Brenda's Brainstorm & Trevor, a T Man Production 2009 - 2022

RD BLOG WEEK; DAY ONE DEALING - How do other diagnosis impact your RD and its treatments? Before we begin, I would like to make a little introduction. I'm Trevor a golden retriever, who has been Brenda's storyteller for this blog, the past 8 years. We share tales about experiences that have happened in Brenda's life, good or bad. We believe in being real and at the same time, pawsitive. See what I did there? BOL Now, you get it.  Brenda has lived with rheumatoid disease for 28 years. Hers is primarily rheumatoid arthritis, but she also lives with another autoimmune disease, hypothyroidism. This was properly diagnosed, after her craniotomy was performed, for her right frontal lobe nonmalignant meninigioma brain tumor, which was removed entirely on September 8, 2008. That now makes her an eleven year brain tumor survivor.  Brenda also deals with high blood pressure, which as of late, has become a real challenge with finding the right medication. Thanks to her...

Hello my fellow readers. Trevor here, with our September tale. On the eve of Brenda's 11th Craniversary or what she refers to as the anniversary of her craniotomy, we thought that exploring the subject of possessing no filter would be appropriate. Brenda does live with frontal lobe syndrome, which is considered an acquired brain injury, as a result of having had a craniotomy. You hear this often in the brain tumor community; Brain Surgery Equals Brain Injury. This is true and in Brenda's case, it can be difficult to deal with at times. Some brain injured individuals, possess no filter. This is no fault of their own. It means that their actions cannot be controlled, due to having had their brain injured. This often happens with stroke victims. They become agitated and may lash out with cussing. Brenda herself experienced it with a stroke victim once. He was so happy to see her, but could not express what he wanted to say and started cussing. He also was gripping her hand tig...

It's time for our monthly blog post and this one is going to be on writing.  In case you're wondering, this is Trevor, composing this tale. BOL Brenda got herself a new toy this week. She did a lot of research and decided on a Chromebook. There were several factors involved, with making this decision. Brenda wanted to be able continuing with her blog. She uses Blogger, so that was another big plus, in making this decision. Brenda will be celebrating, 10 years of starting this blog later in the fall. Writing came into her life, about a year after the removal of a brain tumor. Creativity can suddenly manifest itself, after such a traumatic event. It did in Brenda's case. It has afforded her many opportunities. Not only did she start a blog, all by herself I might add, but she allowed that sudden burst of creativity, to spill over into other writing projects. One of her greatest joys, was becoming editor for an online publication. She served in that capacity, for 3 y...

Hello it's Trevor here, with our July tale. Brenda has had another summer full of doctor's visits and tests. We try to be real with our posts and this one, will be no different. Brenda has been struggling. This week she almost had a vertigo attack during the night. It seemed when she would start to lie down, the room almost started to spin. As you know vertigo is that false sense, that the room is spinning, when actually it isn't. Tell that to the inside of your head. Brenda had what she needed on hand, to stop things from getting worse. Unfortunately after something like this happens, you're exhausted and all you want to do is rest. Brenda decided it was in her best interest to stay home from work. It's been frustrating, because she missed 2 days last week, getting ready for her 4th colonoscopy. She has a family history, so there was no choice in the matter. They found 3 polys and some irritation, called mild proctitis, which is a pain in the butt. Brenda still...

Hello it's Trevor here, with our monthly tale. This has been quite the month for Brenda. She started her 32nd year of employment with the clinic on June 2nd. As some of you know, she was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) 28 years ago. On September 8th, she will celebrate her 11th year of becoming a brain tumor survivor. Before going on with this tale; we want to let our readers know, that it was inspired by one of Brenda's favorite songs and singers. "'I'm Still Standing" with lyrics by Bernie Taupin and singing this truly upbeat inspirational anthem; is none other than one of Brenda's favorite singers in the whole wide world, Sir Elton John. Brenda recently saw Rocketman twice, based on Elton John's life. While we don't want to give too much away, if you haven't had a chance to see it. You should! Brenda loved how they focused on the friendship between Bernie and Elton. Imagine, sending the words to someone in the mail, then you sit...

Hello it's Trevor once again, sharing our monthly tale. Since it is both Arthritis and Brain Tumor Awareness Month in the US, we thought this would be a great time to share the essence of Brenda's passions when it comes to advocacy issues. Brenda has now been living with Rheumatoid Arthritis for 28 years. Her journey of becoming a brain tumor survivor began on September 8, 2008, almost 11 years ago. Brenda has found over the years, that the 2 continue to mesh and cannot be separated. Her becoming a brain tumor survivor, opened a whole new world for her. She became a writer and this blog became a reality, almost 10 years ago. I came along in 2011, as her storyteller. Brenda not only became creative, but found her voice. I think it was there all the time, but was hiding deep inside. They say that your inner strength is deep down inside of you. Reaching for that strength, can be one of the greatest things, you will ever do. Brenda was actually told in college, that she cou...

Hello it's Trevor, pawnouncing our "BARK OF THE MONTH" for April. This is a special story about a bond, between Renee B. and her sweet Greyhound, named Blanca. Her eyes are beautiful and we will be sharing a photo of her at the end. Congrats, to our "BARK OF THE MONTH" recipient, Blanca, an Italian Greyhound. The following, is that pawmazing story by Renee. BOL So, Blanca came to me from a lady in Nebraska. I had driven up to get Rocky, my other Greyhound, at the end of January. When Blanca was the appropriate age to be weaned, she came to Orlando. Blanca was flourishing and when she turned 4 months old, she somehow ingested a tiny wire (like the kind on a bread bag tie). Well, this wire somehow got lodged in her duodenum. Blanca wasn't eating much and was still so tiny. She had to have the wire surgically removed, at the same time, they had to do a partial duodenectomy. I was impressed by how STRONG Blanca is. VERY. Well, we made it to the 9 month mar...