Reading a history of me.

I requested my medical records from my Rheum for an appointment I have at the VA next week, and to hand deliver them to the SS office for my disability claim.

I picked them up today and started reading. It was fascinating and terrifying to see my decline over the last 6 years. The last 4-6 months shows an especially exaggerated decline. It was also interesting to see things that my doctors hadn't bothered to tell me. I found I have non reactive arthritis (not uncommon with PsA). I found that the Rheumatologist at least at one point felt I may have Fibromyalgia (was never informed of this and it was never followed up upon or officially diagnosed). I found I have had low Uric acid levels (can be an indicator of MS). I found I have proof of arthritis in my SI joint (never informed of this) and FINALLY diagnosed with arthritis of the right hip after YEARS of trying to get someone to listen to me about the constant pain in that joint. 

I often feel like my Rheum is abrupt. I really like that part of him in some ways because he doesn't poo poo around, but I also sometimes feel like he's not really listening to what I'm telling him about what is swelling, how it's affecting my life, how I am constantly in pain. Reading my records I came to realize that not only does he listen to EVERYTHING I say and record it, but there are instant message conversations recorded in the records of him inquiring about following up with how I am, if I need to come in, why something hasn't happened, and a tone of frustration that I am not having improvement.

Even with living this every day it is really shocking to read through my records and see just how quickly I have declined. I hate that my Rheum is frustrated with my condition (lord knows I am too), but it is somewhat comforting that he is frustrated. It shows he cares about my quality of life and I am not just a number. I knew these things to some degree already or I would have left him years ago, but reading it really reinforced that

Itch Itch Itch...

Last week I thought my skin was getting better.  Tonight, I'm not so sure.  I have to admit that since starting Butrans and Arava I am feeling better overall.  I do need 1-3 naps a day and that is with getting a good 7 hours of sleep at night.  However my pain level is now what I would call livable.  The pain isn't gone by any means, but most of the time it's at a level of annoyance.  I do still need to take a vicodin every few days, but I was taking 2-3 a day most days before the Butrans.  That is a notable improvement in my book.  I also notice my brain is a bit more scattered.  That is probably the Butrans since it is giving me a steady dose of a synthetic morphine all day every day.  ANYWAY back to the skin.  My hands were looking SO much better.  Still scaly, but no splitting or bleeding.  The scales were also less thick on most places I have scales.  Today though I noticed the scales are getting worse again.  My hands, scalp, feet, and ears are feeling like I've got hives, but no such luck.  It's just psoriasis.

I have my Simponi shot next week.  I am not holding out much hope that it is going to do anything at this point.  I've accepted that I won't be returning to work, and honestly with the Butrans lowering my pain levels, at least I can have a level of comfort I haven't had in over a year while I'm not working.

SO now it's time to practice what I preach and do some occlusion, limit my internal stress, and find some external focus.  I think I'll be doing a lot of reading about the disability system.  If only I can stay awake long enough to get through it.

Back to life.. back to reality..

Today is the first Monday of many that I am on medical leave.  It started last week, and I took some time to be lazy, have a pity party, feel aimless and useless.  Now it's time to suck it up and make the best of it.  I know I was realistic that the time of no working was coming, but knowing it's coming and landing in it are very different things.  This morning I actually feel pretty good for me.  My skin is screaming, especially the bottoms of my feet which are trying to erupt but haven't yet.  This is my first experience with pustular psoriasis on the soles of my feet so I'm not sure what to expect.  When I've had it on my hands it's been mild and never really erupted.  I was able to cover the pustular spots as they came up with bandages and they would just do their thing.  It was uncomfortable, and occasionally painful if I hit a spot directly, but I was able to avoid direct contact most the time.  With it on my soles I can't avoid it unless I stop walking.  The irony is that for the first time in months I don't feel like I was hit by a truck this morning.  I ache, my feet are swollen, and my hips and back hurt, but I feel functional for me.  I realize this is most likely a side effect of the steroid shot I got last week.  I usually feel better for about 10 days after getting them.  It took longer than usual for it to kick in this time,but I was worse than I've ever been as well.  Of course it's par for the course that a day that I actually feel pretty OK arthritis wise my psoriasis is being difficult. HA such is my life.

I have a new whiteboard on my fridge.  I spent the weekend thinking about what I was able to do and writing things in to fill my days.  The rest of this month is all about organization.  Come the end of June I'll be moving whether it's to a smaller place locally or to Phoenix to be near my family so it's time to sort, toss, and realign all my stuff.  Normally I would do this in the matter of a few days.  Being ex military and a ex military spouse I have done the moving thing many many times.  I have it down to a science, but I realize that this time is different. I can't lift heavy boxes, I can't spend hours sorting, I can't lug heavy bags to the garbage, and I can't move furniture around anymore.  I need to give myself time to do this, and I need to be OK with it.  So what normally takes me a few days I have on the calendar for the whole week.  I'm OK with it if I don't get it done this week because you know what? I have 12 weeks to fill.

