RECOVERY DAY SEVENTEEN

 Today was a great day. Okay there were parts that were not that great but I rolled with it. 

Lucky and I woke up early. I set off my alarm by accident (long story) and it wasn't my fault. There was a scramble to get to the company so the police didn't come. Then I had to schedule a service visit to get it fixed. 

Then I was late to get Lucky to the vet visit so we rushed there and she got her allergy shot. We were home by 8:15. We got the house organized for my parents visit. 

My parents and I visited all afternoon outside in the backyard. Unfortunately Lucky was not feeling well or something and she got very aggressive toward all three of us. I am not sure what was wrong with her. Just a few minutes ago I think I figured it out: she was really hungry. She didn't eat breakfast and woke up really early. It was around 3pm and in her mind it was her dinner time. She wanted to eat. She saw my parents eating and some of us gave her snacks. She didn't want snacks, she wanted dinner! I gave her an extra portion for dinner. 

I made another combination for dinner. My parents brought me some food to supplement the veggie box I got last night. I made pasta with sauteed spinach, mushrooms and cashews. It was really good. 

I ordered more Orencia. I didn't realize that I only had one shot left. 

Until tomorrow...

RECOVERY DAY SIXTEEN

 The veterinarian called about Lucky. She does not have a UTI. So that is good news. I talked to him about the fact that she is licking her feet. He said she needs to get an allergy shot tomorrow. I also brought up that she may be having pain in her hips again and can't take the medicine she took last time because it worked at first and then made her anxious. He is calling in another pain medicine. It is tricky because her other medicine makes it hard to give her pain medicine. So Lucky is either peeing a lot because she is in pain or because she is trying to get attention. Something to sort out.

I made another interesting dinner. It was vegan pasta with green beans, pinto beans, avocado and almonds.  It may not sound very good but it was better than you think. I am finding these interesting combinations are better than I think they are going to be.

I did some picking up and writing out some cards to mail. I worked on a work project. 

I also got some good news about my taxes. I thought it was going to be bad news but it turned out good. 

Until tomorrow...

RECOVERY DAY FIFTEEN

 Today I felt so much better. This is probably TMI but I am peeing much less even though I am drinking a lot. The pain in my abdomen has decreased tremendously. I am still fatigued. 

Today was a day of work again. This is a good thing having so much work. Although I wish I was baking or cooking. 

I did make a new combination for dinner. Vegan Pasta with Avocado, Sweet Potato and Green Beans. It sounds like a mish-mash but it tasted pretty good. 

I had to give Lucky a bath because she is licking her feet. I think she got something on them when we went to the vet's office or when she went to the park. It may be allergies. She seems a bit better since the bath. She is really good if I tell her to stop licking. She doesn't want to wear the "cone of shame". 

Until tomorrow...

RECOVERY DAY FOURTEEN

 I had a better day today. I had to take Lucky to the vet early this morning. I was worried that I would have to be away from the house for a long time but it was fine. I was getting Lucky checked for a UTI. I am not as sure it is a UTI now, I think it may be that her hips are bothering her. But let's wait until the test results come back. 

I did some work and sat around after I got back from the vet appointment. I made a vegan avocado toast sandwich. I never understood the avocado toast thing but this sandwich was good. It also may be that I haven't eaten much food lately and anything different seems delicious. 

I tried to clean up a bit too. I ran the Roomba and took Sunny the bird out of his cage for a little bit so he could walk around. He loves to walk around on the couch. I cover it with a towel. I think he likes a different view for a while. 

Until tomorrow...

RECOVERY DAY THIRTEEN

 Today turned into a day of relaxation too! I had a work call in the morning and then I relaxed. I watched some TV and then had a few phone calls from friends. I watched the movie Minari. This was a movie that won awards and I wanted to see it for a long time. It is a slow moving movie so I needed to be in the right frame of mind to see it. If I watched that movie in the evening, I would have been asleep half way through. It was a marvelous movie. About half of it was subtitled and I really didn't mind it. It took turns that I didn't expect and kept me interested. I recommend it. 

That was basically my day. I made another warm salad for dinner. This time it had romaine lettuce, broccoli, cashews, wild rice, sweet potato and potatoes. It was good. I do think I am getting tired of the same basic dinner. I need to switch it up a bit tomorrow. 

Health Update: I am feeling about the same as yesterday. I need to drink more water. I have a hard time drinking water all the time when it is cold. It was cold and rainy today. I am trying not to drink too much tea. 

Until tomorrow...

RECOVERY DAY TWELVE

 Last night I decided to make some oatmeal cookies with no sugar, eggs and flour. They came out okay. They are edible but I had to make a couple of substitutions. I used flax seed instead of bananas and eggs and I used almond meal instead of almond flour. I could not use cinnamon. I used dates to give it sweetness. They are a good snack while I am going through this elimination diet. 

Today was a lazy day. I just wanted to take it easy. I did take Lucky for a short walk and ran into a neighbor and chatted for a bit. We talked about how it was when we were kids. How we just ran wild until dinnertime playing in creeks and making our own fun riding our bikes and playing ball. 

