Share Your Rare: Bryan Kelly

Hello everyone. I am 35 years old and I have Propionic Acidemia (PA). Life with PA is not always easy. I was diagnosed late, which caused me to have a stroke at a very young age. After years of needing a wheelchair and walker, I made a somewhat normal recovery.

Around 2012, a few days after one of my kickboxing classes, I noticed my knee was swollen. I thought it was from my kickboxing class, but turns out it was Lyme disease, something that greatly affects me today. I experience flare-ups, where my ammonia skyrockets; then, I get incredibly fatigued, and my muscles get pain that I can’t even describe.

In 2015, I was having the weekend of my life at my brother’s campground, until I woke up in the ICU. I had decided to throw caution at the wind and try my hand at alcohol. This led to me having metabolic acidosis. I was lucky not to suffer any serious side effects.

That’s the thing about Propionic Acidemia and Lyme disease. You just never know what could happen! On top of my health issues, I still have to deal with other real-life events, like my parents getting divorced, the passing of my grandfather, and Covid-19.

I’ve always been into doing mindful things, such as yoga and taking care of myself in general. However, it wasn’t until my parents’ relationship started to get worse that I discovered mindfulness meditation. Even though I saw the writing on the wall, it deeply saddened me.

I remember stumbling upon Rebekah Borucki (BEXLIFE) on YouTube. She was a meditation teacher. My favorite mantra was “I am like a boat on the ocean. My thoughts, they rock me just a bit, but they never carry me away. I am anchored in the here and now!”There was something about that saying that just put my mind at ease.

From that point on, I became obsessed with how the mind works and the benefits of mindfulness meditation. I learned that, once you realize that all you can control is yourself, your reactions, your emotions, and that happiness is a choice, only then will you find inner peace.

Fast forward to 2020, I had been stuck in a job that I was content with, but not happy with. I was working as a cashier at a food store, which for me was physically exhausting. Then, what turned into somewhat of a blessing, the virus hit. I knew that with my health issues, retail was no longer an option for me.

Instead of going through depression and anxiety over the pandemic, I decided to continue my mindfulness journey. After taking multiple classes on mindfulness and meditation, I can’t explain how much it changes your life! I no longer stress about things that I cannot control. I now have a mindfulness routine that consists of nature walks, yoga, and meditation. I can honestly say that I enjoy life to its fullest. Moment by Moment.