Author Archive

Background

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5/19/24 Sunday

Improvement meets different symptoms.

Last week I really worked hard to do my home physical therapy exercises and daily walks. The strange sensation I get when the leg muscles get exercised were diminishing. Yay! However, this week I’ve been more tired, and getting the exercise has been more challenging. Yesterday I started having leg pain above and below the knee. While I would consider having more sensation than a strange numbness a good thing, waking in ...

Background

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4/21/24 Sunday

Improvement is happening! The strange sensation in my feet remains; however, there are some mornings when I wiggle my toes to find out if they feel normal yet. Nope, they are still affected, but I’m getting there.

I’m excited to have more energy, so I’m increasing my walking each week a little, gradually trying to return to my previous mileage from before the Transverse Myelitis reared it strange head. I was able to attend our church’s ...

Background

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3/17/24 Sunday

Although my symptoms remain relatively the same, there is GOOD news! According to the recent MRI, the swelling in my spinal cord is gone. It would appear that the effects of the inflammation are just needing time to heal.

The feeling in my feet continues to be just plain weird, but it’s not impairing my ability to walk. The biggest impact on life right now is fatigue. If I walk too much or do too much ...

Background

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3/3/24 Sunday

There’s not much to report lately. My feet still have the weird feeling, which seems like it might be improving but then again not. Frankly, the sensations come and go unpredictably. The biggest issue is fatigue as I can easily just need to have a rest. I have to be careful not to do too much physical activity as that can stress my legs. Balance also continues to be an issue. I haven’t fallen, but ...

Background

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1/28/24 Sunday

Good news! There’s definite improvement in the numbness/tingling in my feet. I’m guessing that my right foot is about 90% back to normal, with the left foot only about 75%. I continue to work on my sleep and keeping watch of my energy levels. If I get too tired, I rest.

I saw the physical therapist last week and got my first assignment to work on a balance activity, as my balance is far from normal. ...

Background

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1/20/24 Saturday

About the only thing to report is that my energy is up, but there’s not much change in the numbness/tingling in my feet. There are times when I think my right foot is feeling almost normal, but that doesn’t last long. I’m guarding my sleep and keeping watch of my energy levels. If I get too tired, I rest.

I have an appointment this next week to get started with a physical therapist. I’m not driving ...

Background

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1/13/24 Saturday

I’ve been home for almost two weeks. At first I was exhausted all the time, and I had to work hard at resting. That may sound like an oxymoron, but rest is actually a necessary task that allows my body to do the healing it was created to do. My appreciation for the intricacies and amazing functioning of our bodies has skyrocketed with this experience.

Status

The symptoms in my legs are slightly improved, and I ...

Background

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1/3/24 Wednesday

I’m home! On New Year’s Day I said good-bye to my hospital home after the final round of steroids treatment was complete.

Status

The symptoms in my legs are not much improved but are more localized to the feet rather than traveling all the way up the legs as originally presented.

I’m ...

Background

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12/31/23 Sunday
Both the effects of a strong cold and the realization that I’m in a hospital hit me like a ton of bricks this morning. Maybe it was the exhaustion from little sleep, the weakness from this cold, the “being alone,” or all three! I understand that something physical is happening in my body that can sway the emotions, so I was grateful that today was Sunday! I was able to ...

Background

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12/30 Saturday
I’m still here, settling in and adjusting to life in a hospital. Because it’s a holiday weekend, some of the services I need to move things along are delayed. I’m rolling with it.

Last night’s MRI showed that my brain is just fine. (What a relief!) So the team is trying to zero in on what could be causing the inflammation in my spinal cord. The area affected is in the thoracic region, which ...