Saturday, September 07, 2013

How to solve a problem...

Still feeling my aches and pains yesterday morning, I decided to do some research to find out what sorts of medicines were used to combat pain when you have rheumatism or arthritis. I visited the website of The Rheumatism Foundation because they have the most reliable information and are the authority on the subject. I soon found out that beside the standard anti-inflammatory medication, there are new ones that possibly may work better when the standard ones don't.
 
Then I remembered getting some pills from my orthopedic surgeon to use after the surgery and I dug them out of the medicine drawer. It turned out that they were one of the new non steroid anti inflammatory drugs that the information on the website talked about, and they had worked well. I decided to call the GP to ask him for another prescription for them and when I did, the assistant said she would ask him and for me to call back in the afternoon to find out if he had agreed to that.
 
In the meantime, I had to go see my psychiatrist, and I have to say that seeing him is always like a breath of fresh air and I come away from there with renewed courage. He is the one person who takes care of me in the sense that I am a whole person, body and soul, and he keeps track of  all of me and not just of my mind. He is as interested in what is going on with me in the strict medical sense as much as he is with what is happening with me emotionally, and he is a well informed person medically. I think it will be a wise thing to see him more often than once every three months and I have an appointment in October.
 
When I called back the GP's office, I found out that a prescription for that medicine had been faxed to the pharmacy, but because my knee bothered me so much, I didn't want to have to go out on my bike again to pick it up. I called the Exfactor and asked him if he could pick it up some time in the afternoon that was convenient to him, which he did.
 
I took a pill with a paracetamol and at first thought it wasn't working at all, but after two hours it did and it has given me lot of relief. I am supposed to take one every 12 hours and use paracetamol more often. I don't feel any of my joints now, except for my knee a bit, but I do have swollen fingers. I think I get those from using the keyboard.
 
Today is officially my birthday and I have turned the ripe old age of 59. I am completely going to indulge in being this age and get whatever benefits there are out of it. I think I am now allowed all sorts of liberties and that there are a lot of conventions that I don't have to worry about anymore. I will do pretty much as I see fit and live my life accordingly. Just imagine how great it will be when I turn 60. I am going to practice for being that age this year.  

4 comments:

Gail said...

Happy, happy Birthday!!

Glad you are feeling much better and being cared for well.

Anonymous said...

Happy birthday Irene! Hope you have a wonderful day (and that your meds keep working well so that you have no pain in your joints)!
xoxo

Z said...

So good that the medication is helping now. Happy birthday - we're the same age for a few days, I'll be 60 next week. You've struck a chord with me with your last paragraph, that's just how I feel too.

Maggie May said...

Happy Birthday.
So sorry to hear that your arthritis is playing up and I do hope you find a good remedy for it. Just a question of juggling about until you find the right one.
Maggie x

Nuts in May