Raleigh - Holden - Raleigh

Doc and Sam laid out in the back of the Subaru coming home from Holden Beach (they were nice enough to share part of the back seat with me, too)

Me: went to the doctor on Monday about my leg pain - she prescribed me muscle relaxers, sent me to a really great chiropractor, and referred me for PT. I am glad because I finally feel like I am on a path to fixing this problem so that it won't keep cropping up. But I am also frustrated because I have been exercising a lot and the chiropractor told me to lay off exercising (and yoga!) for a week or two. Patience is not my best quality.

When I last wrote, I thought that the virus I caught weeks ago had settled into my sinuses. I decided to call my doctor and start on an antibiotic sinus rinse, which has worked wonders before. This turned into a week-long battle between the nurses at my doctor's office, my regular pharmacy, the compounding pharmacy that I newly elected, and my insurance company. When it was all said and done, I paid a mere $15 for the prescription and - this is the kicker - my sinus infection had basically cleared up on its own. As of now, my lungs and sinuses are feeling almost back to normal, which is great. Couldn't have done it without exercise!

Now to the real drama of the week. Todd's dad switched to a new hormone therapy for his cancer recently. It disagreed with him pretty badly, so they gave him some meds to treat those symptoms but then eventually took him off of the original treatment. Problem was, he started to get pretty out of it, really badly confused about things, and just wasn't himself, so we were all concerned.

Todd and I drove down to the beach where his dad is staying last night, thinking we would stick around and help him out, keep an eye on him for the weekend. But things were concerning enough that we turned around today and brought him back to the ER at Rex hospital in Raleigh, where he has been getting his cancer treatments. I am glad we did that, because they were able to rule out the most serious things like stroke, heart attack, dehydration, low oxygen saturation. But unfortunately, we still do not know the cause of his confusion.

So here it is Saturday night and I'm totally exhausted. I feel bad even saying that because I know that Todd and Roger must be ten times more tired than me. Family health drama can really take it out of you. But I tell you what: there is no place I would rather be when something like this is happening than with them. I hope that Roger is feeling better soon.

Not great, not terrible - somewhere in between

It is hard to describe how the week has been without sounding complain-ey, which is about my least favorite thing in the world. I will try to be brief on that stuff. But let's start with the good news!

808 Soap had a really successful First Friday. Several of our friends came out, and we had a really good time hanging out with everyone at Father & Son. We are doing a fundraiser for the Cystic Dreams Fund (founded in memory of my good friend Paul Mooney) giving 20% of our sales this month.

We also had a Kentucky Derby/Poker Tournament party yesterday that was a lot of fun. My horse was ahead until the very end! Such a tease. Really, we know next to nothing about horse racing but it is fun to get into it one day a year. Todd ended up winning poker! And I came in 5th place out of 20 people.

Also, had some really nice bike rides this week, continuing to enjoy the spring weather. On Monday, we rode to J. Betski's, a Polish and German restaurant not far from our house, and enjoyed an array of kielbasa, bratworst, pierogies and a strudel for dessert. It was good. :)

In less exciting news, my leg has continued to give me problems. I have been limping around now for over two weeks. I don't even notice it anymore, which is kind of sad. I was too busy to make it the chiropractor this week, but I was beginning to think I wasn't going to solve the problem there, anyway. I think this is an issue with my sciatic nerve, and I have an appointment with my primary care doctor tomorrow to start getting to the bottom of this. Biking or doing my elliptical machine don't seem to bother it, but walking a lot will irritate it. Fortunately it's not painful most of the time, for which I am thankful.

Also, the cold that I've been messing around with recently dropped into my chest sort of suddenly and I ended up taking Tuesday off work just to sleep all day. I did feel better after that. By about Friday I began to realize things might actually be settling into my sinuses, and I called my ENT to get on the antibiotic rinse we talked about. He was in surgery all day, and then when something did get called in, there was a problem at the pharmacy, and then my insurance didn't want to pay for it (that is very unusual.) So it will be Tuesday at the soonest before I can get on that.

I have mentioned here before about my father's respiratory problems and his pursuit of a lung transplant. He is now almost through with the evaluation process, and then his case goes to a committee to decide if he is eligible or not. Things are looking pretty good at this point. It is exciting, and also scary.

What I haven't mentioned is that my mom is also having some health issues right now. She has been off work on disability for the past couple of months not able to walk around easily. After this and that it was determined that she will need a hip replacement surgery. I hate that she has to make a decision like this, but I also believe that it can help her not only to be in less pain but also to get around more easily - she needs especially to be able to go see her new grandson when he is born in September (yay!). I'm also hoping that it will help get her into a better routine with being more active and being able to enjoy (hopefully soon!) her retirement.

Todd's dad is also having to deal with some progression in his cancer. But I think they've figured out another type of hormone treatment that might help him - after that they would have to try chemo. In the meantime, he and Todd are planning a trip out to Montana in June for two weeks. We hope the new hormone treatment will help, and that he can enjoy another good stretch of health.

So yes, I have a lot going on both with myself and my parents right now. As for me, I'm not really sure where I'm at. I am certainly not out of the clear as far as needing IVs. I have an eye to next weekend's camping trip, and I really want to be able to go - of course, only if I am feeling well. Maybe treating my sinuses will calm down my lungs. My lungs aren't terrible so I have some wiggle room.

My plan for the week is to get on the antibiotic sinus rinse and continue to push myself to exercise as long as I have the energy. And just take it day by day.