Monday: 0 run, 1 walk
Much better than yesterday. Night and day getting out of bed. Shoulders in pain all day, and limped most of the day, but I was up and moving. The glass is half full. No running, but Brady took Jana and I out for an evening neighborhood walk. Yay!
Tuesday: 0 run, 1 walk
AM: 7th doctor visit on my current health ailment. My medication runs out next week, and since I'm no closer to getting a rheumatologist appointment and my PCP previously indicated he wouldn't renew the prescription, I was ready for a fight. Luckily, there wasn't any and this time my PCP was very agreeable. Fortunately I was not having a good morning physically as I came in limping and unable to move my right arm as well. Why fortunately? Because he can see how I really am suffering. The doc said I'm not looking very stable (uh, yeah, that's what I've been telling you for two months now).
He now agrees with my orthopedic doc that Polymyalgia Rheumatica ("PMR") is the most likely diagnosis, and was shocked that I still haven't been able to get the rheumatology appointment despite repeated calls. He had his office manager call, and when she got the same results as me (none), he was clearly upset with the broken process. Good! He issued two more referrals, one in Newport, and one in Pawtucket, and I'll go to whichever comes up first. Meanwhile, he gave me a steroid injection (the kind legal in running, not anabolic steroids) to fight the inflammation quickly, and not only gave me another prescription of Prednisone, but based on some of my morning setbacks, doubled my dosage from 5mg to 10mg each morning. Based on what I have read on PMR case studies and reputable medical websites, all of those steps sound correct. Yay!
Nighttime neighborhood walk redux with Brady and Jana. No limping tonight!!
Wednesday: 3
Fun Run week #9. Last Fun Run of the year for me. I ran the first mile with Chris, who humored me by a pedestrian pace for him of 6:15, while I gasped and wheezed. He picked it up after Mile 1, and I slowed it down to a more manageable pace of high 6s for the next two miles.
Thursday: 0 run, 1 walk
Friday: 2
Evening run with Brady at Wahaneeta. The Wahaneeta 5K is coming up in two weeks now, and as I'll be away all next week, went here for an assessment on what's needed. Fortunately, the trails are really in good shape and could pass without any maintenance, but I'll probably try to do some minor trimming on the perimeter trail pre-race.
Saturday: 0
Long drive from Westerly to St John, New Brunswick, arriving in the evening.
Sunday: 4 run, 1 walk
AM: Rockwood Park, St. John, NB.
Trail run with Matthew and Brady. That's right - a MORNING run! Hallelujah!! Haven't been able to walk right in the mornings in a while, never mind run. Very clean park with manicured trails around lakes and through the woods.
PM: Halifax, NS
Weekly mileage: 10 run, 4 walk
Weekly synopsis: Despite the paltry numbers above, this was a great week for me! While my previous Prednisone dosage was giving me some relief in the afternoon and evening, it clearly wasn't enough as my mornings were downright miserable to the point that I couldn't physically exercise at all and some mornings had physical issues getting out of bed. With the new dosage, this is a game changer with just some minor morning shoulder pain and otherwise all is good. Optimism!
Weekly highlight: In any normal healthy week, it would clearly be the fun romping on Crystal Crescent Beach (full disclosure: I wimped out and didn't swim in the frigid water like Matthew and Brady did). However, the highlight for me was the immediate game-changer in my mobility and pain levels that the double drug dosage is providing me, especially just at the start of our family vacation.
Weekly lowlight: Hmm. It really was a good week. I would say the two mornings of the week before the new dosage kicked in, but I really want to focus on the positive, of which there is much.
Much better than yesterday. Night and day getting out of bed. Shoulders in pain all day, and limped most of the day, but I was up and moving. The glass is half full. No running, but Brady took Jana and I out for an evening neighborhood walk. Yay!
 |
| Back in Black: black dog in a black car |
 |
| What's wrong with this mirror? (Other than it's no longer attached to a car) I was initially ticked with Mark when he came home late one night last week with the Volvo mirror busted in above pic, with glass gone and components behind the mirror broken and gone. Apparently he didn't even know it and it got hit while he was parked. I was quoted $500 to professionally replace it. --------- Since I no longer run, I find other senses of accomplishment. In this case I bought a used mirror for $130 off eBay, and installed it tonight. Despite having to take the door apart to make the electrical connections, it worked! |
AM: 7th doctor visit on my current health ailment. My medication runs out next week, and since I'm no closer to getting a rheumatologist appointment and my PCP previously indicated he wouldn't renew the prescription, I was ready for a fight. Luckily, there wasn't any and this time my PCP was very agreeable. Fortunately I was not having a good morning physically as I came in limping and unable to move my right arm as well. Why fortunately? Because he can see how I really am suffering. The doc said I'm not looking very stable (uh, yeah, that's what I've been telling you for two months now).
