Feeling more defeated today. I did get some holy basil, and with a couple of warmer days, my chest felt significantly better. Then it got cold again. Today I can hardly talk without coughing and choking. Looking into heat lights for the bathroom since that’s the coldest room right now. Yes, one can steam things up several minutes to warm things up, but why? My spouse loves hot steamy showers anyway, so a heated light might be a good permanent addition.
Only doing a minimum non-heart-raising exercises which is stupid. I might as well put future appointments on hold, since I'm not going to make as much progress as I would if I could breathe normally. Heavy duty prescription and professional strenth bio-freeze numbs it enough to get to sleep at night. But as I may have mentioned, seems pretty redic to have to go to such an extent, or to have to put things on hold until we get indoor temperature control. Maybe I can resume PT in March or April, for the brief window before it gets too hot (which is May). There's no way I can deal with 100+ temperatures where it "cools" down to 85-90 at 2am. I've got doctor appointments by then. I'll have to ask for a note. (And maybe look for a cheap lawyer.)
Work is unpleasant. All around, just irritating environment.
Tuesday, January 28, 2025
Friday, January 24, 2025
P is for Pleurisy
Still in a world of hurt. Here’s what I’ve tried so far.
• Meloxicam 15mg – supposedly one of the stronger prescription NSAIDs one can get.
• Heating pad.
• Warm water vapor
• Drinking warm liquids
• Salonpas
• Supplements: ginger, turmeric, garlic, and vitamin C.
The fact that salonpas on top of a prescription anti-inflammatory isn't kicking it has me concerned. Have I become immune to nsaid power? It didn’t help much for my shoulder, but the fact that it’s partially torn could have something to do with that. I could try pro strength biofreeze. Wonder if the strong smell would be too bothersome. After all, coughing makes it worse. Guess it’s worth a shot?
Only other thing I can think of is digging out those old cloth masks from COVID. Breathing in cold air is what kills me. In cold winters, I’d always try to put a scarf over my face. Most of us know how warm air feels with those masks, right? Where the heck did I put those . . . Looking online there are a few other herbs that may or may not help. Evaluating possibilities for overnight Amazon shipment. But when additional searches say said items may or may not be harmful for ingestion . . .
One could question if I have a cold. Sure. No other symptoms though, and this came on exactly when the heat went out. I’ve had bouts of this in the past, so it feels suspiciously familiar, and the causality of cold air is know and logical. Sure, could be wrong.
The real question is, should I keep doing my blasted PT exercises or not? The biggest thing I see online for pleurisy is rest, rest, rest, and remove the trigger. Can’t remove the trigger yet. Tried doing only a few reps of the exercises slowly, then stopping. But this could require a dozen or more mini-exercise sessions, and if it’s aggravating things . . . Do I cancel my PT appointments until we get his in remission? Eeesh.
As nice as it is that I happened to have meloxicam on-hand, I still think one shouldn't have to go to such extremes because of sub-par living conditions. We can buy another space heater, humidifier, and so on, but should we have to because the owner is too cheap to fix things?
• Meloxicam 15mg – supposedly one of the stronger prescription NSAIDs one can get.
• Heating pad.
• Warm water vapor
• Drinking warm liquids
• Salonpas
• Supplements: ginger, turmeric, garlic, and vitamin C.
The fact that salonpas on top of a prescription anti-inflammatory isn't kicking it has me concerned. Have I become immune to nsaid power? It didn’t help much for my shoulder, but the fact that it’s partially torn could have something to do with that. I could try pro strength biofreeze. Wonder if the strong smell would be too bothersome. After all, coughing makes it worse. Guess it’s worth a shot?
Only other thing I can think of is digging out those old cloth masks from COVID. Breathing in cold air is what kills me. In cold winters, I’d always try to put a scarf over my face. Most of us know how warm air feels with those masks, right? Where the heck did I put those . . . Looking online there are a few other herbs that may or may not help. Evaluating possibilities for overnight Amazon shipment. But when additional searches say said items may or may not be harmful for ingestion . . .
One could question if I have a cold. Sure. No other symptoms though, and this came on exactly when the heat went out. I’ve had bouts of this in the past, so it feels suspiciously familiar, and the causality of cold air is know and logical. Sure, could be wrong.
