Broccoli, Broccoli, Broccoli

So, it's been a while. I wish I could tell you that my absence could be equated with an astronomical word count, but honestly it equates to bupkus.

You see, for the past six months I've been dealing with some health issues. Starting near the first of this month they became much, much worse. I decided to get checked out, and the results of the (extensive) blood work told me that I was extremely anemic. My iron levels are desperately low, I'm lacking B12, and my vitamin D is quite questionable.

Severe anemia is exhausting. This has been my main problem--I sleep for eight to nine hours a night and still find myself tired all day. I supplement this with a three to four hour nap in the afternoon just so I can keep myself going, but even after that I'm still tired. It's no way to live. And it's no way to work. I have things to do!

So I'm undergoing a radial change. Lots of protein (particularly red meat, which I do not particularly enjoy eating), lots of iron rich foods (I should eat my broccoli as well as listen to it), and I need to exercise past the pain. Just going up the stairs makes me feel like I've just run two miles, so it will take some time to build up any kind of tolerance.

Needless to say, I haven't been writing. My mind as well as my body has been exhausted. I've been suffering some slight hallucinations as well. I'm paranoid enough as it is, and I don't want my neurotic tendencies showing through all that much in my writing. I had been identifying with one key character very much, but she's almost normal. She doesn't need my ill health-related quirks.

But with eating right and taking loads of vitamins, I should be back on my feet in no time. And back at my keyboard more often. JulyWriMo won't be completed by me this time, but that doesn't mean I'm not going to try again. Thank you to my wonderful friends for your encouragement and prayers. I hope all your writing is going well and that you don't have to drink inordinate amounts of orange juice.