So much going on

The last week or so has been crazy.  The ringing in my ears has hit an all-time extreme.  I can be driving on the highway with the music blasting, and I still hear it.  The fever continues, as does pain in my neck and exhaustion.  I had an appointment with the Lyme specialist last week, and he assured me (again) that this is all good signs.  The medication is working, and it's very common to get worse before you get better.  Right now, my left ear actually hurts.

Through all of this, I actually find it refreshing to go to treatment every day.  There is something to be said for the "support group" of other patients who have similar stories, similar symptoms, and who totally "get it."  We share food tips and information on the best supplements to take.  We commiserate about how little sleep we've gotten or how much sleep we need.  Today, as I was grabbing the right side of my neck in pain, another patient noticed and loaned me her "deep relief essential oil" for pain relief.  I was kind of amazed that within 10 minutes the pain on the right side had subsided.  Needless to say, I stopped at the store on my way home and picked up a few essential oils to use on the left side of my neck.  (Clove and peppermint, in case anyone wanted to know.)

The one thing that Lyme treatment isn't going to fix is the problem in my neck.  3 bulging disks and 2 fractured vertebrae are going to cause pain no matter what.  The good news is that I've been cleared by all of my doctors to have the neck surgery at the Laser Spine Institute.  It's my understanding that the reason LSI has such a good track record is because they are selective about their patients.  They only accept people who they know they can help.  So I'm actually happy that they've determined I'm a candidate for a procedure.  In less than 2 weeks I'll be having the procedure.  The bad news is that in preparation for surgery, I can't take any pain medication.  Hopefully, in 2 weeks that will be an issue of the past.

For now, I'll keep chugging along.

Favorite new "product"

I was reading up on some natural remedies on the internet recently and came across tea tree oil and its many uses.  One remedy that I read was to mix it with rubbing alcohol and water, and use the solution to cure athlete's foot.  Although I didn't have athlete's foot, I thought I'd give it a try since my feet were very dried out.  I've tried all kinds of products, pumice stones, etc and they are always dried out.

After I showered tonight I realized it had been a while since I've used the pumice stone.  When I looked at my feet I was amazed.  They have never been so soft!  EVER!  No dry skin, no hard spots, no cracking, peeling, NOTHING.

I wonder what other miracles tea tree oil can perform!

Sweet potato fries

Back to the food follies... I was attempting to make sweet potato fries to go with dinner tonight.  I cut the palm of my hand on the first slice with the knife.  My hand slipped while trying to push down on the tip of the knife and the tip went into my palm.  Not the end of the world.  Sean said he thought I would have used the mandolin, and I reminded him that I cut myself on that last time, too!  I don't think I'm cut out for cooking.

Overall, this has not been a great week.  In addition to the fevers which seem to now be a constant, this week has been full of migraines.  The tinnitus has also gotten worse not just in the left ear, but now also in the right.  Although it's really annoying and sometimes painful, I still think this is all good.  You're supposed to expect ups and downs with the treatment.  Sometimes the worsening of symptoms means that the medication is flushing the spirochetes out of their hiding places.

I have a new issue, too.  For the last 2 weeks, I've noticed that my hands itch on occasion.  It's not normal itching.  It's intense itching.  It might be on a finger, on my palm, front or back of my hand, pretty much anywhere.  There's no rash, and my hands aren't dry.  At first I thought it was because they were dry, but I was putting hand lotion on constantly and they really aren't dry.  I mentioned it to the PA at my appointment this week, and she confirmed that it could be a reaction to the antibiotics.  (She actually told me that when she takes antibiotics, her back itches!)  Her suggestion was either Benadryl or Benadryl cream.  This morning I loaded up on cortisone cream when the itching started.  It seems to have helped, so I'll keep trying that before hitting the Benadryl, which makes me sleepy.

Off to check on the sweet potato fries in the oven!  I hope that they turn out ok.

More pain... more answers?

My twice weekly visits to PT have been helping to reduce my neck pain, briefly.  By a day or two later I'm always right back to where I started.  I have a cervical traction unit that I use every day or two, a stim machine to help relax the muscles, lots of stretches and exercises that I do at home, and still I have pain.  In August I had an MRI which showed 3 bulging disks.  Clearly, with the pain that sometimes shoots down my arms, the disks are pinching some nerves.  I also have arm weakness when I lift anything overhead (think: hairdryer).

After 3 facet injections, the orthopedist suggested something called radiofrequency ablation.  Essentially, he'd be going in to the same area as the facet injections and heating the pinched nerves to deaden them.  Obviously, the pain will lessen if the nerves don't feel anything.  He said to think about it and get back to him.  After mentioning it to my PT, she suggested that I call a place called the Laser Spine Institute.  Supposedly they are the best in the nation at minimally invasive spine surgery.  She said that it might be a good idea to have a consultation with them just to see what they say about my condition.