The real question is, should I keep doing my blasted PT exercises or not? The biggest thing I see online for pleurisy is rest, rest, rest, and remove the trigger. Can’t remove the trigger yet. Tried doing only a few reps of the exercises slowly, then stopping. But this could require a dozen or more mini-exercise sessions, and if it’s aggravating things . . . Do I cancel my PT appointments until we get his in remission? Eeesh.
As nice as it is that I happened to have meloxicam on-hand, I still think one shouldn't have to go to such extremes because of sub-par living conditions. We can buy another space heater, humidifier, and so on, but should we have to because the owner is too cheap to fix things?
Thursday, January 23, 2025
Rental Management A$$holes
Apologies, but I gotta vent. Don't read if you want to avoid negativity. I won't be offended.
Remember the crappy apartment management that we have? They refuse to fix the heat per the owner doesn’t feel like it. Technically they are “willing” to fix it, but not by paying someone who has the ability to fix it. The first place that came out said they could fix it within an hour. Apparently they didn’t like the price, because they started getting “second opinions.” They are trying to save a few bucks going with a different repair place that is having trouble obtaining the necessary parts for two weeks. They left us with a couple tiny space heaters, but as cold as it’s been, it’s making it painful to breathe. Sure, a normal person might not have any issues, but with my chronic inflammation, my chest basically feels like someone went to town on it with a metal meat tenderizer. It’s one thing when you think it’s only going to be a couple of days. But 2+ weeks is redic when it's well below freezing outside. It takes a few days for my condition to recover (pleurisy) so it’s constantly miserable – not merely the hours I’m at home. It doesn’t instantly improve if I go somewhere else warm. It’s getting increasingly difficult doing my physical therapy exercises when it fracking hurts to breathe. The exercises they’ve been having me do get my heart rate up to 160, easily 40-60 minutes so it’s not super easy slow breathing stuff.
This isn’t the first time they’ve dragged their feet fixing stuff. A few years ago when the air conditioning went out, I had to get a doctor’s note before the would fix it. It was 100+ and they were like eh, no big. My fur-kid had heat-stroke and the vet shrugged because although they could treat it temporarily, it wouldn’t really help since they’d have to go right back into the heat. I happened to have a doctor appointment during the time, so I asked. Inflammation doesn’t do well with heat, so it was a legit note. But it’s stupid you’d have to go that far to get anything done.
It’s not like I can take out my unpleasant feelings by hitting a punching bag, so I chose to vent here. Abosolute bleeping a$$holes. On top of that, they gave us a lease violation today for putting up a non-holliday plain decorative wreath on the door. It's just leaves. Helps Amazon delivery find us. But no let's be even more ludicrous. No heat, no decorations. Good grief.
Remember the crappy apartment management that we have? They refuse to fix the heat per the owner doesn’t feel like it. Technically they are “willing” to fix it, but not by paying someone who has the ability to fix it. The first place that came out said they could fix it within an hour. Apparently they didn’t like the price, because they started getting “second opinions.” They are trying to save a few bucks going with a different repair place that is having trouble obtaining the necessary parts for two weeks. They left us with a couple tiny space heaters, but as cold as it’s been, it’s making it painful to breathe. Sure, a normal person might not have any issues, but with my chronic inflammation, my chest basically feels like someone went to town on it with a metal meat tenderizer. It’s one thing when you think it’s only going to be a couple of days. But 2+ weeks is redic when it's well below freezing outside. It takes a few days for my condition to recover (pleurisy) so it’s constantly miserable – not merely the hours I’m at home. It doesn’t instantly improve if I go somewhere else warm. It’s getting increasingly difficult doing my physical therapy exercises when it fracking hurts to breathe. The exercises they’ve been having me do get my heart rate up to 160, easily 40-60 minutes so it’s not super easy slow breathing stuff.
This isn’t the first time they’ve dragged their feet fixing stuff. A few years ago when the air conditioning went out, I had to get a doctor’s note before the would fix it. It was 100+ and they were like eh, no big. My fur-kid had heat-stroke and the vet shrugged because although they could treat it temporarily, it wouldn’t really help since they’d have to go right back into the heat. I happened to have a doctor appointment during the time, so I asked. Inflammation doesn’t do well with heat, so it was a legit note. But it’s stupid you’d have to go that far to get anything done.
