Welcome To My New Life Fighting A Disease I've Never Heard Of Before....... Ankylosing Spondylitis

  My husband has been studying herbal medicine. He believes the medicine the Indians and settlers used is the key to treating today's health issues.   I am not certain of my position on the subject, but I am willing to be open minded.    Today he and my son collected spicebush twigs, leaves, and berries. They made a tea with these. It smells amazing. Our house smells amazing after steeping the tea.   I did some research, which I will provide a link to below. This article is very informative and interesting. Siteing actual cases of using Spicebush. https://thegreenfarmacygarden.com/2017/04/03/spicebush-ethnobotany-and-division-of-the-flower-sexes/   I'll update after we do our trial use of the Spicebush tea.   Gentle hugs, friends. Comment and subscribe at the top of my main page.

  Last night as I lay in bed trying to get to sleep, my feet were burning and my ankles ached. I have Peripheral Neuropathy. My neurologist prescribed Gabapentin about 3 years ago and has increased my dosage as needed.    I had an appointment with my neurologist last month. I told her my neuropathy symptoms are worsening, keeping me awake at night and causing me to fall more frequently. The doctor explained she could increase my Gabapentin, but the side effects would also increase. My main side effect being sleepiness during the daytime. If that side effect would hit me at nighttime it would be the perfect solution to my problems. Alas, no luck there. After telling her I certainly didn't need more daytime sleepiness, she said Lyrica might be an option. Of course, I have saw the advertisements on television for Lyrica. My doctor told me I would need to discontinue the Gabapentin before beginning Lyrica. Therein lies the problem, my Gabapentin also helps control...

 When I am in the sun my arm gets a raised, hot to touch, red rash that burns. Does anyone experience this? Is this related to ankylosing spondylitis? Comments welcomed. Please click follow to join me.

 I have been dedicating my blog to ankylosing spondylitis awareness, but I have several other diagnoses as well. I believe while AS is my main fight, these other diseases aren't making it easy for me to keep fighting. Today I want to share one of the other enemies of my body.   It all began in my childhood. I can remember as an 8 year old crying with back pain. My aunt babysat me daily while my parents worked. She was an older lady, the kind who tells all those intriguing tales of the good ole days. My aunt was born in 1918, she was in her 60s when I was a child. I guess I equated her to a grandmother, since a majority of my grandparents passed away before I was born.  My aunt told my parents I needed to see a doctor about my severe back pain. Mom and dad were tobacco farmers, with a few cattle, plus they worked on a job 40 hours a week. They stayed so busy they really didn't see me very much. I mean I slept in their home, but I was dropped at my aunt's house when I wa...

  Click....click....click....  This is the sound that followed me while walking through the mall last Friday. At first I didn't even notice the sound. I was using my cane which I hadn't used in a couple months.   Let me back up and start from the beginning.   My husband and I took a small vacation last week. We left on our adventure on Wednesday morning. It was a 4.5 hour drive. By the time we arrived at the campground, I was completely wiped out. Of course, we had to go purchase groceries for our stay, so no rest for the weary. I tried to rush through the grocery store but being in a store you're unfamiliar with can be frustrating. Why is every WalMart laid out different? They're about as confusing to navigate through them, as it is when they change their Great Value labels right after I became accustomed to the old label.   After we finished grocery shopping and returned to our cabin, we tried relaxing. By that time I am hurting in multiple areas. B...

  I am really not looking forward to today.....   Anyone suffering from AS knows when we overdo ourselves, we end up hurting more and dealing with extreme fatigue. I have a feeling it's going to be one of those days.   My husband and I are leaving in the morning for a much needed vacation. Today I have to pack, shop for groceries for my sons, clean the house, and take my mom to urgent care for a possible UTI. After all these years you would think I would know better than to procrastinate until the last day. Oh well, I'll tackle one thing at a time.   If I don't make it to the grocery store it'll be okay, the boys will survive. My oldest son already suggested I could leave money and they'd eat out each night! I don't see that happening haha.   It is so nice that our kids are old enough to take care of themselves, the house, and the dog. Plus they will keep an eye on my mom also. I absolutely loved having little kids, one of my greatest joys, but having th...

  As I face the day ahead I like to start out with a smile. Things seem to go better when I smile.   Therefore, I thought I'd share a little laugh with you. My life can be a bit strange and I tend to have strange experiences. An example would be my former job where I was a worm counter. Yes, you heard right I counted nightcrawlers, mealworms, etc all day for 3 years. I'll explain that further in a later post. Somehow strangeness just finds me....lol.   Today I want to tell you about my odd Walmart experience. Last winter I was at Walmart with my mom. We always have a weekly Walmart trip together. On this certain day, my mom went on over to get groceries while I went to the pharmacy. As an ankylosing spondylitis patient I spend a good deal of time at my Walmart pharmacy. That day I chat with the pharmacy employees, pick up my meds, and head over toward groceries.   I am taking my time looking at this and that. I cut down a less crowded aisle near ladies pajamas....

  Yesterday my mom called to chat. She had been to visit my sister. Mom mentioned my sister was cleaning her bathroom walls. Which got me to thinking, I haven't washed my bathroom walls in such a long time I don't even remember it.   My clean freak of a mom would croak if she knew that. However, when I was employed I just didn't have the energy to do much housework. Basically I came home, fixed my kids a quick bite to eat, took a shower, and went straight to bed. I typically was in bed by 8 pm. I know that is crazy early but I had to be up every morning at 4:55 a.m. for work. Plus as most of you with anklosing spondylitis can relate, I had some nights of rolling and turning. Hip pain, rib pain, neck pain, and burning feet are my worst nighttime AS visitors. I wish I could be one of you super woman who work a job, have a spotless house, and are moms. I applaud each of you. I have many times felt such disappointment in myself because I can't keep it all up. My family de...

   I'm sure a lot of you will relate in trying to save your family money at the grocery store.    Due to the progression of my ankylosing spondylitis I had to give my job up in December 2016. That was a very emotional decision for me. I may write about it at a later date. This post is about couponing since we are a one income family at this point.    I tried subscribing to our local newspaper in order to clip Sunday coupons. I found this to not be cost effective. Some weeks I only used a couple of the coupons, paying $2 per paper was a losing proposition. I canceled my subscription after 2 months. Of course that was not as easy as it sounds, the newspaper office called constantly offering me better rates. At one point I might have restarted my subscription but after being called 4-5 times a day, I said forget it. Why doesn't telemarketers report the consumer said "no" and stop calling?   Back to my subject!  ;)   I found a wonderful s...

Some days AS tries to get me down, but I always  remember this saying. 

    Finally after years of joint aches, inflammation, fatigue, and chronic pain I had an answer. But what the heck did they say I have? I sit silently taking it all in, trying to focus on what I'm being told. To be honest, I don't think I heard a fourth of what the NP told me after that strange sounding name of the disease. Here I am with an answer, THE answer. Is it wrong to feel relief? Happiness? How can I be happy, I just learned I have some weird sounding disease. Yet the flood of relief is overwhelming.      I think I may be taking this news oddly compared to other sufferers. Sitting in that little exam room all by myself, I have learned the pain is legitimate. I have suffered this so long without answers at some point I began to wonder is it all in my head. Is what I'm feeling real? I certainly know I hurt but could my mind be controlling all of this pain. I have told the long list of doctors what I experience. Some of them seem to listen and have a ge...