Keep Pushing On - The story behind my new song

       I have some requests to give some of the background behind various songs of mine so I’ll start with my newest one! Its still technically unrecorded, but I do have an acoustic version of it posted below.

     I wrote “Keep Pushing On” about the unexpected challenges that we face in life…when circumstances aren’t exactly in our favor. For me, it was early October and I had been fighting Lyme disease for about 3 months (7 months now). For those that don’t know, Lyme disease is a serious persistent bacterial infection that comes from a tick and is a lot of times (and in my case) accompanied by multiple other diseases and co-infections. Many people around the world are affected by this serious illness although it varies from person to person as to what the symptoms are and how severe it is. Some people that don’t catch it early get to the point where they are nearly paralyzed. Since getting it myself, I’ve heard many stories about people that were misdiagnosed and got to the point where they had to quit work and go on disability after not being able to find any answers to their deterioration in health.

     Fortunately for me, I caught it early and knew within a couple of weeks what I had. However, I ended up having multiple co-infections which complicates matters quite a bit as the different bacteria actually work together to tear down your immune system and the rest of your body. I’ve had symptoms that range anywhere from extreme fatigue, muscle twitching and brain fog to mild tremors, muscle achiness and nausea. I’ve had some days where merely getting out of bed was a significant accomplishment for the day because my body felt so weak. On days like this, I definitely had some pretty negative thoughts and started to wonder if life was even worth living.

     With each day, I am getting closer to recovery though. After 7 months of treatment, I’m back to about 90%, but it hasn’t come without a fight! My diet has been limited to vegetables, eggs, nuts and a few lean meats like chicken and fish. No sugar, no saturated fats, no gluten or starch and no dairy. Throughout that time, I have been on (and continue to be on antibiotics) and have lost 20-25 pounds. A great diet plan for those of you looking to lose weight! I’ve also spent about $6,000 out of pocket on doctor visits, antibiotics and supplements. There is one plus though…as a part of the treatment, they recommend that you get regular massages which I definitely can’t complain about!!


A picture of my prescription drug/supplement factory

     I tell you all of this not for you to feel sorry for me, but to give an example that sometimes life hands us difficult situations. And ultimately, how we respond to them is what makes us who we are.  There’s no question that this experience has been challenging for me, but I know there are many people out there that have gone through much worse than I have. That’s why during this period, I wrote “Keep Pushing On”. In the song, the main lyric of the chorus says “If it doesn’t kill you, it’s only gonna make you strong”. We’ve all heard that saying before and can easily take it for granted, but there are many times over the past 7 months where I’ve had to seriously reflect on that thought. And at the end of the day, it’s got a lot of merit. I’m determined that I’ll eventually beat this…though I don’t know exactly when that will be yet. When I do though, it’ll definitely have made me a stronger person!

     In closing, I hope this will help those of you that have faced your own challenging circumstances in life. Many times, it doesn’t make sense, the timing is bad, and we are on the verge of a complete breaking point. But when life has you down, just remember one thing: “You gotta keep pushing on, keep pushing on, if it doesn’t kill you it’s only gonna make you strong.”

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