I finally got around to calling them and sent my MRI in for review.  Then I had a consultation.  I don't know why, but all of my medical issues (why do I have so many?) end up being a challenge for my medical providers.  There was a tech and a physician's assistant reviewing my MRI with me.  The images were up on a large computer screen.  Even I could clearly see the 3 bulges.  But then the PA pointed out a shadowy line across the C-7.  Looking at another view of the same area, you could see a spider-like pattern through the C-7.  He told me it was a fracture, and asked if I had ever been in a car accident or had any neck trauma.  Nope, not that I recall!  Upon further review of the MRI he noticed that there was also what looked like a fracture of the C-5.  WHAT?

In addition to that, he said that my spinal column is narrow.  Some people could have bulging disks and not be bothered by them.  But someone with a narrow spinal column has less space to spare.  Essentially, these 2 guys were wondering how I'd been walking around with this mess in my neck all this time.  They asked what my pain level was on a regular basis, and I said 4 to 5 on a scale of 1 to 10.  That doesn't include the days that I wake up near tears, unable to move my neck.  The PA told me that he had some neck problems from playing football as a kid, and if he was ever in "level 4" pain on a daily basis, he'd be sitting right where I was (in the consultation chair).

The good news is that they thought the surgeon could definitely help me.  In fact, the PA even said that he thought it would help the migraines also!  He seemed to think that the surgeon would find my case extremely interesting.  The only problem is that I have to get clearance from the Lyme specialist to have surgery, or I have to wait until after I'm finished with the treatment.  At least they will do all of the legwork to get clearance.

I know spine surgery is risky, but the pain I've been dealing with on a regular basis - in addition to my other health issues - can really make things difficult.  I spend so much time at PT, and yet the therapist doesn't know what to do with me anymore.  I'm willing to do anything now!

Which came first?

There is always the chicken and egg syndrome.  But that's really how I feel today.  At today's treatment, I had my bi-weekly appointment with the specialist, and met the new Physicians Assistant.  I forgot her name as soon as she told me - one of the drawbacks of Lyme, I can't remember anything anymore!  Anyway, the PA must have gone through my records pretty thoroughly, which is always nice.  She was checking me for my current sore throat, ear pain and swollen glands.  All of that started yesterday, and it's hard to imagine it could be a bacterial infection considering the amount of antibiotics I'm on.  During this time we were chatting about my fevers.  She asked if I kept my ovaries when I had the hysterectomy (yep, she was well prepared!), just to make sure that the fevers were related to the Lyme treatment and not hormonal.

She also was asking me about Fibromyalgia.  I told her I don't think that was the correct diagnosis.  She agreed, and pointed out that while we were talking she had been pressing on some of the tender points and they didn't hurt me at all.  She also mentioned the positive ANA and autoimmune test results in my file, and said that Lupus could still be a possibility.  The only way to really find out is to eliminate the Lyme and then see what issues I'm left with.  I've seen improvement in some areas, but not in others.  Although it can take time to see full improvement, even many months after treatment ends, it's possible that not everything is related to Lyme.

I've read a lot about people being diagnosed with Lyme and MS before finding out that what they really had was Lyme.  I pretty much figured that the diagnosis of Lyme disease explained away the other crazy test results that I've had.  Not that I'm worried too much right now, but it would be nice to know everything that I have to deal with.  Does Lyme lead to Lupus?  Or could it be a coincidence if someone has both?  Which came first?  Only time will tell.

PICC Pain

This PICC is a pain, literally.  For some reason, I keep getting a scab at the site.  The scab hurts whenever I move my arm.  Last week during the dressing change, the scab was ready to fall off so the nurse picked it off.  Then it hurt more during the week.  At yesterday's dressing change, there was a new scab which was worse.  I thought it would feel better once the scab was off so I let the nurse pick it off again.  Mistake.  More pain.  Today I started getting a stabbing pain on occasion.  What's up with that?

So I asked one of the nurses when this should start to feel more comfortable.  His answer was, "Right about the time you're done with treatment!"  Nice.

The house smells like homemade meatballs

Yes, I made meatballs, and the house smells wonderful!  I've been trying to cook more and more.  At least being able to work from home for now allows me to have some real meals.  Last week I made a quiche, and I've also made homemade soup and mashed red skin potatoes.  I'm even learning lots of cooking tips and ways to make healthy meals simple.

Since there's not much more to report on my treatments, I'm trying to focus on eating healthy and taking good care of myself.  The fevers are still constant and I still have a fair amount of lightheadedness.  My next appointment with the doctor is on Thursday so I will talk to him about my symptoms then.  I'm wondering if the ringing in my ears will EVER go away!

Trying to hang in there

I knew there would be ups and downs with how I feel.  I just wish this whole week wasn't a week of downs!  My fever is back with a vengence, and the lightheadedness has gotten a bit worse.  On top of that, the PICC is bothering me yesterday and today.  The dressing was changed yesterday, and the nurse pulled off a scab.  Since then it has been bothering me, so much so that today she changed the dressing today to try to make it feel better.  It's better than yesterday, but still hurts.  Oh well, still better than getting stuck every day.

Wish I had something positive to report today.  Instead, I just want to go to sleep.