It’s not like I can take out my unpleasant feelings by hitting a punching bag, so I chose to vent here. Abosolute bleeping a$$holes. On top of that, they gave us a lease violation today for putting up a non-holliday plain decorative wreath on the door. It's just leaves. Helps Amazon delivery find us. But no let's be even more ludicrous. No heat, no decorations. Good grief.
Monday, January 20, 2025
MRI follow-up: Unpleasant waiting game
Cortisone shot helped a bit for 2 weeks, then went back to hurting almost as much as it was before. Had a crappy MRI experience. Suffice it to say I found out how severely claustrophobic I am, and how rude MRI techs are. They covered my one arm and told me the other might get burned by the MRI machine. I wasn’t in a good head-space to posses the logic to ask why they couldn’t simply cover my other arm. Luckily I didn’t get burned, but that didn’t help stress levels, when you’re told not to move, but to try to curl up like a pill bug to not touch the sides. It’s not like one can just down some alcohol beforehand and melt into it and take a nap.
Anyway, I get to wait more than a month for an appointment to tell me if there’s even sufficient information collected. I aske for the report, but since I’m not a clinician, I can’t decipher it very well. It noted there was too much movement. Gee, shaking and hyperventilating does that. Or hey, what I can do to prevent further damage in the meantime. I could glean enough to figure out there are multiple tears. I’ve stopped doing the exercises previously given, but I’m wary of even a normal morning stretch now.
It sounds like the problem is that unless I cite a specific injury and date, they think nothing can possibly be wrong. I tore the knee, and now my shoulder gradually. They act as if that’s not possible. Ok, fine, I guess I tore something last April? Judging by the increased amount of pain, it still seems like something’s progressed a lot since then.
Reading the report, a few terms stood out that don’t sound promising. Rotator cuff: high-grade tear…involving approximately 75% of the breadth of the tendon at the critical zone… yeah, that’s about all I got. Mild tendinopathy and bursitis. Why not. More fun to add to the mix.
Searches on the web repeatedly call it rotator cuff “disease” so there’s that fun word again. What else can I do besides waiting for my muscles to atrophy while I avoid doing anything, and being paranoid about every tiny twinge. It's going to be a long few weeks.
Anyway, I get to wait more than a month for an appointment to tell me if there’s even sufficient information collected. I aske for the report, but since I’m not a clinician, I can’t decipher it very well. It noted there was too much movement. Gee, shaking and hyperventilating does that. Or hey, what I can do to prevent further damage in the meantime. I could glean enough to figure out there are multiple tears. I’ve stopped doing the exercises previously given, but I’m wary of even a normal morning stretch now.
It sounds like the problem is that unless I cite a specific injury and date, they think nothing can possibly be wrong. I tore the knee, and now my shoulder gradually. They act as if that’s not possible. Ok, fine, I guess I tore something last April? Judging by the increased amount of pain, it still seems like something’s progressed a lot since then.
Reading the report, a few terms stood out that don’t sound promising. Rotator cuff: high-grade tear…involving approximately 75% of the breadth of the tendon at the critical zone… yeah, that’s about all I got. Mild tendinopathy and bursitis. Why not. More fun to add to the mix.
Searches on the web repeatedly call it rotator cuff “disease” so there’s that fun word again. What else can I do besides waiting for my muscles to atrophy while I avoid doing anything, and being paranoid about every tiny twinge. It's going to be a long few weeks.
Tuesday, January 7, 2025
Knee PT Dragging on
When I said PT was going well, maybe that wasn’t completely accurate. The guy is nice and encouraging, but the exercises are still hard, and it doesn’t feel like I’m getting any better at them. He said it takes at least 6 weeks to build muscle. January 6 would have been one month, so phooey, that’s still 2 more weeks. I’m certainly getting my heart-rate up and exercising, though. Strength cardio, right?
Still, it gets some of my muscles so tight I stretch and stretch and it still hurts. By the time I barely get things loosened up, it’s time to exercise and get tight again. Sometimes it’s time to exercise before I can get all the knots worked out. Since it doesn’t feel like I’m making much progress, the word “futile” comes to mind a lot. Every other day I'll chuck the exercise band when I'm done with it, I'm so fed up with it. Then I can't recall where I tossed it, when I need it the next day.
