Well, I now know what arthritis feels like... my doc kept saying "but your too young!!" but she basically ruled out everything else. She gave me a nice splint/brace thing im spose to wear.. tho didnt tell me when i can stop wearing it... and told me i shouldnt be taking notes in class and such. Apparently I have early arthritis in the cmc/mcp joints of my right thumb and along the pinky side too, which is the pain ive had off and on for a few years now..
she gave me a script for hand physical therapy but we're not sure if my insurance covers it...so she said i can also go on youttube and look up videos there if i want to.
i wanna try alieve/naproxin, cuz it has helped in the past and i dont have to take it as often as Advil.
its... kinda scary. i knew all along with the EDS thing that this was a risk or i guess, that itd affect me "someday" earlier than it was suppose to... but its scary in the whole.. im almost a nurse and i need my damn hands! somethings around the house i can alter or do things differently, like i have been the last 2 months (ie clasping the bra first and then putting it over my head) but in the professional way..and in the way that "this will never go totally away" - it scares me..
ive been fortunate enough with my previous injuries that they were temporary, itd hurt ofr awhile and itd go away, or i had to learn to do things a lil different to make it manageable, or i could get my SI belt and wear it when i need it, or do my PT and thatd take care of some stuff...
but this? it wont go away and i know arthritis... it gets worse over time! once its here.....its here. and i just need to figure out how to stop bitching and deal. period.
"so whys ur thumb hurt?' "oh, ya know.. arthritis."
Oh well. just got to come to terms with it and deal. accept it and move on. nothing else to do. and figure out different ways to hold things, grip things and use my hands.. and finish getting through school..
i need to get my butt to curves too.. i think with the new brace, i can limit use of my thumb and support my wrist and such.. so i can make sure i dont mess anything up more. Maybe i'll try going tomorrow after class... thatd be good..
it could be worse.
i need to shut up and deal.. and i need to do stuff to help either prevent more joint wear/tear or least limit it. and improve cardio and strength and tone and endurance.
and study for my lecture tomorrow on spinal cord injuries and hospice.... as i said, it could be worse. i need to stop bitchin and be thankful i can use my hands at all.
Monday, January 25, 2010
Sunday, January 17, 2010
more thumb bitching..=(
I seriously need to work out... I'm going to start having all sorts of other joint issues this quarter if I don't. I do Curves, and since they pretty much all require grabbing ahold of things, i'm leary about doing it. Moms advice "Don't" - but i'm stiff and sore and need to friggin move..and its a lil too cold to try to do stuff outside w/ the whole, exercise-induced-asthma deal.
why wont my body cooperate? we had a deal dangit! No breaking down till break, and then it needs to fix itself by the time school starts back up!
I worked on Friday, minus brace. I did a sitter-shift, and then forgot to re-brace b4 bed....hurts worse again, including a not-so-nice ligament that runs along the front knuckle of my thumb too. Very nervous about this week, but theres nothing I can really do. Have to do clinicals, Period. I'll load up on the advil and call it good i suppose, and hide any grimacing from the fellow nurses and esp my instructor. Its only 8 actual clinical days (not nearly enough for my last quarter b4 preceptor-ship), a hospice rotation and ED rotation...
Yea, i'm making a doc appt this week.
k.. back to studying. I'm tryin to bitch about it here to prevent me from doing it either at school w/ my friends back home who don't really understand..
why wont my body cooperate? we had a deal dangit! No breaking down till break, and then it needs to fix itself by the time school starts back up!
I worked on Friday, minus brace. I did a sitter-shift, and then forgot to re-brace b4 bed....hurts worse again, including a not-so-nice ligament that runs along the front knuckle of my thumb too. Very nervous about this week, but theres nothing I can really do. Have to do clinicals, Period. I'll load up on the advil and call it good i suppose, and hide any grimacing from the fellow nurses and esp my instructor. Its only 8 actual clinical days (not nearly enough for my last quarter b4 preceptor-ship), a hospice rotation and ED rotation...
Yea, i'm making a doc appt this week.
k.. back to studying. I'm tryin to bitch about it here to prevent me from doing it either at school w/ my friends back home who don't really understand..
