Marching forward

I'm blogging from my phone in bed. Yes, it's not even 9:30 p.m. and I'm about to doze off.

Unfortunately this weekend didn't consist of much catching up on sleep. I had a lot to get done, so I ended up staying awake until an unreasonable hour this weekend. This coming week is going to be a bit hectic, too, so I'm just hoping I can stay energized!

Well, to make a long story short, I reinjured my back right before I left for Cancun 11 days ago. The doctor put me on an anti-inflammatory medication that gave me a stomach ulcer while in Cancun. If anyone is thinking, 'Hey, didn't you experience an unusual and random health occurrence last time you left the country,' then you are correct. I have improved significantly since I returned home. But ouch!

Cancun was a blast, though. One of my favorite experiences was the spa. It was much less awkward than the spa in the Dominican, for those of you who know that story. There was this freezing cold tub to jump in before the hot tub, and it was unreal. The water was about 55 degrees. I was in so much pain! It was the biggest thrill of the trip, I'd say. I've never experienced anything like it.

One other random trip fact before I fall asleep... Before the flight there, they made us fill out emergency contact forms. Weird, huh? Maybe it's a new international policy or something, but it felt very field trip-like. And a bit unsettling.

Well, I'm gonna shut these silly, watering eyes.

Slack Attack

So, I wonder how many months I can summarize in a single blog post. Only time will tell...

November highlights include:
-Diagnosis of a slipped disk in my lower back (The actual incident occurred in August when I leaned forward in a booth to dip a chip in queso. Things were never the same again. This is one of those things that you wish was a joke because it's so ridiculous.)
-Physical therapy (This involved some mermaid-like movements.)
-Falcons vs. Saints game (Yes, I will confront you.)
-Train ride to Nawlins! (My mom and I went on a journey, and it was great to get away. "That's a good-lookin' rat.")
-Eating a sandwich that had MACARONI AND CHEESE ON IT!!!

December highlights include:
-A new microwave that I never would have bought if Sears didn't fail at installing my first one
-My first business trip to New York City (Nothing says "first" like missing your flight there!)
-Going to see Cavalia! (Those horses be crazy, but those acrobats be crazier.)
-Falcons vs. Vikings game (You should have seen me do the Wobble in that tent!)
-Taking a week-long staycation (I have nothing to show for it...not even sanity.)
-My brother's engagement (Wedding overload!)
-HOLIDAYS WITH THE FAMILY! (You can never have too much eggnog+whisky, sausage balls, Apples to Apples, Bagel Bites, mashed 'taters, Taboo, etc.)

January highlights (so far) include:
-BEING SICK (There's nothing like ringing in 2012 with a three-week cold! I think I'm on the home stretch, but I was very, very rough weeks 1 and 2.)
-Falcons vs. Buccaneers game (Let's verify that I am indeed sick by going out for a full-day activity that includes beer.)
-Winning my fantasy football league as a first-timer! (How could you not win with a name like "Wyte Chedda"? Word to my homies.)
-Getting a new roommate! (Traded one life-long friend [AH] for another [AM])

I'm pretty sure that's all the remembering I can do at this moment in time. I know there's other stuff -- probably even important stuff -- that I haven't acknowledged, but I can't be everything to everyone. GEEZ.

Every little step I take

First off - The title of this blog is a lyric to a song. I actually wanted to title my last blog this lyric, but I didn't because a friend had just titled a blog about "steps" and I didn't want to overSTEP my boundaries. HA! Anyway, I chose to title the last blog the NEXT line of the song just so I didn't seem like a copycat. However, each time I've seen that title, I've been like, "What? 'You will be there?'" because it's not as obvious and takes me a minute to figure out, even though I wrote it. So, in summary, the last two blogs have been inspired by Bobby Brown's "Every Little Step I Take," which was actually inspired by ANOTHER friend's Facebook status.

Now, if you know me, you know that I can go off on unnecessary tangents like the one above. (BTW: Now I'm listening to Bobby Brown.) However, you probably also notice that it's after 3:00 a.m. and I don't have the day off work or anything. Both of these mysteries can be explained by one simple fact, and it's that I'm pretty sure another kidney stone is rearing its ugly head.

I got my first twinge of back pain last Saturday before the show, but it was gone before I began performing. This pain is FOR REAL, though. So, to explain the unnecessary tangent, I'm actually on Vicodin right now. I tried ibuprofen and didn't keep it down, so I upgraded to bigger guns. I think I'm about to add another half of a Vicodin to the mix to try to get the pain below a 3 or 4.

Well, yesterday (Wednesday) during lunch, I went to exercise. I wore my bathing suit under my gym clothes, planning to take a dip in the pool after I finished running. Shortly after getting on the treadmill, I decided I'd rather swim laps. I ended up getting off the treadmill and heading out to the pool, even though I was goggleless. The result: I swam 30 laps! Now, the pool at my complex isn't Olympic-sized or anything, but it's between 15 and 20 yards. So, that was a big accomplishment. It felt good to do the butterfly for the first time in what felt like forever. It was a great workout! Now I want to get a membership at some kind of indoor pool so that it can become a habit.

When I woke up with the back pain, I was hopeful that it was swimming induced. As I learned with the last stone, though, when there is not a single physical position I can contort myself into to feel better, that's bad news. Ugh. I am nauseous.

Well, I've got a big few days ahead of me, so I guess we'll see where I stand after another bout of sleep.

You've gotta be kidneying me

Seriously.

