Another year goes by. Shocking to say the least. I thought by now I would be off all medications I was prescribed and walking down the path to find my old self. March 7, 2024, was my first visit of the year. By now, I am experiencing pressure and mild pain on my left ear which would last a few seconds. Until this day, I do at times feel the pressure and mild pain. But as I have said before, I will never go back, NEVER, to taking Prednisone. I am still experiencing pain underneath my breasts area. Fortunately, all of the CT scans of the chest and CT scan of the ribs are normal. But I wonder what may be causing this pain every now and then. I am now experiencing a stuffy nose and congestion, which has been ongoing for a few months and doesn't seem to want to leave. I was told by my PCP to use Flonase since she diagnosed me with post-nasal drip. The Flonase did seem to help for the first 4 hours but then the usual stuffiness, congestion and cough would come back. I did also experience some crustiness on my left ear the cartilage part, sometime in January for about a week. I had to clean it and maintain it during that time period. In addition, I also began to experience some dizziness while sitting at my desk (I work from home). However, I was able to see a huge difference when on Humira. My ear no longer drooped, and the inflammation calmed down. My ear went back to its natural skin color. I do have say that I do not think my ear is at 100% compared to how it looked before because I can tell the difference, but I am happy with my end result, for now. With all this going on, I am also anemic, as the Rheumatologist noted on the visit "Microcytic Hypochromic Anemia: Appears chronic per prior labs. Endorses heavy menses. Improvement per labs 2/27/24". That is another story to tell soon. This is also the day that I had to transfer from Humira to Hyrimoz.
My next follow-up, July 3, 2024. I clearly told my Rheumatologist I felt like "crap" and tired most days. I am still experiencing pressure and some itching on my left ear. And guess what, I also started to feel pressure on my nose. I felt a bit of fear thinking that my nose will saddle. But only time will tell. However, the last few months has been hard getting out of bed on the weekends. I tried to incorporate working out but again, my body was just too tired and would rather lay in bed. This anemia is kicking my behind. My PCP recommended I take Iron Pills to help with the anemia, 60 mg, but my stomach could not handle it. I would feel so nauseas and sick. Then she recommended liquid iron, although the taste may not be appealing. The liquid iron in my opinion did help a lot and I was able to get my energy back a week after taking it. But my anemia has been an ongoing issue that I am dealing with. I still experience bilateral hand pain and now the bottom of my left foot has started to hurt. I was diagnosed with Plantar Fasciitis. I've been feeling short of breath with activity and some chest discomfort. Ay, ay, ay, what could be next, I ask myself.
My next follow-up, October 2, 2024. Ugh I feel like a mess. By this visit, I told my Rheumatologist that my hands are now getting stiff when over-using it. My left hand, near my pinky area was where I would feel most of the pain, radiating to my wrist. I have been having upper back/neck pain that has been giving me constant headaches. Unfortunately, I do suffer from migraines, but this was awful. My husband purchased a heat pad for my back to help ease the pain while working. I have also been having a cough that does not want to go away. It's one of those coughs to clear my throat, to relieve the itch I was feeling. But some days I just had the urge to cough. My husband would describe my cough to my Rheumatologist as that of a heavy smoker (I do not smoke). When I take my warm showers in the morning and night, I do spit out some of that mucous that is stuck in my throat and nose. With that being said my nose does tend to get runny, unexpectedly, so I have to carry tissues with me, at all times. In short, My PCP decided to order a CT of the Chest to make sure I am not fighting an infection but luckily everything came back normal. My Rheumatologist thinks this is all associated with RP. Andddddddd, the pain on both knees got worse. It got to the point that when I would sit for 10 minutes, I would get up, but as soon as I would walk, I would feel pain on both knees that I would have to pause for a few seconds to let the pain subside. My knees would also buckle here and there so in order to prevent any falls, I would get up, remain still for a few seconds and then start to walk slowly. My Rheumatologist did move both my knees forward and yep, the pain was there. The end result: A Nuclear Medicine whole body scan (since I was having too many joint pains) was ordered. And of course, the results once again were normal. It got to the point that I had to sit down and think, am I really imagining all this pain, do the doctors think I am losing my mind if they cannot find anything else wrong with my health. What is going on, I would ask myself. I was also given a Referral to see a Pulmonologist, and ENT for the cough.
Below are a few photos of my family, showing their full support and love!!!!
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