And if it jumps on this boat, I am going to bubble it! I won't name names as to who might have said this (it wasn't my daughter Tori) but that comment got alot of laughs this last weekend when a quiet Saturday afternoon boat ride turned to raucous when a mallard duck decided to camp out on the swim platform of our boat. I guess that is why they say, don't feed the ducks?
I have totally missed writing the past two weeks. I have so much on my mind! Everyday I think of something I want to write about, but then life takes over and before I know it is 11:00 p.m. and I decide that I shouldn't keep my eyes open any longer thinking about how busy I already am the next day. My life has been a good busy. My new job was supposed to bring more calmness into my life, but so far it is a frenzy. But I will repeat: a good frenzy. I feel good every day and I think that is the most I can expect for now.
I took some time this week to catch up on doctor's appointments. Standard physical, scheduling my annual MRI scans, follow up with the neurologist, blood work. All the not-so-fun, but alas, necessary check-ins we need. My primary care physician put some fear in me because for about 6 months not only has my left leg been getting weaker, it also has very poor circulation. Like everything else, I thought with a good diet and exercise, gentle stretching, moving during my work day so I am not confined to my desk chair would all help to improve the symptoms I was having. I didn't feel any pain, or numbness...it was just cold and sometimes even a purply color. Not so pretty. After talking to my doctor she indicated that it was a cause for concern greater than I anticipated. All she needed to say was "if untreated, the weakness could reach a point of no return." No return. Really? Now that scared me. I've been making changes in my life to strengthen my leg and now you're telling me I might not be able too? Yikes. She recommended seeing a vascular specialist, but first checking in with the neurologist to see if it was related to my MS. My neurologist told me that circulation issues were very rare in MS patients and it likely wasn't linked. During our discussion we talked about the spine, and how I do have a small lesion on my spinal cord and a bulging disc that may be resting on a nerve and how not all disc issues are caused by a significant event such as a car accident and then <BAM> it hit me! In January during one of a million (yes, a million) snow storms we had this past winter I took a pretty hard fall while carrying Tori. Combine an extra 25 lbs. of weight with a slip on the snow and ice, landing right on my tailbone, and leaving me motionless for a good minute, might be cause for some residual injury to the old spinal cord that would of course unveil itself in a sneaky and subtle way. So now I have that theory to contend with and probably a couple of follow up visits to a spinal specialist and a chriopractor. Long story short: I feel relieved that it is not linked to my MS because it is another tick in the "this can be fixed" column after some therapy of some sort, or maybe just time. That is, if my theory is correct.
The lesson I learned here is that often times those of us with a critical illness, and even those of us who are completely healthy, tend to direct our ailments onto one particular course, which in my case is MS. And while my fall back in January didn't exactly demand medical attention, I only keep the memory of that event in my mind as the after effects of a crappy New England snow storm. I mean, I have MS so everything odd that goes wrong must be intertwined. Nope, wrong. For the future I will listen to my body a little more carefully, and maybe schedule my appointments more timely too. And more importantly, not allow MS to define me.
One other life lesson I learned these past few weeks has to do with speaking and sharing your passion. When you do activities that you love, you attract people of similar likeness. I appreciate everyone who has commented on this blog so far via this website or private message. I am touched by the people in my life.
And back to the duck story, Tori has been belting out quacks with enthusiasm, Russ has about 1500 photos on the camera of said duck, I am still figuring out how you might "bubble" something and our dear friend Kris who accompanied us that afternoon, well she can chalk up that moment to another crazy and amusing day in our lives!
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