Not Much Progress

Here I sit!  I am getting more mobile but a trip from FR to bathroom and back is about all I can do before the pain gets to be too much.

I have appts. for a sonogram at cardiologist followed by meeting with the orthopedic dr.  Hopefully they will get together and decide if this is a vein or nerve problem.  

I cancelled our two week apartment reservation in Troy.  To get my money back I had to cancel by tomorrow.  Our time frame has been changed to maybe leaving on July 1.  We will stay at Hilton Tru for our shortened stay if we get to go.  Our bottom line is being in Columbus on July 11 for the first shooting competition.  

‘

‘

Not much else going on.  Watching lots of BritBox on TV.  Ted is doing a great job feeding and caring for me.  We do have a lunch and dinner invitation for tomorrow.  Ted will drop me off at front door with my cane so I just have to walk to the table.  I think I can do that.  He is going stir crazy so I am going to push through for him.

‘

Well, I made it out to eat with drop off curb service and my cane.  Ted found a tool and hubcap for the motorhome so we met the present owners after she had a doctor appt near us to give it to them.  That evening our nephew Greg, visiting from Illinois to golf in an invitational at Carlton Woods, took us to Citizens Grille  for dinner. It was the only meal we had with him.  He ate all other three meals at the golf club.  Such easy company!  Our neighborhood lunch was the next day and Anna from next door drove me and fussed over me getting in and out of the car.  She is my angel!  

It was off to the vein and nerve doctors.  They both seem to think this is an aggravated nerve issue.  The sonogram indicated nothing going on with my ablated vein but one that was supposed to be closed has blood running through it.  I really hesitate to let them try again!  

The orthopedic guy who believes this is more a pain management nerve issue ordered back X-rays.  When they took my cane away and said stand up straight I thought I would pass out. THE PAIN!  It showed I have a questionable L4 and I have a slight scoliosis curve that curves one way for a short distance then curves back until the spine is straight and keeps my hips level.  I never knew I had that! Add in the arthritis and spinal stenosis diagnosis and it is a wonder I can walk around at all.  

So … he ordered an MRI that will be done next Friday.  He also gave me a steroid pack and it has helped immensely.  I am continuing the gabapentin.  By next Monday we should have some answers, know how I am feeling and can make a decision of about when we should leave for the Midwest.

In the meantime I booked our flights to Boston for our New England fall tour and paid off that trip.  Good to go!  Eileen and Tom are all set too.

Our 2025 Family Reunion will be held at Geneva on the Lake, OH and our cottages are ready to be booked.  My family has three.  Six in one, 4 in another, 3 or 4 in the third.  It is a bit pricey for my taste so I am going to not sleep for the 48 hours I am there!  We will probably visit Marblehead, Put in Bay, Cedar Point, and maybe a few other places. 

Our two 4-day weekends in Columbus are paid and one of the two days for next year are paid.  I have insurance on everything!  Just praying we stay well enough to do this all.  

I had an appointment at MDAnderson to discuss my continuation of the hormone therapy due to one of the side effects being osteoporosis.  I didn’t want to get debilitated with bone issues if the pills were contributing to what is going on.  Thankfully my doctors are all on the same computer system so Dr. O could see everything from my ER visit on.  She said my spine was fine last year and the MRI will indicate any change.  If there is no change, there is no reason to take the chance and stop the pill.  She also indicated it will only be for 5 years (I have already done 27 months)  and they would never indicate to continue on to 10 years.  

The MRI report is in but has not been read by my care team yet.  There is a lot of scary stuff, a good bit of it  part of being 78+!  The L4 Dr. B was concerned about from the x-rays shows impingement of the exiting root nerve from L-4.  There is not much I can do until they get back to me.  I have requested an appointment to discuss these findings.  Depending on proceeding affects our travel plans.  

I drove myself to the nail salon which is just across the highway to get a pedicure.  I told her not to touch my left leg!  Yesterday I drive myself a lot further to play cards at Janet’s.  I went early to park in the drive so I had a short distance to walk.  Everything went fine but I didn’t win!

I am not sure when I will have more news.  Until then just remember me in your prayers.  I can walk but not for long and not too far.  But at least I can get around the house doing small tasks.

,  

Three Things Done

Our AC problem, beyond the drain needing cleared and a flexible hose replacing a hard pipe, the new coil installed called for a drain pan and they just didn’t install one!  Once one was located and installed it has all been working perfectly.  

Our yard needed work!  Two years ago our neighbor wanted no part of replacing the common .”good neighbor” fence so we just had the back done.  With our new neighbors getting a new fence, we agreed to pay our half of the common fence.  Our opposite neighbor was ok all along so the fence is now complete though several colors as the wood ages.  

Our back corner was the site of a stump for many years until it finally rotted away.  Fedilia and Christo who did my front oval did the corner digging up lots of buried bull rock, washed it all, and built a “creek bed”  from the next yard across the back, creating a triangle, to the easement in back to help water movement.  They planted some perennials.  The sod has taken very well with all the rain.  Success!  

The doors in the kitchen will be hung tomorrow.  Thursday night and Friday morning, with some help from Anna, we restocked the cabinets.  I gave 6 shelves of stuff away.  I have no intention of filling the empty space! 

Christine had skipped cleaning two weeks ago because of the flood waters so we finished up loading everything away in the kitchen just as she arrived.  It felt so good to have accomplished so much in projects and then have the house cleaned!  Now we can take our trip without things hanging over our head.  

Doors installed!  We are pleased.  Certainly lightens up the kitchen that has no natural light.  

I invited 3 neighborhood couples to celebrate Memorial Day with us but that didn’t happen.  I had my red/white/blue decorations and table settings all ready.  The menu  was fixed and Ted was going to smoke an 8# Pork shoulder … and then I was in the ER being diagnosed with Superficial Thrombophlebitis.  It was 2017 when I was hospitalized with a DVT and PE and had to cancel a Memorial Day outing planned for here at home.  No more Memorial Day invites from me!  

I was sent home with 4 prescriptions none of them for pain. I was miserable until Tuesday when I could finally contact my cardiologist and orthopedic doctors.  

Life came to a standstill.  I can hardly walk, it is so painful.  I saw my cardiologist and he said he thought it was a pinched nerve traveling down my leg from stenosis at the base of my spine.  But it was who the ER told me to see due to the ablations I had recently.  

I was then sent to the ortho hip guy who tended to agree with them.  He said give it a few weeks to heal before starting a nerve work up.  This week was my follow up for the ablations and my doctor was back from vacation.  Going with the neuropathy diagnosis she gave me a gabapentin script and scheduled an ultrasound in 10 days.  In the meantime, I can walk short distances with my walker.  A trip from the bedroom to the kitchen and preparing a cup of coffee will do me in and I just flop on the couch.  

We are adjusting our departure date to see how good I get and will I be able. or want, to travel.  Our hard dates are a need to be in Columbus 7/11-16 and 8/1-5.  The rest of the time we can split between Cincinnati, Michigan and the family cabins at Elk Lake in Kentucky.

I will update as my condition improves (or not).  We won’t be going anywhere or doing anything so there won’t be much to say.