my mri scan

hey sorry i have not posted in ages. today i went for an MRI scan. my neurologist sent me for this and i would highly recommend that anyone with cfs/fibro symptoms should have one to rule out any other nasties that also don't show up in current blood tests. there are some other illnesses with similar symptoms that we may have but our doctors have diagnosed cfs/fibro.

the scan itself is nothing to worry about. you are inside a kind of white tunnel but it ok once you get used to it. you are allowed to bring a cd with you to play that may relax you (you have to stay still for 20 to 40 min) and earphones are supplied to lessen the strange noises that the equipment makes (from road drilling sounds to banging!) i was quite relaxed listening to this so it all went smoothly. it was a strange experience but not a bad one. i will hear from the neurologist with my results in due course.

soggy leaves and jack frost

november weather is well and truly here. bbrrr.. yesterday i took this photo of jack frost on the grass outside the homeopathic hospital. i had an appointment there and was given some new powders and pillules to try. what i like about homeopathic medicine is that the doctors takes the whole person, not just the symptoms into account. you are asked many questions about you and not just your illness. i have to go back in three months. the downside is no coffee is allowed not even the decaf i would drink anyway.

today i felt awful and nearly cancelled my physiotherapy appointment. (i have bad sinus pain, i am shivery, achey and had real trouble getting out of bed) but i went - it's been a while since i was there last. i managed some exercise but boy was i was glad when it was over! ouch! even though i don't feel the physio is helping it must be - i am able to do more now than when i started. a dreary, damp november day - but i still managed to find beauty in the soggy leaves whilst on my way to the hospital. yup, i think we can find beauty just about anywhere if we look hard enough.

i will be working on some interviews for this blog soon. some lovely people who have or have recovered from cfs or fibromialgia. i want to share inspiration and advice from them with you. if you want to share your story please let me know.

a weighty issue

in the last couple of years since being affected by cfs/me/fibro i have put a few stone. before the symptoms started i would walk everywhere, cycle, do yoga every week and was always on the go. go go go. i ate very healthy so was a normal healthy weight. not too fat. not too thin. from being very active to being not very active meant i was not burning the old love handles up any more! not being able to fit into any of my clothes has been a pain in the butt. having to spend my limited budget on 'loose' fitting clothes an even bigger one. but i came to accept it knowing that my weight will stabilise once i again become active. yup i dealt with it. i even dealt with all the constant remarks from my mother about my increasing weight gain each time i saw her. (no mum i don't need to see a dietitian thanks very much) my vanity had already flown out the window had it not?

well today i met a woman who i have not seen since i was a slim, long haired, non chronically fatigued person, and all that i have dealt with and accepted seemed to smack me in the right in the face as soon as she opened her mouth! first she asked me when i was 'due'! then realising by the look on my face that i was not 'expecting' continued to tell me how much weight i put on over and over and that with my hair cut short i looked so totally different!

er cheers love!

(the above photo is nothing to do with this post, however my cat biba does not seem to care how tubby i am!)

blowing away the cobwebs

i was very lucky yesterday to get a (much needed) wee trip out the city to balmaha with an old friend. great to get out the city and see some nature plus get some cobwebs blown away! i only managed a wee walk but that was enough for me to see much beauty and delight my senses! you can see more here.

i have been talking to vicki and watching some of the gupta dvd's. i am going to be following the techniques and telling you about it as i go along. why am i doing this? well i have nothing to lose by accepting vicki's kind offer to learning about this programme and hopefully a lot to gain!

tomorrow i go for another visit to see a doctor at the homeopathic hospital. i will let you know how it goes.

hello!

sorry for such long gaps in between posts. if im feeling really crappity crap (like this week!) i feel i will just be all moany and as that is not the aim of the blog i just email my mate tina instead for a good old symptoms whinge!

this week i have felt so tired, achey and fed up (because i am tired and achey!) and had to cancel everything planned. i only managed a couple of blog posts here and a teeny weeny bit of knitting for an upcoming craft show. except a couple of days ago i had to venture out as my cat biba was ill and had to get taken to the vet. even though it was a short bus ride and a short wait at the vet hospital i was so utterly exhausted when i came home i was back in bed right away. poor biba was so frightened of leaving home and was very brave when get injections from the vet. she has antibiotics to take and should be on the mend soon. tomorrow is my birthday and i hope to have enough energy to celebrate just a little bit!

i will try and be back next week with more regular posts. in the meantime here is a picture of my sweet beautiful biba in her pumpkin bed. happy halloween!

struggling along

i am struggling along this week. yup coping with cfs is hard. been feeling a bit sorry for myself. there is so much i want to do but can't. aaaaaagggghhhhh! i keep telling myself maybe tomorrow. and i have to keep reminding myself that i am one of the lucky ones. i hate to think what it is like to be in a wheelchair all the time.
i have been to see a new neurologist who is going to send me for a mri scan, just to rule any other nasties out. he was so nice and seemed to know a lot about cfs and fibro. he advised going on the wellbeing course that is run for cfs sufferers at glasgows homeopathic hospital. i told him i was already signed up for it in january. i felt he was one of the first doctors to really care about helping me. anyway i still have many things keeping me happy this week. watching this is one of them and here's another.

confused?

i have already mentioned all the recent news regarding the latest findings on the possible causes for cfs and fibro. are you as confused as me? what is XMRV and what is a retrovirus anyway? most importantly what does the discovery mean to us? i found this helpful on adrienne dellwo's blog.