In This Body: Living with HKPP through Faith and Love of family & community with Wade Odum

This was recorded on March 19, 2024

On today's podcast, Wade shares some of his life experiences with Steve regarding his relationship and faith with/in Jesus Christ, as well as his ongoing battle with the rare neuromuscular disease "Hypokalemic Periodic Paralysis" also known as "HKPP". 

Wade shares some key moments from his life that shaped his future and directed his path, both physically and spiritually. We hope you find this podcast meaningful, uplifting, and resourceful! 

Tags: 

#faith #jesuschrist #jesuschristrelationship #spiritualwarfare #church #christian #family #hkpp #lowpotassium #periodicparalysis #broadcasting #intheblood #ppa #hypokalemic #hypokalemicperiodicparalysis #paralysis #paralysisattack #paralysistreatment #neuromusculardisease #musclespasms #sodiumsensative #temperaturesensative #muscleweakness #muscleparalysis #hkpp.org 

https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/live-well-therapeutic-mas https://instagram.com/livewelltm_monterey 

https://twitter.com/@SteveBLiveWell 

https://livewellmonterey.com/ 

https://www.tiktok.com/@livewelltherapeuticmas 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQ55BHUXXkk 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ntLv-diyCo 

https://hkpp.org 

https://hkpp.org/articles/hypokalemic-periodic-paralysis-faq/ https://theaudiopilotsblog.blogspot.com/2006/10/

Short Note (2018-06-07)

So the quick of this is that May was reasonably uneventful with the exception of a few things:

1. My parents and I flew back to North Carolina (I stayed for a week and CC flew out on the Friday before our return the following Monday) for an impromptu family reunion centered around my Great Aunt Excelle, who was in failing health.  The trip was FULL of fellowship,  treasures, family stories, AMAZING food, and the world's best Iced Sweet Tea!! (I had sweet tea every single day and multiple times per day!)   :o)  I expect I'll add more details and some pictures, but I'm not ready to do that yet.

2. I had some testing done on my brain's ability to remember things so that I might find some clarity on some concerns I've had regarding short-term memory issues.  Just this week we got the results back and some questions were answered and I'm hugely grateful to have a functioning "baseline" to work from as I age.

3. I received a call from a geneticist who wanted to do further studying of the blood samples my family and I contributed to the 2009 Periodic Paralysis Conference that we attended in Florida.  The result of the phone call was very *positive* and enlightening.  As noted above, I've been struggling with short-term memory issues since the early 2000's and, after this phone call, I'm confident that the majority of what I'm experiencing is directly related to my HKPP.  This was HUGE news for me.  My problem is not solved, but at least now it's better understood.  Praising God for the knowledge.

4. As an addendum to the 1st bullet point above, yesterday I got a call from my dad to let me know that my Great Aunt Excelle passed away yesterday (though I'm really saddened by her loss and the sorrow her family is now experiencing, I'm extremely blessed to have been a part of the trip back there and being able to see her and talk with her, surrounded by the family that loved her.).  Unfortunately, a little while after hearing the news, I dealt with an attack of HKPP and have been recovering since.  :o(  Such is life in this body.

Hopefully, more to come...

~w

April Was Music Month

04/29/2018

Throughout the day (most any day), I like to listen back to stuff I've recorded to keep the ideas familiar and to evaluate them.  Most of the ideas I listen to are after 2007, but I also enjoy listening to the Forthright tunes we recorded (both Kevin's Garage  Rehearsal Tapes & The Crystal Cathedral Sessions we recorded in their 24 track studio) as well as any/all of the stuff Scott Rose and I worked on starting in 1991(Jetty Rd, SBG, etc.).  

