My Mothers’ Day gift to myself is a summer without my day job. I am not required to work summers, but usually have. This required putting my youngest son, James, in camps, and in the end, I was not really earning much. I asked James about a couple of camps that might interest him, but he was not interested.

So much changed this year. My adoptive mother died. I have been diagnosed with primary biliary changolitis, an autoimmune disorder in which the body attacks the biliary ducts in the liver. Thankfully, I was diagnosed in stage 1 of 4, and am on medication to slow the progress of the disorder. This is important, and I give my LVHN doctors all the credit for this.

I joined a Facebook group for people with PBC. Some were not diagnosed for decades. (The average time from onset of symptoms to diagnosis is 18 months for women and three years for men). Some were not diagnosed until their illness reached Stage 3. Tragic is the word for this.

Bottom line: If your skin itches, get your blood tested.

There are several numbers that are crucial to liver function. My gastroenterologist insisted on an MRI and a biopsy to confirm the diagnosis. I am glad of this. Happily the fatigue and itching are diminishing, but not as quickly as I hoped.

Finally, I decided the best thing for me would be to slow down.

So, I cancelled my summer graduate classes, and my plans to work through the month of July. This enabled me to sign James up for more swimming lessons. Then a camp offered by school. That will be it, unless he decides he wants to do anything else. He has a new bike, and we plan to visit swimming pools. That is enough planning for now.

It is only the second summer in seven years that I will not work the summer program, but I just need some recovery time. I want to enjoy my time with my kids, because nothing is promised.