Why I Might Be Renaming my Blog...
11/14/2016
I haven't written any new posts on my blog for quite a while. I have at least 100 excuses why and I'm afraid only a couple of them are good ones. I haven't felt really well in the past couple of weeks which has made writing and editing photos difficult. I've also had some health issues which I have written about previously. The main problem I am having has to do with a precancerous skin condition. The skin condition is called Actinic Keratosis which I am likely to continue having from time to time throughout the rest of my life.
Here is the post I wrote about my first scare with a precancerous skin condition:
Island Girl's PSA: Tanning is OUT and Your Skin is IN!!!
The above photo was taken in Kauai at an area called Queen's Bath
Not only is this condition a little scary, but it is very expensive as well! Don't get me wrong I know there are many people with more serious health problems and I know I could be dealing with something more serious as well. I do live in Florida though and I am supposed to be an island girl who visits hot tropical places with high UV rays some of which are extreme. Yes I know there is sunscreen and wearing a hat is a good thing too. I know that a lot of the damage is done, but psychologically I don't really want to visit tropical islands as much as I did before.
Another bad thing about having this skin condition is that it is very costly. Not only do you have to pay for the doctor visits, but the medicine I was prescribed was the most expensive I have ever used. The two little vials shown below are sold for $976 USD. My insurance refused to pay for it at first and when they did they only covered 40% of it. I found a coupon online for $250 leaving me to pay $150. Don't get me wrong I know $150 dollars is a lot better than $976 but it took about a week to resolve the issue with insurance that we pay more than a $1000 a month for :-(!
The medicine I was prescribed is called Picato. As you can see from the photo below you don't get much for nearly $1000 USD. It's made from a weed found in New Zealand.
I have visited many islands in the past. Quite frankly I am tiring of the extreme heat and humidity in Florida and some of the places I visited. Recently I have planned my trips so that I will not be visiting areas when they are at their hottest. To put it simply the thrill of visiting tropical islands is gone for now.
So... What to name my blog now? I love to take pictures. Something that very few people know about me is that I have an advanced yoga teacher certification. I plan to begin doing yoga a lot more in the future. I have no intention of stopping my travels, but at the island part of my title may disappear. I am very open to ideas and suggestions!
I love to yoga and practiced it frequently until I began teaching it. After I had tied it for a while I didn't like it as much. I am in no way trying to discourage someone from teaching yoga. For me turning a hobby or something that I love into a job just doesn't work. I took up photography when my interest in yoga began to wane.
Thanks so much for stopping by. I would love to hear your thoughts and/or suggestions. I know that many of you have probably been affected by skin issues as well. Please take care of your skin as the one in five people will develop skin cancer in their lifetime. Remember tanning is out and your skin is in! I hope you are have a fantastic week and thank you for stopping by!
~Michelle