Where did Saturday and Sunday Go

So Here we are on Monday, Where did the weekend go to, I did very little apart from sleeping, resting and some graphic work on the computer, and before you know it we are at Monday and the start of another week so all I can say is.

WELCOME TO 

Saturday

Turning the clock back to Saturday Morning. Not a bad nights sleep on Friday night, woke a couple of times during the night but was up by 9.00 am. Spoke to Pauline and had breakfast and then just checked on Facebook, apart from that not a lot happening, so a nice restful morning. My Son Gervase phoned to say he will be coming round about lunchtime as he is going to the first home game of the season  for Portsmouth Football Club at Fratton Park and they are having a fans fun day in the stadium car park so he will take me over to see what is happening, as it is within Rollator distance to where I live.
Gervase arrives at about 1.15 and we have a chat and then I walk with the Rollator over to Fratton Park with him to see what is going on.

Fratton Park from the Main Car Park.

Some of the fans at the Fun Day

The Pompey Bus at the Fun Day

The Pompey Shop, Fratton Park

It was not a bad turn out at the Fun Day, and when you think that 2 years ago "Pompey" were on the brink of Liquidation and going out of the English football league after getting into so much debt after some successful years in the Premier league and winning the FA Cup.
It was only through the supporters ands the Pompey Supporters Trust that we survived in league 2 of the football league and is now owned by the supporters.
Pompey won the match against Cambridge 2 - 1, so a good start to the season.

Play up Pompey

After we have been at the Fun day we make Our way back home, we were only out for about 40 minutes once indoors I get myself some lunch ready and Gervase heads back over to Fratton Park to watch the match, as he is a season ticket holder, We have been supporters of Pompey for many years, I remember my Father Taking me to fratton park when I was about 6 or 7 years of age, That would have been in about 1949/1950 and I have been supporting them ever since, through all the bad and good times, I started taking Gervase to Fratton Park when he was about 9 years of age in about 1990.
 After the Match Gervase came in and we had a nice chat about the match, as I listened to it on the radio and then he made his way back home to Leanne, and I settled down to watch some TV and do a bit of Graphic work and then dinner about 7.30 and bedtime at about 10.00, so all in all a good Saturday.

Sunday 

Sunday started with a Thump in more ways than one, I had woken at about 6.30 and as usual I go and make a coffee to take back to bed, Turn on the Radio and Open the bedroom Window to let some fresh air into the room as I get very Dehydrated during the night, and being in a ground floor flat I cannot have windows open at night for obvious reasons, Anyway I must have dozed off because the next thing I know I am awaken by next doors Kitten leaping on to me from the window sill.

I am always being pestered by Cats

Anyway that was the way my day started, Once i had got up and gave the Kitten from next door a drink of water and opened the back door he was happy, he just went up to the end of my courtyard and sat there licking himself and looking at me as if to say " Well that got you out of bed" after that shock to the system I needed a good strong Coffee.

My goodness I needed That 

Well once I had got my self sorted I got some breakfast, Text Pauline to let her know that all was ok with me, Pauline phones back and we have a chat and then I go and weigh myself before getting washed and dressed and settling down to check out Facebook.

Nothing wrong with my weight.

Well once I had got myself sorted It was time to head of down to the paper shop and get my daily Paper, I met one of my neighbours out taking his dogs for a walk down the Park, so I headed of down to the park  with my rollator, we had a nice chat but my muscles soon got tired so after about twenty minutes I headed back home, but it was an enjoyable half hour .

Out with my neighbour with his dogs

Once back home I just spent the rest of the day Resting and listening to the radio.

I got dinner about 7.30 Pm a nice Moussaka,  and then spent the rest of the evening in the recliner watching a couple of recorded episodes of "Highway To heaven"

Highway to heaven with Michael Landon and Victor French.

And so ends Sunday, off to bed at about 10.30 last night and slept through pretty well until this morning

Monday

Well This morning started pretty well, It is a lot cooler her on the coast today, apparently we have a cold front moving in from Scandinavia so that will make life a lot more comfortable for me and my walking, I find it hard going walking when it is to hot and humid, a cool breeze makes it far more comfortable for me.

As I said in Fridays Journal, Pauline had made me a Bib for when I am eating.

Franks Bib for mealtimes.

The reason behind Pauline,s needlework skills is that she does all my washing and ironing for me, {She takes The washing home on Wednesdays after she takes me shopping and Gordon takes it on Friday when he goes home to Pauline after Helping me with my Bath etc. And needless to say Wednesday,s washing is returned all clean and ironed on a Friday and the same for Friday,s on a Wednesday, } Anyway as I have to have a lot of liquid with my food due to my swallowing not being 100% and also that my Hand, Mouth and Cutlery co-ordination is not 100% I tend to get food down the front of my shirt, and I think Pauline is getting fed up of having so many shirts to wash and iron, I am all right with Sandwiches, Drinks, ice-cream, cakes etc but Meals are a different matter.

