It's December and almost Christmas already, and a month ago I was saying it was November already. Ugh! I hate when time seems to fly by. This whole year has just flown by.
It has been a year where mostly things have stayed the same, but there were a few changes and excitement.
The year begins with us keeping Steve's dad's memory alive. We lost him to Agent Orange related cancer the summer of 2009 and it was a very hard time for the family. It happened too fast and we were not ready to loose him. We all had to try to find a new normal and deal with the grief as we knew how, we all chose different paths to follow, which has been challenging, but we all are supportive and love each other to new depths. We are still learning that the only path, the right path is God and His Word and keeping that first and foremost in my life has given me the strength to treasure the memories and to trust God unconditionally for his love and blessings in 2010.
A few things that have stayed the same are on the job front. Steve continues to work hard and stay busy in roofing, bearly able to keep up in the summer months, and staying busy up until the frigid weather and snow hits. Financialy we usually bearly make it though Christmas and when January hits, Steve hits the couch...just kidding. Well mostly it's true, but it is kinda depressing not being able to work at what you know how to do because of the weather....the jobs just stop coming in that quick. It's daunting to try to get out of roofing and start over, maybe less money overall. Winter is hard without his income, so anything has to be better than nothing, but so far things have stayed the same, and we are in for another not so fun winter. His body is taking a toll with roofing as well and as the years go on, his body isn't holding up as well.
I continue to work at the AmericInn hotel in Litchfield, and have been there 3 years just this past October. It's a very flexible job that still allows me time with the family, kids and housework. I am always looking for something more that fits my degree as a Veterinary Technician and after several interviews over the years, nothing has panned out and my lack of recent experience seems to be the cause. I know I am where I am supposed to be for now, and am happy for the part time work I do have, but working with animals is where my passion is, and hoping one day to find the place where I should go next.
2010 started off with some not so good news... Hannah was diagnosed with lichen sclerosis on January 20, 2010. She had been experiencing alot of burning with urination and itchiness for about a year beforehand (majority of 2009). It was off and on, however, I brought it to the attention of 2 family doctors and her endocrinologist, who all thought it was due to constipation, or lack of fiber in her diet and the family doctors never physically looked at her, just made suggestions. She was treated for a so called bladder infection in February 2009, and doctors reassured me we can always check a urine if symptoms come back---ugh. Later on in 2009 as it still continued to cause problems for her, a urine was checked again, and it was negative. The diabetes doctor actually looked, and thought it looked be a yeast infection, although she couldn't be sure and it was kinda out of her speciality. She finally referred Hannah to a pediatric gynocologist at Children's in Minneapolis, where she was instantly diagnosed with Lichen Sclerosis. It is a very painful condition that causes all the symptoms Hannah had, and it can cause scarring, white skin patches,lesions, painful urination and itchiness in the genital area-- which Hannah had all of in January 2010 when she was formally diagnosed. We treated it with several types of creams for a few months and actually within a few weeks it was much better. We continued until May 2010, when she was finally symptom free. We were given a treatment plan if it flared up, and because the condition is chronic and immune system related, it most likely will be a problem for her at some point again. We have gone all year without ANY flare ups and I almost forgot she has this....I was supposed to schedule a recheck appt in November and haven't done that yet since we haven't had any reason to go into Minneapolis for a check up. Didn't want to drive into the Cities, for the doctor to look and say everything is going good for now. Bad news...as of today, Wednesday Dec 15, 2010, we now are in the beginning stages of her first flare up with LS. She stated this morning that it burned to pee. Oh NO!!...so to the stash of cream I went and started on the treatment plan today and the soonest I could schedule her for a follow up appointment is January 12, so until then we will treat the symptoms and hope they resolve.
We also went through alot of classes at the beginning of the year to get Hannah started on the insulin pump. November 2009 was the Intro to pumping class in St. Paul, and that followed with Pump Prep at the Minnetonka clinic in March, where she was able to "try on" a pump for a few days. It didn't give her the insulin through it yet, but she wore the site and pump to see what it felt like. She was scared for the changes and the unknown, but after she had it on, she kinda got used to the idea....it made more sense in her mind what it was all about. Then we waited a few more months and May 6 was the "Pump Start" class in St Paul. She walked out of there smiling, with her pump working, and mom and dad with a headache and wealth of new information. It was really a change for the better as we counted carbs for the first time in over a year and was able to push a few buttons to deliver her insulin. The pump has given her (and us) more freedom to be able to manage her diabetes and it gave mom and dad less stressful times in dealing with all those shots in a day. Her mood has even changed with less high blood sugars it has made her less moody, which is always a good thing. Overall it gives her more precise doses of insulin (down to 1/10 of a unit vs. 1/2 of unit), and it helped to even out her A1C, even after the first 3 months on the pump. She went down from a
A1C of 8.6% to.... 7%, which is more in the normal range. We still struggle with site changes, which at this point I am the only one who knows how to change it. Steve probably could do it mentally, but physically the site has to be put in manually and he hasn't taken any chances to actually do it, since I have been doing it and Hannah trusts me. Steve could certainly do it....if he had to. LOL. Her sites are put in just under the skin with a needle on her upper butt area where she has the most fat, the needle is pulled out and left under the skin is a small canula (catheter). If the site gets into any muscle it will hurt, and since she is so thin, she uses special sites that go in on an angle, and not straight down and in like most sites. So with her sites there is almost no chance it will hit any muscle and kink, which can be dangerous. If the site kinks it will not deliver insulin, and will cause DKA (diabetic ketoacidosis) within hours. That is treated in hospital, and is what she had at dignosis. Most kids can use the regular sites and they seem a little easier to insert just by pushing a button. Hopefully as she grows she will get a little belly fat and she will someday be able to do her own site changes on her tummy area. So as of now I insert her lifeline, and it's a pretty important job.
We use numbing cream to numb the area so it takes a bit longer than it should to insert a site, since we wait a full 1/2 hr or more to make sure the area is numb for her. Still at times it will still hurt and sometimes it doesn't, so each time it makes her nervous because she doesn't know if it will hurt or not. She dreads site change day, which we do every 3 days. The pump however has become a part of Hannah, and although she is aware of it, it doesnt' bother her to have it attached and most times she forgets she is wearing it. Since the pump can't get wet we remove it(ie: disconnect tubing and pump from the site leaving the site intact and capped off) for showers and swimming and as long as we stay on top of blood sugars it is not usually a problem to have it disconnected for up to 1-2 hours. The site sticks very well even through swimming and showers, and even has to be removed on that 3rd day with a special adhesive wipe.
I thank the people over at Pump Wear.com for making these wonderful things called pump bands. We started off by ordering pump packs which were nice small pump sized fanny packs, but visable, and she wasn't able to wear dresses with those. The band fits snuggly around her waist with a little pocket for her pump. It hids the pump and allows her to be more active without it bouncing around so much, and dresses are an option. We love pump bands from Pump Wear. 7 months with the pump and going strong. Dec 3 2010, was 2 years with diabetes in our lives and we are just beginning to get it down. She is growing and changing all the time, therfore her diabetes changes all the time too. Insulin doses are always being watched on a constant basis, and instead of 3 month visits to the diabetes clinic, the next 2 visits are 2 months apart because of some recent changes. We continue to stay vigilant about something that is never for certain.
We did the 2010 JDRF Walk for a Cure at the Mall of America on February 25, and it proved to be very memorable. Our team "Hannah's Hopful Hearts" raised just over $2000 for the cure and this year hope to do more. Hannah loved that she didn't feel so alone that day and how so many people gathered together in one spot all were dealing what she deals with. It was empowering to her and to us, her biggest supporters. On Aug 10 we did another JDRF event and attended ValleyFair family fun day. My parents came along with Hannah and I. (Steve and Bailey were on a trip in Seattle/Oregon at the time). At first we didn't know if we'd be able to attend as it was pouring rain the morning of the event. It cleared up and we had a fun day at ValleyFair. Hannah is not much of a ride person yet, so she enjoyed most of the day at the waterpark. She loves the wave pool!! Lunch was provided by JDRF and they served a wonderful lunch and a short program as we ate. Just a lot of motivation and support from the wonderful people at JDRF. There was music, dancing and some vendor booths too. Hannah got a pump skin from Medtronic-- and changed her pump from blue to pink. I picked up some Dreamfields pasta (good stuff) and a few other things from the vendors. Then back to the park.... we walked around, played some games, went on the antique cars ( Hannah loves driving), played in the Foam Ball Factory, ....until the thunderstorm came at the very end of the day...we quickly headed back to the car before the storm hit and got back to our hotel for the rest of the night. It was truly a fun day and hope to do it next summer too.
We had a pretty uneventful, yet busy summer. Lots of birthday celebrations in the summer months, both family and friends. Hannah was enjoying swimming lessons with her cousin, Audri and just enjoyed swimming in general....she did alot of swimming in our pool, practicing all she was learning in lessons. She is not quite so afraid of the water anymore. Bailey started off the summer by going to Wisconsin and being a part of the Green Bay Gamblers hockey camp. He stayed with grandma and grandpa, and they got him to Green Bay every morning by 8am for camp. It lasted from Monday until Thursday from 8-3pm. Lisa and Wil came a couple of days to watch. He learned alot and had so much fun that he wants to do it again next year.
Bailey enjoyed a winning season with his baseball team, the Storm. They didn't looose a game and became the champs in the tournament the end of July. Almost didn't think they could play the championship game, because a storm came rolling through just before game time. It did clear up and the game was on....and the "Storm" came out the champions (after the storm...ha ha). Bailey did alot more pitching this year and was doing pretty good at it. It was fun to watch.
Early August Grandma Barb, along with Steve and Bailey went on a Amtrak train out west. It was supposed to be for the Emery family reunion in Seattle, WA, but it was cancelled due to lack of people being able to attend, but they went to visit anyway.
They had a good time visiting family near Seattle, and then drove to Oregon to visit Steve's aunt and uncle. They even went to northern California to see the Redwoods. They brought back alot of cool pictures and memories from the trip.
About this time Steve's mom also sold the house on the lake in Dassel and was planning on moving to a townhouse in Delano. It was a difficult time to leave that house, but also the right time.
