Daily Log
11:00
I woke up around 09:15, after 8 hours of mostly-solid sleep. I was still tired, and had to will myself out of bed. I got my contacts in and came downstairs, since my window to use the shower had almost passed; I checked out things on the computer until about 10:15, then went back up to have a shower. I got dressed and came down, and I'm having a pot of tea.
My pain level is higher than usual, though I'm still able to function; it's like carrying a heavy backpack everywhere. It's centered in my upper back, a region which has brought on whole-body flares in the past, so I'm a bit concerned about that. My feet are quite painful, and I had to hobble to the bathroom after getting out of bed... I've been trying to minimize the amount of walking around the house I'm doing, at least until I can work on them. My shoulder is much as it was last night, but I haven't fixed that collarbone either. My overall energy level is low but manageable -- if I don't do anything beyond walking around the house and a couple of light errands, I won't crash.
The pain is killing my hunger and my desire to eat, so I'm trying to figure out what would be the least-offensive thing to make.
My vision is clear, and so is my thinking, though the pain is distracting enough that I can't keep up any sort of deep concentration. I can plan my day and work out logistics, at least.
12:40
I've had breakfast (raisin bran and some pasta). I'm feeling like I'll be okay today, but I should probably rest anyway. My pain level is still high, which would wear me down quickly even if I didn't push myself.
I fixed my feet and my collarbone. With my feet, that's a matter of manipulating them with my hands in various ways and putting traction on the toes and the heel in an effort to get the joints to flex. Sometimes they pop, sometimes they don't, but I use the sense of tightness and pain as a gauge of where to focus my efforts. Then I stand up and see whether it's still tight or painful in any areas. If something simply will not move, I have an activator (basically a small spring-loaded hammer) that can deliver a small directed impact, much like tapping a stuck screw with a hammer to get it to turn. Once the joint moves a little, I can usually get full flexibility back. (With my collarbone it's all done with the activator, as I can't manipulate it with my hands and it only becomes a real problem when flexing it doesn't get things to settle into place. If it's causing me pain, it's because it's really stuck.)
I've been working at the computer for long enough that I should probably get up and move around a bit... now that my feet are flexing more easily, that won't be so painful now. If I stay on them for too long and then sit down, however, the joints will seize up again, so I should be careful about that.
18:00
I went out to pick up an order at a nearby store and run a couple of errands. By the time I was done with that, it was time to go to my therapy appointment. I drove for about 20 minutes and got there early, so I walked around the block to start breaking in a new pair of boots. The insoles I bought don't have as much arch and metatarsal support as my other shoes, but I'm hoping that will prevent my feet from rolling outward; all of my other shoes wear on the outside edge of the sole. I can definitely feel my arch flexing a little more as I walk, and we'll see whether that's good.
After therapy, I had a little time to kill, so I walked slowly through town for about 45 minutes. My feet started hurting more after 20, a sharp pain at the bottom of both heels; by the time I finished, the balls of both feet were also a little sore. The soles of these boots are thinner and less contoured than those of my work boots, so I expected some discomfort, at least until the insoles wear in.
I was also very hungry and somewhat tired, though still good to drive. I've settled in at the computer again to work on a little bit of code before dinner.
21:20
I watched TV and had dinner with a friend, and now I'm back working on code. I'm feeling pretty content, which means my pain level has receded to where it's no longer intruding on my awareness (though I can still feel it very distinctly if I think about it). The tinnitus is still there. My feet aren't flexing perfectly, but there are only a few distinct stuck spots. (I walk around the house barefoot, so it's not skewed by which shoes I'm wearing.) I'm contemplating going out to play a little Ingress, but I can feel the fatigue waiting for me, and I know it would be very easy to run myself into a wall if I don't set strict limits for how long I'm out and how much physical effort I do tonight. Playing would be dependent on some friends helping out, and if they don't step up I may just stay in.
I have an account as Torquill on Dreamwidth, and that's where I posted this. You can sign in with OpenID to comment on the original post, or you can go ahead and comment here; either way works.
