Happy Friday! I hope it's been a good week for everyone. It's my first full week in the office w/ no travels since September, which was actually kind of nice! Here are 5 things on my mind as we close out this week.
1. After a string of really poor months of sleep, I am finally sleeping better. I attribute it to a combination of cooler temps at night that allow me to sleep with my patio door open, being on Ambien (this is not a long term solution but will help while I am on steroids for my RA), and wearing ear plugs in addition to my sleep mask. I am definitely a high maintenance sleeper, but I'll do what it takes to get a solid night of sleep.
2. After a 1.5 week break from travel, I head to the LA area on Sunday as I have a client event on Sunday night and some client meetings on Monday and Tuesday. I am looking forward to this trip as I really like the sales rep that I will be doing the meetings with.
3. I'm patiently awaiting the arrival of my new 5S iPhone. I was trying to hold off as long as possible as upgrading is kind of expensive, but my 4 has become ridiculously slow and I worry it will die on me at an inopportune time, like when I am traveling, so I took the plunge and upgraded. Luckily due to the exchange value of my phone, I will not have to pay as much out of pocket as I thought I would.
4. I can't believe it's November, but I am so happy it is! This month will fly by as it includes work trips to LA and St. Louis (where I will squeeze in a dinner with Nora!), my trip home for Julia Child Night, and my trip to Paris! Hooray! I will be gone about 1/2 of the month between all my trips so I think it will be a great month. :)
5. I had my follow-up appointment with my Rheumatologist this week. I wasn't very happy with the lack of progress I've made since starting my RA drug 8 weeks ago, and she wasn't either so I will start to take weekly injections indefinitely (it's not a temporary thing). Going into this appointment, that was the outcome I was hoping for as I am totally over the joint pain and swelling. But sometimes wanting something and then having it become a reality can be two different things. Don't get me wrong, I want to feel better - I just wish it wouldn't involve weekly shots. I'm not afraid of needles, so it's not a big deal; I just sort of mourn for my old pre-RA life where I didn't have to take all these medications to achieve a base level quality of life. But I know with time, this will become my new normal. I know I'll get to an "this isn't so bad/it could be worse" state of mind but right now I'm in a "this kind of sucks" state of mind which my doctor said is normal/healthy/to be expected.
What is on your mind today? Any fun plans for the weekend? Since I fly out for LA on Sunday morning, I am taking it easy tonight and tomorrow.
23 comments:
LOts of excitement for you this month - I remember thinking last year that your whole November (and December for that matter) sounded amazing, and it looks like this year is too!
I'm glad you and your doctor are being pro-active about your RA, and I hope this new treatment works better. You are a trooper!
Yay for a new phone - this means a new fun case too! (You can see where my priorities are - ha!)
That totally sucks about the injections - feel all the feelings about it my friend.
Tonight I have a girls night and tomorrow I leave early morning for a super quick trip to Philly to see my cousin, her husband, and finally meet her daughter! (After this trip I am DONE driving distances for the year! :)
Sigh- I wish that you had got better news at the doctor- I mean I'm glad you got what you wanted but that doesn't mean that it does not suck.
I hope your new phone ends up being great- I am holding on to mine as long as possible so I can keep my free data which is no longer offered through Verizon. I like being able to use map my run and things like that but I know they are data suckers.
Oh, Lisa, I'm sure your appointment with the doc was disappointing. I'm glad the shots will be likely to help, but I so understand and relate to your frustration in having to do certain things, take certain meds, just to feel better. At least the swelling is reducing, and that can't help but be a good thing.
Your November sounds really great! When in STL, say hi to Nora's family for me, if you happen to connect. I need to touch base with her mom -- it was a year ago today I spent time with them!
Happiest day and week. Bon Voyage. Again!
Ugh, I am sorry you'll have to do weekly injections. I know, in the long run, it will help and make you feel better but it still really sucks.
Yay for a new phone! It is so worth the upgrade + price. You will love it!
Happy Friday!
Fun that you upgraded to a new iphone! I bought the 5C and it's so fast compared to my 4 too. You'll be happy with it! :) Sorry to hear that you might have to get weekly injections. It doesn't sound like fun but hopefully it will help get you back to somewhere near where you were before RA. Hope you have a great weekend!
