CCSVI update

I know it has been a few weeks since my last update about my progress after my surgery to increase the blood flow through my jugular veins.

I wish I had good news, but it's not bad news. I only have standstill news. My MS symptoms aren't better, but they aren't any worse either.

One positive note that I can post is that I don't have to tie my feet onto the pedals of the stationary bike in order for me to get some kind of exercise. Yeah, before, I'd have to tie my feet onto the pedals so they'd stay fixed in place while I pedaled. If I didn't tie them to the pedals with rope, shoestrings, or string, my feet slipped off before the first rotation was complete.

I suppose that's a step in the right direction. :-)

Week Four

Today is the end of week four after my surgery to improve my blood flow in my jugular veins. Before my surgery, the doctor told me that the increased blood flow will alleviate my cold hands and feet. Also, my MS is affected by heat and cold. I completely melt (I'm unable to lift my body parts) in extreme heat, and shiver uncontrollably in the cold. The doctor said that my body is unable to sweat, which is the human's form of air conditioning. He said this will change after the surgery.

Boy was he right. I sweat like crazy, which is a good thing, because Oregon's dry desert heat used to incapacitate me to the point that I haven't been outside much during the summer months in years. My skin is so white, it glares on the eyes brightly. The glare makes it hard to see :-)

Muscle building still is not progressing as fast as I want. I'll hang in there though.

Today is week three...

Looking at my week from the outside in as a therapist, I can say things are fine; however, most of you know me as an athlete, and I still have that athlete mentality. Gaining strength should be easy and improvement should be quick. But, it's not going quite that quickly.

Walking is tiring! :-/ I not only have been in a wheelchair for the majority of six years, I've also had an ankle brace on my leg that supported my foot from dragging on the ground, which would make me trip and fall. I took the brace off on Saturday and haven't put it back on, even though, I really really wanted to, I didn't. I figured the only way to strengthen my ankle and calf muscle is to give them no support.

I started doing laps in my house. :-) I can do three full laps in 15 minutes with the walker. Bob did ten full laps in five. I'll get there.

Success...

WE DID IT! Bob and I finally exercised. I gathered up all of my small pieces of exercise equipment that I've accumulated over the years and we exercised. Woo-hoo! Bob even did aerobics by walking about a quarter of a mile while pushing me in a wheelchair. I'm motivated. Maybe I'll be lean and trim for our wedding. Bob too.

We've decided to have a pig roast for our wedding reception. It is going to be in a park in Pluver. I hope the weather will be good. I've been in warm weather too long. I know I;ll be freezing.

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Exercise conversation again...

Bob and I talk about exercising and eating healthy every day. We went to Costco yesterday and purchased everything healthy. We even passed up pumpkin pie. We got strawberries instead, but I suggested ice cream for on top of the strawberries. No we didn't get any. dang it.

We did good eating healthy for 24 hours, until Bob wanted dessert after dinner. Of course he said, "Let's go to Dairy Queen." You guessed it! I couldn't say no. Bob walked his calories off by pushing me to the football field to watch Zachary's marching band practice for a competition. (I could feel the calories burning right off. hahaha) Tomorrow's another day.

What exercise?...

At one point in all of my careers, I advised people to incorporate exercise into their daily routine. Examples would be like parking farther from work or the store in order to get extra walking in their day. I gave suggestions for different types of exercises that could be done while sitting at a desk or computer. I've written articles about exercising. I even taught classes in college about designing your own fitness program.

Do you think by doing all of that that I'd practice what I preached? Hell, No! The day goes by so fast that I'm too pooped to keep my head up looking forward. If I'd exercise, I'd gain strength to get through the day. sigh....

Bob is the same way. He also eats enough for the both of us and then a few more people. I'm losing my coaching enthusiasm. I need to take an energy drink and get motivated. After all, we're getting married in May. I need to be able to walk down the isle. :-)

Too many smartasses...

Exercise was not a problem today for my t. When we entered Home Depot, I offered to wheel my wheelchair myself and he could ride in one of the automatic carts. Bob refused, and said that he needs to walk to get exercise for the day. By the end of our trek across Home Depot two or three times, Bob was getting very slow, but he made it. Hahaha, one fellow stopped us and said, "Are you aware there is a speed limit?" I said, "I'm buckled in. We're good." (Smartass)

Bob's telling everyone that we got married last weekend, and that we're having a second ceremony in Plover in May. Once again....smartass.

