Paperwork and Pools

More paperwork >.> I really need to study for my exam. That'll be tomorrow. Big pot of coffee and my books!

In other news, I forced myself to go to aqua aerobics today at the Chermside pool. The pool was nice and warm, and it was a therapy pool so we didn't have people swimming around us. The Chermside pool will be closer to us when we move, so I thought I would check it out :).

Speaking of moving, we finally got word that Milo was accepted by the body corp! Thats all of our conditions taken care of :D now just finnish up a few bits of paperwork and then settlement is next tuesday! Very exciting.

Sore today, hands, wrists, R elbow, shoulders were stiff, back and R knee/leg. Nerve pain, but a bit better than it has been. Likely because I slept more on my L side last night. I'll try that again and see if it helps tonight.

Swimming Again

Still not feeling awesome, but I did get out for a swim :). It was nice to be in the water again. I definitely can notice the difference in my muscle tightness after a good swim. Joints, maybe more mobility, but it doesn't help pain wise. I was able to swim for around half an hour before my R elbow decided it didn't want to do anymore.

I slept for around 11 hours last night >.>. But only needed one coffee today!

Now i'll go finish my book and possibly nibble on some dark chocolate <3.

Not so Nice

Quite tired again. I did manage to go for a swim, but i've been having stomach pains all day :(. Even just drinking water causes an achey feeling. Not my favorite. I handed in my part of the paperwork for the student disabilities thingie, now I need to get my gp or rheumy to fill out another part. All this so I can have a break or extra time if I have a long written exam. I don't know how I feel about filling out paperwork saying i'm disabled...I did have some great toast for breakfast though ;). I haven't taken any voltarin today to try and help my stomach. My pain levels are a bit higher today, especially my knee which has been flipping out all day >.<  but it is what it is.

Short Stack

Only a quick update today. I'm terribly tired. Doctors went alright, had the blood test early and everything looks fine. It is a nodule on my finger but that doesn't actually mean anything >.>...

School was nice except for the random make shift presentation we had to do. I totally rocked it. I think i'm a kinesthetic learner as I tend to learn best by doing as opposed to seeing or hearing. 


I think i'll fill out the paperwork for the student services. That way if I need longer to physically write an exam i'll have it on record.

Went swimming, I had to share my lane with two other people who were way faster :/ but it did get me working harder!

Now i'm sleepy. Goodnight.

Pain: hands, arms, shoulders, sternum, R knee, ankles, heels, toes, some nerve pain down R leg, some stomach upset (from pizza? Wheat or dairy?)

Foot Joins the Party

My foot effing hurts! :( I was fine all day, then on my way home around the arch area of my foot started hurting, then the knuckles of some of my toes and now it feels like it being crushed! Ow! Just took two voltarin, I need some rapid action stuff :/. I'm so thankful to have Bran to take care of me.

I don't know what i'm going to do if I end up getting foot involvement. I was just thinking today about how thankful I am that I can walk mostly easily. :( I don't know what i'm going to do.

Had coffee with a friend today. Went swimming in the salt water pool. I'm trying to remember the lovely weather and the feel of the cool water on my skin, but it's hard when my foot is searing with pain....I'm concerned about the muscle spasms and cramps getting more frequent as well..

Pain: FOOT, hands, wrists, R knee, back of knees, elbows, ankles (R especially), R calf spasmed badly today.

Homework and Rainy Days

It's been a long day. I did not want to wake up this morning :/ but the puppy dog really wanted me to pay attention to him! My left wrist is very sore today, more sore than I think it's ever been. Still, I went to aqua aerobics, did laundry, finally froze that pumpkin, and did my microbiology homework! It took like, three hours! Bah, back at it! But now it is done, and I know somewhat more about microbes ;). I'll do my foundation of communication and counseling tomorrow after Bran leaves. I don't think it'll take as long >.>.

I've been a bit off today with my wrists hurting so much along with feeling fatigued. I hate it when it just comes out of no where. I can't think of anything that would have triggered it, maybe stress? I've been very busy this week. Or maybe because it suddenly chilled down so much and is raining? Thats a distinct possibility some to think about it. Hm.

I'm not sure if I mentioned this, but I may end up having to get surgery on my knee. The osteo-physio said basically there isn't anything else they can do, so I am at the top of the list to see the Osteo-surgeon. I'm not really sure whether to feel happy or not. I would not like to go through another surgery or rehabilitation afterwards, but it would be a miracle to have my knee back...I'm waiting to see what the surgeon says before I get anxious about it :).

On a different note, my MiL brought me a yummy GF cheesecake from my fav coffee shop :). I'm so lucky to have such nice in-laws!

I've found an interesting site relating to autoimmune arthritis:

http://www.iaamovement.org/Home_Page.html 

Pain: WRISTS (L especially) hands, elbows (R especially), shoulders aren't too bad, R knee is SORE, R ankle is angry, toes. Had a funny pain under my ribs yesterday.

Need a Thermos

Day two of school was a bit less stressful :). I think i'll enjoy this class, foundations of communication and counseling. The teacher is charismatic and funny, the students seem like they care and are friendly, and the subject matter is right up my alley ;). It does go for three hours, which is longer than any other class i've taken, but she breaks it up quite well having some group talking, some class discussion and some note taking.

After class I figured out how to get to the spring hill pool. I could have gotten to the ithica pool much more easily, but it was unseasonably chilly today and the spring hill pool is heated ;) don't want to startle my poor joints with chilly water! I was able to do about 40 minutes, 4 laps of which was sprinting. I think thats pretty good for me. I think I need to buy a thermos to take tea or coffee to class though...I tried to get a tea from one of the shops and it was $3.50 for a cup o.O weird.

