Poor Health Sucks

Health is a fragile thing in my world. Not only do I live with disabilities, but I am surrounded by people who live with disabilities and health issues. At the end of April my support worker was diagnosed with cancer and had to have immediate surgery at the start of May. This meant that they were out of action for two months whilst they recovered. My sister’s partner was also diagnosed with cancer around the same time and has since had surgery and is undergoing treatment to combat the spread. My aunt has also had surgery to remove cancer.

During all this I had two stints in hospital for acute pain. It turns out that the diverticula that remain dormant within everyone decided to act up seven weeks apart and inflame my colon. I’ve had to have a procedure to see what is going on and I’ve got a procedure to go. All this to say that there has not been a lot of photography practice going on since May.

Disability and health issues can be fckd, excuse my language. Let’s not romanticise it. Poor health can be a hard slog, especially when you live under the poverty threshold this country insists on putting its most vulnerable. Most of the time I do not begrudge having disabilities – I have learnt to adapt within societies constraints – but sometimes ill health can have a negative impact on my fragile mental health. This winter, on top of everything else, I dealt with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). I bought a lamp that was recommended to me. The lamp mimics the effects of the sun without the UV; this is helpful when living in an apartment that only gets the western sun (and only when it is not overcast). Whilst I am still unsettled, I feel like I have reached a happy plateau.

Whilst all this has been going on I missed my last blog post, so this will be a double up covering May to September. Buckle up!

Victoria’s Snake Valley was the first Out Doors Inc getaway that I’d been on in some time. We left on the 6th of May for an overnight trip. I decided that because it was just a one-night stay and the weather wasn’t set to be great that I wouldn’t take my camera. The highlight was an old trestle bridge; the low light was getting bogged for a couple of hours.

Then there were a couple of months of inactivity before I photographed the Q-Lit Festival once again which kicked off on the 16th of July. I love this LGBTQIA+ literary festival; the vibe is super cool and welcoming with extremely interesting panels and entertainment to capture.

BB & Dean Arcuri. Image by Teague Leigh.

On the 27th of July my support worker was back in action, so we went to Malmsbury in rural Victoria on the lands of the Dja Dja Wurrung peoples. I love the old viaduct in Malmsbury, and this trip greeted us with thick fog. We also went to Turpins Falls, but the conditions weren’t great for photographing as the lower trail was closed so we couldn’t get down to the bottom of the falls and I’m a stickler for the rules.

Malmsbury Viaduct. Image by Teague Leigh.

The last adventure with my support worker for this period was to Lawsons Falls on the 17th of August. We brought salt for the leeches but were blessed with a leech-free hike to and from the falls. The falls were flowing, but because of the wet rocks I didn’t feel confident enough to traverse over them to set up my tripod and get a great shot of the falls from the bottom of them so only shot from the path.

Bunyip State Park. Image by Teague leigh.

After the falls we headed to Seven Acre Rock lookout. I realised once there that I had been there before. We got there early for golden hour but didn’t get any interesting clouds so I had to get creative with my images. The view from this spot is stunning, regardless of what the clouds are doing.

Seven Acre Rock Lookout. Image by Teague Leigh.

I mentioned in my last blog post that I got to shoot the outstanding artist Jessie Ngaio on the 30th of April. Due to the embargo for Melbourne Fringe Festival, I couldn’t show you the hero image, or any image of Jessie from that shoot, just outtakes, but the embargo has now been lifted, and I can show you the images.

Jessie Ngaio. Image by Teague Leigh.

That concludes this time. I have finally finished my routine of double antibiotics and am feeling tired, but good. I have a couple of shoots coming up for Fringe Festival; you’ll have to wait to see what I get up to when I blog in November.

Question of the month: How do you actively combat the blues?

Be kind to yourselves, each other, and the planet.

T.Leigh