Bailey signed up for a late summer league in St Cloud for hockey....played alot of fun games in St Cloud, even played some games on the ice the college Huskies play on. He had a fun time getting started on hockey a little sooner that usual and got to be on a team with a couple LDC kids and mostly St Cloud kids, he made some friends.
We held the annual Labor Day garage sale for Red Rooster Days in Dassel, it always proves to be fun, but alot of work too. Still debating if I will tackle again it next year. I usually debate about it and then do it anyway.
Just as the summer ended and the kids were getting back to school, I was involved in a car accident on September 11 on my way into work. I rear ended a lady in a large Suburban at about 55-60mph, who had stopped on Hwy 12 attempting to make a U-turn. I didn't realized she was stopped and should have been paying more attention, but I wasn't found at total fault. It happened so fast and am glad everyone ended up being ok...yet our van was totalled. We were all taken by ambulence to Meeker Memorial in Litchfield. I had some pretty severe tissue-nerve damage to my knees and legs. After a week of rest at home, I also discovered I had lower back, hip and neck damage as well. It took 3 months of chiropractor treatments to get my body aligned and healed properly.
We went without a van for about a week when we inherited "the truck". It was Steve's dad's truck that is passed around to whomever needs it. We used it for about a month to get around town and for me to get back to work a few days a week. In mid-October we bought a cheap vehicle from our mechanic and are back in business with a van again and Steve's sister and brother in law are now the new owners of the truck.
I was released from accident treatment at the chiropractor mid-November. It is good to be feeling more normal again. My right knee, right hip and neck are still occasionaly sore. Kneeling is uncomfortable, but not terrible. I am able to get back to my work outs, which usually don't involve kneeling. My knees are stiff and sore in the mornings but loosen up pretty quickly. Stairs are sometimes hard if I've been sitting too long and it's funny the cold weather seems to make them stiff as well. My neck is still grinding and making noise everytime I turn my head and it's annoying, but that's about it. My weight is my biggest issue as I've gained a bit since the accident, but continue to make weight loss a priority as it can only help my knees, hip and overall health. I will go back to the chiropractor for a recheck tomorrow (Dec 16), and go from there. It will be covered under my health insurance now, and it's just a $3 co pay.
Bailey gradually went off his meds for migraine prevention late June, and September 30th started with the chiropractor instead, for headache prevention. After my accident I realized how much a chiropractor can do, and even though I had the thought before, it came full circle and seemed like the perfect time to start with him.
Bailey continues to go to the chiropractor for his headaches and so far it is still on going. The treatments seem to be helping but for now it's too early to tell. He still gets 1-2 headaches a month, which has been pretty typical over the last year.... even some severe ones still. When the chiropractor hears that he has gotton a headache inbetween times he sees him he makes the appts closer together, and can tell right away what caused the headaches and the misalignment that has taken place. We are hoping the adjustments start to "hold" more instaed of going back to the position his body is used to being in. ( he's had issues with occiput and C2, that I have picked up on). He's had about 8 treatments so far, starting out about once a week, then would go once every 2 weeks, and then back to once a week and then back to every 2 weeks, and now is going for the longest stretch for 3 weeks. He's had one pretty bad migraine since his last adjustment now again, and we go back after the 3weeks tomorrow. I'm pretty convinced to just stick with it, and eventually hoping his headaches are further in between, like he's able to go a few months without any headaches vs. monthly. We shall see.
Hannah started dance for the first time, with the Just for Kix program in Hutchinson. She goes with her friend Mileka who has been in the program a few years now. Mileka lives in Silver Lake, but goes to school with Hannah in Dassel, as her mom is a 1st grade teacher. Hannah loves dance so far and she has gained some confidence, flexibilty and made some new friends....it's good for her overall to be involved. We get to watch her first dance perfomance on January 8th, which was postponed due to the snow from Dec 11.
Can't wait and she is beyond excited to have us watch her.
Bailey is in full swing with hockey, he is on the Pee Wee A team this year. He has lots of games, tournaments and practices. He's all about hockey though, and I hope he has a fun year.
We learned early in September that my sister, Lisa, and her husband Wil are expecting their first child. We were beyond excited as we've been waiting for this news for several years. I'm gonna be an Auntie!! They found out just before Thanksgiving that they are expecting a BOY, Landon William. I saw the ultrasound pictures over Thanskgiving and he's definatly a boy.. and it is SO wonderful. Lisa experienced some early term bleeding and sickness, and she took some time off of work to rest and relax, and since then the placenta has found it's place and baby boy Landon is settled in and looking good and Lisa is feeling much better. Looking forward to his arrival the end of April.
Hannah and I went to WI for Thanksgiving this year and glad we were able to avoid any bad waether and spend some time with my family. I hadn't seen my sister since she told us the "news" and was glad to give her and her belly a hug. Steve had to stay home with Bailey as the good ole hockey team had a tournament over Thanksgiving weekend. They spent the day with Steve's family at his mom's new townhouse in Delano. His sister Jen, is dealing with alot of health problems and it's always good to keep the family close together in tough times. I was sad that our family seperated for the holiday, but it is what it is and I made the decision to just go. I looked back and I have only spent a total of 4 other Thanksgivings with my family in WI since we were married in 1997. Steve only came 3 times when we were on our way to Florida those years (1997, 2000, and 2004) and I came one other time with both kids in 2006 and now with just Hannah in 2010. Hope to make it more frequently as it's hard to not see my family more often. Distance is never easy.
My parents always have made it a point to get to as many of the kids activities as possible, and the kids appreciate their efforts and support, as do Steve and I.
They will be arriving the Wed. before Christmas depending on the weather. Last year they couldn't make it here for Christmas because of all the snow we got. They came later in the week, which worked out good when the kids are on winter break. They really hope to make it this year to see the kids christmas eve service which is mostly what they love. Hoping for reasonable weather for their travels and our plans. They will leave Christmas Day to head back home and they will spend the rest of the Day and next with Lisa and Wil and allow our family to spend Christmas with the Emery's. I do have to work at the hotel Christmas Day from 4-10:30 so it will be a short fun filled day for me as I head into work later in the day.
Wishing all a wonderful holiday season and a very Merry Christmas.
"For unto you is born this day in the City of David, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord"
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
In Christ Alone
No guilt in life, no fear in death,
This is the pow'r of Christ in me;
From life's first cry to final breath,
Jesus commands my destiny.
No pow'r of hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from his hand;
Till he returns or calls me home,
Here in the pow'r of Christ I'll stand.
vs 4 of "In Christ Alone"
This is the pow'r of Christ in me;
From life's first cry to final breath,
Jesus commands my destiny.
No pow'r of hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from his hand;
Till he returns or calls me home,
Here in the pow'r of Christ I'll stand.
vs 4 of "In Christ Alone"
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Diabetes awareness
There is more than one kind of diabetes. This isn't a knock on type 2 and gestational diabetes people, but definitely a knock on society's perceptions at large. People have one musty, old perception of what diabetes looks like, and it's always someone older, heavier, and lazy. Wouldn't they be surprised to meet our fit type 2 friends, or the 20 year old gestational diabetic? Or a "juvenile diabetic" who is only nine years old? Diabetes doesn't have "a look." This disease does not discriminate.
Diabetes affects more than just the person playing host to it. Hannah is the one wearing the insulin pump, and actually feeling these blood sugar highs and lows. But she's not the only one affected by diabetes. We as parents have to care for her when she is young, acting as her pancreas. Her friends have been affected by her lows and highs while playing, school nurse takes care of her during the day and certain family and friends have played a role in caregiving too. Diabetes isn't just hers. It belongs to everyone who cares about her.
Diabetes isn't just a physiological disease. It's an emotional one, too. It's not just a question of blood sugar levels and insulin supplementation. It's about managing the emotions that come as part of life with a chronic illness. It's about the guilt of complications. The pressure to control an uncontrollable disease. The hope that tomorrow will come without incident. I feel that the emotional aspects of diabetes need to be attended to with the same care and diligence as an A1C level. Maybe more so, because life needs to be happy, whether it's a short life or a very long one.
Diabetes isn't easy. We just make it look that way sometimes. Some of the perceptions that the general public has is that diabetes is easy to handle. "You just wear the pump, test your blood sugar, and watch your diet and you'll be fine, right?" Wrong. You can do the exact same thing every day and still see varying diabetes outcomes. It's never all figured out. Diabetes is a daily dance of numbers and emotions and even though we make it look easy sometimes, it sure isn't.
No diabetes is the same. Even within a community of diabetics, there are still widely varying ways of treating diabetes and even more ways of dealing with the emotional aspects. There's no winning combination and no "right" way to deal with this disease. Being on a pump means you use a pump to infuse your insulin - this doesn't necessarily mean you are taking better care of yourself than the person who opts for injections. Low-carb doesn't work for everyone, and neither do certain medications. Your diabetes may vary and what works for you may not work for everyone. It's important to remember that this disease doesn't have a predictable path, so there are plenty of "right' ways to handle it.
Just because we don't look sick doesn't mean we don't deserve a cure. That statement pretty much sums it up. We might make it look easy, but it isn't. There's no rhyme or reason to this disease, and even with the best care and the best intentions, complications can sometimes still come calling. And their effects are devastating. Diabetes, of all kinds, deserves a cure. No one asked for any of this. We deserve better than society thinking that diabetes isn't worth their attention. We deserve a cure.
excerpts taken from Six Until Me blog by Kerry Sparling
Diabetes affects more than just the person playing host to it. Hannah is the one wearing the insulin pump, and actually feeling these blood sugar highs and lows. But she's not the only one affected by diabetes. We as parents have to care for her when she is young, acting as her pancreas. Her friends have been affected by her lows and highs while playing, school nurse takes care of her during the day and certain family and friends have played a role in caregiving too. Diabetes isn't just hers. It belongs to everyone who cares about her.
Diabetes isn't just a physiological disease. It's an emotional one, too. It's not just a question of blood sugar levels and insulin supplementation. It's about managing the emotions that come as part of life with a chronic illness. It's about the guilt of complications. The pressure to control an uncontrollable disease. The hope that tomorrow will come without incident. I feel that the emotional aspects of diabetes need to be attended to with the same care and diligence as an A1C level. Maybe more so, because life needs to be happy, whether it's a short life or a very long one.