Friday, January 15, 2010
i want a new thumb please
well, i got through the first 2 weeks of school and 4 tests in SIMS lab..including the med and math tests that couldda kicked me out of the program. yay! All while wearing my stupid thumb brace..
it still hurts. and im now very worried about my 3 days of clinicals next week. Lecture and writing didnt go so hot... i might attempt to bring my laptop next time but i dont think i can take as good of notes on it as i can written... hmm.. might be worth it to decrease the pain tho..
its been about 2 months now, so maybe its time i goto a doc.. i dont know what theyd do besides maybe give me a better brace. i could beg for a cortisone injection to get me thru this quarter.. but i dont think thatd help in the long run. and i cant keep it immobilized during work or clinicals.. but oh well, i should make an apt tomorrow.. worth a shot?
the joints on the pinky side are starting to hurt a bit worse too.. lil worried about that but not as much as getting thru this quarter. Oh and popping my thumb...BAD IDEA!! oh my that was a bad idea...
i have a lil over 5 more months of nursing school.. man i can't wait!
as long as i wear the brace 98% of the time, it only hurts when i use it.. otherwise, well, we'll not go there. but its still primarily the cmc thumb joint.
wonder if ring sprints would help someday... i only have 2-3 fingers i think theyd be beneficial for.. but might be worth it sometime in the future b4 i really need em on all my digits.
Oh, and I do in fact have Narcolepsy. lucky lucky me lol least i have an explination.. and stimulant drugs now that help me stay awake =) I got this one thats AMAZING! But my insurance doesnt cover it so i cant get more..(he gave me a free trial).. but, its so phenominally awesome to feel....awake. hah not to have this background desire to pass out 24/7. to be able to come home, sit down..do something online, and then GET BACK UP! and go do something else. hah i dont feel wired or anything, just... awake. lol alert. i like it =)
while i dont want to take it every day (as prescribed), i think this will help me get thru my 6am clinicals a bit better =) i'll also be getting more ritalin or adderall since i cant have the wonder drug.... ritalin helps, but i dont feel as "normal" on it. havnt tried adderall yet.
ok, i think im gunna pass out... im tryin to stay up late cuz i told work id be able to pick up a shift this wkend, so i need to be somewhat on my night schedule.
and that way, i can start studying my butt off for the test next wk right b4 clinicals.
it still hurts. and im now very worried about my 3 days of clinicals next week. Lecture and writing didnt go so hot... i might attempt to bring my laptop next time but i dont think i can take as good of notes on it as i can written... hmm.. might be worth it to decrease the pain tho..
its been about 2 months now, so maybe its time i goto a doc.. i dont know what theyd do besides maybe give me a better brace. i could beg for a cortisone injection to get me thru this quarter.. but i dont think thatd help in the long run. and i cant keep it immobilized during work or clinicals.. but oh well, i should make an apt tomorrow.. worth a shot?
the joints on the pinky side are starting to hurt a bit worse too.. lil worried about that but not as much as getting thru this quarter. Oh and popping my thumb...BAD IDEA!! oh my that was a bad idea...
i have a lil over 5 more months of nursing school.. man i can't wait!
as long as i wear the brace 98% of the time, it only hurts when i use it.. otherwise, well, we'll not go there. but its still primarily the cmc thumb joint.
wonder if ring sprints would help someday... i only have 2-3 fingers i think theyd be beneficial for.. but might be worth it sometime in the future b4 i really need em on all my digits.
Oh, and I do in fact have Narcolepsy. lucky lucky me lol least i have an explination.. and stimulant drugs now that help me stay awake =) I got this one thats AMAZING! But my insurance doesnt cover it so i cant get more..(he gave me a free trial).. but, its so phenominally awesome to feel....awake. hah not to have this background desire to pass out 24/7. to be able to come home, sit down..do something online, and then GET BACK UP! and go do something else. hah i dont feel wired or anything, just... awake. lol alert. i like it =)
while i dont want to take it every day (as prescribed), i think this will help me get thru my 6am clinicals a bit better =) i'll also be getting more ritalin or adderall since i cant have the wonder drug.... ritalin helps, but i dont feel as "normal" on it. havnt tried adderall yet.
ok, i think im gunna pass out... im tryin to stay up late cuz i told work id be able to pick up a shift this wkend, so i need to be somewhat on my night schedule.
and that way, i can start studying my butt off for the test next wk right b4 clinicals.
Sunday, January 3, 2010
and still with the thumb!
Well, school starts on tuesday and i was sure hoping my thumb wouldda calmed down by now. I've spent basically the last month with it ace wrapped and half the time in moms wrist-somewhat-thumb support dealy.. it'll feel better after awhile of it being wrapped up, but soon as i wake up in the morning or take off the support, its useless all over again!
I did my sleep study for Narcolepsy this last week (wont know the results for another few days) and my thumb was killin me the whole time.. just ached and hurt and the cmc joint was just, pissed off at me. lol so i finally decided enough was enough and i bought a lil $14 immobilizing support brace thingy. Which helps, cept as soon as i take it off it hurts within 5min. just doesn't hurt all the time now.. i shouldda gotten this in the begining i think, maybe itd be better by now? =( it doesnt immobilize it quite as well as id like but its pretty good a lot better thna the ace wrap was.
