Firbromyalgia Study - Week 3

This is my third week in the fibromyalgia study. This week I have to go in three times. I already went once this morning and came home and rode my bike for 20 minutes and went 3.4 miles. I felt pretty good, but tired. I iced my neck and then took a nap. I think I have been feeling a little better, but the weather is so cold right now that it makes it hard to tell. I am up to 40 pulls on the traction unit and have to work up to 60. Somedays I'm not sure I can even do 10, but I keep going. I'm still doing good on the molding block and only had one night that I couldn't do the full 20 minutes so far. I'm getting faster on my wobble chair.

Fibromyalgia Study - Week 2

So I started my study the week before Christmas. I went in twice a day for four days. Each time I went in I did traction and the wobble chair exercises and then the Dr worked on my spine. At home I have a traction unit and a portable wobble chair. I took these with me to New Mexico for our Christmas vacation. I was supposed to do them both twice a day and I only had one day that I didn't. The trip down, 15 hours, was a lot easier on my body. I only took one nap and really didn't have any aches. In the past when I have traveled home I usually need at least one day of rest before I can do anything. This time I didn't! We went to church the next day (which always makes me hurt anyways) and I felt like I do here at home. I really had some pretty good days until Christmas (and that may have been in part to getting up so early!) I had a headache and just felt awful and had to go back to sleep after breakfast. My little niece was so cute the first time I did the wobble chair. First she watched me, then after a couple minutes her eyes lit up and she said, "I want to try that!" I told her she could try it once. So when I got done I put her on. She is just 3 and her little legs couldn't reach the floor, so I held on to her and wobbled her back and forth a couple times. Then she said, "I think my legs are too little to touch the floor." Some how the wheat bucket that I was using to put my wobble chair on kept migrating around the room. Although never seen in the act, I think my nephew and niece helped it.

The trip home was a little harder and I took several naps and my right knee began hurting quite early in the trip. But I did drive for a few hours so Kaleb could have a nap. And we did finally make it home safe to our own beds!

On Monday I went in to the Dr. and he worked on my spine again. He said that I could start coming in only once a day. He also gave me my first molding block, made out of foam. I have to lay on it every night, preferably just before bed, for up to 20 minutes. It is placed under my neck. The Dr said that some people can only stay on for a few minutes to start and so I should try and work up to 20 minutes, but no longer. Sometimes people fall asleep while laying there, so you have to set an alarm so you don't go over 20 minutes. I set my alarm and laid down and felt ok, except that my right knee was hurting me. I stayed on the whole 20 minutes.

Today, Tuesday, I went back in and he was impressed that my neck was still in the right position and so he didn't have to work on it. He did work on my knee a little to see if it would feel better. I have been quite tired today, but what do you expect after a long vacation?

Fibromyalgia Study

About a month ago my friend called me saying she saw an ad in the newspaper to cure fibromyalgia. It sounded interesting, so she cut out the ad and brought it to me. Kaleb and I called and signed up to go to a meeting about it. I was worried they were going to say they had found the perfect pill to cure fibromyalgia, but it just had a "few" side effects. Luckily it doesn't involve taking a pill at all!! The doctors theory is that Fibromyalgia pain can be taken away by using the Pettibon system to realign and strengthen the neck. It sounded very promising! Kaleb and I both felt that this was something that could really help me! So we signed me up. They had tons of people want to participate! There was only 10 fully paid for spots and 30 spots to do another study, at cost. I had to fill out paperwork and get a couple x-rays. Then the dr selected those that fit the study criteria and then randomly selected those that got in the group of 10.
We told everyone to pray that I would get in the group and our prayers were answered! We received a call saying that I was in the group of 10! We went in and found out more of what I would have to do and then we got to see my x-rays. First the dr put up a sample x-ray of how a neck should look, with a nice curve and how they measure the alignment from the pituitary gland. Then he put up my x-ray. Wow!! No wonder I have felt like crap for soooo long! I have absolutely NO curve in my neck, completely straight! Also he showed us on the x-ray where you could see that I have 2 torn ligaments. The alignment from my pituitary gland is 29mm off, causing my head to put 30lbs of pressure on my neck instead of the normal 15lbs! Then he put up the front x-ray that showed that my spine leans to the right. At this point I wasn't sure if I should shout for joy or cry. For the past 10ish years I have been trying to get the many doctors I have seen to believe me that there was something wrong with my body! I have done so many tests and they always come back in the normal range, and now, finally, there was a test that showed how messed up my body was!!!
So on Monday I started the 6 month study. First I have to "hang" from a traction unit. Then do exercises on a wobble chair. Then the dr adjusts my spine. But it is not as easy as it sounds! My body is totally in shock! We are trying to move the spine and let the spinal fluid flow through my body like it is supposed to. Imagine a kinked hose and how much pressure is released when you let it go! I can definately feel a change in my neck, but also have pain with it. I also have been feeling sick to my stomach, which the dr says is normal as your body starts to recognize the toxins that have built up in your body and as it tries to eliminate them. Of course I am in pain, but the pain is different from fibromyalgia pain and we are very hopeful that this pain will be for a short while and then I will be feeling better for a long while! I've had so much fibromyalgia pain for so long, that I really don't care how much pain I am in now, as long as I get better!!
This week I have to go in 2 times a day for the first four days. Next week we will be in New Mexico for Christmas, but I will have the equipment I need to take with me to continue the exercises twice a day. As I progress the schedule changes on how often I have to go into the doctors office. I will keep posting and let you all know how I am doing. Wish me luck!

All I Want for Christmas

Maxwell: (singing) All I want for Christmas is my 2 front teeth

Jensen: All I want for Christmas is for my 2 front teeth to fall out!!!!!

-Poor guy, he's 7 and hasn't had any teeth fall out yet.

What?

(conversation overheard between Kaleb and the boys, after Kaleb had been at his parent's house for the weekend)

Kaleb: Did you know your Grandma is already listening to Christmas music?

Maxwell: What?! She skipped a holiday!!

Jensen: Ya, doesn't she know she should be listening to Thanksgiving music!

Happy Halloween!

Kaleb's pumpkin

Jensen's scarred pumpkin

Maxwell's first pumpkin carved on his own

Alicia's spider web pumpkin

All of our pumpkins in our kitchen window

The Junk has Come!

The junk has come to the Otteson house. I started feeling yucky on Monday. Then Tuesday morning Jensen had a headache, cough, and temperature. So he and I stayed home sick. Wednesday was no better, in fact worse! So we borrowed some movies from one of our great neighbors and vegged all day. This morning Maxwell had a cough and a temp. So we ate breakfast and Jensen, Maxwell, and I all went back to bed! Kaleb hasn't gotten it yet, knock on wood, and has been taking care of all of us. I'm so glad he came well trained in cooking and cleaning!! Tomorrow, unless a miracle happens, I won't feel up to classes....but we will have to see with the boys. It's hard to miss 4 days of university classes!! ......And now I hear Kaleb coughing while he is out fixing us dinner.....wish him luck!