June 8, 2007

• Just Shoot Me Now....

  I pulled a muscle in my back last week and then continued to keep pushing on since my Husband was on vacation and I thought I could tough it out.  Monday morning I refused to ride in the passenger side since I felt I was just making my injury worse trying to climb up into the van even with a helping hand from my Husband to help pull myself into the van.  So I drove and put on a Happy Face so he would not know the pain that I really was in and feel guilty for leaving me while he went out on the road to make a paycheck.  I would have gone to the doctor's then but I had promised to babysit my two grandsons so my daughter-in-law could have her 6 week checkup following Neko's birth.  I had also promised my granddaughter Adrianna to attend her school choral performance that evening.  When I promise, I deliver unless something major intravenes.  I went to court with my son the next morning since I am his Mom and he needed me there even though he is the one being harassed.  Leaving him, I went straight to the doctors.....muscle relaxer and anti-inflammitory drugs.....nothing for Pain....that was Thursday.  Saturday night....emergency room.....they did give me pain killers but did nothing else.  Back to the doctors Monday with more things going wrong and I am now progressing to looking like a 70 yr old bent over shuffling pain-wracked individual.  My daughter, OutandAboutTown, is having a fit.  I would give you a link but right now I have forgotten how to do it.  She wants bloodwork and Xrays since she does not think this is just a pulled muscle.  The doctor finally does the blood work and says to come back in 48 hours.  Since they gave me pain meds I am functioning but just barely but really do not realize it since my world has narrowed to being able to get to the bathroom on time.  We go back to the doctor and he says some of my things are slightly elevated.  My daughter drops a bomb when she informs him that she would like a copy of the lab work which of course I had to ask for since my case in the emergency room was being reviewed by the Head ER doctor.  Suddenly I needed to see a rheumintologist and they started the paperwork.  We left.  About an hour later, my Husband gets ahold of my daughter saying that my rheumintologist wants me to come in that afternoon.  Seem that my SED rate was a cause for concern plus a few of the other readings too.  Seems that a normal SED rate is about .75, my SED rate was 28.75.  Seems that a little medical condition decided to hide its prescence by acting like side effects of a pulled muscle and then went a whole lot farther.  I now have a Inflammatory disease of the large arteries which causes an autoimmune disorder in which the body's immune system attacks and destroys its own tissues (especially connective tissue)......it is called Polymyalgia Rheumatica Arteritis.  It is usually curable, but relapse is possible.  They put me on steriods.  They keep telling me that they are sorry that they have to put me on the steriods but they have to get my levels down.  I guess the cure has as many complications as the disease.  If it gets rid of  the pain.......that is the line I want to be in.  I find the pain so crippling.  I am having a rough few days as my pain meds are gone and nobody has thought about me needing them.  Every time since Saturday......I have been on pain meds so I function but without them my body starts to crab up.  I am giving it until tomorrow for the new meds to work so the pain will go away.  If not, to the Doctor's I go again......sigh!  These copays are killing me! 

  • 2:09 am
  • 5 Comments