It is so great to connect @kbreder
I am so happy you survived and my heart is with you as you navigate your healing.

I will share a few things that helped my, but want to include a favorite quote by Rachel Naomi Remen before I do:

“Some people heal because they have work to do. Others heal because they have been released from their work and the pressures and expectations that others place on them. Some people need music, others need silence, some need people around them, others heal alone. Many different things can activate and strengthen the life force in us. For each of us there are conditions of healing that are as unique as a fingerprint.”

Healing is so unique. Your healing fingerprint will be unique to you. I want to share my thoughts in that context. What has seemed to help me might not be the right fit for you, but I share in case it offers some ideas in your own quest for healing.

-Talk therapy was a critical element in my healing. I needed time to step back from the hustle of the life that I thought I needed to "bounce back" to in order to process all that had happened to me physically, mentally, and emotionally. It was not easy to find a therapist, and I ended up with one who specialized in postpartum depression. She was a wonderful guide, but concluded that what I was suffering from was not postpartum depression. It was helpful for me to realize this, because it helped me look deeper into PICS. Knowing more about Post Traumatic Stress and Depression helped me feel that I was not alone in my suffering; it helped to know that my experiences were fairly common among ICU survivors. If talk therapy seems like it might be helpful for you, I would just say don't be afraid to keep looking if a therapist is not the right fit. I have used Better Help online counseling as well as traditional in person counseling and even life coaches. Keep looking until you find someone who can help you on your journey.

-Nutrition has become a critical element to my improved functioning. Like you, I received donated blood. I also had countless drugs administered to me during my hospital stay and in the months following. I also had a hysterectomy and became stressed about all of the hormone changes. I have had so many times when I felt like a stranger in my own body. About 2 years ago, I heard a podcast by a nutrition coach and learned the timeline for how the cells in our bodies regenerate. I had the thought that I wanted to start over again. I wanted to give my body the nutrients it needed to rebuild. I changed my diet gradually, and tried to pay close attention to how foods made me feel. It was a SLOW, gradual process...but I am amazed at how much better I feel after I forced myself to slow down and focus on nourishing my body.

-Of course, sleep. Sleep is so tricky with a little one, but for me sleep has become a non-negotiable in my functioning. For years of my life, I cut corners on sleep. I don't do this anymore...I prioritize rest. I allow myself down time so I don't get overwhelmed or overstimulated. If I miss sleep at night, I let my little boy watch a movie so I can take a nap if I need to (and I don't let myself feel guilty about it!)

-Consider blood tests to check iron levels. I discovered that my iron levels were way too high. One of my post ICU doctors mentioned that transfused blood is very high in iron, and I have also heard that iron can be off in women who have experienced hysterectomies because we don't bleed each month. This is a rare thing that might just be unique to me, but I thought I'd mention it because we have some significant similarities with blood transfusions and a hysterectomy.

-Give yourself space to grieve and process. Shortly after my son's birth and my time in the hospital, I thought "this will be one chapter in my life, but then I'll get back to the story I was writing before." I was very wrong. That one chapter (near death experience/ICU stay) has changed all of the chapters after it. This was painful to accept for a long time. I can see now how the experience has transformed me into something new, and I have come to find peace and even joy in this new life I have.

My best wishes to you Kala. May you have the strength you need to move forward in healing.

Amanda Grow
Kaysville, Utah