Diabetes isn't easy. We just make it look that way sometimes. Some of the perceptions that the general public has is that diabetes is easy to handle. "You just wear the pump, test your blood sugar, and watch your diet and you'll be fine, right?" Wrong. You can do the exact same thing every day and still see varying diabetes outcomes. It's never all figured out. Diabetes is a daily dance of numbers and emotions and even though we make it look easy sometimes, it sure isn't.
No diabetes is the same. Even within a community of diabetics, there are still widely varying ways of treating diabetes and even more ways of dealing with the emotional aspects. There's no winning combination and no "right" way to deal with this disease. Being on a pump means you use a pump to infuse your insulin - this doesn't necessarily mean you are taking better care of yourself than the person who opts for injections. Low-carb doesn't work for everyone, and neither do certain medications. Your diabetes may vary and what works for you may not work for everyone. It's important to remember that this disease doesn't have a predictable path, so there are plenty of "right' ways to handle it.
Just because we don't look sick doesn't mean we don't deserve a cure. That statement pretty much sums it up. We might make it look easy, but it isn't. There's no rhyme or reason to this disease, and even with the best care and the best intentions, complications can sometimes still come calling. And their effects are devastating. Diabetes, of all kinds, deserves a cure. No one asked for any of this. We deserve better than society thinking that diabetes isn't worth their attention. We deserve a cure.
excerpts taken from Six Until Me blog by Kerry Sparling
Thursday, November 4, 2010
2011 JDRF Walk for a Cure - The greatest Walk on Earth
Head over to our JDRF 2011 Walk for a Cure page and sign up to join team Hannah's Hopeful Hearts". Walk day is February 26, 2011 at the Mall of America, Bloomington, MN. If your not able to make the walk, please consider a donation to JDRF, every little bit makes a difference. Together we CAN make a difference.
http://walk.jdrf.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=extranet.personalpage&confirmid=87761209
http://walk.jdrf.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=extranet.personalpage&confirmid=87761209
Saturday, October 30, 2010
natural healing
UPDATE:
It's been 7 weeks today since my accident. I don't like to keep dwelling on it, and soon it will be a memory, but I am still healing so it's still fresh for me. I have been on the natural approach to healing, and I'm really not sure why, but the more I learn about it, the more sense it makes to me....it's a whole nother world, and kinda overwhelming since it's not what I am used to. I try to explain to my husband the benefits my chiropractor and their views has given me so far, and he isn't buying into much of it, and more so makes a joke out of it. He's a hard one to change his thinking. I am just touching the surface of it all, but at least I am open to new ideas to improve myself and health. Have been down from twice a week to going to my chiropractor once a week now, for the last several weeks.
I don't think medical doctors would have been much help to me anyway during this time... and at least this way I feel "taken care of" without the use of drugs to keep me comfortable. I took 2 full bottles of Arnica Montana, which is a natural remedy to help reduce swelling and inflammation. I'm not postive how much it actually helped, since I never have been though something that caused so much bruising and swelling, to know if I healed faster with or without it...it was cheap, so if I think it worked or not, well the price was right anyway. I felt better taking something to help with some swelling and soreness that wasn't some medication that causes constipation or diarrhea or some other side effect.
I have been out of "rest mode" for several weeks now too. I find myself not able to sit around as much and keeping up with my personality to keep things organized keeps me busy around the house. I have been on walks with the dog, to workout at the fitness center several times and back to working at the hotel part time. I still don't have a exercise routine down, which makes me get down on myself alot. It's something I really want to get back to, but I have things holding me back...I will keep trying.
My swelling/bruising is mostly gone in my knees. I know in one of my posts early on, that I thought my knees were doing good and that it would take a few weeks to heal. I kinda laugh at how I thought that, since I am still struggling with my knees. Even though walking is going good now-- excessive walking makes them sore, I found that out after attempting the Mall of America over MEA break.
I have had pretty minimal problems walking, stairs and bending since about the 2nd week post accident...BUT kneeling that is another story. I find myself in situations all the time where I would plop down to kneel and then realize I'm still not ready. There is still some tissue damage below my knee cap, which when it is touched lightly it feels numb, and when it's bumped is sore. It was very painful to kneel or touch them at first and unthinkable, so I didn't do it, and now I can finally put pressure on my left knee and and just starting to try my right knee more often. As the weeks go by, each week seems to be getting better. It's been 7 weeks though, and I still can't kneel for more than 5 seconds. Since I can put slight pressure on my knees for a few seconds, it is consistant progress...just slower progress than I initally thought. My chiropractor (Dr Chris) has mostly been working on my right knee and right hip and neck. He says my back is looking good, but continues to make some minor adjustments.
Besides my knees taking it's own sweet time to heal, my neck is my only other area of not being the way it used to be. Pretty much since the accident there has been off and on tension-soreness in my neck and shoulders (upper back)....never had any pain or terrible discomfort. Have had neck "grinding" or just noises that sound like my neck is grinding when I turn it side to side...it has never went away. Dr Chris rotates each visit which way he adjusts my neck, but nothing has seemed to make a difference....YET. Still waiting for the day my neck doesn't make any noise. It's mostly annoying.
I have a feeling my treatments with Dr Chris are winding down, and the once a week appointments may get to be further apart. I am doing that good. I am hoping to have more of a plan of attack on the workouts this next week because my weight is getting depressing.
I should start to tackle the yard work too as the weather gets colder I am reminded that winter and snow is just around the corner.
It's been 7 weeks today since my accident. I don't like to keep dwelling on it, and soon it will be a memory, but I am still healing so it's still fresh for me. I have been on the natural approach to healing, and I'm really not sure why, but the more I learn about it, the more sense it makes to me....it's a whole nother world, and kinda overwhelming since it's not what I am used to. I try to explain to my husband the benefits my chiropractor and their views has given me so far, and he isn't buying into much of it, and more so makes a joke out of it. He's a hard one to change his thinking. I am just touching the surface of it all, but at least I am open to new ideas to improve myself and health. Have been down from twice a week to going to my chiropractor once a week now, for the last several weeks.
I don't think medical doctors would have been much help to me anyway during this time... and at least this way I feel "taken care of" without the use of drugs to keep me comfortable. I took 2 full bottles of Arnica Montana, which is a natural remedy to help reduce swelling and inflammation. I'm not postive how much it actually helped, since I never have been though something that caused so much bruising and swelling, to know if I healed faster with or without it...it was cheap, so if I think it worked or not, well the price was right anyway. I felt better taking something to help with some swelling and soreness that wasn't some medication that causes constipation or diarrhea or some other side effect.
I have been out of "rest mode" for several weeks now too. I find myself not able to sit around as much and keeping up with my personality to keep things organized keeps me busy around the house. I have been on walks with the dog, to workout at the fitness center several times and back to working at the hotel part time. I still don't have a exercise routine down, which makes me get down on myself alot. It's something I really want to get back to, but I have things holding me back...I will keep trying.
My swelling/bruising is mostly gone in my knees. I know in one of my posts early on, that I thought my knees were doing good and that it would take a few weeks to heal. I kinda laugh at how I thought that, since I am still struggling with my knees. Even though walking is going good now-- excessive walking makes them sore, I found that out after attempting the Mall of America over MEA break.
I have had pretty minimal problems walking, stairs and bending since about the 2nd week post accident...BUT kneeling that is another story. I find myself in situations all the time where I would plop down to kneel and then realize I'm still not ready. There is still some tissue damage below my knee cap, which when it is touched lightly it feels numb, and when it's bumped is sore. It was very painful to kneel or touch them at first and unthinkable, so I didn't do it, and now I can finally put pressure on my left knee and and just starting to try my right knee more often. As the weeks go by, each week seems to be getting better. It's been 7 weeks though, and I still can't kneel for more than 5 seconds. Since I can put slight pressure on my knees for a few seconds, it is consistant progress...just slower progress than I initally thought. My chiropractor (Dr Chris) has mostly been working on my right knee and right hip and neck. He says my back is looking good, but continues to make some minor adjustments.
Besides my knees taking it's own sweet time to heal, my neck is my only other area of not being the way it used to be. Pretty much since the accident there has been off and on tension-soreness in my neck and shoulders (upper back)....never had any pain or terrible discomfort. Have had neck "grinding" or just noises that sound like my neck is grinding when I turn it side to side...it has never went away. Dr Chris rotates each visit which way he adjusts my neck, but nothing has seemed to make a difference....YET. Still waiting for the day my neck doesn't make any noise. It's mostly annoying.
I have a feeling my treatments with Dr Chris are winding down, and the once a week appointments may get to be further apart. I am doing that good. I am hoping to have more of a plan of attack on the workouts this next week because my weight is getting depressing.
I should start to tackle the yard work too as the weather gets colder I am reminded that winter and snow is just around the corner.
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
"Golden Ruler of the Month"
Hannah was choosen by her "Care Group" class as the golden ruler of the month of October. Students in grades 1-4 participate in Care Group each day. They are group of kids from all grade levels. Each year they get the same care groups with added 1st graders and minus last years 4th graders. It gets them to interact with different age groups and make friends of all ages. The letter below explains this in more detail..
This is the first time Hannah has been choosen. It really is an honor, and hopefully the last 2 years for Hannah and all of Bailey's 4 years they still showed respect and carried out their Care Group rules even though they weren't choosen then.
So Congrats to Hannah for being choosen in her group to be the Golden Ruler of the Month.
Hannah and her 3rd Grade teacher-- Mr Stang.
Dassel Elementary- "Home of kids who care"
This is the first time Hannah has been choosen. It really is an honor, and hopefully the last 2 years for Hannah and all of Bailey's 4 years they still showed respect and carried out their Care Group rules even though they weren't choosen then.
So Congrats to Hannah for being choosen in her group to be the Golden Ruler of the Month.
Hannah and her 3rd Grade teacher-- Mr Stang.
Dassel Elementary- "Home of kids who care"
Sunday, October 17, 2010
You're never alone
Love is with you.
He knows your name.
He numbers the hairs on your head.