Glad that you have faith in the RA drugs. Eventually they will find the combination that works best.
Traveling half of the month? wow that's a lot. Have fun! I know you'll love every minute of that France trip.
Ooh, I need a new phone badly, but don't want to spend the money on it. I may just switch to Pete's old phone, which I like better than mine. But eventually I do want to upgrade to an iphone.
My iPhone 4 is so slow! I've had it for about 2.5 years but I'm holding out as I'm just not ready to upgrade yet! haha
Sorry about the news from your doctor, that really sucks. Just keep plugging and have fun in LA!
This coming week will be a whirlwind one, and then you will have to start planning for your trip to Paris! Time will fly by and then it will be Christmas! I hope by that time that the injections and other meds will have kicked in and you will be mostly pain-free! One can hope! See you next week! Love it!
The cheer in this post makes me happy.
I hear ya on the 4 being slow, I am getting to my wits end with mine also. I may have to upgrade as well, thanks for the push.
Sorry to hear things are not where you'd like them to be regarding progress. Wish I could give you a big hug. Thank goodness you have so much going on right now to help you focus elsewhere as much as possible. Only a few more weeks til Paris!!!!!!
Yay for better sleep! I haven't been sleeping well the past couple of weeks and it has been making such a difference (for the bad) in my quality of life. I hope I get back on track soon. I'm hoping November goes by pretty quickly, but not so quickly that I don't get some things crossed off my to-do list.
I have an iPhone 4 and I'm also thinking about upgrading to a 5s. Do you mind sharing where you traded-in your old phone?
Glad you're honing in on things that will bring relief for both the RA and your sleep, but I know it can't be easy to settle into a new normal. You have absolutely no idea how jealous I am about your trip to my adopted home town!! I've been super missing Paris lately, so please blow kisses to "my" island (Ile-Saint-Louis) for me!!
You are a traveling machine! I wish my job allowed for some travel here and there. I love exploring new cities and seeing what's out there. Sorry about slow progress with the RA. I can only imagine the frustration you must be feeling and I hope you see some progress very soon!
I've been meaning to message you this but one of the ladies I drove up to the mine with has RA and she has to do the weekly shot thing and she said it took her a good year to accept her "new normal", so definitely give it time. Sending BIG HUGS in the meantime.
I'm glad you had such a great week. I am feeling very unlike myself after a week of crappy eating, late nights and very little exercise. I'm hoping to be super healthy this weekend and reset myself a bit!
On my mind ... this is going to be a busy week, but following that will be a really exciting weekend!
Tonight we are going out to eat sushi and then do karaoke in a private room with pals.
I'm so sorry you're going through this, and praying for your new normal quickly.
This weekend we had plans for a hockey game (last night) today I'm doing school stuff (conferences are coming up!) and tomorrow I'm running a 5k. I'm not sure how much longer I can keep up with the intensity, but I do not think I have a choice! lol. Right now I'm just looking forward to winter break. :)
Hope you're having a wonderful weekend.
Glad you got a little bit of down-time to charge up before you start the week of traveling! I have a feeling you're going to have a fantastic week! Especially when the weekend starts!
I'm so glad you're finally sleeping better. I totally agree that cooler temps helps tremendously!!
I pray that this next step in your RA treatment is the answer. I can't wait for you to have no more pain and swelling, and you can feel like you again!
We are having a nice, but low key weekend! Ryan took Friday off, so we went road biking, did some shopping, and roasted a chicken together. This weekend Ryan has drill, so I am spending my afternoons catching up with girlfriends.
So much good stuff! Enjoyed reading your post. Hope you're doing well.
When you say "trade in value" of your iPhone 4, what do you mean by that? I have a 4 that is also painfully slow. I've been putting off an upgrade, too ... but, now my interest is peaked!
Did you say weekly injections indefinitely? Do you do it yourself or do you have to go in each week? I am sorry to hear that this is the answer.
I can't believe it's already November and it's Julia Child night again and you are almost going to Paris! It's crazy how fast this year has flown by!
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