He now agrees with my orthopedic doc that Polymyalgia Rheumatica ("PMR") is the most likely diagnosis, and was shocked that I still haven't been able to get the rheumatology appointment despite repeated calls. He had his office manager call, and when she got the same results as me (none), he was clearly upset with the broken process. Good! He issued two more referrals, one in Newport, and one in Pawtucket, and I'll go to whichever comes up first. Meanwhile, he gave me a steroid injection (the kind legal in running, not anabolic steroids) to fight the inflammation quickly, and not only gave me another prescription of Prednisone, but based on some of my morning setbacks, doubled my dosage from 5mg to 10mg each morning. Based on what I have read on PMR case studies and reputable medical websites, all of those steps sound correct. Yay!
 |
| Doubling my daily drug dosage quickly turned out to be a godsend. |
Nighttime neighborhood walk redux with Brady and Jana. No limping tonight!!
Wednesday: 3
Fun Run week #9. Last Fun Run of the year for me. I ran the first mile with Chris, who humored me by a pedestrian pace for him of 6:15, while I gasped and wheezed. He picked it up after Mile 1, and I slowed it down to a more manageable pace of high 6s for the next two miles.
Thursday: 0 run, 1 walk
 |
| Day 3 on the double drug dosage: It's a miracle! I can get out of bed without any issue, and I can walk without any limping! (No, I can't quite walk on water yet, but based on my progress, I'm pretty sure that's next.) |
Friday: 2
Evening run with Brady at Wahaneeta. The Wahaneeta 5K is coming up in two weeks now, and as I'll be away all next week, went here for an assessment on what's needed. Fortunately, the trails are really in good shape and could pass without any maintenance, but I'll probably try to do some minor trimming on the perimeter trail pre-race.
Saturday: 0
Long drive from Westerly to St John, New Brunswick, arriving in the evening.
Sunday: 4 run, 1 walk
AM: Rockwood Park, St. John, NB.
Trail run with Matthew and Brady. That's right - a MORNING run! Hallelujah!! Haven't been able to walk right in the mornings in a while, never mind run. Very clean park with manicured trails around lakes and through the woods.
 |
| Post-run, back at the hotel, Matthew and I played on the waterslide before breakfast. I thought it would be kind of a lame "kiddy slide", but it was actually pretty neat and you got going reasonably fast in the spiral loops (there was one spiral above this that you can't see in pic due to ceiling in the way) before being jettisoned into the pool. |
PM: Halifax, NS
 |
| York Redoubt National Historic Site Not as impressive as it looks here |
 |
| The color of the water doesn't look like Nova Scotia, right? |
 |
| If I had half of his energy and speed ... |
  |
| Crystal Crescent Beach Provincial Park: Now this place was both scenic and fun! If you're ever in the Halifax area, I highly recommend. |
Weekly mileage: 10 run, 4 walk
Weekly synopsis: Despite the paltry numbers above, this was a great week for me! While my previous Prednisone dosage was giving me some relief in the afternoon and evening, it clearly wasn't enough as my mornings were downright miserable to the point that I couldn't physically exercise at all and some mornings had physical issues getting out of bed. With the new dosage, this is a game changer with just some minor morning shoulder pain and otherwise all is good. Optimism!
Weekly highlight: In any normal healthy week, it would clearly be the fun romping on Crystal Crescent Beach (full disclosure: I wimped out and didn't swim in the frigid water like Matthew and Brady did). However, the highlight for me was the immediate game-changer in my mobility and pain levels that the double drug dosage is providing me, especially just at the start of our family vacation.
Weekly lowlight: Hmm. It really was a good week. I would say the two mornings of the week before the new dosage kicked in, but I really want to focus on the positive, of which there is much.
Good luck.
ReplyDelete