He records the cares in your heart.
Every morning, He's by your side.
Every night, He watches over you as you sleep.
There's never a moment you're not in His thoughts...
never a day you're not in His care.
"You're not on your own,"
He whispers to your heart,
"You're forever my own."
No matter what.
by Holley Gerth
(Based on Isaiah 43:1, 1 John 4:8, Luke 12:7, Psalm 56:8, Psalm 139:13-18, Deuteronomy 31:8)
He knows your name.
He numbers the hairs on your head.
He records the cares in your heart.
Every morning, He's by your side.
Every night, He watches over you as you sleep.
There's never a moment you're not in His thoughts...
never a day you're not in His care.
"You're not on your own,"
He whispers to your heart,
"You're forever my own."
No matter what.
by Holley Gerth
(Based on Isaiah 43:1, 1 John 4:8, Luke 12:7, Psalm 56:8, Psalm 139:13-18, Deuteronomy 31:8)
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Chosen
By your grace, O God, you chose me to be your very own. Through the gospel message, you brought me to faith in Jesus and gave me the gift of salvation. Lead me to gladly hear and learn your word so that by the power of the gospel my faith in Jesus is strengthened and my life reflects my gratitude for your great love. Amen.
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Hannah is 9-- Birthday Party photos
Hannah had her 9th birthday party at Collinwood Park in Cokato on Sunday
Sept 5th,....it was a little windy but turned out well.
Hannah by the lake
(back)Peyton, Hannah,(holding Mackenzie), Mileka, Elizabeth, Sydney, Brynna, Anna (Front) Audri and Lydia
Hannah with her horse cake
blowing out candles
cake eating
doing a project
opening gifts
Sept 5th,....it was a little windy but turned out well.
Hannah by the lake
(back)Peyton, Hannah,(holding Mackenzie), Mileka, Elizabeth, Sydney, Brynna, Anna (Front) Audri and Lydia
Hannah with her horse cake
blowing out candles
cake eating
doing a project
opening gifts
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Diabetes Type 1 overview.
What is Type 1 Diabetes:
the insulin producing cells (beta cells) in the pancreas no longer are produced. Due to the subsequent lack of insulin, the cells are unable to use sugars for fuel. Therefore the body begins to starve and will subsequently breakdown fats and proteins for fuel. The by-product of this breakdown is called "ketones". Ketones can make one very ill and can cause death if not dealt with. Blood sugar will be extremely high and over a period of time if not dealt with, can cause symptoms.
Signs and Symptoms of Type 1 Diabetes:
increased urination
increased thirst
increased hunger
blurred vision
weight loss
behavior changes
Causes of Type 1 Diabetes:
To develop Type 1 Diabetes three risk factors must be present. They are inheritance (genetic), autoimmunity (self-allergy), and environmental damage (example: from a chemical or virus). So, in other words, a person must have the genetic "set-up" to be susceptible to the environmental stimulus (chemical or virus) in order for the autoimmune "attack" (self-allergy) on the beta cells of the pancreas to occur.
Treatment of Type 1 Diabetes:
Insulin must be given in order for a person with Type 1 Diabetes to survive. Insulin is usually given by multiple injections daily OR via an Insulin Pump. Diet (specifically carbohydrate intake), Insulin, and Activity must be BALANCED hour to hour to avoid immediate dangers from treatment with insulin.
Immediate Dangers Include:
LOW BLOOD SUGAR - This can happen at any time to a person taking insulin. It can be due to low carbohydrate intake, too much insulin, activity, illness, and a hot or cold environment. It is an immediate health concern. If it is not treated with sugar the person can go unconscious, have a seizure, and/or die.
HIGH BLOOD SUGAR - This can occur at times of stress, too many carbohydrates, too little insulin, during growth, during periods of illness, at times of inactivity etc. High blood sugars can also become an emergency if they occur for several hours and ketones start to develop.
Long Term Complications of Type 1 Diabetes:
Long term complications can include heart disease, kidney disease, eye disease, vascular disease, connective tissue disease, and neuropathic disorders. High glucose levels in the blood affect EVERY organ of the body.
WHAT I WANT YOU TO KNOW ABOUT TYPE 1 DIABETES:
Our daughter, nor my family, did nothing to cause this disease (see causes above)
Hannah can eat most foods within reason as long as I calculate the insulin dose according to the carbohydrate count of the food she is going to consume.
Hannah can have sugar sometimes, but we try to limit it as much as possible for better control of her diabetes and a healthier lifestyle - carbs and sugar is for lows and for a "treat" (as long as I give her insulin to cover the grams of carbohydrate consumed)
Diet and exercise is NOT the treatment plan for a person with Type 1 Diabetes. Insulin is the treatment, without it she would die. What a heavy responsibility for a D-parent, to try to manage all this and keep your child healthy and alive.
A healthy diet and exercise is good for ALL of us.
Hannah is a happy, healthy, active girl who recently discovered dance and loves it, diabetes is a constant balence 24/7- but for Hannah life still goes on.
Please ask questions
the insulin producing cells (beta cells) in the pancreas no longer are produced. Due to the subsequent lack of insulin, the cells are unable to use sugars for fuel. Therefore the body begins to starve and will subsequently breakdown fats and proteins for fuel. The by-product of this breakdown is called "ketones". Ketones can make one very ill and can cause death if not dealt with. Blood sugar will be extremely high and over a period of time if not dealt with, can cause symptoms.
Signs and Symptoms of Type 1 Diabetes:
increased urination
increased thirst
increased hunger
blurred vision
weight loss
behavior changes
Causes of Type 1 Diabetes:
To develop Type 1 Diabetes three risk factors must be present. They are inheritance (genetic), autoimmunity (self-allergy), and environmental damage (example: from a chemical or virus). So, in other words, a person must have the genetic "set-up" to be susceptible to the environmental stimulus (chemical or virus) in order for the autoimmune "attack" (self-allergy) on the beta cells of the pancreas to occur.
Treatment of Type 1 Diabetes:
Insulin must be given in order for a person with Type 1 Diabetes to survive. Insulin is usually given by multiple injections daily OR via an Insulin Pump. Diet (specifically carbohydrate intake), Insulin, and Activity must be BALANCED hour to hour to avoid immediate dangers from treatment with insulin.
Immediate Dangers Include:
LOW BLOOD SUGAR - This can happen at any time to a person taking insulin. It can be due to low carbohydrate intake, too much insulin, activity, illness, and a hot or cold environment. It is an immediate health concern. If it is not treated with sugar the person can go unconscious, have a seizure, and/or die.
HIGH BLOOD SUGAR - This can occur at times of stress, too many carbohydrates, too little insulin, during growth, during periods of illness, at times of inactivity etc. High blood sugars can also become an emergency if they occur for several hours and ketones start to develop.
Long Term Complications of Type 1 Diabetes:
Long term complications can include heart disease, kidney disease, eye disease, vascular disease, connective tissue disease, and neuropathic disorders. High glucose levels in the blood affect EVERY organ of the body.
WHAT I WANT YOU TO KNOW ABOUT TYPE 1 DIABETES:
Our daughter, nor my family, did nothing to cause this disease (see causes above)
Hannah can eat most foods within reason as long as I calculate the insulin dose according to the carbohydrate count of the food she is going to consume.
Hannah can have sugar sometimes, but we try to limit it as much as possible for better control of her diabetes and a healthier lifestyle - carbs and sugar is for lows and for a "treat" (as long as I give her insulin to cover the grams of carbohydrate consumed)
Diet and exercise is NOT the treatment plan for a person with Type 1 Diabetes. Insulin is the treatment, without it she would die. What a heavy responsibility for a D-parent, to try to manage all this and keep your child healthy and alive.
A healthy diet and exercise is good for ALL of us.
Hannah is a happy, healthy, active girl who recently discovered dance and loves it, diabetes is a constant balence 24/7- but for Hannah life still goes on.
Please ask questions
Monday, October 4, 2010
healing for all
It's been 3 weeks and one day since my accident. This post is just another little update. I have been resting and resting some more. I have had 2 chiropractor appointments a week, since I first went in on Sept 21. I went in with some serious lower back pain, found out my entire right side was messed up. With the first treatment I was doing better. I continued to go back as I felt it was helping. I don't know where I would be right now, if I decided not to go, but I believe I am healing faster and more properly. I thank God for leading me in that direction. So for now, I am comfortable. Each adjustment brings me closer to healing. I haven't been doing too much, but last week I admit I started really getting back into my routine and cleaning the things that needed to be cleaned, I vacuumed, mopped, changed sheets on the beds, even did some grass cutting--leaving the majority of it for Bailey-- just went around all the edges in the back for him, keeping up on laundry, dishes etc etc. All is going well.
I even got the kids in for a chiropractic check up on Thursday after school. They had no clue as I made the appointment for them after my morning appt that day. They were surprised to hear where they were going and only had about 20 min to get nervous. They both did good at listening and trying to relax. Bailey got adjustments related to his migraines. He is off all his medication for prevention since July 1, 2010. He still has gotton about 1-2 "bad" headaches a month, and several more controllable ones. I do think there has been a significant decrease in the amount over the last year, which is why we took him off the meds. He seems to be doing about the same on the meds vs. off them currently. however there seems to have been a slight increase in the severity in the ones he does have recently. So this is where the chiropractor comes in now, been thinking of trying this with him for about a year and never thought really much about how much it could help. I am hoping these adjustments will help him overall and I won't have to call the neurologist back, cause all I for see him doing is reevaluating him for more medication. Bailey's neck was pushed forward, the bone at the base of the skull and top of the spine was putting pressure on blood vessels and limiting head movement. He also found an area in his upper back. When Bailey first laid on the table on his stomach, and turned his head from side to side his feet would move and were turned in. After the adjustment when he turned his head side to side his feet did not move and were more straight. I could visually see the improvement. I'm not exactly sure how this all impacts his headaches directly, but could start to understand his explaination on how the spine and nervous system work as a central indicator to entire body health. I am gullable, but I think my instincts are right on this. I was amazed, and thought to myself why I didn't try this for him earlier and could've elminated alot of frustrating years of headaches. Only time will tell if these adjustments will work for him....but I hold out more hope than I did the medication doses.