Once again i'm worried about school... this quarter is pretty much non-stop and we start off with 4 days of all day SIMS lab, then lecture for 3 days and then 2 days of computer training..and then lots of clinicals.. i'm worried about wearing it in class, just like i was last yr and the left wrist brace.. this is a bit more obnoxious though and since a lot of our lil skills require ya know...thumbs, i'm a lil nervous. and i have no answer for "what'd you do?" cuz.. i pretty much just woke up Lol. and it has to be my right thumb?! grr.. but if i dont wear the brace, i know from experience of the last month and 1/2... that it wont get better without it..
I already took 5 days worth of prednisone from mom and dad, 20-mg a day..to see if itd help the inflammation in the joint. which was nice, while i took it. unfortunately as soon as the days were up, it hurt as much as ever =(
On the plus side, I had a pretty awesome christmas and new years. my boyfriend met my family (and likes them!) and is now the proud owner of my sisters 2 cats she has been tryin to give away hah.
I'm also nervous about the future potiental problems of this joint.. because i use my thumb! i cant have this brace in clinicals... and i dont know the instructors either and i dont want to tell t hem about the EDS for all the reasons i mentioned before.. do i just say "it hurts but it'll get better" and then just pray it fixes itself in the next 2 wks? and wear my brace anyway in class..? then come clinical time, maybe it'll be better... and if its not, i'll just deal with it anyway...? minus the brace..
note taking wont be very fun.. my hand writing a lil goofy. maybe i could take notes on my laptop.. for the 6 hr lectures we have next week.
I havnt gone to a doc about it but im pretty sure theres nothing theyd do. cept maybe give me a better more immobilizing brace. i've only had this thumb brace for 4 or so days... so theres hope that it'll really help.. i am gettin better at using my other fingers for stuff.
is this the start of forever arthritis in that joint? and/or is the pain a subluxation? is it a tendonitis sorta deal? i dont know... maybe i will try a doc if it doesnt get better..? maybe there is a less bulky brace or something i could use...
I just wanna get through these next 6 months so i can be DONE with nursing school and get a job and move back to my home town.. then at least i'll have income and sick days and everything.
I did my sleep study for Narcolepsy this last week (wont know the results for another few days) and my thumb was killin me the whole time.. just ached and hurt and the cmc joint was just, pissed off at me. lol so i finally decided enough was enough and i bought a lil $14 immobilizing support brace thingy. Which helps, cept as soon as i take it off it hurts within 5min. just doesn't hurt all the time now.. i shouldda gotten this in the begining i think, maybe itd be better by now? =( it doesnt immobilize it quite as well as id like but its pretty good a lot better thna the ace wrap was.
Once again i'm worried about school... this quarter is pretty much non-stop and we start off with 4 days of all day SIMS lab, then lecture for 3 days and then 2 days of computer training..and then lots of clinicals.. i'm worried about wearing it in class, just like i was last yr and the left wrist brace.. this is a bit more obnoxious though and since a lot of our lil skills require ya know...thumbs, i'm a lil nervous. and i have no answer for "what'd you do?" cuz.. i pretty much just woke up Lol. and it has to be my right thumb?! grr.. but if i dont wear the brace, i know from experience of the last month and 1/2... that it wont get better without it..
I already took 5 days worth of prednisone from mom and dad, 20-mg a day..to see if itd help the inflammation in the joint. which was nice, while i took it. unfortunately as soon as the days were up, it hurt as much as ever =(
On the plus side, I had a pretty awesome christmas and new years. my boyfriend met my family (and likes them!) and is now the proud owner of my sisters 2 cats she has been tryin to give away hah.
I'm also nervous about the future potiental problems of this joint.. because i use my thumb! i cant have this brace in clinicals... and i dont know the instructors either and i dont want to tell t hem about the EDS for all the reasons i mentioned before.. do i just say "it hurts but it'll get better" and then just pray it fixes itself in the next 2 wks? and wear my brace anyway in class..? then come clinical time, maybe it'll be better... and if its not, i'll just deal with it anyway...? minus the brace..
note taking wont be very fun.. my hand writing a lil goofy. maybe i could take notes on my laptop.. for the 6 hr lectures we have next week.
I havnt gone to a doc about it but im pretty sure theres nothing theyd do. cept maybe give me a better more immobilizing brace. i've only had this thumb brace for 4 or so days... so theres hope that it'll really help.. i am gettin better at using my other fingers for stuff.
is this the start of forever arthritis in that joint? and/or is the pain a subluxation? is it a tendonitis sorta deal? i dont know... maybe i will try a doc if it doesnt get better..? maybe there is a less bulky brace or something i could use...
I just wanna get through these next 6 months so i can be DONE with nursing school and get a job and move back to my home town.. then at least i'll have income and sick days and everything.
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