Finally got permission to get an MRI on my shoulder now, since it’s been bothering me since last April and it’s getting worse. I almost begged PT guy to suggest some exercises. He gave me a couple and the stretch alone caused more pain afterwards, so I stopped.
Still, it gets some of my muscles so tight I stretch and stretch and it still hurts. By the time I barely get things loosened up, it’s time to exercise and get tight again. Sometimes it’s time to exercise before I can get all the knots worked out. Since it doesn’t feel like I’m making much progress, the word “futile” comes to mind a lot. Every other day I'll chuck the exercise band when I'm done with it, I'm so fed up with it. Then I can't recall where I tossed it, when I need it the next day.
Finally got permission to get an MRI on my shoulder now, since it’s been bothering me since last April and it’s getting worse. I almost begged PT guy to suggest some exercises. He gave me a couple and the stretch alone caused more pain afterwards, so I stopped.
Wednesday, January 1, 2025
New Years, Physical Therapy & Cortisone
New Year’s is as good a time as any for reflection, right?
Physical Therapy for the knee is going well. Exercises are piling up more and more. Might be a fun time to get the new scale I’ve been eyeing for a few months. See if I’m trading out more muscle for fat even if I’m not losing weight.
Looking at investing in a couple of pieces of exercise equipment so I can more easily do PT at home and keep it going long after appointments end. If nothing else, it’ll be a decent source of exercise. Maybe there will be NY sales on some exercise equipment, huh?
The shoulder got so much worse this last month, I haven’t done as much of those exercises. Trying to get approval from insurance to do an MRI to verify what’s going on in there. Might do PT for the shoulder eventually, but I’m not sure what movements or exercises might cause damage. It was only dull pain off and on last spring; now it’s sharp cutting pain that doesn’t subside when not in use.
Got my first cortisone shot in the shoulder yesterday. Funny, the tidbits that I’m learning. They seem to recommend those steroid injections for joints all the time, (especially knees) to get the joint to last longer. But upon reading, there are indications that multiple injections can actually cause more joint damage. What the? If you ”fail” to improve with steroids, some insurances will allow you to try Synvisc. Friend of mine said her care nurse said Synvisc can delay or prevent damage to the joint better. Darn it that insurance makes you try the damaging stuff first, huh? Likely because it’s cheaper. Sure, get lots of injections to delay the costly surgeries, hoping you’ll hop to a different insurance plan by the time you need to have the joint replaced. But why allow something priced in-between if it could delay and prevent damage if it’s not the cheapest option. Idk; I haven’t researched Synvisc much since it’s not an option yet.
Physical Therapy for the knee is going well. Exercises are piling up more and more. Might be a fun time to get the new scale I’ve been eyeing for a few months. See if I’m trading out more muscle for fat even if I’m not losing weight.
Looking at investing in a couple of pieces of exercise equipment so I can more easily do PT at home and keep it going long after appointments end. If nothing else, it’ll be a decent source of exercise. Maybe there will be NY sales on some exercise equipment, huh?
The shoulder got so much worse this last month, I haven’t done as much of those exercises. Trying to get approval from insurance to do an MRI to verify what’s going on in there. Might do PT for the shoulder eventually, but I’m not sure what movements or exercises might cause damage. It was only dull pain off and on last spring; now it’s sharp cutting pain that doesn’t subside when not in use.
Got my first cortisone shot in the shoulder yesterday. Funny, the tidbits that I’m learning. They seem to recommend those steroid injections for joints all the time, (especially knees) to get the joint to last longer. But upon reading, there are indications that multiple injections can actually cause more joint damage. What the? If you ”fail” to improve with steroids, some insurances will allow you to try Synvisc. Friend of mine said her care nurse said Synvisc can delay or prevent damage to the joint better. Darn it that insurance makes you try the damaging stuff first, huh? Likely because it’s cheaper. Sure, get lots of injections to delay the costly surgeries, hoping you’ll hop to a different insurance plan by the time you need to have the joint replaced. But why allow something priced in-between if it could delay and prevent damage if it’s not the cheapest option. Idk; I haven’t researched Synvisc much since it’s not an option yet.
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