I could write a 500-word post about how I feel now that I’ve gotten past the discomfort (I minimize) of the second shot. Suffice it to say; I feel physically better than I have for the past year. In February of 2020, I became ill. It was mild at first, but something told me to sleep. I did, for over 30 hours, getting up to go to the bathroom once.

Since that day, I have been mildly achy, tired, and stiff – every day. Sitting at a desk caused a mild backache that became excruciating if I felt even a little under the weather beyond the already discouraging discomfort. I experienced three days of exhaustion after exercising. An eight hour day of employment was exhausting. I ended up dropping the fall semester of college because I didn’t have the energy to do school work after eight hours on the job. I lost a job because of being so tired and making the poor choice of confronting my boss about their condescending and moralizing manner.

Hindsight being 20/20, I’m amazed I managed to keep my current job. I am surprised I was able to perform at my current job. And I was once again struggling to keep up with my school work.

On the emotional and mental front, I struggled with mild depression. I lost motivation. I would become angry over the actions of others, something I had overcome through meditation and exercise. However, because of my physical condition, activity became a chore. And meditation became elusive. I became moody, swinging between irritation, sadness, and hopelessness.

Now? I can tell something has changed. Not only physically but mentally as well. My stiffness and achiness have left. Instead, I feel the normal physical condition of an overweight man approaching 60. I can accept that. And I can do something about my weight. I know it will take a while until I am back to the weight before February of 2020. But with how I feel these past two days? Yeah, I can get it done.

I have already emailed my instructors, as well as resumed working on assignments. The damage to my grades is not reversible, over which I have no worries. Instead, I will pick myself up, dust myself off, and get back to business. I am contemplating taking a few days off from work and concentrate on getting caught up on my school work. I am behind on the lab portion of my introduction to biology class. I struggled with using the app required with the course. However, taking time off may not be necessary.

To recover from the impact of that last year, all I need is to apply effort. I will let the outcome figure itself out.

Okay, so I ended up coming close to 500 words. What can I say? My muse overcame me.