I woke up today and got out of bed, ready to head to the gym. After I'd been standing for a few minutes, I was in excruciating pain. Now, though, it was more localized in my abdomen than in my back. I got in the shower to tough it out, and literally couldn't stand. By the time I got out of the shower, I was just in tears. I called my mom and just started bawling like a tiny little baby.

She was headed out to my place and I couldn't take it anymore. She called my sister, who came to get me so that we could get a head start. We went to Emory because it makes it so much easier for the doctors to know everything about me. I was that person in the ER doubled over, crying out in pain. They got me back to a room and my blood pressure was hovering at 160-something over 100-something.

In all seriousness, it was pretty scary. There were moments when I wasn't sure I was going to make it through. I have never been through pain anywhere near this bad at any point in my life. The central theme throughout the day was that "people say they'd rather have a baby than a kidney stone." I was in a room just bawling and yelling at the top of my lungs for more than an hour. Finally they started giving me IV morphine, which worked for a few minutes and then wore off.

At this point a doctor came in, heard the story, and was pretty sure it was a kidney stone. She ordered another painkiller that's good for stones, and got me scheduled for a CT scan. The painkiller did wonders and I was able to lay flat for the first time all day. I went to get the CT scan which showed two kidney stones. One of them has already made it through the toughest parts and is hanging out just before my bladder. The other's just chilling in my kidney.

I got to come home after 10 long hours, and don't really have to go back unless I vomit, get a fever, or have the severe pain again. It's about time for another pain pill. I'm on four different medications while we wait this out, but it should take care of itself. We're just hoping the second one stays put in my kidney. Jerk.

Thanks to everyone for helping minimize the accident drama from last night. Honestly I've forgotten almost all about it since I didn't get to call the insurance company while in the dungeon.

I've already found a crew shift replacement for tomorrow night, and am going to try to wait it out and attend on Saturday if I'm functioning. I know some folks who are on crew Saturday and I bet someone would drive me (!) if I'm still on all of the medicine.

This has got to be the end of this series of events.

I've fallen and I can't get up

Yes, my back hurts. I mean, ouch. I was somewhat numb for the first portion of the day, probably because I took some of the prescription Motrin I got when I was in the ER several months back. Now, though, my back is just screaming at me again. I didn't hear a response from the doctor, but I will say that today was an improvement from yesterday, so I'm hoping it's just something muscular... The good news is that my SC joint hasn't hurt since I got back in town. I sound like such a hypochondriac right now.

While I'm on the topic of health and what not, my bloodwork was a breeze today! I dressed warmly and put on a jacket for about 30 minutes before the actual blood draw. As I walked into the clinic building, the study coordinator came down the steps and told me to stay there in the lobby versus coming up to the lab where it's COLD. So, I got needled in the middle of the lobby of the building. Either way, it was beautiful. I know a lot of people hate needles and blood, but it was so refreshing after the unsuccessful sticks yesterday. Plus, this means I don't have to withdraw from the study over something ridiculous.

There was some major improvement on the appetite front today. I went to Willy's and was able to sustain my appetite throughout the entire meal! Maybe I was just having Willydrawals. Man, those nachos were good.

The Braves lost tonight, which was disappointing after a good winning streak. I handled it very well, though, because they've been playing so well lately.

What else? I need to do my annual self-evaluation for work when I'm telecommuting tomorrow. I've tried to work on it the past two days, but I get so distracted when I'm trying to answer the narratives at work. Plus, I wanted to give it some time to get over the shock of returning to work after vacation. I did it at this same time last year (the day I returned from Florida), and wasn't the most positive person.

Last night I couldn't sleep for anything. I literally got about two hours of sleep. I have no idea why I'm still up at 1:00 a.m. I thought I would have crashed a long time ago. I took a small nap tonight, but I'm surprised I've lasted this long. Tomorrow's probably going to be tough.

Cheers to all. Life is precious.

Oh me, oh my

There is no justifiable reason why I should be up this late on a Monday night. Like I mentioned, we had 9:00 to 11:00 p.m. rehearsal, and I felt surprisingly awake on the way home. So, I decided to go ahead and watch the Bachelorette from tonight. If this isn't pure entertainment, I don't know what is. We're about to start giving out some roses! She's already sent the psycho home, and now there's a clear underdog in my opinion. We'll see if I'm right... YES! Good girl.

Today was an interesting day back to work. I went to Starbucks on the way and got my Iced White Chocolate Mocha goodness. It was the perfect start to the day, especially because I didn't realize I'd be in four hours of meetings. Because of the meeting craziness, we got pizza delivered, which was a nice treat even though I'm not a pizza fanatic. Then my friend KQ and I went to Yoforia. I got pineapple yogurt with Sour Patch Kids, kiwi and strawberries. Mmm!

I went by the doctor's office to get blood drawn for the study. However, things didn't quite go as planned. After six sticks, there was literally no indication that my arm was willing to relinquish any blood. Sooo, we pretty much gave up and are trying for tomorrow. I wore a dress today and was really cold, which didn't help the cause. I'm gonna dress warmly tomorrow.

What else? I just feel like good things are on the way for me. It's funny that I felt the exact opposite at this time last week.

Oh, and today was not very good on the stomach/appetite front. I forgot to mention (I think) that my back started bothering me at one point during the beach trip. Saturday afternoon the pain was so bad that I was nauseous. Today was like that, too. It's really weird because no painkiller I took was helping the cause. I hope it's just a strain or something and will be headed out of the door ASAP. I emailed my doctor just to get an opinion. We'll see what she says.

Happy birthday to my mom!