Hannah on the other hand, just brought her in for a check up too, not thinking much would be able to be done for her. Come to find out, her stomach issues, pancreas ( diabetes issues), digestive areas in her spine were also affected. Not to say that her misalignement caused her diabetes, but being born via c-section and having a harder time clearing her lungs as a baby, and then the subsequent RSV bouts, and breathing issues until she was 2, could have very well been a factor in her diabetes. Never will know for sure, but he adjusted her spine and neck as well, which she had a real sore spot in her mid back where she admitted was sore when he pressed on it, it was the exact spot related to stomach, pancreas, and well in general... digestion. She gets tummy aches all the time, and have diagnosed it has diabetes related constipation. May sound gross, but she rarely flushes and I tend to see all her little poops. With an hour of being home from her appointment, she used the bathroom and even she didn't realize it at first, but she had the biggest poop I have ever seen with her. Could these adjustment really help to control her diabetes better, and allow her tummy to function normal? Again I was amazed. That appointment was just the beginning. They go back in tomorrow for reassessment.
As for me, I try not to complain too much, but I still feel the soreness in my knees. Walking, stairs, and bending is mostly going ok...still can't put pressure on my knees by kneeling. Touching the area under the knee caps, feels sore and a numb sensation all in one. My bruising on my knees and legs and even ankles is still there to a degree. I really had some deep tissue bruises and they are lingering on. I had kinseio tape put all over my legs and knees for 2 weeks and that is supposed to help lift the skin to allow the dead cells, fluid, and blood to pass more freely, healing the bruising and swelling faster. It did help. Had that all taken off today.
I worked at the hotel front desk this past weekend. It was my first attempt back to work. It was a slow weekend at work so that helped, and it went well. I started feeling some sore spots and tightness in my neck, upper back and shoulder areas. So that was a change to the pressure and pain I had in my lower back. Today he adjusted me a little different, and focused on my neck and upper back, which included the neck and back cracks that are more common when you think of chiropractors....it was a weird feeling to hear my neck crack, and I didn't like that so well, but it didn't hurt...just weird. He still is trying to align my knees, but they are improving. Back again on Thursday for me. I think the end is drawing near with the accident treatments. I really am feeling much better.
My goals:
*rest as much as possible this week yet
*started taking vitamin supplements last week and to continue to learn about
living healthy
*this week start to work on eating better
*start to do a few exercises to gain muscle strength back by next week
*to get back to housekeeping the last week of October
*by first week in November have a routine and schedule down for working out
slow at first building up to weight loss.
*continue with chiropractor treatments as recommended
I even got the kids in for a chiropractic check up on Thursday after school. They had no clue as I made the appointment for them after my morning appt that day. They were surprised to hear where they were going and only had about 20 min to get nervous. They both did good at listening and trying to relax. Bailey got adjustments related to his migraines. He is off all his medication for prevention since July 1, 2010. He still has gotton about 1-2 "bad" headaches a month, and several more controllable ones. I do think there has been a significant decrease in the amount over the last year, which is why we took him off the meds. He seems to be doing about the same on the meds vs. off them currently. however there seems to have been a slight increase in the severity in the ones he does have recently. So this is where the chiropractor comes in now, been thinking of trying this with him for about a year and never thought really much about how much it could help. I am hoping these adjustments will help him overall and I won't have to call the neurologist back, cause all I for see him doing is reevaluating him for more medication. Bailey's neck was pushed forward, the bone at the base of the skull and top of the spine was putting pressure on blood vessels and limiting head movement. He also found an area in his upper back. When Bailey first laid on the table on his stomach, and turned his head from side to side his feet would move and were turned in. After the adjustment when he turned his head side to side his feet did not move and were more straight. I could visually see the improvement. I'm not exactly sure how this all impacts his headaches directly, but could start to understand his explaination on how the spine and nervous system work as a central indicator to entire body health. I am gullable, but I think my instincts are right on this. I was amazed, and thought to myself why I didn't try this for him earlier and could've elminated alot of frustrating years of headaches. Only time will tell if these adjustments will work for him....but I hold out more hope than I did the medication doses.
Hannah on the other hand, just brought her in for a check up too, not thinking much would be able to be done for her. Come to find out, her stomach issues, pancreas ( diabetes issues), digestive areas in her spine were also affected. Not to say that her misalignement caused her diabetes, but being born via c-section and having a harder time clearing her lungs as a baby, and then the subsequent RSV bouts, and breathing issues until she was 2, could have very well been a factor in her diabetes. Never will know for sure, but he adjusted her spine and neck as well, which she had a real sore spot in her mid back where she admitted was sore when he pressed on it, it was the exact spot related to stomach, pancreas, and well in general... digestion. She gets tummy aches all the time, and have diagnosed it has diabetes related constipation. May sound gross, but she rarely flushes and I tend to see all her little poops. With an hour of being home from her appointment, she used the bathroom and even she didn't realize it at first, but she had the biggest poop I have ever seen with her. Could these adjustment really help to control her diabetes better, and allow her tummy to function normal? Again I was amazed. That appointment was just the beginning. They go back in tomorrow for reassessment.
As for me, I try not to complain too much, but I still feel the soreness in my knees. Walking, stairs, and bending is mostly going ok...still can't put pressure on my knees by kneeling. Touching the area under the knee caps, feels sore and a numb sensation all in one. My bruising on my knees and legs and even ankles is still there to a degree. I really had some deep tissue bruises and they are lingering on. I had kinseio tape put all over my legs and knees for 2 weeks and that is supposed to help lift the skin to allow the dead cells, fluid, and blood to pass more freely, healing the bruising and swelling faster. It did help. Had that all taken off today.
I worked at the hotel front desk this past weekend. It was my first attempt back to work. It was a slow weekend at work so that helped, and it went well. I started feeling some sore spots and tightness in my neck, upper back and shoulder areas. So that was a change to the pressure and pain I had in my lower back. Today he adjusted me a little different, and focused on my neck and upper back, which included the neck and back cracks that are more common when you think of chiropractors....it was a weird feeling to hear my neck crack, and I didn't like that so well, but it didn't hurt...just weird. He still is trying to align my knees, but they are improving. Back again on Thursday for me. I think the end is drawing near with the accident treatments. I really am feeling much better.
My goals:
*rest as much as possible this week yet
*started taking vitamin supplements last week and to continue to learn about
living healthy
*this week start to work on eating better
*start to do a few exercises to gain muscle strength back by next week
*to get back to housekeeping the last week of October
*by first week in November have a routine and schedule down for working out
slow at first building up to weight loss.
*continue with chiropractor treatments as recommended
Friday, October 1, 2010
May God bless our marriage always
We just celebrated 13 years of marriage, it was our anniversary on Septemeber 27. May God always be the center of our lives.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
isn't that awesome??
I was doing pretty good after resting for an entire week after my accident. Alot of my many sore muscles were no longer sore. My knees although still sore and swollen were giving me more mobility, walking was getting easier. So a little bit on Sat and Sunday (7-8 days post accident) I spent some time picking up the house and vacuuming. I didn't feel I over did it, and even got a little crabby with myself because I wasn't able to do what I wanted. The kids were pitching in when I needed them too, Bailey has been cutting the grass and Hannah cleaning litter boxes and feeding pets, fetching things when I couldn't get up, etc. but there were still lots of little messes.
Sunday I was able to get out of the house for the first time. We barrowed a truck from our brother in law, and I took the kids to sunday school and church. Steve has been working non stop though all this too, so to a point I had to stop resting and try to do a few things. Driving was tough, both emotionally and physically...it was hard to get behind a wheel of a big truck that I wasn't used to driving, all I could see was the crash in front of me and so very cautious of every car around me. On the way to church had to pass over the crash site on Hwy 12, everything was still marked up on the road, and some tire tracks visable.
My knees were very sore and my back started hurting more and more. Sitting hurts more than standing. I guess the stuff I was doing set my back into motion, because up until then I had no back or neck pain to speak of.
Saturday night I even had what I guess I'll call an anxiety attack. The house was suddenly very noisey, kids and animals running all over, husband antagonizing everyone. I was thinking of the next day and driving and needing to get out of the house like NOW. I just couldn't take it anymore and was sick of resting and being able to keep the house clean, and things orderly....everything suddenly felt caotic. I had a hard time breathing, my chest hurt, tears were coming uncontrollably...I was trying so hard to just relax and couldn't. It took several more hours before I finally was able to go to bed and sleep. Even though I was mentally exhausted, I was physically unable to relax. It eventually happened, I did relax and fell asleep, but not without alot of tossing and turning which probably didn't help my back.
Felt less stressed on the actual day I was to get out of the house and drive, Sunday morning came and that's all I needed, to be in the Lord's house instead of my own...it was heaven...besides the fact I still hurt:( I praised the Lord for being healthy enough to be there and tried to control my complaining for the rest of the day.
By Monday I was in so much pain in my lower back it hurt to move, sit, get up from sitting or laying, pretty much any movement was painful. I bought a heating pad and loaded up on the ibruprofen and finished my last few pills of vicodin. None of it seemed to help much...so Tuesday morning I called the chiropractor thinking that had to be my next option. Wasn't going back to the doctor I had last Monday since he was absolutly no help. I am so glad I called a chiropractor, because it was a big help.
I was so nervous, since I have never been to a chiropractor. I went to a office right next to where I work. The building is only a few years old and have seen people come and go from there like crazy, since I only work next door and out our hotel front door is a view of the clinic. It is owned by a dad and his 2 sons... all chiropractors. I got one of the sons, I believe the older one, still probably younger than me. He was very nice, easy going, and had an obvious attitude of excitment for his work and profession. I liked him right off the bat. That eased my worries. He talked me through everything, explained things in detail and then made sure I understood, by asking me every time if it made sense to me.
Basicly he could tell without xrays what my issues were just by listening to me and looking at my legs and back.
They are good that way.
He started with my head and neck, and although those areas didn't hurt, he did manage to find some sore spots. He did say they don't hurt NOW, but could in the future. I've heard that before too. 6 months down the road I could have severe neck pain.