I am trying very hard to keep doing what I need to to feel better. Eating right, drinking, taking a bath.

I think Lucky may have another UTI (which is very common for older dogs) so I made an appointment for her to get checked Monday. She went outside to pee then came inside and peed in my office and then I took her outside and she peed again. Either she has a UTI or she didn't pee the first time and faked it and decided to pee in my office to get attention. That may sound mean but she has faked peeing before. She is a smart little pup.

Until tomorrow...

RECOVERY DAY ELEVEN

 I got a call from the physicians assistant today. She was checking in on me. She said I need to make an appointment with the OB GYN. I have one three weeks from now. I need to be checked to see how it is going and do further tests. 

I made another dinner of a warm salad made from warm potatoes, parsnips, wild rice, udon noodles, romaine lettuce and cashews. It was really good. 

It was a long day of work. 

I am feeling 15% better. Getting better. 

Until tomorrow...

RECOVERY DAY TEN

 I am feeling about 10% better. It is good news. Removing all good food from my diet has made me feel better. I am able to eat my normal breakfast of a muffin and peanut butter with a banana. I haven't really eaten lunch. Dinners are where I have to get creative. 

Tonight I made a vegan warm potato & parsnip, wild rice salad.  I used the potato and parsnips from yesterday and made some wild rice and put it over romaine lettuce. I can not eat salad dressing so I used salt and pepper. It was very tasty. 

Yesterday and today were tough days. I am not really a very depressed-type person but the idea of having another autoimmune type disease that would effect my life in a large way seemed a bit overwhelming. I reviewed all the data and read all that I could find about IC. I reviewed all the good and bad food items on the list and tried to make a meal plan. My whole life has been turned upside down because I can't do any of my baking or cooking for my cooking course. These have been activities that occupy much of my time while I am housebound.

The way I deal with change is to make a plan, find out all I can about it and figure out a way to live with it. This time it seemed a bit too much. Almost everything I eat is on the bad list. Today I decided to take this change as a challenge and learn how to be more creative in my cooking. Once I realized this is my new project I can do, I am in a happier headspace. I can make food that is really creative until I can get back to my cooking and baking. 

Lucky and I took a short walk today. She was so happy.

Until tomorrow...

RECOVERY DAY NINE

 I know this has been hard to read. I haven't had such a hard health time since I was first diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. Okay, that isn't true. It was hard to read about when I had meningitis but I didn't post every day because I was incapacitated. I only posted a wrap up post which is less day-by-day. 

I got my test results today and I do not have a UTI. That was a little bit of a surprise. I did not hear from the doctor/physician assistant, I just got the results via email. Okay, so now I have to go onto Option 2. Option 2 is to perform the elimination diet for Interstitial Cystitis/BPS. I am vegan so I already don't eat 2/3 of all foods. Now with this elimination diet I have to deduct another 1/6 from that remaining 1/3. I have so little left to eat for a while. I spent a good portion of my day figuring out things to eat. 

I had the rest of my mushroom soup for dinner along with some roasted potatoes and parsnips that I made. 

Both potatoes and parsnips are on the GOOD list. I will have to order more food from the store before I don't have anything left to eat but rice and water. 

This was all I did today. I need to get organized before I have nothing to eat. All the things I normally eat are on the BAD side. Soy sauce, sugar, ketchup, apples, oranges, Thai and Indian food. 

I am going to relax and watch some TV and then go to sleep. Thinking about this is not helping. 

Until tomorrow...

RECOVERY DAY EIGHT

 I spent part of today researching the connection between Sjögren's and Interstitial Cystitis (IC). Current research shows that if a person (mostly a female) has Sjögren's may develop IC. I need to find out why this is. Sjögren's, for those of you who do not know is n auto immune disease that causes the body's immune system to attack its own healthy cells that produce saliva and tears. Sjögren's can also cause dysfunction of organs such as the kidneys, gastrointestinal system, blood vessels, lungs, liver, pancreas, and the central nervous system. 

IC, also called Bladder  Pain Syndrome (BPS),  is a feeling of pain and pressure in the bladder area along with frequent urination.  For some people it may go away on its own. For others different things may have to happen such as change in diet. 

I am starting with a 10 day elimination of trigger foods. I have a long list of foods I can't eat. Then after 10 days I will reintroduce one food at a time. First day, a small amount. Second day a larger amount and on the third day a regular portion. If I am fine then I can move on to another food item. Since the list is long this will take a long time. Some of the foods will be out of season so they will have to wait. It will be hard to find Brussels sprouts and watermelon in April. I have to keep a food diary to keep track of what foods are a trigger for me. I am hoping there aren't any. I was cheating and drinking a bit of caffeinated tea and green tea. I know better than doing that. That may have triggered this whole thing. 

It was a super nice day today so I sat outside in the backyard for about an hour. It was nice sitting in the peace and quiet. I also took Lucky for a short walk and cleaned up the kitchen. I am trying to get moving again. It is just hard. 

Having an RA flare at the same time as this whatever IC flare or UTI is really sapping my energy and will to get up and get anything completed. I look around my home that has been neglected for over a week and I lay back down on the couch.

Until tomorrow...