I woke up around 09:15, after 8 hours of mostly-solid sleep. I was still tired, and had to will myself out of bed. I got my contacts in and came downstairs, since my window to use the shower had almost passed; I checked out things on the computer until about 10:15, then went back up to have a shower. I got dressed and came down, and I'm having a pot of tea.
My pain level is higher than usual, though I'm still able to function; it's like carrying a heavy backpack everywhere. It's centered in my upper back, a region which has brought on whole-body flares in the past, so I'm a bit concerned about that. My feet are quite painful, and I had to hobble to the bathroom after getting out of bed... I've been trying to minimize the amount of walking around the house I'm doing, at least until I can work on them. My shoulder is much as it was last night, but I haven't fixed that collarbone either. My overall energy level is low but manageable -- if I don't do anything beyond walking around the house and a couple of light errands, I won't crash.
The pain is killing my hunger and my desire to eat, so I'm trying to figure out what would be the least-offensive thing to make.
My vision is clear, and so is my thinking, though the pain is distracting enough that I can't keep up any sort of deep concentration. I can plan my day and work out logistics, at least.
12:40
I've had breakfast (raisin bran and some pasta). I'm feeling like I'll be okay today, but I should probably rest anyway. My pain level is still high, which would wear me down quickly even if I didn't push myself.
I fixed my feet and my collarbone. With my feet, that's a matter of manipulating them with my hands in various ways and putting traction on the toes and the heel in an effort to get the joints to flex. Sometimes they pop, sometimes they don't, but I use the sense of tightness and pain as a gauge of where to focus my efforts. Then I stand up and see whether it's still tight or painful in any areas. If something simply will not move, I have an activator (basically a small spring-loaded hammer) that can deliver a small directed impact, much like tapping a stuck screw with a hammer to get it to turn. Once the joint moves a little, I can usually get full flexibility back. (With my collarbone it's all done with the activator, as I can't manipulate it with my hands and it only becomes a real problem when flexing it doesn't get things to settle into place. If it's causing me pain, it's because it's really stuck.)
I've been working at the computer for long enough that I should probably get up and move around a bit... now that my feet are flexing more easily, that won't be so painful now. If I stay on them for too long and then sit down, however, the joints will seize up again, so I should be careful about that.
18:00
I went out to pick up an order at a nearby store and run a couple of errands. By the time I was done with that, it was time to go to my therapy appointment. I drove for about 20 minutes and got there early, so I walked around the block to start breaking in a new pair of boots. The insoles I bought don't have as much arch and metatarsal support as my other shoes, but I'm hoping that will prevent my feet from rolling outward; all of my other shoes wear on the outside edge of the sole. I can definitely feel my arch flexing a little more as I walk, and we'll see whether that's good.
After therapy, I had a little time to kill, so I walked slowly through town for about 45 minutes. My feet started hurting more after 20, a sharp pain at the bottom of both heels; by the time I finished, the balls of both feet were also a little sore. The soles of these boots are thinner and less contoured than those of my work boots, so I expected some discomfort, at least until the insoles wear in.
I was also very hungry and somewhat tired, though still good to drive. I've settled in at the computer again to work on a little bit of code before dinner.
21:20
I watched TV and had dinner with a friend, and now I'm back working on code. I'm feeling pretty content, which means my pain level has receded to where it's no longer intruding on my awareness (though I can still feel it very distinctly if I think about it). The tinnitus is still there. My feet aren't flexing perfectly, but there are only a few distinct stuck spots. (I walk around the house barefoot, so it's not skewed by which shoes I'm wearing.) I'm contemplating going out to play a little Ingress, but I can feel the fatigue waiting for me, and I know it would be very easy to run myself into a wall if I don't set strict limits for how long I'm out and how much physical effort I do tonight. Playing would be dependent on some friends helping out, and if they don't step up I may just stay in.
I have an account as Torquill on Dreamwidth, and that's where I posted this. You can sign in with OpenID to comment on the original post, or you can go ahead and comment here; either way works.