He adjusted my neck by just having me turn my head each way and the table I was on certain parts of it jumped up and down. It didn't hurt at all. He also went from my ankles to my neck with me laying both on my stomach and my back, and adjusted my knees, hips, back and neck again. My right leg was 1/2" shorter than my left leg. He said my whole right side was really "jammed up" pretty good. My knee was looking pretty pushed up and that affects everything as well, like my hips back and neck. He used some sort of instrument to do something with my legs and knees as well...couldn't see that well, and I forgot what he said that was for, probably for nerves and muscles so things could straighten/loosen up.
Seriously after all that, my pain was better almost instantly. A little sore from the adjusting but definatly better. Was told to put ice on my back and knees, and stop the heat for now. Ice will calm and relax already heated up and inflammed discs that are pressing on nerves better.
He also reommended soemthing called Arnica Montana 30c, it's a natual remedy for stress, swelling and inflammation. He said he lived on it as a kid playing in sports. Haven't picked any of that up yet, but plan to once I get to a place that has some. Just sticking to ibuprofen for now....but plan to cut that out soon.
I still pride myself on being medication free, I do not take anything on a daily basis. I need to watch my weight though, because I forsee blood pressure medication in my future if I don't figure out how to control my weight. I do want to take supplements and vitamins as soon as I start to workout again, but for now taking nothing is kinda nice and I'm enjoying it.
I go back to the chiropractor tomorrow morning and still nervous, but excited too that my pain level has decreased significantly. Monday all day, and Tuesday morning I would say I was at about a 7-8 pain level on movement, and today it is at about 2-3
....isn't that awesome??
These are my knees 6 days after the accident...I will have to remember to post a pic of my knees once they are healed. Besides the bruises it's hard to tell the swelling and how my knees looked before. But these are swollen knees-- trust me.
Sunday I was able to get out of the house for the first time. We barrowed a truck from our brother in law, and I took the kids to sunday school and church. Steve has been working non stop though all this too, so to a point I had to stop resting and try to do a few things. Driving was tough, both emotionally and physically...it was hard to get behind a wheel of a big truck that I wasn't used to driving, all I could see was the crash in front of me and so very cautious of every car around me. On the way to church had to pass over the crash site on Hwy 12, everything was still marked up on the road, and some tire tracks visable.
My knees were very sore and my back started hurting more and more. Sitting hurts more than standing. I guess the stuff I was doing set my back into motion, because up until then I had no back or neck pain to speak of.
Saturday night I even had what I guess I'll call an anxiety attack. The house was suddenly very noisey, kids and animals running all over, husband antagonizing everyone. I was thinking of the next day and driving and needing to get out of the house like NOW. I just couldn't take it anymore and was sick of resting and being able to keep the house clean, and things orderly....everything suddenly felt caotic. I had a hard time breathing, my chest hurt, tears were coming uncontrollably...I was trying so hard to just relax and couldn't. It took several more hours before I finally was able to go to bed and sleep. Even though I was mentally exhausted, I was physically unable to relax. It eventually happened, I did relax and fell asleep, but not without alot of tossing and turning which probably didn't help my back.
Felt less stressed on the actual day I was to get out of the house and drive, Sunday morning came and that's all I needed, to be in the Lord's house instead of my own...it was heaven...besides the fact I still hurt:( I praised the Lord for being healthy enough to be there and tried to control my complaining for the rest of the day.
By Monday I was in so much pain in my lower back it hurt to move, sit, get up from sitting or laying, pretty much any movement was painful. I bought a heating pad and loaded up on the ibruprofen and finished my last few pills of vicodin. None of it seemed to help much...so Tuesday morning I called the chiropractor thinking that had to be my next option. Wasn't going back to the doctor I had last Monday since he was absolutly no help. I am so glad I called a chiropractor, because it was a big help.
I was so nervous, since I have never been to a chiropractor. I went to a office right next to where I work. The building is only a few years old and have seen people come and go from there like crazy, since I only work next door and out our hotel front door is a view of the clinic. It is owned by a dad and his 2 sons... all chiropractors. I got one of the sons, I believe the older one, still probably younger than me. He was very nice, easy going, and had an obvious attitude of excitment for his work and profession. I liked him right off the bat. That eased my worries. He talked me through everything, explained things in detail and then made sure I understood, by asking me every time if it made sense to me.
Basicly he could tell without xrays what my issues were just by listening to me and looking at my legs and back.
They are good that way.
He started with my head and neck, and although those areas didn't hurt, he did manage to find some sore spots. He did say they don't hurt NOW, but could in the future. I've heard that before too. 6 months down the road I could have severe neck pain.
He adjusted my neck by just having me turn my head each way and the table I was on certain parts of it jumped up and down. It didn't hurt at all. He also went from my ankles to my neck with me laying both on my stomach and my back, and adjusted my knees, hips, back and neck again. My right leg was 1/2" shorter than my left leg. He said my whole right side was really "jammed up" pretty good. My knee was looking pretty pushed up and that affects everything as well, like my hips back and neck. He used some sort of instrument to do something with my legs and knees as well...couldn't see that well, and I forgot what he said that was for, probably for nerves and muscles so things could straighten/loosen up.
Seriously after all that, my pain was better almost instantly. A little sore from the adjusting but definatly better. Was told to put ice on my back and knees, and stop the heat for now. Ice will calm and relax already heated up and inflammed discs that are pressing on nerves better.
He also reommended soemthing called Arnica Montana 30c, it's a natual remedy for stress, swelling and inflammation. He said he lived on it as a kid playing in sports. Haven't picked any of that up yet, but plan to once I get to a place that has some. Just sticking to ibuprofen for now....but plan to cut that out soon.
I still pride myself on being medication free, I do not take anything on a daily basis. I need to watch my weight though, because I forsee blood pressure medication in my future if I don't figure out how to control my weight. I do want to take supplements and vitamins as soon as I start to workout again, but for now taking nothing is kinda nice and I'm enjoying it.
I go back to the chiropractor tomorrow morning and still nervous, but excited too that my pain level has decreased significantly. Monday all day, and Tuesday morning I would say I was at about a 7-8 pain level on movement, and today it is at about 2-3
....isn't that awesome??
These are my knees 6 days after the accident...I will have to remember to post a pic of my knees once they are healed. Besides the bruises it's hard to tell the swelling and how my knees looked before. But these are swollen knees-- trust me.
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Kittens
These kittens wandered into our lives this summer. Bailey was in the garage and came to tell me that there were 2 kittens in there. Hannah bolted out the door to see. AWWWWW. They were so cute and so lost. They looked very healthy, so we played with them for a bit. We decided to keep them in the porch for the night. Hannah has been wanting a kitten for awhile, and even the day before we were at PetSmart looking at the cats and kittens for adoption. Just a little too much money and wasn't keen on more cats in the house. We do have 2 cats already, so it wasn't like she was being deprived. She dreamt of a kitten for her own, and we left it at that...a dream.
Kinda funny how we did end up keeping these kittens, and the whole family has enjoyed their presence. Hannah named them both. They are both girls, and she already had a named picked out, she always wanted to name her kitten, Stella, if it was a girl....so Stella it was. We went though alot of names trying to pick one out for the other kitten, and Hannah also came up with Bamboo for the other one. Bailey wanted Selena for her name, and I agreed with Bailey, but guess who won the name game???
They are very rambunctious especially at night and in the early morning hours, running all over the place...and are sleepy all day...pretty typical for a kitten I guess.
They are special in that they are sisters, we are pretty sure of it since they wandered away together, and that they BOTH have 5 toes on each paw. It is pretty silly and unique. Stella has 4 toes seperated by 1 toe which looks like a thumb, and Bamboo has 3 toes seperated by 2 toes which makes for one huge paw-- Normal cat paws have 4 toes.
These are Stella's paws....( didn't get a pic of Bamboo's yet but can kinda see her paws in all the pictures)
We took them to the vet for a checkup after we found them and they had ear mites and Stella had an upper respiratory infection...so we treated both kittens for both issues....they were about 2 months old when we found them. They are healthy now, and got their first shots a few weeks ago. They are gonna be spayed, declawed and get the 2nd set of shots in a few weeks or as soon as we get the money together :)
2 months old (taken after we found them)
3 1/2 months old (taken 9-17-10)
Bamboo
Stella
Kinda funny how we did end up keeping these kittens, and the whole family has enjoyed their presence. Hannah named them both. They are both girls, and she already had a named picked out, she always wanted to name her kitten, Stella, if it was a girl....so Stella it was. We went though alot of names trying to pick one out for the other kitten, and Hannah also came up with Bamboo for the other one. Bailey wanted Selena for her name, and I agreed with Bailey, but guess who won the name game???
They are very rambunctious especially at night and in the early morning hours, running all over the place...and are sleepy all day...pretty typical for a kitten I guess.
They are special in that they are sisters, we are pretty sure of it since they wandered away together, and that they BOTH have 5 toes on each paw. It is pretty silly and unique. Stella has 4 toes seperated by 1 toe which looks like a thumb, and Bamboo has 3 toes seperated by 2 toes which makes for one huge paw-- Normal cat paws have 4 toes.
These are Stella's paws....( didn't get a pic of Bamboo's yet but can kinda see her paws in all the pictures)
We took them to the vet for a checkup after we found them and they had ear mites and Stella had an upper respiratory infection...so we treated both kittens for both issues....they were about 2 months old when we found them. They are healthy now, and got their first shots a few weeks ago. They are gonna be spayed, declawed and get the 2nd set of shots in a few weeks or as soon as we get the money together :)
2 months old (taken after we found them)
3 1/2 months old (taken 9-17-10)
Bamboo
Stella
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
CRASH :(
I figured my last post was called "Stung" and an appropriate post name for the next one would be a simple one word too.. "Crash"
I was in a car accident on Saturday, Sept 11. Pretty scary! I was driving to work around 3:45pm. I live off of hwy 12, and work off of hwy 12....its a 2 lane country highway. I go though one town (Darwin) on my way and takes about 12 min to get to work-- straight shot....seems simple and the least likely place to get into an accident...but accidents can happen anytime anywhere. I had God on my side and came though relatively unharmed.