I also considered a daily schedule.  I was hoping to be up at 8ish and in bed by midnight.  Taking naps as I needed, but making sure I got those good 8 hours of sleep EVERY night.  Last night was the first night of my plan and insomnia hit hard.  I'm only an hour behind my plan right now, and it's not really etched in stone, but I'm a bit OCD.  It bothers me some that my first day of trying to have structure in my disability is already behind schedule.  I'm sure I'll get over it by lunchtime when I'm eyebrow deep in 20 years of pictures I'm sorting through with the cat helping me.  Maybe daily schedule will start next week.  Maybe I will just need to have a daily process (breakfast, shower/bath, email/blog, morning chore/task, lunch, shopping/afternoon task, dinner/evening plans, bed) rather than picking hours to live by.  I guess part of being on medical leave is you don't have to live by a clock schedule, but it's hard to get used to after years of counting minutes and hours.  Next month I'll be doing National novel writing month so I'll have 30 days to write a 50,000 word novel.  That should keep my mind active to be sure.

I'm off to finish my tea, take my vitamins, have an egg white omelet, and get to mission organization.  Wish me luck!

Ch Ch Ch Changes....

Here we are at Sunday.  Another weekend gone by in the blink of an eye.  I've spent a lot of time thinking this weekend though of the fact that going on disability is likely to becoming a reality soon rather than a someday eventuality.  For 2 weeks now my arthritis has been out of control, my psoriasis is worse than ever (including a really bad flare on the bottoms of my feet which I've NEVER had before), and besides being sick for a week from TDAP my energy level is in the pits.  I only worked about half time last week, and I feel SO guilty on those days even though I am not getting paid for the time I'm not there with FMLA.  Until my arthritis really started effecting my energy level and my pain was becoming limiting about 5 years ago I was working 60+ hours a week.  Previous to that job I was working multiple jobs both paying and volunteer so the idea of working 20 hours a week and being exhausted is just down right embarrassing.

So I am working on coming to terms with that.  I spent a lot of time talking with my oldest daughter about it. She is the muse I used to be when I was younger.  Full of realistic ideas and optimism.  She helped me see that this will be a better life for me.  I am really cheap so the monetary change will take some adjustment, but won't be devastating.  If anything it will be that challenge that may keep me sane.  I quit smoking mostly because it is my largest discretionary spending I have.  I really don't drink, I don't do illegal drugs, I don't shop much without a lot of lists, planning, and thinking.  I smoke my cigarettes.  I like my cigarettes.  Cigarettes are $200+ of my budget that I can get rid of.  Today is my first day cigarette free.  With the help of Chantix I am doing pretty good.  Yes, I am thinking about them occasionally, but I haven't gone searching for butts or done an emergency run to the smoke shop for a cigar to get me through without buying a full pack.  I have quit using Chantix before and it worked awesome.  After a week of not smoking, even being around people that smoke didn't bother me.  I didn't miss them.  I just have to accept that I am always going to be a smoker, and in order to be smoke free I can not touch cigarettes EVER.

So hopefully this week will be OK.  I see Dr Lavery on Wednesday, and we'll have the disability talk.  Maybe I can just limit it till the end of the year for at first and hope that the Simponi will kick in at some point between now and then.

Wish me luck on the quitting smoking!

April Showers bring May flowers, but it's August!

I am one of those people who are sensitive to atmospheric change.  This means that when storms are building my pain levels increase the more they build.  Usually I dread spring because in DFW we are  bombarded with storms.  Somehow this year it seems like storm season started early and it doesn't seem to be ending.  For 2-3 days now we've had sporadic storms.  They are all around us.  This means the arthritis is constantly flared up.  Being it is now a few days into this I am starting to get worn down.  I try to stay positive about things.  Tell myself it will get better soon.  Practice my deep cleansing breathing techniques.  Count down the minutes at work till I can get home to take some pain meds.  This also leads to my inner worry wart rearing it's ugly head.

I am realistic that I have a limited amount of time that I can continue working, at least in my field.  I had hoped I could make it about 5 more years to get my kids through college and pay off my car.  Days like today I can't imagine making it through the year let alone through 5.  I also don't know what I want to do when I grow up.  I've had a good run as a Metrologist.  I'm good at what I do.  I am just very aware that every year I am more and more limited of what I can do.  The stiffness in my hands impedes my ability to do many things already, lifting things is difficult and aggravates my joints, and just getting out of bed to go to work is challenging most days and just not going to happen more and more frequently.

I am fortunate that I am a service connected disabled vet.  No not fortunate in that I got hurt in the Army, but that I have options.  I have the option of using vocational rehab through the VA, but what is it I want to do?  What can I do that I won't hate, that I can make a living at, and that I will continue being able to do as my condition worsens.  So many questions to swirl through my pain overloaded brain.

After it's all said and done and I waste hours and days worrying I remind myself that worrying is just that.  A waste of time.  I can't control the progression of my arthritis, I can't control the future.  What I can do is be as productive and positive today as I can be.  Remind myself of my blessings.  My loving and supportive family, a boyfriend who treats me like a princess even when I'm the evil witch, a good job in this horrendous economy, and a sharp mind even on days it likes to throw all the worst case scenarios at me.  I am blessed today.  What tomorrow brings will continue to be a mystery and an adventure.