I Am Back After Life Distractions

The last three years have been, well, challenging.

Tomas Hood, NW7US, at the radio room operating desk.

In 2021, I became ill with Covid.  That was rough, but I bounced back.  That bout with illness caused me to lose my job, though, because I was ill too long.  What is worse is because I was not hospitalized, I did not fall under the protections of “disability,” and had to step down from my employment at that time.  After I recovered, I found employment.

In 2022, I again fell ill to a second CovidThat illness was significantly worse!  I nearly WAS hospitalized, but I resisted this, and hung on by a thread. I made it through, though the illness lasted a lot longer the second time around. Because I was ill for about five months, I again had to step down from employment.  This second Covid was the worst illness I have ever experienced, physically, emotionally, and financially.  I am thankful for my friends and family that were very supportive.

After I recovered, I found employment in late 2022.  It took a while for my health to stabilize, but the new job leadership has been supportive.  I have been happily working at this new job since late 2022.

But, the challenge to recover was high.  I sought answers.

In December 2022, I was diagnosed with Primary Hyperparathyroidism.  Sure enough, the many tests I endured confirmed that I had more than one tumor in at least two of my four parathyroid glands (we each have four of them, because we’re given redundancy for this critical body part).

We each have four parathyroid glands.

We each have four parathyroid glands. They are on the back side of the thyroid. The regulate the body’s calcium. Calcium is critical to all body functions and health.

I had surgery at the end of February 2023 to remove these tumor-riddled glands.  The surgeon, once in my neck, found that THREE of my four glands were tumorous!  He removed the three.  I now have just one parathyroid gland.

Recovery has gone well.  My health is improving nicely.  It is like a switch was flipped, and I no longer have some of the debilitating symptoms like brain fog, extreme fatigue, and an out-of-control metabolism.  I have a stable function of the remaining parathyroid gland, and that is supporting the proper function of the rest of my body.  It is amazing how the whole body relies on these four glands for running correctly!

All of these challenges of the last few years caused enough distraction that my YouTube channel, and my writing, here, as well as other hobby activities, suffered my absence.  Now that I am getting back on my feet with my health, and because my job continues nicely, I am beginning to spend some energy and time on these hobby areas.  I plan on creating and releasing a few series on amateur radio, radio propagation, and space weather, on my YouTube channel.  If you are already a subscriber, you probably saw my latest video where I announce that I am, indeed, back:

If there are topics that you would like me to cover in the new educational videos I am planning and will create, please let me know with a comment to this post, or, look my email address up on my profile at QRZdotCom.  I will do my best to answer your questions and cover amateur radio and space weather topics in which you are interested.

If you are not yet familiar with my YouTube channel, you can find my channel here:  https://YouTube.com/NW7US — Please subscribe and hit the bell to be notified when I release new video content.

I will also post more often on this site.  I appreciate the opportunity to share with you my love of amateur radio, and the science of propagation and space weather which affects our radio signals.

Best regards,

Tomas, NW7US
https://NW7US.us

Visit, subscribe: NW7US Radio Communications and Propagation YouTube Channel

9 Responses to “I Am Back After Life Distractions”

  • Mark IZ2XCV:

    Hi Tomas,
    I wish you all the best things in your life, and obviously also a lot of great radio activities 😉
    73!

  • Mark, IZ2XCV: thank you for the comment and well wishes. I hope we have a QSO somewhere on HF, on some mode, soon. Best regards, NW7US

  • Richard KW0U:

    Sorry that you have been through this awful time Tomas, and it’s good to have you back. Thanks for sharing your journey. I see from your QRZ page that you really care about this hobby, and it is terrific that you can be active again in it–and just in time for the cycle to take off! But always take care of yourself first.

  • David GW0OGI:

    What a tough journey you have had Tomas,thank you for sharing and I’m sure your story will inspire others to not give up.
    I do like your second operator, very laid back hi, stay well, stay safe

  • Stephen, WA6FEJ:

    My gosh! Tomas I was so sorry to see what has happen to you but I think that your constitution to survive all of these setbacks is fantastic. I wish you nothing but the very best. Enjoy our great hobby.

  • Larry Wheeler W9QR:

    Tomas, thank you for detailing your experience. My wife has the same symptoms, so I believe it’s time for a C.T. Scan. She’s has been suffering for a year and has been told that Human Growth Hormone injections are the answer. At $ 3500.00 per month it’s going to be a challenge. Thank you for putting up a good fight and for educating us.

  • Trevor Baker G4CLE:

    Hi Tomas, I send you my best wishes for your complete recovery. Take care, my friend, and stay safe.
    73
    Trevor

  • WesLarson-KF7BWS:

    Thank you for sharing. Welcome back. So glad you survived all of your ordeals.

  • Mike KB5UKT:

    Congratulations on your recovery. Glad to see you have come through this. I have enjoyed your video’s. KB5UKT

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