I was following a SUV- big Suburban type though Darwin. The SUV slowed through town-- posted speed limit is 45, and then stayed on Hwy 12 and started to speed back up to the posted 55mph, but then had her left blinker on almost like she wanted to turn but missed her turn??? We were just out of Darwin now and there was no turns, just corn fields LOL. So I slowed and then she sped up again and turned blinker off. Thought it was weird, but kept on my path to work.
I was back up to about 60 mph, and far enough behind her not to really think anything else was up....all of a sudden as I got closer to her, I realized she was slowing and almost at a stop on hwy, but it was too late, I must have glanced down or looked out my side window for a second because I never saw her slow or brake or signal or anything, and slammed into the back of the SUV at about 50-60 mph...I think I did realize she was too close at the last second and might of braked but it happened so fast there wasn't anything I could do once I realized she was there. I think she was attepting to make a u turn on the highway and didn't see any cars around her, because when I hit her, my van stayed pretty much in the lane, went slightly towards center line, and her SUV was across the opposite lane facing the other direction on the side of the road as if her wheel was planned to turn that u turn when I hit her. I think if I hit her dead on from the back, her SUV would have moved forward, not in a big circle. I guess it depends on how her wheel was, but anyway....I never did her story on why she stopped in the middle of the road, but did hear her daughter who was 11, tell the nurse her mom missed a turn-- they were gonna stop in Darwin to see the "Ball of Twine" (historic attraction in the town), which is why I believe she was gonna make a u turn later down the road.
There were 3 people in the SUV-- the mom (in her 50's) and her 11 yr old daughter and her daughters friend, also 11. It was my fault for not paying attention in those last seconds, but also her's for slowing in her lane/ almost to a stop and attempting a u turn...no citations were given and it was determined 50-50 fault.
The air bag went off in the van and it was smokey or something in the van from it, so I got out instinctively right away, my door did open, with a push and I just plopped down next to the van in the middle of the road, which is when I saw their SUV on the other side of the road kinda behind- across from me. I thought they'd be in front of me. I was coughing from all the smoke or whatever was in the van when I hit.
Almost instantly witnesses came and a lady stayed by my side till paramedics got there. This lady was really nice and kept me calm, and said she was from Dassel too-- It's gonna bug me, but I thnk I knew her, just wasn't for sure. She also said she would stop by my work and tell them what happened. Many others helped with traffic as my van and myself were in the middle of the hwy. Volunteer firefighter/rescue people were there first, then police, then about 2-3 ambulances.....there were 4 of us to transport. Myself-- it was my knees, and the other car was their necks-back it seemed. They were all strapped on the hard board with neck braces, and I got lifted on a stretcher cuz of my knees. They cut my pants to assess my knees. My neck or back wasn't a concern at that time. The only time my neck /back hurt was the next morning...when I woke up EVERYTHING HURT. I got an IV in the ambulance which was interesting cuz the ride was so bumpy, I'm not sure how she hit a vein. I was on oxygen too, cause of my coughing.
Xrays were taken on my legs and everything came back ok, nothing broken. The Dr that took care of me in the ER was very comforting. I was shaking so bad, had very high blood pressure, oxygen made me cold, ice packs on my knees felt cold... I just felt cold regardless,(temp was 98.1) so he kept bringing me warmed up blankets. I thought it was nice the first time and it felt so nice and warm....but he did it for me about 3 more times. Even the nurses were saying he must be on a warm blanket kick. Anyway I appreciated it. I got pain meds through my IV and that also relaxed me more, I even got the giggles at the end. Steve came back after going to fill my Rx and the doctor told him last I checked she has a case of the giggles. After about 3 hours in the ER I was discharged and Steve took me home in his truck....yup his messy green work truck...surprised there was room for me in there.
The mom and one of the girls was up walking around at this time too, the other girl was still strapped down with neck and back pain. She was only 11, and seemed to be in good spirits talking and such, and as the nurses were asking her pain level she would consistantly say a 9 or 10 out of 10. The nurses tried to explain to her if they cut off her arm would be the worst pain you ever had would you still rate your pain now a 9 or 10, and she said yes...although her attitude didn't indicate excruciaing pain they were being cautious with her. I bet it's hard to acess kids and them not having gone though many things like this, every plain owie is a pain level of 5-7 and something this tramatic would obviously be a 9-10 in their eyes.
I hope it wasn't anything serious, but will probably never know.
I am healing, and taking it easy-- Sunday was the worst day waking up with everything hurting....on 800mg of Ibruprofn and Vicodin every 4-6 hrs.
My knees were iced for the first few hours but havn't been doing anything else for them except rest.
It's mostly soft tissue damage, swelling, and bruising in my knees and should heal in a few weeks. My seat belt brusied my left shoulder-chest and stomach pretty good and the air bag left me with abrasions on both arms and under my chin. My neck and back have been doing surprisingly good and haven't had any pain in those areas, just some stiffness and soreness the first day, and some crackling when I turn my head side to side. I will keep a chiropractor in mind if anything more comes up later with that.
Mostly just want my knees and sore muscles to heal now. Each day it seems to be getting better.
My van which was a total loss...:(
I was in a car accident on Saturday, Sept 11. Pretty scary! I was driving to work around 3:45pm. I live off of hwy 12, and work off of hwy 12....its a 2 lane country highway. I go though one town (Darwin) on my way and takes about 12 min to get to work-- straight shot....seems simple and the least likely place to get into an accident...but accidents can happen anytime anywhere. I had God on my side and came though relatively unharmed.
I was following a SUV- big Suburban type though Darwin. The SUV slowed through town-- posted speed limit is 45, and then stayed on Hwy 12 and started to speed back up to the posted 55mph, but then had her left blinker on almost like she wanted to turn but missed her turn??? We were just out of Darwin now and there was no turns, just corn fields LOL. So I slowed and then she sped up again and turned blinker off. Thought it was weird, but kept on my path to work.
I was back up to about 60 mph, and far enough behind her not to really think anything else was up....all of a sudden as I got closer to her, I realized she was slowing and almost at a stop on hwy, but it was too late, I must have glanced down or looked out my side window for a second because I never saw her slow or brake or signal or anything, and slammed into the back of the SUV at about 50-60 mph...I think I did realize she was too close at the last second and might of braked but it happened so fast there wasn't anything I could do once I realized she was there. I think she was attepting to make a u turn on the highway and didn't see any cars around her, because when I hit her, my van stayed pretty much in the lane, went slightly towards center line, and her SUV was across the opposite lane facing the other direction on the side of the road as if her wheel was planned to turn that u turn when I hit her. I think if I hit her dead on from the back, her SUV would have moved forward, not in a big circle. I guess it depends on how her wheel was, but anyway....I never did her story on why she stopped in the middle of the road, but did hear her daughter who was 11, tell the nurse her mom missed a turn-- they were gonna stop in Darwin to see the "Ball of Twine" (historic attraction in the town), which is why I believe she was gonna make a u turn later down the road.
There were 3 people in the SUV-- the mom (in her 50's) and her 11 yr old daughter and her daughters friend, also 11. It was my fault for not paying attention in those last seconds, but also her's for slowing in her lane/ almost to a stop and attempting a u turn...no citations were given and it was determined 50-50 fault.
The air bag went off in the van and it was smokey or something in the van from it, so I got out instinctively right away, my door did open, with a push and I just plopped down next to the van in the middle of the road, which is when I saw their SUV on the other side of the road kinda behind- across from me. I thought they'd be in front of me. I was coughing from all the smoke or whatever was in the van when I hit.
Almost instantly witnesses came and a lady stayed by my side till paramedics got there. This lady was really nice and kept me calm, and said she was from Dassel too-- It's gonna bug me, but I thnk I knew her, just wasn't for sure. She also said she would stop by my work and tell them what happened. Many others helped with traffic as my van and myself were in the middle of the hwy. Volunteer firefighter/rescue people were there first, then police, then about 2-3 ambulances.....there were 4 of us to transport. Myself-- it was my knees, and the other car was their necks-back it seemed. They were all strapped on the hard board with neck braces, and I got lifted on a stretcher cuz of my knees. They cut my pants to assess my knees. My neck or back wasn't a concern at that time. The only time my neck /back hurt was the next morning...when I woke up EVERYTHING HURT. I got an IV in the ambulance which was interesting cuz the ride was so bumpy, I'm not sure how she hit a vein. I was on oxygen too, cause of my coughing.
Xrays were taken on my legs and everything came back ok, nothing broken. The Dr that took care of me in the ER was very comforting. I was shaking so bad, had very high blood pressure, oxygen made me cold, ice packs on my knees felt cold... I just felt cold regardless,(temp was 98.1) so he kept bringing me warmed up blankets. I thought it was nice the first time and it felt so nice and warm....but he did it for me about 3 more times. Even the nurses were saying he must be on a warm blanket kick. Anyway I appreciated it. I got pain meds through my IV and that also relaxed me more, I even got the giggles at the end. Steve came back after going to fill my Rx and the doctor told him last I checked she has a case of the giggles. After about 3 hours in the ER I was discharged and Steve took me home in his truck....yup his messy green work truck...surprised there was room for me in there.
The mom and one of the girls was up walking around at this time too, the other girl was still strapped down with neck and back pain. She was only 11, and seemed to be in good spirits talking and such, and as the nurses were asking her pain level she would consistantly say a 9 or 10 out of 10. The nurses tried to explain to her if they cut off her arm would be the worst pain you ever had would you still rate your pain now a 9 or 10, and she said yes...although her attitude didn't indicate excruciaing pain they were being cautious with her. I bet it's hard to acess kids and them not having gone though many things like this, every plain owie is a pain level of 5-7 and something this tramatic would obviously be a 9-10 in their eyes.
I hope it wasn't anything serious, but will probably never know.
I am healing, and taking it easy-- Sunday was the worst day waking up with everything hurting....on 800mg of Ibruprofn and Vicodin every 4-6 hrs.
My knees were iced for the first few hours but havn't been doing anything else for them except rest.
It's mostly soft tissue damage, swelling, and bruising in my knees and should heal in a few weeks. My seat belt brusied my left shoulder-chest and stomach pretty good and the air bag left me with abrasions on both arms and under my chin. My neck and back have been doing surprisingly good and haven't had any pain in those areas, just some stiffness and soreness the first day, and some crackling when I turn my head side to side. I will keep a chiropractor in mind if anything more comes up later with that.
