Got passed by a slow moving snail

Dear Ravi,

Your trees are blooming and very happy. Raya is doing a good job chasing the bunnies away from them. It is about 65 F and sunny outside. Great day for dog walking. More on that in a bit, it was a very slow walk. On Friday, the pain in my cervical spine reached intolerable levels and I called the nurse help line. She listened to my symptoms; inability to turn my head, numbness in my hands, loss of coordination and off the charts pain. She sent me directly to Urgent Care. For once, I got a female physician who actually listened to me, ran a bunch of tests, and did not dismiss my symptoms. She sent me off for an emergency MRI, even though I had had one back in early March. The MRI shows considerable changes. I have neck pain and head pain, bilateral hand numbness, a history of fusion, cervical myelopathy and stenosis, and hypereflexia. As she put it, “You have a lot going on.” She prescribed a course of steroids and Lyrica, which is a step up from Gabapentin. The only thing I really notice from the meds is that I feel really stupid. At least the Lyrica helps me sleep, and hopefully the steroids are reducing the inflammation. For obvious reasons, I did not make it to church yesterday. I was supposed to teach Sunday School and was very sad to miss it.

I convinced Daddy that I needed a slow dog walk today, just to get outside and feel the sun on my face. It was a super slow walk. I think I got lapped by a snail. The dogs and the kitty think that I am very boring. I feel very boring. My thoughts feel like molasses in January. I am really hoping that the surgical consult on Thursday will give me a road map forward. Dr Hutter, who saw me on Friday, looked at my past notes and said that she was going to make certain that my medical team would do better. It is always nice to feel validated.

On a brighter note, I got a haircut and left at least 6 inches of hair on the salon floor. I feel much lighter and freer. Previous to this, I was feeling like a mop wearing running shoes. I also went over to visit Pam and sit in the sun with her and her dog. Driving home I realized that I should not be on the road. My dear 2009 Ford Fusion does not have back up cameras, and I cannot turn my head to see where the traffic is. As of now, Daddy is the driver for the family. He is happy because he got out to the airfield yesterday and hopes to go t0morrow. It always lifts my spirits to know that he is doing something that he loves. Please pray for your Uncle Rob who is having major surgery next week. The surgeon will embolize the tumor in his hip and femur and then rebuild it. He will be in the hospital for about a week and then possibly in a rehabilitation facility after that. The major prayer right now is that the hip and femur to not collapse on their own, as the tumor has eaten away about 90 percent of them. He is using a walker to get around and just had a chair lift put in on the stairs.

I have not seen any cardinals lately, but Karen sent me pictures of one hanging out in her backyard for Hannah’s 30th birthday. Of course I did not see you, you were at the party! To know that you are flying free and having fun always lifts my spirits. Soar high my son, know that I love you forever. Mom.