Friday, June 1, 2012

TGIF Says Mrs. Sturdy

At my last doctor's appointment, she complimented me on the "great strides forward" I had accomplished. While I'm still overweight, I no longer qualify for the Obese category according to my BMI. However, even with all this new and improved me, there is still weight enough on me to create problems with my knees when I'm doing certain tasks at work.

Like kneeling, for instance. Some of my clients have that absolutely worthless long handled bathtub/shower cleaner. Other's still haven't modernized and I am called upon to get down on my knees to reach the back wall of the tub. Truthfully, I'm doing that at all my clients, because that extended thingy works so well...NOT!

Problem is, there's still 170 pounds on my frame, and floors are hard. Especially when I am having to be down there for awhile cleaning up the problem created by the client whose Depends aren't so dependable. I'm sure those of you who read that post know what and who I'm talking about. That particular bathroom is so small that once I'm down there, I can see all the spots that the contents of the Depends wandered off to, and there isn't any way to get between the toilet and the wall or the sink vanity unless you're crawling around on knees.

We had another one of "those" accidents again yesterday. And in the middle of the night, I was rudely awakened by pain. In my right knee. I do have arthritis in it, and normally that rude awakening means I've been in one position too long. Not so this time. No matter how many times I tried new positions, I couldn't ease the pain. At 2:30 AM, I got up and took something for it. I finally got up at 6 and tried bounding out of bed. There was a slight problem with that. Somebody was trying to hammer on my knee with a sledge hammer and darn near took me down to the floor. A position I'd still be in because there is no way I'd be able to get back up again with this pain. Fortunately, I just fell back onto the bed and could rethink the bounding thing.

Once I decided against the bounding, I cast around in what's left of my mind for the location of my compression brace. Haven't used it in...oh...three or so years, I think, but wonder of wonders I remembered where it was.

Now, I told the doctor at the outset of this health improvement journey that I was stubborn. She feels that word has negative connotations and replaced it with the word sturdy. So, Mrs. Sturdy put on her brace and did the stuff she had to do around the house before going to work. I then got into my car and went to work. I called my doctor from the driveway of my first clients home after having worked there 2 hours and managed to score an appointment for late afternoon. After my last case, of course.

My problem was so obvious that she didn't even need an X-ray. There is a lump on the lower left side of my knee joint, right where there is a bursa pad. It was hot to the touch and when she touched it, I nearly slapped her. Yeah, a day of pain can make one hostile. Diagnosis? Bursitis. Treatment? A shot of cortisone mixed with lidocaine and some instructions about REST, Ice, Compression and Elevation.

I only have 1 client for 2 hours tomorrow and Monday so I will be able to comply with her directions most of the time. As a matter of fact, it feels like time to elevate and ice the damn thing. OH, and she also said something about not kneeling on hard floors, but...yeah...I'm really going to pay attention to that one.




10 comments:

  1. I am in total sympathy with this. I have rheumatoid arthritis, and getting on my knees is a no-no. On the rare occasions that I do, I damned near can't get up. Another problem is bending to pick up things. I cringe ever time I drop something. I finally broke down, admitted my maladies and bought one of those picker upper thingamajigs. I love it.

    Ah the joys of not dying young. Who'd athunk.

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    1. Somebody has sold us on this being our "Golden Years". I personally would like to lead the mob to cut out his/her tongue. I have the spinal rheumatoid, so I hear everything you're saying. I can still bend over and pick stuff up, but in order to get up once I've knelt, I need something very sturdy to push off of. Like a bathtub.

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  2. some days it ain't worth the effort to move too much, Sherry! Usually those shots help though. I've had one in my life, and last night my knees were aching pretty good; trouble is, I don't know from what! All I've been doing is sitting...LOL

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    1. The lidocaine has worn off, the cortisone hasn't kicked in yet. I'm going to have knee pain for awhile yet. And largely I have the problem because I spent so much time sitting on my butt playing in Blogstream for a couple of years. Arthritis got too much of a hold on me.

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  3. Sherry:

    I agree with your doctor. I prefer "sturdy" to "stubborn." :^)

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    1. Today I am neither. I called in to work so I could concentrate on doing the resting and the icing she wants done. I suppose that's the more intelligent method of dealing with this problem.

      I did do a few chores, but mostly I've been elevating my leg.

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  4. Sherry!! I made it here!!
    Wow Chicka, so much has changed in your life!! You are awesome purging that much weight already. So sorry about your knee, stubborn is good in some cases, but take care of those knees, you have a long way to go.
    I gotta figure out how to add you now.

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    1. OH MY GAWD!!! It's YOU! It really, really is.

      How are you?

      I'm taking care of my knees for sure. It gets quite painful when I don't.

      Life really is very, very different for me now. We've added another Grandchild, I've changed jobs, found a great doctor who is helping me with the health issues I developed. Mostly high blood pressure and arthritis. And, bursitis of the knee just to be different. LOL

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    2. Bless you... I have rheumatoid arthritis, and just when I get a med that works it messes up my liver.

      I need to lose 30 lbs badly...trying with all the fresh stuff around but so hard. I know I'll feel better if I could shed some of these pounds.

      Blessings to you.... Hope you will feel better. My knees and hips give me fits from time to time too.... Being alone isn't all its cut out to be either .... quit taking baths... ha.... just shower... know I can get out of it...

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    3. I won't take the meds for that reason. Makes it very painful but yeah, I hear you. I need to lose the rest myself. It would take the pressure off my knees and back and hips. I need to move more, but moving is soooo painful.

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