Calm down Pauline

Anyway one I had had my breakfast of cereal (Wearing my posh Bib), I go and get remedy and then head off down to get my Morning Paper, In take a walk around the block and that is enough for me so back indoors to get a coffee and sit and read the Paper and do then crosswords.

Well Today has been taken up on writing this journal and apart from having lunch , I have not done much else, apart from looking into setting up a fun Global Myositis Awareness website, Just turning ideas over in my head at the moment.

Anyway it is now 5.00pm and it is time I got this Journal posted so  as there is not a lot happening today So Until the next Journal on Thursday I will say..................

The Return of my Daily Journal.

And so here I am back again after a gap of nearly Ten months and here I come riding back into your lives on a white charger, well it has been an interesting few months which I will not bore you with apart to say that I had a few up,s and downs with tapering my Prednisolone but at least I have now got new glasses and a larger screen computer so hopefully get back to what i do best and that is boring you all silly .



So where do I start,  I am now down to 2.5 mg of Prednisolone daily ( 5 mg taken alternate days} and that was a journey and a half to get to this from 5 mg daily (10 mg taken alternate days) but fingers crossed i am now finding it easier but a big difference in my energy levels, they are so much lower on this low dose.

Anyway I have got to where my Neurologist wants me to be, and now all I have to do is to work on my weight, I am just under 13 stone which is not helping with my Knees and with my weak muscles in my upper legs and thigh,s, My Neurologist "Dr Gibb" wants me to be at 11 stone unfortunately that is not going to happen so I am going to try to get to 12 stone and see where we go from there but I think Jogging is out of the question.

So that just about brings us up to date on the health side of things so we start with today. as usual it was a case of waking up not knowing if the heatwave we are in the middle of was going to continue again or not, it was another night of restless sleep as it is so hot and humid here in the UK so wait to see what the weather forecast is for today

Well it looks like it is another hot day ahead and so it seems the Fan will be used to its maximum again today, anyway time for breakfast so that is a coffee with a bowl of Special K with red berries followed by the obligatory 4 pitted prunes, I have found that having 4 prune,s in the morning with my breakfast can reduce my laxative ( Latulose) from twice a day to just once in the evening.

Once I had finished Breakfast I send the morning text to Pauline, and she phones me back to make sure that all is Ok, Pauline and Gordon  are off up to Waterlooville town centre to do some shopping and asked if there is anything I needed but all I have to get today is Milk and the daily Paper, as I went shopping with Gervase yesterday so i have everything I need until Pauline takes me shopping down to Portsmouth city centre on Wednesday.

Waterlooville  Town Centre.

Once I have spoken to Pauline I check out the myositis support groups on Facebook and then I get myself ready and go down to winter road with the Rollator to get my Daily paper and a couple of pints of Milk. While I am out I take a walk down Devonshire avenue and around the block back home, which is my exercise for the day. it takes about 20 to 30 minutes and the good thing about using a rollator it has a seat so I can sit down if required, however it is a lot less humid today so it was not to bad on the breathing

Approach to Devonshire avenue from Winter Road

Winter Road looking north to the shops.

Once i am back home I have a sit down and a coffee and then go out and dead head the Rose bush and the two hanging baskets, there are still a lot of buds on them to bloom yet, They are at the front of my flat and looks very pretty, there are a lot of hanging Baskets in the houses down our street.

The Rose bush is doing well this year.

one of my Hanging Baskets

My other Hanging Basket.

Once I had done that it was time for some lunch so a nice Corned beef Sandwich and then a lie down for an hour until 3.00 when it is time to get the computer ready, make a coffee and then on to writing the daily journal before getting dinner ready for tonight, Tonight it will be a sea bass fillet with New Potatoes, Broccoli and a cauliflower cheese, all home made from fresh ingredients.

well that is about it for today, not the most exciting of days but an enjoyable one all the same so I will say bye Bye to you all until tomorrow, and It is so good to be back writing the Journal, it will probably take a few days to get back into the swing of things.

and so here we are into October.

I remember writing on my last journal on Friday that the rollator was made for walking but my legs were not, well a bit of a misquote there I think it should have read "But my Body was not" as I will tell you after welcoming you all to...................

I ended Fridays Journal saying that I was going to get dinner ready for Friday evening, well I had dinner about 7.00 pm and then from 8.00 until about 9.30 I spent between the lounge and the bathroom vomiting and bringing my dinner back up (not a pretty sight), I felt so ill that I even had to phone gervase and he came round to be with me for a couple of hours, I let Pauline know and she and Gordon wanted to come down but I said that Gervase was coming round, and we would phone if it got any worse and let them know.

