Encountering Cement

Hello friends. 


It’s been close to two weeks since my last blog entry and although soon after publishing it, I had a draft of my next topic composed in my mind and ready to tap out on the keyboard, I couldn’t do it. Weeks of unending sleep deprivation from insomnia finally caught up with me. I could barely string an entire sentence together in written form let alone a blog entry. Fibro fog, short term memory loss, all of the problems associated with sleep deprivation were getting the best of me. Finally I had enough and I rescheduled my doctor’s appointment. As far as the topic is concerned, which I wanted to write about next, it will have to wait another week. It seems I’m going to have to do devote more time to it than I’m willing to today. For now, I thought I’d update you on how I’m doing.

My appointment this week went really well. However, I think I overwhelmed my doc with all of my notes and everything we covered. I mentioned I was bombarding her with information and she kind of let out a nervous laugh and said, “Yeah.” As usual, she took her time with me, really listened, took notes of her own and set in motion a new plan of action.

In case you’re curious, a part of the new plan includes a recommendation from a book my best friend suggested called Figuring out Fibromyalgia by Ginevra Liptan, MD. If you have Fibromyalgia, I encourage you read this book. In fact, I highly recommend it. If you want to know more about Fibromyalgia, I recommend you read this book as well. Anyway, I gave a copy of the book to my doctor. She’s going to help me get the Elisa/Act blood allergy testing recommended by Dr. Liptan. She also ordered another round of blood tests – 6 vials total. She tested everything again! As it turns out, I tested negative for Lyme Disease, but positive for a strain of Lyme. I’m starting a four week round of antibiotics today. Unfortunately, I don’t know what this means yet in relation to Fibromyalgia. I did read online that Lyme Disease can be a trigger for Fibromyalgia, but before I jump to any conclusions I need to consult her. She also sent my blood work in for further testing – Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. It’s not prevalent in this area, so I’m not concerned.

On Wednesday, I had a brain MRI with and without contrast because of the myoclonic jerks. I think they may be from sleep deprivation, but she wanted to be thorough and rule out other things. It came back normal. Now, I’m waiting for my consultation with a neurologist next week. Fortunately, it’s not with the old guy I saw late Fall ’09. You know, the non-believer type.

Unfortunately, I left the Diagnostic Center with a huge headache after getting the MRI. I slept for a couple of hours when I got home, though, and that made me feel a little better. When I awoke, I went to check the mail, sat in the garage & smoked a cigarette (I know). I then went back into the house and realized I left the mail on the table. I turned around and walked down the stairs, stepped over the baby gate onto the step stool and in the process somehow caught my right foot on the gate and fell a couple of feet onto the hard concrete floor. I took everything down with me – the brooms hanging on the wall, the baby gate, the step stool and the bookshelf with shoes. I laid on the floor, stunned, my face pressed against the cold cement (which oddly felt good on my cheek) and cried. I called out to Todd, who as luck would have it worked from home that day, and he helped me up. I didn’t break any bones, but my ego sure felt bruised. My left shoulder is banged up as is my arm, elbow, hips. And, I have a bruise that covers half of the backside of my leg. Surprisingly, the first couple of days I didn’t give a damn nor did I feel a lot of pain. Now the pain in my shoulder and arm feels rather bothersome and gnawing, especially in my arm. Always something.

Well, in light of all that cement encounter, you may be wondering if I’m sleeping yet. The answer is wow, am I ever! Up until today all I did this week was sleep. From the time I got up in the morning to the time I went to bed at night, I slept. Sounds odd, I know. However, it’s true. My doc prescribed a new sleep aid and a different medication for pain. I’m starting to feel less fatigued today and no longer sleeping all day long, although, I am ready for another nap. I can say the glimmer of hope is getting brighter and brighter and I can’t tell you how good that feels.

Thanks for sharing my experiences, however clumsy.

Truly, Britta