Mostly just want my knees and sore muscles to heal now. Each day it seems to be getting better.
My van which was a total loss...:(
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
stung
Last year in August I got stung by a yellow jacket bee in my leg. It went right through my shorts and got me in the upper thigh. Those things are mean, I discovered the hive underneath my flower pot while I was watering my flowers, the pot is broken on the bottom and they built their hive from a small hole from under the pot, when I discovered it, they all came swarming out, which is when I got stung.
Here's the hive from last year ( Aug 2009)
This year was no different, except their location. Hannah discovered one bee in her hair as she walked out the back door. We thought nothing much of it...Hannah was kinda freaked out that it was in her hair, but we didn't think there were many of them close by.
Then as I was headed in the door I briefly saw the bees swirling over head, and one came right at my face. STUNG !! Hannah was already in the house, thankfully. It got me right under my right eye, and I came in and put ice on it. I thought to myself...not again. Oh well it didn't seem too bad, it hurt of course, but I contiuned on. Took a shower, and went back out to the gargage to finish up a few things I was working on for our sale coming up. Steve went out to spray the nasty bees, and discovered a hole above our back door where they must have a hive inside the wall. He sprayed them good and also hosed the hole with water.
About 10 min later Steve came out to the garage and asked me if I heard Hannah. no..why? She just stepped on a half dead bee and it stung her little toe. It must have gotton into the house after spraying them. I guess she was loud. So when I came in the house(through the front door...LOL), she was sitting on the kitchen floor with cream on her toe. Steve just grabbed the anti-itch cream I use for her mosquito bites, and that seemed to help calm her down and for whatever reason made it feel better. What about ice I asked him and he said oh, didn't think of that (cute). I guess he didn't see me with an ice pack on my face after I got stung.
Hannah's toe felt better already the next morning (maybe it was the cream...ha ha), it was a little red but not too bad looking. It's a good thing, she doesn't need anything more to deal with. Me on the other hand my eye was getting swollen right away. Got a little worse in the morning, and by today is even more swollen. It's pretty itchy too, so I think the swelling should start go down after today (I hope). I have been putting ice on it off and on, and took a benedryl last night. All I have right now is my dog's benedryl which is 50 mg instead of the normal 25mg, so that makes me real sleepy and only took it last night so far. I must have more of an allergic reaction to bee stings. I have been stung at least 3 other times and they also swelled up and became itchy, but at least it wasn't on my face where it's so noticable.
excuse my ugly mug, but here's my swollen eye
Here's the hive from last year ( Aug 2009)
This year was no different, except their location. Hannah discovered one bee in her hair as she walked out the back door. We thought nothing much of it...Hannah was kinda freaked out that it was in her hair, but we didn't think there were many of them close by.
Then as I was headed in the door I briefly saw the bees swirling over head, and one came right at my face. STUNG !! Hannah was already in the house, thankfully. It got me right under my right eye, and I came in and put ice on it. I thought to myself...not again. Oh well it didn't seem too bad, it hurt of course, but I contiuned on. Took a shower, and went back out to the gargage to finish up a few things I was working on for our sale coming up. Steve went out to spray the nasty bees, and discovered a hole above our back door where they must have a hive inside the wall. He sprayed them good and also hosed the hole with water.
About 10 min later Steve came out to the garage and asked me if I heard Hannah. no..why? She just stepped on a half dead bee and it stung her little toe. It must have gotton into the house after spraying them. I guess she was loud. So when I came in the house(through the front door...LOL), she was sitting on the kitchen floor with cream on her toe. Steve just grabbed the anti-itch cream I use for her mosquito bites, and that seemed to help calm her down and for whatever reason made it feel better. What about ice I asked him and he said oh, didn't think of that (cute). I guess he didn't see me with an ice pack on my face after I got stung.
Hannah's toe felt better already the next morning (maybe it was the cream...ha ha), it was a little red but not too bad looking. It's a good thing, she doesn't need anything more to deal with. Me on the other hand my eye was getting swollen right away. Got a little worse in the morning, and by today is even more swollen. It's pretty itchy too, so I think the swelling should start go down after today (I hope). I have been putting ice on it off and on, and took a benedryl last night. All I have right now is my dog's benedryl which is 50 mg instead of the normal 25mg, so that makes me real sleepy and only took it last night so far. I must have more of an allergic reaction to bee stings. I have been stung at least 3 other times and they also swelled up and became itchy, but at least it wasn't on my face where it's so noticable.
excuse my ugly mug, but here's my swollen eye
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Summer of swimming and baseball
Hannah has been doing alot of swimming this summer, including lessons and swimming in our backyard pool and Bailey has been doing the baseball thing. His team is undefeated for the season, and became tournament champs....never loosing a game.
Included are some pictures of Hannah swimming and Bailey playing baseball.
Hannah and her cousin Audri in swimming lessons (Audri first on the left, then next is Hannah)
Hannah swimming to her teacher
Hannah swimming in our pool
swimming in our pool with Audri
Bailey and baseball
Championship game ( July 27, 2010)
Champs
Included are some pictures of Hannah swimming and Bailey playing baseball.
Hannah and her cousin Audri in swimming lessons (Audri first on the left, then next is Hannah)
Hannah swimming to her teacher
Hannah swimming in our pool
swimming in our pool with Audri
Bailey and baseball
Championship game ( July 27, 2010)
Champs
Friday, May 21, 2010
Life after a diabetes cure??
Hmmmm. Life after a cure? It's hard to imagine.
I think on the day of a cure, I'd want to pack everyone up in the car and head to the beach. We would eat, play in the sand and swim all day long. I would throw a big bag of chips down on the blanket and let her have at it.
I would never want to look at another carb count for the rest of my life. I would never again count out 55 fish crackers. I would throw away all but one set of measuring cups. I would fill our top kitchen cabinet with kitchen supplies instead of diabetes or pump supplies.
"Feeling low" would simply mean that she was sad. And when I'd find her crying, the first thing I'd do, instead of reach for her meter, would be to hug her.
An invitation to a sleep over would no longer send chills down my spine. A trip to get ice cream or go to a movie would be much less intimidating and buffet style meals would be friendly again.
Maybe spontaneous adventures would return to our lives. Maybe. I'm just saying, I have difficulty with this one, diabetes or not. There is enough to plan for when leaving home, much less remembering if we have all her supplies.
freedom..... away from blood tests, hurts and anxieties, needle pokes and bruises and always being attached to a pump, connecting and disconnecting for activities and swimming, testing and more testing-- "not again, didn't we just test 3 hours ago why do we have to do it again".
No more wondering what this disease is doing to her body long term.
Maybe someday....
I think on the day of a cure, I'd want to pack everyone up in the car and head to the beach. We would eat, play in the sand and swim all day long. I would throw a big bag of chips down on the blanket and let her have at it.
I would never want to look at another carb count for the rest of my life. I would never again count out 55 fish crackers. I would throw away all but one set of measuring cups. I would fill our top kitchen cabinet with kitchen supplies instead of diabetes or pump supplies.
"Feeling low" would simply mean that she was sad. And when I'd find her crying, the first thing I'd do, instead of reach for her meter, would be to hug her.
An invitation to a sleep over would no longer send chills down my spine. A trip to get ice cream or go to a movie would be much less intimidating and buffet style meals would be friendly again.
Maybe spontaneous adventures would return to our lives. Maybe. I'm just saying, I have difficulty with this one, diabetes or not. There is enough to plan for when leaving home, much less remembering if we have all her supplies.
freedom..... away from blood tests, hurts and anxieties, needle pokes and bruises and always being attached to a pump, connecting and disconnecting for activities and swimming, testing and more testing-- "not again, didn't we just test 3 hours ago why do we have to do it again".
No more wondering what this disease is doing to her body long term.
Maybe someday....
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Hannah got her pump packs already yesterday, she was so happy to try them out. I got some pictures of her wearing the purple one. She likes them.
Hannah's appointment for the lichen sclerosis went well yesterday too, everything looks good, in fact great... and she said to start, we will see her in 6 months again and to report if we had to follow the action plan, and then it will be every year most likely, depending on how many problems this causes. So far so good. We have our 3 step plan to follow with the ointments, so we just wait and see. We haven't had to apply anything for about a month. Since this thing didn't go away on it's own for over a year, we expect it to come back at some point.
Her itchy spot started to itch again last night, we applied more cream and I thought of the idea of cold on the area, so applied an ice pack and it helped alot. whew. It looks like hives or an allergic reaction-- bumpy swollen skin in just that small area of a previous site. Talked to the diabetes nurse educator yesterday and she told me to apply hydrocortisone cream, and told me a few other things that I was already kinda doing....she wasn't sure what it could be except a reaction to the site or wipes, could be an infection, but just to keep doing what I'm doing and if it gets worse to have her seen. This morning went off without a hitch, and she never mentioned it, so as long as she doesn't touch it, it may just go away.
Hannah and her pump
Lilacs are in bloom and smell so pretty
Hannah's appointment for the lichen sclerosis went well yesterday too, everything looks good, in fact great... and she said to start, we will see her in 6 months again and to report if we had to follow the action plan, and then it will be every year most likely, depending on how many problems this causes. So far so good. We have our 3 step plan to follow with the ointments, so we just wait and see. We haven't had to apply anything for about a month. Since this thing didn't go away on it's own for over a year, we expect it to come back at some point.
Her itchy spot started to itch again last night, we applied more cream and I thought of the idea of cold on the area, so applied an ice pack and it helped alot. whew. It looks like hives or an allergic reaction-- bumpy swollen skin in just that small area of a previous site. Talked to the diabetes nurse educator yesterday and she told me to apply hydrocortisone cream, and told me a few other things that I was already kinda doing....she wasn't sure what it could be except a reaction to the site or wipes, could be an infection, but just to keep doing what I'm doing and if it gets worse to have her seen. This morning went off without a hitch, and she never mentioned it, so as long as she doesn't touch it, it may just go away.
Hannah and her pump
Lilacs are in bloom and smell so pretty
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