, others when they're angry or stressed or distressed or happy; I find that putting yourself first should be a running theme throughout your life, it should involve self-care and support; I put myself first by not allowing people to take advantage of me the way I used to and taking time to get to know my limits and boundaries so that I can stop people getting in the way of my happiness, if someone is going to cause upset or difficulties in my life then get rid of them because like I said at the beginning... life is simply too short. 

Our gorgeous Belle <3

So, there we have it, those are the 10 most important things I've learned in 10 years (from 12 years old to 22) and I hope you guys have really enjoyed reading this post because I loved writing it! Please come back next time and have an awesome week until then! As silly as it may seem to some, I am dedicating this post to our beautiful dog Bella Savage who passed away 08.02.2018, she really was the best friend a person could hope for and she will be more then missed. 

Love, Katy xo

Changes and Hopes for 2018!

Good Morning All!

Not my image! Image found on Google.com

I want to start by saying that I hope everybody has had a wonderful Christmas and hope you're all looking forward to a great New Year! Our Christmas was fantastic, I spent a lovely morning and had lunch with my family and we then went over to Simon's family for the rest of the night, lunch as per was awesome and spending time with all of our loved ones was just perfect. Myself and Simon were completely and utterly spoiled and I can't thank our families and friends enough, we will have to treat them all in the new year.

I'm definitely looking forward to the New Year, I went out with Simon and his friend a few weeks ago and my mood was not positive; I was feeling really depressed and quite hopeless, I think Simon was too at that point to be honest. Both of us had been going through a very difficult period which was impaction on our relationship at the time, something Simon's friend said to us really hit home with me, I can't remember the exact words but he basically said that when you step back form the situation and find the things you like, use the knowledge about yourself in a productive way you can make 2018 the best year ever, it's ours to make basically. He is totally right as well and we just hadn't really looked at it through the lens he uses before. He's an awesome lad, can't say that enough. 

So, with that in mind I want to talk about New Years Resolutions, something I'm sure many many people will be akin this year. Thing is, I don't make resolutions because I don't like the idea of 'letting myself down' if I can't stick to them, but this year some changes really need to be made, therefore this year I'm making some changes, and some promises to myself, that I think will make my life better and make my 2018 as happy and healthy as possible. Here are some things that I'm hoping to accomplish this year.

Improve my health - I'm not the most unhealthy person alive but neither and I the healthiest I could be. There is little I can do about my POMC until the time is right and new treatments are available, new options given to us all; however, there is a lot I can do to improve other aspects of my health to make me happier and more able. I need to mix up my diet, although at the moment it is very restricted, I would like to speak to dieticians to see if I could add more nutritional meals into my diet or even more interesting ones, eating the same thing constantly can get boring. Physiotherapy is on the cards as well as I want to be able to stand for more than 5 minutes without pain coming on, posture is something that needs looking at as the curve in my spine impacts that a lot, I think physic would be a good thing for me even if it's not a cure but a help. Counselling to keep my mental health on track is something I also want to get into, there is absolutely nothing wrong with trying to keep your mind healthy, I still have battles with low self-esteem at times and that's something I'm hoping to overcome this year. In terms of health I also need to be much more forward in telling the doctors what I need instead of just agreeing with their course of treatment, that is a very important one for me. 

My book on how to live well the Danish way! Exciting read

Change my mentality - This is a big one actually and pretty much goes hand in hand with the counselling aspect of the above mentioned point. I really need to change my mentality around... well everything. A little fact about me, I let people take advantage of me all the time because I don't have the confidence to stand up and say no. I've put myself, and in some instances, Simon, in very awkward, difficult and uneasy situations due to my inability to say no. Something I need to take heed of is the fact that if somebody else chooses to do (or not do) something because I'm not then that decision isn't on me, everybody is responsible for their own actions and I want to work on my ability to not take everything to heart. I need to be kinder to myself, I often think I'm a terrible person, berating myself for the smallest of mistakes, I put too much pressure on myself at uni because of this. I'm human too and this is the year I want to accept myself completely, flaws and all. Sometimes I try far too hard to please other people and get upset at criticism but I also want to try and be myself more this year, if I don't want to do something I won't. I should get back to my knitting, cross stitch, back into my reading and such. I got a book for Christmas about the Danish way to be happy and I can't wait to read it! 

Spend more time with family - Time with loved ones is precious, all time is precious but it's even better in the company of those you love most. Unfortunately there are some people I'm often surrounded by that, for my own mental health, I am going to have to step away from, regardless of the nature of our relationship some people just are not good to be around. Constant arguments, belittling, lack of support and compassion is not the kind of attitude anybody needs to be around. Therefore, this year I will be spending my time with those who truly matter, those who are there for me and I for them, I've heard over and over that surrounding yourself with good people is the best possible thing you can do for yourself, 2018 will be the year I take that advice and test that theory. Simon's family are included in that as I love them as my own and always look forward to spending time with them as well. It also includes spending time with friends, these are the people who help you up no matter how far down you fall and those people are hard to find, keep them close I say!

Be more of a 'YES!' woman - I remember watching Jim Carey's 'Yes Man' movie years ago and as much as a lot if it was so cringey (and still hilarious to me) you've got to admit he was much happier when he started just saying yes to the little things he usually would have said no to. This year I want to be a yes woman, I want to say yes to more days out and going different places without worrying about the price of things or how many days I have left to do my essays... I always get them done at least 1 week in advance anyway. I also have plans to start this little promise to myself as I want to go to the Hancock Museum in Newcastle, I hate history but love the cavemen, dinosaur type history, so that would be fun. I also want to go to a couple of art galleries, more movie nights out, trips to weird and awesome places. Another side promise to go along with this is that I want to make a scrapbook, or at least take more pictures to keep these important memories alive.

More me time/Learn to step back - Finally, I think something that I have been meaning to do for a long, long time is take more time for me. I love Simon and he loves me but everybody in a live-in relationship needs their own time and we don't get a lot of it these days with uni, family, work and everything else going on. So, with that said I want to take more time for me and learn to step back from situations that I need to remove myself from. I have already thought of how I can do this, I am at my happiest when I am listening to my music, this year I had to invest in a new iPod Touch as a replacement for the best piece of technology ever created... the iPod Classic (screw you apple for discontinuing those!!), so I've bought myself lots of new albums and I am ready to go! I've packed my personal care boxes full of body butters, nice smellies, my craft box is full and I'm fully prepared to give myself some me time in whatever way I fancy!

So those are my little promises and hopes for 2018, and you know what? It doesn't matter which or how many of these promises I manage to fulfil because even one of these things will make my life a little better. I hope you all are looking forward to a brand new year! Thank you all so much for reading and please let me know what your promises/wishes.resolutions are for 2018!

See you soon guys! xo