Tuesday, May 7, 2013

It's a party!!

Welcome to my Pity Party. It's a doozy. Be sure to bring your own prescription pain reliever because I'm not sharing.

Last fall when I was making the switch from walking outdoors to walking indoors on a treadmill I did something to my knee. It swelled up, was horribly painful and warm to the touch. Went to the doctor and was diagnosed with bursitis. Which in my mind is something that affects you when you are 90. A month of rest and ice, and it was all better.

Fast forward to April of this year. When we headed to Kansas for AFA, my knee kind of hurt. I walked a lot at AFA, and my knee swelled and hurt more. The bursitis was back. Then I spent 15 hours on a bus and my knee and spine (arthritis) were P.I.S.S.E.D. O.F.F.  I have never been so grateful that I didn't have to drive and could take all Vicodin I needed.

By the time I was back from all the April traveling, I had had enough and called the doc. I was taking more Vicodin than I ever had in my life (Vicodin will get it's very own post some day) and was in near constant pain. Of course, the doc (not my regular GP) said she couldn't do anything for me, and referred me to an ortho doc. I was told he would be able to give me a shot of cortisone into my knee and everything would be honky-dory.

Except that didn't happen. First, I had to explain to the ortho doc why I couldn't take nsaids (advil, aspirin, aleve) for inflammation. Then he told me I needed to lose weight (duh) and stay off of the knee for a month. Then he would consider a cortisone injection. He told me I should use a walker. I said no. I countered with the idea of a cane. He said no. We compromised on crutches, which I already own from when I dropped a TV on my foot 2 years ago (that was a fun experience).

I've now been on crutches for 2 days and the stress has caused a flare in the psoriatic arthritis in my hands, wrists and neck. I am just so frustrated and so fucking tired of being in pain.

I really need Shirley McClain to run screaming "GIVE MY DAUGHTER THE SHOT!!!!!" (If you don't get that reference, you should be sad and ashamed that you are not living the fullest life possible because you've not seen "Terms of Endearment") But seriously, how many fucking doctors do I have to go through to get a damn cortisone shot in my knee. Of the 5 doctors I have seen in the last 2 months, every single one has offered to give me/refill my Vicodin rx, but I can't get anyone to give me actual pain relief.

I keep telling myself to "suck it up" and "it will get better" and all those other bullshit affirmations we tell ourselves. But it's not getting better. And it's causing a real crimp in my usually positive attitude.

So . . . I'm having a Pity Party! I'm serving Vicodin every 6 hours and ice to the knee every 4 hours. This is all being washed down with massive quantities of diet Pepsi. And since I can't really do anything, I'm throwing this Pity Party in my filthy house. With a view of my ugly yard that really needs some work. Come on over. But you may want to bring your own chair as mine are covered with cat hair and that isn't changing any time soon.

3 comments:

  1. Bonnie Clark JefferisMay 7, 2013 at 10:28 PM

    Find someone who knows the football or basketball coach and/or sports medicine guy who works with the teams at your univ, then ask him which local sports doc will give you the shot. My mom has very little problems from getting a piece of her hip fixed by the sports surgeon who just happened to be on duty in the ER. Since then, I have learned a lot about the inflexibility of regular docs and the flexibility of sports docs.

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  2. I'm stunned you're receiving such resistance to cortisone injections. That seems to be the go to option here in Pittsburgh.

    I think you need to request to be sent to a Pain Management specialist. They will find the right combination of injections and medications to get you back on your feet. They'll take into account your entire medical history. For a Dr to tell someone with arthritis in their spine and hands to use crutches is patently absurd.

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  3. Totally agree with anonymous. Esp the last sentence.

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