This month has been a musical blast thanks in particular to 2 folks; Brian Kunz & Kevin Scholl.  Brian has come down from the Bay Area several times to visit, chill, have some dog-time, and to jam/write some music and I credit him with helping me keep sight of my sanity, though from time to time, that has been from a distance, but, I digress...He is a phenomenal drummer and percussionist as well as guitar, bass, and keyboard player and in the top of my list of folks I am musically inspired by.  Also in the top of that list is another brother of mine, Kevin Scholl, who was the bassist/vocalist in Forthright during our 3-Piece formation.  Kevin is a walking inspiration...all he has to do is pick up a bass or guitar (or sit down at a keyboard) and music flows instantaneously and if I'm within earshot, I'm inspired.  Kevin drove up from Riverside, CA and stayed 4 days and 4 nights and music flowed every day he was here.  It was so good to have his company and to have his input and council.  We wrote several ideas and I made sure the computer was recording from start to finish whenever we sat down.  

Kev left on Wednesday morning and the following Tuesday, Brian came down for a musical visit and hang time and we wrote some more music as well as listened back to some ideas I'd written in the previous weeks and he laid some drum tracks down for some select ideas.

Bri always breathes new life into my older ideas and, by doing so, inspires me to write more and re-evaluate some older ideas that had just a drum loop for my "drum track".  He sits at the kit and ideas go from "black & white" to "color" if you follow my thought process.  

My next musical goal is to get Snowman up here (from San Bernadino County) and see if I can also get Kev and Bri to visit at the same time...



...and to take that one musical step further would be to have my brother Sam Harman come down from the South Bay with his keyboard and some guitars.  This is a version of my musical "dream team".  Other versions of the same dream team include Scott Rose with his Bass and Uke, Dan Cooperider with his guitar(s), my nephew Erik Halden on guitar/bass/vocals, and Ed Baumann with his Keys and Reason software.

  I'd love to have Wallace Helms from North Carolina come out so we could create some more music like we did in the late 80's and early 90's in Forthright.  

I wish I had photos of each person I'm thinking of...*sigh*  For now, these are who I have pics of (and each of them makes me smile).

You know, stepping back and looking at this brief list of musicians illuminates for me the realization that God has allowed me some incredible moments in time with some excellent musicians.  Some folks can go through their lives looking for someone to write and play music with, and I've been given several brothers (and a few sisters) who I've written with, played/performed with, and have been inspired by.

When you read this, I hope you can reflect on the people in your life that were not there by accident, and, maybe, reach out to them, sharing your thoughts and recollections of good times and times that you were grateful that they were there with you (in person, in spirit, or in memory).
My list of folks (above) is most certainly incomplete and I don't want that anyone would read this and think that I haven't or don't value their musical input into my life.  The biggest risk when it comes to naming musical inspirations and influences is that some names may be accidentally/inadvertently omitted.  If I have omitted your name from the list above, I truly hope that you'll forgive me.

Well, that's it for now.  I hope to eventually post some of the songs/ideas Kev, Bri, and I have worked on; it will be cool to share them.   =)

Peace, Music & Blessings~
w 

Music Access...

Until I can get some newer music up on Sound Cloud, here is what's up there now, which includes some favorite Forthright demo tunes we recorded *back in the day*  :o)

https://soundcloud.com/wade-odum/

From Brain Fog to Ocean Fog...

4-23-2018

Well, hello there.

Pushing towards 2 years of absence from my own blog...I'm frustrated that I haven't kept this up, but I'm also blessed that my time in absentia has been nearly attack-free, for the most part.  So, in effect, my lack of voice here has meant more time having the option to have more of a voice in other places.

Some of those places have been Orangevale and Fair Oaks (for roughly the last 14 years) until September of 2017 when we moved to the Monterey Coast...Does the title make more sense, now?  :o)   

I hate brain fog.  

I LOVE ocean fog and mist.

On an equally serious note, if you don't have our new address, please email me and I will make sure you get our updated contact info!  

The email address is audiopilotfopc at gmail dot com (just replace the "at" with @ and "dot" with a ".") No underscores or spaces.

The challenge at hand now is where to pick up and how to move forward...so I'm going to begin at the beginning of the blog, what was the purpose of the blog...

