Friday, January 4, 2013

Another setback

Since before Thanksgiving, I have been experiencing a big "flare" in my right hip and lower back.  Now- the lower back pain has been going on for literally years and generally I can live with it but this has been high enough on the pain scale that if I so much as turn over while sleeping, the pain is so intense that it wakes me up.  By my calculations this has been escalating and beginning to recede and then ramping back up for 8-9 weeks now.  

So. I went to my doctor this morning and the hits just keep coming. She felt around on my back, felt the "grinding" I was describing in my lower back/hip area and moved my joints around. She said that I have osteoarthritis in my lower back and possibly a rheumatoid nodule in my hip.  Between the RA in my hip and the OA in my back- it's causing muscle spasms- which is why there is so much pain.  Oh- and she gave me orders for another Chest X-ray because she didn't like the looks of the one we did in June.  

She doubled my neurontin to 600mg 2x a day and told me that the only other treatment (because- of course- there is no cure) is exercise and weight loss. If I didn't know she was exactly right, and I didn't know that she's a good doctor who only has my best interest at heart, and if I didn't know that I am uber-bitchy because of the pain, I would have snapped at her and said something to the effect of "no shit- but how am I supposed to exercise and lose weight when I am in constant pain?" Big sigh

Essentially that means I can either get my butt up and out of the house at 5am to get to the therapy pool at the Y so I can walk and exercise in there (because regular walking HURTS) OR I can pay for PT- and exercise in their therapy pool. I am taking the first option starting tomorrow (Saturday-because I can find my bathing suit and go at 6 instead of 5) morning.  

When I left the office to drive back across the bridge to Indiana, I just want to curl up, cry and then sleep.  I wanted to desperately.  Unfortunately work calls so that is just not an option.  It's such a busy time of year for us in the store that a pity party is just not viable right now.  I am working 7 days a week for a few weeks and then I can relax a very little for the next following 2 weeks before my inventory.  By then, hopefully, I will be beyond the pity-party stage and can just relax.  

I was talking to a dear friend about this and she said "This year stinks already!"  I told her that I won't allow it.  Thirteen is my lucky number- I WILL make it work for me.   I just have to get past this, get working on the weight loss and reach for the stars. I don't know how yet, but I will not let this hiccup stop this from being a great year!

On a side note- Happy Birthday to the love of my life!  It's his 47th birthday today and I love him as much now as I did when he was 17.   

2 comments:

Eileen said...

I was told the same thing by an orthopaedic specialist nearly 2 years ago. I accepted that at the time but this spring things got worse. It's a long story and I won't bore you with it here - but in the end a pain specialist and a physiotherapist both used the magic words "myofascial pain syndrome". One google ref says "myofascial pain syndrome is a fancy name for muscle pain". Well, yes, in some senses it is but it is a lot more specific than that. By dealing with the knotty bits at the trigger points I am now far more able to move. It is worth a try if you can find someone to listen.

Kathy Gabby Gabriel said...

Julie

Say what you need to say; feel what you feel and keep that positive spirit. Keep moving forward. Stay in charge and informed. I do not have RA, but I can empathize. Eileen is right ... someone who listens to you makes a huge difference.