Hello Shay...you are well on your way to loving yourself first & you have  a great attitude, outlook & goals about life in general I know your going to do just great in nursing. Nursing can be a hard course depending on your goals, but taken one step & one day at a time to not overwhelm yourself may be beneficial. You may be ahead of other students because of your disease &  you can help others along based on your experience.  Empathy & patience is a great part of nursing & knowing when to share your personal story. You will have that chance with others who are dealing with bowel disease & I'm sure they'll appreciate your experience & maturity in it also.  I think its a blessing to be able to hear others concerns & to be able to relate to them what you know & have learned & to offer a variety of different tips & tricks, as we do here.  Sometimes just needing another shoulder to lean on is required too & as you discovered reaching out is a big part of surviving it.  That is what brought most of us here anyways. 

Before I stumbled across VO,  I had no clue I needed it or that  there were so many with the same issues as I.  Because of Eric's insight we are able to help steer others along this path we are on. You will find that at some point you will be offering help here too. Thank you again Eric!

Shay, It is so nice to hear you have a good boss who was willing to work with you & your guts. Life experience is what molds us anyways & I think we would not be human if we were not hard on ourselves to some degree. But don't be to hard & certainly do not suffer physically or emotionally in silence. There is all kinds of help available & asking for it is a huge step in the right direction. 

Its awesome your grabbing the bull by the hornsor maybe the needles by the hands, lol,  & have decided to start Knitting. I  knit years ago but arthritis had too much to say about it so I stick with the other crafts now & it's just fine this way. Your wise to spend a few years knitting for yourself first as in time once others see what your making they'll be asking you to make something for them too. I always offer to teach them how to do what they ask so they learn that it takes time, energy,  patience &  cost to complete a project. I learned also to at  expect costs of material covered because it can get expensive. A shawl or afghan is a great piece to start on, you can even knit doilies if you like. There are little tools you can purchase to help keep track of what stitches & rows your on, ask about them today. I prefer the crocheted doilies but I think knitted ones have an hier of sophistication to them.  Good for you deciding on this, have fun at Fabricland. If your not sure how much sewing or knitting you'll be doing, do not buy their member ship card yet. Give it a little time. Check out the wool companies websites for free patterns also.  I'm actually going to ours in Penticton tomorrow.  Beware of materials needing dry cleaning also. Be sure & wear a mask while your out in public too.  Yes Mom...I know... Sorry it's a habit now!! lol! While there ask about sewing classes & start slowly buying the basics when you can. I can give you the short list if you like but their very helpful there &  I think you've got this in the bag!! lol!! 

I would love to share my recipes with you. But in keeping with respect  for Eric & Vegan Ostomy, I'll p/m you with them my fav. Plants list  too. Let me know there if there are any in particular your may be looking for? But for now I'll share my Zucchini Loaf  & the Chocolate chip recipe I use & my  pie & crust recipes too.  Apple,  Pear & Nectarine are some of my favs!  You can start by searching Google for plants good for the oxygen in your home.  I actually went as far as keeping a few recipe cards available in a little dollar store photo album on the plant info for care after I invested in a few plants. It was nice to use while learning about some pests they can get also, but don't let that scare you off it has only happened once in my 50 years with house plants . 

Have a good day & enjoy Fabricland! 

@dlkfiretruck Thank you again for your kind words and I apologize taking so long to get back to you, I started back at work this week. A coworker of mine has had a J-pouch for a little over twenty years and is going to have surgery in a couple weeks to have a permanent ileostomy, its really nice to have someone I know personally who is going through the same thing I am. 

I am getting started with my knitting and my first project will be a scarf for myself. I figured something simple would be a good first project. I also plant to go to my local nursery and get a few plants and succulents to start my gardening hobby. I am looking into getting a Peace Lily and a Variegated Snake Plant to start off with, I have read that they are good for air quality and beginner gardeners. I would love to know what plants you have and love. 

I feel like I owe you an apology, I have been going on and on about myself and haven't asked how you are doing in regards to your health and all the things going on in the country. So, how are you doing?

@shay10-6...Please don't apologize. Its nice to get to know you & not to worry Shay, it sounds to me like your Happy!  That is so important, finding happiness in the place we are in in our lives. You certainly have put one foot in front of the other and are moving forward the best way you can!!  I think its so great you found a co-worker with a stoma also!  It will be very nice for the two of you to support each other!

Good for you starting with a scarf first. This will get you into the muscle motions required and your brain will learn it quickly, soon you'll be looking away from your work to peak at your succulents!! lol!  Did you find good help at Fabric land? Did you inquire about a sewing course. I found out this year that our schools pulled the sewing courses from highschool. I found that very disappointing as it prepared me for a lot of things in life that I would need to help get us by.  However I was glad to hear they still have cooking & shop classes.  I took woodworking in highschool and still have the night stand I made & got one of the best marks in the class. 

Where I live succulents & some cactus grow wild around here but not the kinds we are used to in the little pots. Much bigger. However, I am growing a Pear Cactus and a...I think its called a Choi sp? Cactus, it looks like large fingers or skinny arms growing out and up and it grows tall, this summer at the top grew about 10 or so fingers grew & are all reaching up. While others in the area flowered only my Pear cactus had flowers & it too grew more paddles.  Apparently they are edible if you can get past picking it with with all its prickles!!

I seem to be able to grow & bloom Orchids, I have one regular size & one Mini, one is still in bloom. which take little to no work or attention, just lots of indirect light. I also grow Spider Plants & have grown about 11 of them, have given 3 new starts away.  I was without plants for several years after we moved here in 96 & about 9 years ago I started growing them again. Right now I have two growing babies again!  This summer the priest next door asked if I could help rescue his African Violet. Its the oldest one I had ever seen.  I would guess by his travels about 15 yrs. old, as he has taken it with him on all his travels to new churches. I had to remove several leaves that were basically dried out & several fell off so I kept what I could save of the healthiest and planted then. Just this week I saw that one of the leaves is sprouting 2 little tiny leave smaller the a tear drop! I am so thrilled & hope the other 4 do the same.  I would like very much to give him a few of the five leaves if they sprout babies too. This was very exciting for me to see on the weekend. Other then my Peace Lily, which is still blooming & for some reason I have not killed off yet, I have three Christmas Cactuses 2 two are in bloom, 1 Prayer plant, blooming for 6 months now & 1 Ficus or Fig tree,1 Elephant plant. Sheesh, it almost sounds like I know what I'm doing but truly it has been hit & miss. Re-learning as I go. I would have a whole greenhouse of plants if I could! I really enjoy taking time to look after them & yes, I suppose I do talk to them and sing to them too! lol! I heard that John! lol! Kidding. I love growing my own Herbs too.

How was your first week back at work?  I hope it was STOMALLY uneventful...if that's a word! Eventually you'll have this down pat & going out will be just like before, maybe better, but with a few more "just incase supplies" in your purse or separately. Remember that you have compromised immune system so keep wearing a mask when your in public & rather then putting yourself in JEOPARDY, (rest in peace " Sir Alex Trebek" & Thank you for your Years of fun) take the precautions of eating at home and staying safe when ever possible.