Over the past few years, I have come back to this blog and, out of curiosity, I've begun reading several of my posts from 8, 10, and 12 years ago and sometimes I'm caught quite off-guard by my own transparency in these blog posts.  They often seem to be bordering on TMI, social, introspective, recollective and opinion.  When I started the blog in 2006, it began as a chronicling process as my family and I began truly fighting this underestimated disease called HKPP.  It's a demoralizing disease that progressively incapacitates the afflicted person, strips them of their dignity and joy (often on a daily basis) and tests the fabric of family and friends as they watch the disease hit, strike, and chip away in the person they love.

I have learned a great deal about myself and my body, even at the cellular level, as a result of recognizing this disease and accepting it, but make no mistake; recognition and acceptance do not equal surrender or resignation.

Sometime in 2015, the disease began retreating in my body and I have had only a handful of hits in these past 3 years, none of which have landed me in the ER.  HKPP is not known to just "back-off" or quietly fade into the background, so I am giving the credit to Jesus, who I believe used several people to help me adjust to, and rehabilitate from my HKPP.  That said, allow me a (hopefully) brief side note: this disease becomes unique within the person it attacks and though we share similar symptoms and conditions, each person with HKPP suffers their own battle that is unique to them.  This is remarkably frustrating, in that, we can share our experiences and our treatments but there is no guarantee or assurance that what worked for person "A" will work for person "B", so it becomes a "trial and error" process with each of us making suggestions that we hope may make a difference to another, but the reality is that everyone is different.  Medicines (pharmacological and homeopathic), physical therapy, exercise, vitamins, climate, hot weather, cold weather, diet, etc.  All of these are often different factors of relief or triggers depending on the person.

I don't believe that God needs people to be a part of miraculous wonders and healings.  I do believe He involved a number of people in my scenario.  I'm afraid if I start trying to name everyone, I'll unquestionably omit numerous folks...so I'll not risk it, at least not at this point.  The thing is, there were people, families, some churches, and some businesses who set aside effort, time, and finances to help me and my family.  I would not be...well, I don't know where I'd be right now if it hadn't been for God's hand through those people and places.

The disease showed itself several times in my youth.  Unfortunately, it masqueraded as Hypoglycemia, a fairly common condition, and very treatable condition of which I was diagnosed.  It maintained this masquerade until 2005-2006 when it stepped forward and began to show me what it could really do if I pushed the right buttons and pulled the right triggers.  I was completely unprepared to fight it and, within the span of a couple of years, it seemed like it owned my body and I was just renting the life experience, but the rent was due every single day.

Ok, enough air time for that.  And now, for something completely different...

Quick &brief status:

• Missy is in her final year at S.O.U. and is kicking serious ass butt (for lack of a better term).  :o)  I cannot be more proud of my girl!!
• Josh is in his first year at CSUMB and is also doing amazing.  He is continuing to live his dreams, and like his sister, continues to amaze me!!
• CC is the strongest, most amazing woman I know.  She is, daily, caring for and advocating for her family, honoring her parents, and working full time. (she is still having to commute to work, but we are praying for her to have the opportunity to work remotely from home, sooner than later, hopefully.)
• Me? I'm still the stay-at-home house manager and puppy patroller/walker...stay tuned. 

There's certainly more to each of our statuses, but I'll have to get to more of that at another time...

For now, here are some quick pics, post-move...

I'm hoping to start this back up, in some manner, and see if I can transition from posting on Facebook...we shall see.

If you feel comfortable with leaving a comment, short or long, just to let me know you checked this out, that would be a blessing to me.  :o)

Peace, Love & Music

w

Merry Christmas 2016!!

Greetings family and friends~

It's hard to believe that it's been so very long since I posted anything on here...2015 was my last post.  That said, someone else HAD posted on here earlier this year via hacking-in, which was more than annoying.  Thank you, Kelli for the heads up on that.

2016 has been a tumultuous year of a few peaks and several valleys, not the least of which was having to move in the beginning of July from our Orangevale address where we had been for 9 years, to our new address in Fair Oaks.  Not everyone has our new address, so, if you'd like our new address, please email me: audiopilotfopc(at)gmail_dot_com and I'll make sure you have our current contact info.  Speaking of contact info, we closed our Surewest account during the move and we no longer have a landline house phone so if you'd like to connect with anyone of us you can reach us via our cells or you can email me and I will get you connected.  I (and we) would LOVE to hear from you!!!