Thank goodness for driver's licenses. Bob's has saved me in many many arguments about where we live and when he moved here. He was so "deadset" on living east of Pocahontas, IA and only living here since 2009. I had him look at the issue date on his license. He backed down from his argument. I asked him to not argue with me. He told me to get used to it, because that's what he does. Jokingly, I pulled out my calendar to put a question mark beside May 14, 2011 (our wedding day). :-D The brain and memory are so baffling and frustrating at the same time.

Rip Van Winkle...

A friend referred to Bob as a sort of Rip Van Winkle. Rip fell asleep under a tree. When he awoke, he found that he had been sleeping for twenty years. Bob is similar. However, he has been sleeping for only a year. When I talk with Bob about Lakes Trading business stuff, he will tell me that he just spoke with a certain person only a week or two previously. I remind him that he's been "out of commission" for over a year. Bob gets frustrated every time he thinks about all he has missed in the past year. Imagine a year of your life wiped away, and you can't replace or recall any of it, except by what someone tells you.

Exercise went by the "wayside" today. My background is Wellness, and I used to consult people in exercise programs. I discussed with them how to fit exercise into their daily schedule. Do you think I can take my own advice? I think, not.

For exercising Bob's brain, I revisited an activity we did a long time ago. I named a topic, then he had to list items that belonged in that topic as quickly as possible. Topics were farm animals, of course, marine life, vehicles with wheels, and things you ride in the snow. He did well thinking quickly. But, he still needs prompted when it comes to reciting our address. I will get him started by saying, "Our address starts with a twenty-one." He can, then, rattle off the rest. Without that prompt, he's clueless.

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Scaring the begeebers out of me...

OMG! I had the wits scared out of me this morning. I let Bob drive to church. He did great. He just took turns way too wide. I thought he was going to hit the curb several times. Also, we passed some roadwork that had quite a few cones set up. Bob came close to running over a few. Both of us were glad we arrived safely to church. Bob was glad , because my screaming was deafening to his ears and his manly pride.

Bob and I looked back at my blogs to see where he was medically last year at on this date. He just arrived at VIBRA. He had the trach, and was still attached to oxygen. He couldn't talk, and he couldn't swallow voluntarily. The speech therapist was reteaching him how to swallow by using ice cubes. Wow, what a difference one year makes. He has no problem eating his fair share of food now.

T and I exercised today. We did chair yoga. We laughed so hard several times. At one point, we were required to put our arms above our heads and raise one leg in the air. hahahaha... First you need to have enough strength to put your arms above your head without falling over; and then raise your leg. All I can say is, "Thank goodness we were sitting down! If I wasn't, I would have been on my butt." :-(

Zachary's health problems are still going. His eyes are swollen shut with allergies and he has a massive headache from clogged sinuses. Know any remedies? email me

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Only a loose battery...

All it was was the battery! Zachary announced this morning that he dropped my laptop. Now, it doesn't turn on. Crap! My laptop has "my life" on it. I have so much of my writing and classwork on my laptop. Frantically, we drove to Best Buy in Eugene, one hour north of Roseburg, to see if the Geek Squad could fix my computer. Believe this...He looked at the computer, turned it over, then took the battery out. Then, he plugged the battery back into the computer. It turned on! It wasn't broken! It was only a loose battery. That was the good news. The bad news was that we drove for one hour to see the Geek Squad for five minutes. I'll be positive...I got "my life-line" back.

Before this emergency, I had all intentions of doing a chair yoga tape for stretching with my t. It's another form of exercise we need to do. Even though I hid Bob's wheelchair for the day, he refuses to give it up totally. He'll use it part of the day. He says, "It's faster."

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memory, exercise bah...

I am so sorry. I forgot to post a blog yesterday. Please forgive me.

The location issue is frustrating, can make both t and me angry, but it has become something we can joke about and laugh at. All day long today, Bob refused to believe that Oregon was not in the middle of the United States. I told him to ask anyone at choir. He told me they are probably in cahoots with me. hahaha...

Bob can't accept the fact that his memory is not what it used to be. Before his aneurysm, his brain was like a sponge. It soaked up and held and information that went through it. We discussed writing things down that needs remembered. He got snippy with me about that idea. He feels he can remember. I think we'll need to practice the concept to show how useful the activity will be for memory.

We did a bit more walking today. Bob walked across the garage with no assistance of any kind. I held my breath, but he was ok. Exercise though, is hard to fit into the day. You'd think we we busy all day. And to think, I designed fitness programs for employees, and I taught a college class that taught students to design their own fitness program. hmm...