💡 New blog post: A relaxing interlude
This isn’t a ‘New Year, New Me’ announcement or anything. Just the stark realisation that I’ve for some work to do before I can feel comfortable in these shorts again.
💡 New blog post: A relaxing interlude
This isn’t a ‘New Year, New Me’ announcement or anything. Just the stark realisation that I’ve for some work to do before I can feel comfortable in these shorts again.
💻 New blog post: Retreating to Sitges
I return to London feeling lots better, with a ton of notes and plans for personal and professional life. I experience a kind of inspiration there that I don’t get anywhere else. It just works, which is why I go back every year.
🏋🏼 Made it to the gym again after work this evening.
A much nicer elliptical workout, while watching some ‘Tokyo Vice’'. Why though, do some people go to the gym for the sole purpose of making phone calls? Not while exercising, while sitting on machines and not moving a muscle.
Puzzling.
🏋🏼 Made it to the gym for a very half-hearted workout on the elliptical. Brought me to a total of 10km of walking today, which isn’t bad. Let’s see what I manage tomorrow.
I’m back on the beach in Sitges in two weeks, so every little helps. Right?
💡 I spent the weekend intentionally disconnecting from work and instead spending time with family.
And you know what? I came back to London feeling great!
New blog post: Disconnecting.
🚶🏼 New blog: Where there’s a will, there’s a walk
Over on my new MacPsych.blog endeavour, using the very lovely Pika platform.
I’ve had a client webinar cancelled at the very last minute, so instead of mainlining political news all over again, I’m going to head downstairs to the gym and get some exercise. A much better use of my time.
🏋🏼 I had the gym in our building all to myself this afternoon.
Until the last ten minutes of my workout, when this giant beast of a neighbour came down, dressed in street clothes, and chose the treadmill next to me for… a walk. And a telephone conversation. While on speakerphone. Loudly.
I glared at him pointedly - I could hear him over my own headphones and this is something he always seems to do - and he moved one machine away. Then he switched to French and started talking about me.
No, I’m not paranoid. I can speak French.
Anyway, it was soon time to wrap up and leave him to his stroll. I didn’t want to be there for his inevitable heart attack. The man is a utter pig and I’ve seen him ogling the women in our building like someone the police have a thick file on. He gives out major “How much for the blonde?” energy, like a basic villain in an Indiana Jones flick.
I don’t even want to share the gym with him.
On the plus side, I got a solid 45mins workout on the elliptical, some much needed stretching, and an episode of The Boys Season 4 before it was time to leave.
😬 I appear to have eaten something that is violently disagreeing with me.
🧠 Again with the anxiety dreams?!
Last night’s included:
I have absolutely no idea what my brain is trying to tell me with all this nonsense. Though it wold at least be fun if I didn’t wake up in a panic at the end of each one. Sleep? I don’t know her…
😴 Last night’s sleep destroyed by a horrible dream that I was in Egypt, stuck in a hotel due to some kind of coup, and unable to find my passport. Gunfire and screams outside. It all felt so, so real. Woke in a panic and had to check it was where I always keep it.
Thanks for nothing, brain.
📆 A superb Monday so far!
Aaaargh. My hay fever is off the scale this morning. Feeling utterly miserable and I haven’t even left the apartment yet. Eyes streaming, constant sneezing, itchy all over. Seems my meds aren’t doing a thing today.
🦷 Starting my weekend with a trip to the dentist.
Nothing serious, just a check-up. But never, ever anything less than a chore.
Despite being woken up by a malfunctioning fire alarm at 4am, I’ve been vaguely productive this morning!
Finished the edits and published my lastest work YouTube video, survived a client call regarding a new project, and with the help of even more coffee, I’m going to run a webinar in about 30mins from now.
I am, however, going to wrap up work as soon as that’s finished. I may need a very short nap to get through the rest of the evening.
😱 An awful night’s sleep, punctuated by the worst possible nightmares.
Seems like each time I went back to sleep, I slipped into another awful (imaginary) situation. Robbery, mugging, job loss… one after another. Sitting here with a coffee, reminding myself none of it was real.
📸 I have the gym all to myself this afternoon!
I’d like to say the worst bit of yesterday’s MRI was the noisy machine.
I’d like to say it was the scratching and uncomfortable line inserted awkwardly into a vein in my left arm.
Indeed, it would be nice to tell people that the worst part of the experience was the half-litre of gloop they made me drink before the scan. Or maybe having to hold my breath while my digestive system was scanned.
No.
The worst part was halfway through, when I was injected with yet another chemical and trundled back into the MRI coffin. Within moments bile rose in the back of my throat, my face flushed and I felt I was going to vomit.
In a metal coffin.
With the surface mere centimetres from my nose. I have to say I panicked slightly as I could easily visualise the vomit coming out of my mouth and nose as I tried to hold it back, dripping into my eyes, choking me in my nasty, metal sarcophagus.
Yes. I panicked.
And so I pushed the aptly-named panic button and the radiology team had me out of the metal Death trap in moments. They were so understanding and talked me down from my heightened arousal (wide-eyed panic), explained what was happening, and let me take my time before lying back down and returning to the magnetic noise pit.
It was pretty awful. And I say this as a man who had a combined colonoscopy / endoscopy session just a couple of months back. At least that time, I was pumped with a nice, relaxing dose of fentanyl to take the edge off. I even exchanged jokes about winning “cleanest colon in London” as the gastro consultant did his thing.
He didn’t laugh, now that I think about it.
Yesterday was the closest thing to torture I’ve ever experienced, and I won’t be rushing back. And here’s hoping it’s the last MRI I need for a very, very long time.
Christ on a bike this stuff is vile!!!
But apparently necessary, pre-MRI. Currently fantasising about my dream lunch (I’ve been fasting) and I’m pretty sure it involves a Five Guys burger 🍔
Another day of two halves…
I’m off to Vienna this evening, to (hopefully) enjoy a Bank Holiday weekend in the sun. But first, I have to go back to hospital, for yet another test.
Thankfully, it’s just an MRI, so all I have to cope with is boredom. Hopefully.
OMG. Ten hours of sleep later and I feel like a new man.
Glad it was just a quick (and nasty) food poisoning, rather than the start of some bug. Feeling 100% now and planning to head out for a run shortly.
Finally home from my overnight to Chichester to speak at a conference.
The presentation went really well, almost making up for last night’s food poisoning and projectile vomiting at 2am. 😥
Haven’t slept since and, at this point, I think I can see sounds and taste colour.
Started the morning with yet another medical appointment, followed by booking in yet another test.
Just an MRI this time, so nothing invasive or uncomfortable. There are only so many colonoscopies a boy can handle in a single year! I’m so grateful I can access this quality healthcare, but I’ll be a lot more grateful once I have some firm answers to my body’s questions.
I had a headache earlier, which has gradually spread to my right eye and now (thanks, aging body) gone into my right ear. I was almost getting used to the headache, but the earache is a new level of fuckery.
Glad I finished work early, so I can take to my fainting couch and moan…
Turns out…
These ferocious headaches I’ve had for the past three days (including this very moment) could be down to the nuclear volume of probiotics my gastro consultant prescribed.
Ugh.