The quick of the family:

Wade: HKPP continues to be held at bay by God's hand (occasional hits and attacks).  Playing electric/lead on the worship team at River Rock Church each/most weekends, as well as laundry manager, dog manager, sweep, and vacuum manager on the home front.

CC:  Fusion of Super Woman and Wonder Woman working her normal hours and also overseeing both kids schooling and grading processes as well as prepping them for their desired universities.

Missy: Finishing school at a local JC and transferring up to Southern Oregon University before the first of the year.  Growing up and stepping out of her comfort zone to pursue her dreams

Josh: Senior in high school, 1/4" taller than his dad, loving his car and car stereo (in that order), gaming when not schooling, planning to major in Marine Science.  Hasn't cut his hair in over 5 years.

We love you all and wish you a blessed Christmas and pray for a Christ-centered New Year.
Wade, CC, Missy & Joshua
and the Odum Furry Family (Annie, Sophie & Destiny)

Greetings Again 2015-04-21

Well it's been quite some time since I posted, mostly because life has been rolling forward and I haven't taken time to just stop and write.  However, being that I've had two hits since a week ago Sunday, I want to get them chronicled.

On Sunday, April 12, CC and I were in the Bay Area at my folk's house (came in for Saturday and Sunday) and Sunday morning I awoke with abdominal cramps that seemed to get more intense as the morning wore on.  This has happened before due to HKPP, but I was not expecting HKPP to be a factor.  Longer story short, we had to leave my parent's earlier than planned because it became clear that a Hit was in progress and we wanted to be back home to deal with it.  This Hit was the most severe I've had in many months and lasted  roughly 5 hours, including difficulty breathing and swallowing, two things I have come to NOT take for granted.  Because of these parameters, fear was also complicating matters for me as well and made for a very stressful drive back for CC.  I didn't fully recover until the following Friday.

Then, on Saturday, April 18 (the day after finally recovering), we went to Old Town Sac with some family from out of town, and walked quite a bit and we were in the sun/heat.  After returning home, I went upstairs to lay down due to abdominal cramps again (and over-all nausea and fatigue).  Missy wasn't home yet and CC and Josh took the puppies to a dog park for a brief stint, so, bottom line, I was home alone.  After laying down and watching some TV, I began to get confused on what I was watching, what time it was and who was home, etc, then realised I couldn't get out of bed and then I knew what was happening...again.  This was much more of a Crash than a Hit, though breathing became difficult again.  CC and Josh came home sometime during the onset, though  I'd had enough time to panic that I was alone while this was transpiring.  I was able to walk unassisted again by Sunday night.

We treated both attacks with O2 and CRASH mixtures (16oz of water combined with 3 tabs of Effer-K, Magnesium Taurate and Vitamin C ).  What I eventually remembered is that sometimes the abdominal cramps are due to paralysis of the abdominal muscles, which is where the paralysis started both of these times.  I know this because of the centralized, localized sustaining weakness that remains even after the Hit or Crash takes place.

I'm still dealing with quite a bit of fatigue and lack of strength as a result, but life keeps moving forward and so will I, one way or another.

Merry Christmas 2014

Merry Christmas 2014

Sorry that the audio just cuts out at the end... it's prefabbed.
We wish you blessings-
Wade & CC, Missy & Josh (and Annie too)

Bigger hit on 9-25-2014

Took a significant hit yesterday evening while watching Casa's soccer games.
CC got me to the car before I couldn't walk anymore.
Tongue got numb and caused breathing and swallowing/choking issues.
It's an "everything hurts" day again.  Been a long time since one of these.
HKPP truly & completely sucks.

Small Steps

Yesterday I was stronger and today am a bit stronger than yesterday, so it is, once again, a matter of keeping perspective.  Thank you for your ongoing prayers.
w