Now i'm enjoying a lovely cup of fresh ginger tea that my wonderful husband made me :) life is good.

Pain: WRISTS, hands, R knee, R ankle, toes, elbows, shoulders. Gloves are helping hands, but not wrists. Had cramps in my R hamstring last night.

Swimming Again

I do enjoy swimming :). I went to a salt water pool for the first time today. It wasn't heated, and it was outside, but I enjoyed the salt water much more than chlorinated. The pool itself was quite nice as well. The only thing I don't like (again) is that there aren't any lockers o.O. But it was nice anyway. I really enjoy the feeling of gliding through the water. It's soothing and strengthening at the same time.

Counselling went alright, mostly still getting on track with what we are going to talk about.

Arthritis wasn't very nice. Sore wrists especially. I did get my new gloves today. I've found them quite good for my fingers but they didn't help with my wrist at all. I may need to get braces for them. Still have a bit of an mtx hangover, but not half as bad as last week. Hopefully by next week i'll have adjusted. I've missed my voltarin today though since i'm not supposed to take it within 24 hours of the mtx.

I also got a package from my family! It was full of lovely things :D. I love getting packages, but even more when it includes marshmallow fluff and funny t-shirts XD.

Fist day of school tomorrow along with my ortho-physio review. Lets see how that goes >.>. I do like my new hair cut.

Pain: hands, wrists, sternum a bit, elbows, shoulders (r), knees (r especially), R ankle, some toes.

Meth(otrexate) Head

Saw rheumy. Blah. Swimming went well. I took the methotrexate about an hour ago and it's made my brain fuzzy :(. So i'll do a proper update tomorrow. Goodnight.

Chard Chips

Wrists and hands still quite sore today, a little better though. My knee was also really bad today.

On a lighter note, I made silver beet (chard) chips today :). Much like the kale chips that have been running around the blogosphere. Basically you mix ripped up silver beet with a bit of oil and salt (and a pinch of chili and garlic ;) ), and bake at 150 C for around 15 minutes. So yummy!

They May not look like much, but they were actually salty, crunchy deliciousness. Much easier than making potato chips (not to mention healthier).

I'm hoping to try and get some swimming in tomorrow, though I also have a meet up..hm.

Pain: arms, hands and wrists especially, R elbow especially. Shoulders, R hip, back, R knee especially, some toes.

Learning to Swim...Properly..

I tried a swim stroke correction class today :D. Thus finding out that everything I knew about swimming was wrong. It was nice to learn some new things, although it was a difficult class. My hands and wrists are now very sore though...more stiff than sore maybe? Hm.

Pain: hands, wrists, hips, ankles, some toes, jaw.

Goggles

Back to aqua aerobics today. I also swam a few laps beforehand :).

The big difference? I bought some goggles and a nose plug. Now I can swim without closing my eyes (and having to wipe them off when water splashes on them >.>) or getting water up my nose :D. Now I <3 swimming. I really enjoyed swimming laps, which isn't that odd I guess since i've always loved playing in the water. I enjoyed it so much that it didn't even feel like exercise until I reached the other side of the pool, out of breath, and with increasingly sore arms. So now my goal is to take the stroke correction class and start to swim laps on a regular basis along with the aqua aerobics. I might be able to take an exercise class through the hospital as well, since i'm receiving physio for my knee.

In other news I checked out a place called lifetech which has all sorts of assistive devices. It doesn't sell them, but has them on show for people to look at and feel in person before they purchase it. They also have occupational therapists for you to book appointments with and help find the best devises/ way to do things for you. They also give you an informational print out of any of the devices you were interested in. So I have a nice packet full of information on jar openers, back supports, and writing utensils. I liked the finger pens :D or maybe just the pens with the really fat grips. They made it so much easier to write.

Pain: all over, especially R hand, R elbow, R shoulder, ankles and L big toe.

Busy Day is Busy

Today has been a tiring day. I've probably used up more energy than I should have, and i'll likely pay for it tomorrow. But for now i'm happy that I pushed myself to accomplish something, as stressful as it's been.

Today I started off by telling my doctor about my mental state over my life. I am not completely comfortable getting into it, but i've been through some seriously emotionally trying times. It's very difficult for me to discuss, especially with a stranger. But there I was, talking about all of the things that have haunted me, in order to get help. And get help I shall :). It had been difficult for me to deal with the thought of having a chronic illness for the rest of my life. I know there are people who are diagnosed younger than I am, but at 22 it still seems like quite a shock. I haven't been handling it well, so now i'll see a professional about it and learn some better coping skills :).

Next I made the journey out to Endeavour. Endeavour is the school i'm soon to be studying Naturopathy at, and while it isn't too far away it does require a bus, then a train, then walking. I also got a little bit lost >.> usually I rely on my phone which I of course forgot at home. But I made it none the less! I was able to give them the correct information and I was off again.

A train trip, and a bus ride back out and i'm on my way to swimming. You would think at this point I would want to go home, as this is more than I would do in a typical day (let alone during a flare) but I wanted to swim gosh darn it!

And I got lost again >.>. Lesson learned. Remember phone. Or...maybe actually learn the way.

After wondering around for an hour I did eventually get there. A few laps and a leg cramp later I was on my way back home! Feeling quite tired but accomplished none the less :).

So todays lesson is: don't forget my phone. And figure out better ways to get around >.>.

Pain: arms, shoulders and R elbow and R hand especially, ankles, L big toe, hips. Back is doing much better.