Got Drunk without the Alcohol

So what do you do when you have work, husband, children, seminary deadline coming up, a Sunday school class to teach on digging deeper, and a women's ministry event to finalize?

I lay down on the job.

A week ago Friday I started getting a sinus infection. No big deal. Been there, done that for YEARS. I was in the bed half day on Saturday, taught on Sunday and was back in the bed with little voice to spare. Thankfully, my prior posts had already been pre-posted because when Monday came I was going nowhere. Last week I spent more time in my newly remodeled bedroom than I have in a long time sleeping. Apparently, my sinus infection went to my inner ear causing me to have vertigo and issues with balance. Then fluid started building up around my right eye which further enhanced the balance issue as well as focusing was becoming a problem.

I called my doctor who was my base as a cheerleader in elementary through high school. After some antibiotics and another medication, I still wasn't getting better and my speech was starting to slur. I was in the office first thing Friday morning. This time I had a prescription for steroids to reduce the fluid around my right eye and a VALIUM! (WOOHOO!)

For those who know me, you know that I lead. I wasn't leading this week. I was following with a bit of a swagger, and my swagger wasn't hip. It was more of the Otis variety from The Andy Griffith Show.

You probably also know that I'm extremely clostrophic. My doctor wanted an MRI done immediately, but the open MRIs were only available at 6 PM, and that was not satisfactory for the doctor or her office. This means they had a closed MRI machine available at noon, and I was to be in it. (hehehehe)

The last time I was in a small place that caused me to panic was in a small elevator in Italy. It was two people deep and one person wide – no luggage could fit. I panicked when the doors of the elevator wouldn't open to the point of almost hyperventilating. My girlfriend Cheri was more at shock at my response than getting stuck temporarily in the coffin-sized elevator.

My doctor ordered drugs to be piggy-backed on top of my Valium at the MRI if needed. Those who know me also know I'm a light touch when it comes to pain medication or sedation.

By the time I got to the MRI, I was being led around like a drunk. I could no more walk a straight line if my life depended on it and that was BEFORE taking the Valium. I wore my sunglasses everywhere because my eyes were very sensitive to light, and the slightest thing was funny.

I say all of this to say this. Thank you to those who stood in the gap for me while I was incapacitated. Thank you for those who would laugh at me and with me when my speech was a little slurred or I staggered when I walked. (Yes, I thought it was funny in a warped, twisted sort of way). Thank you to the ladies who exercised such class and extended grace to me during the week and during the women's ministry event that raised money for the Heart of Hope Maternity Home. I do not take those acts of kindness for granted nor do I take the time you spent in prayer on my behalf for granted.

I feel so much better today than I did last week, and I am blessed to such wonderful friends like you.