Anyway this went on for about 2 hours until it started to settle down at about 10.00 ish, at which time I thought that Gervase had spent far to much time with me and that he needed to get back to Leanne , as the poor lad had not even had time to have his evening meal. so after much nagging from me he went back home after making me promise to phone him if it started up again, anyway once Gervase had gone I phoned Pauline and gordon and then went off to bed feeling very old and fragile.

 It was a very restless night,s sleep and when I eventually got off to a decent sleep, I slept through until about 9.00 am when I received a text from Pauline to see how I was. The good thing about it was that I was not feeling "Nauseous" but the muscles in my lower chest and stomach were really Sore and Painful, I had certainly put some strain on them last night, so It was going to be a couple of days of rest for me, anyway I made a cup of Twinings fruit tea 

and had a small bowl of cereal for breakfast and then  settled down to rest and watch some TV. I also took a couple of co-codamol which helped to ease the pain and soreness.

well Saturday passed very uneventful, I kept my food intake down to a minimum and upped my fluid intake to stay hydrated and got through Saturday with no more bouts of sickness.

Pauline and Gordon came down to see me and to make sure that I was OK and to see if I needed to have the bathroom cleaned or anything, but that was OK, They also brought me my paper and some milk with them, anyway they stayed for an hour or so and had a chat and then made there way back to Waterlooville, Gervase phone to see If I wanted him to come round but I said that was not necessary as I was going to spend the day watching Movies. and so that is how my day went, I had a couple of scrambled eggs on a slice of toast for lunch and some chicken soup in the evening and also a complan, and then had an early night. at least I managed to keep my food down on Saturday and was feeling slightly better by saturday night.

now on Reflection I think that I had just really pushed my body to the limit over the previous few days and was now paying the penalty for my stupidity. I had walked far to much in such a short period of time and also was eating far to much as well. Through all the trauma over the last 2 years with the myositis diagnosis and the chronic dysphagia and the slow rate of improvement it was easy to forget that I was also diagnosed with a twisted stomach (Cup and spill stomach) and I need also to take that into account as well.

I slept pretty well on Saturday night and Sunday was much the same as Saturday, I was feeling better but on reflection I have decided that I need to eat 2 smaller meals in a day instead of one larger one so that is what I am going to do, Gervase came round and we went out in his car and did a little bit of shopping, we went to Marks and Spencers where I got  6 mini meals for Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, and then we went up to sainsburys where Gervase did his shopping I took it very easy with only a small amount of walking.  

M&S Mini Meals for one

So apart from shopping I spent most of the day recovering from the last aches and Pains from Friday, Friday night I slept pretty well and got up at about 9.00 on Monday.

Monday was again a day of rest and taking it easy, I am still making sure that I am taking it easy and pacing myself better throughout the day. I walked round to get my paper from the new spar shop and the lad that served me was on his mobile phone and did not stop talking even when taking the money for the paper, How rude is that, I certainly wont be shopping there again 

The worst shopping experience ever, really rubbish

anyway spoke to Pauline and Gordon and then just spent the day pottering around the house and catching up on episodes of Bonanza and Gunsmoke. Tuesday was also spent much the same way except on tuesday evening I went to see Gervase and leanne for a couple of hours, Leanne,s dad Dave was there as well and gave me a lift back home about 9.15, I am certainly feeling a lot better now but that was really a rubbishy last few day,s.

So Now we are at Wednesday and it is shopping day with Pauline. having two mini meals a day rather than one large meal has certainly been beneficial to my digestive system, so I will carry on with that regime at the moment, I will contact my speech therapist in the next few weeks and have a chat with her as it is getting near the time when they will need to do a follow up  Endoscopy to see if there has been any change in my cup and spill stomach.

Pauline and Gordon arrive about 11.00 and while Pauline and I go down to the city centre Gordon will spend a couple of hours doing my weekly flat clean.

Get a move on Gordon

Once down town we go to the bank and then boots the chemist, before heading into M&S to get 8 mini meals to take me through until Sunday, we then go to Morrisons in the Victory Retail Park to get the main shopping before getting a taxi back home.

Morrisons Victory retail Park. Portsmouth

once back home, we get the shopping put away and then we have a sandwich and a coffee for lunch before Gordon and Pauline head back home about 3.00. so that is the end of another day, suffice to say that the Rollator stayed at home today and I took the wheelchair, I have certainly learn a valuable lesson over the last few days and that is that with this Myositis, no matter how well you feel take it easy and do not overdo things as it is always lurking in the background ready to pounce and give you a reminder.

Anyway I am feeling almost back to norma again now and I really think the 2 mini meals a day is benefitting me so we will see how that goes, and certainly a bigger variation in my diet so hopefully less laxatives, but thats another story. So Until my next Journal I will say a fond goodbye.

Oh Doctor I'm in Trouble..............

Oh goodness Gracious Me..............

Hello again one and all and welcome to Thursday 19th September.

it has been an interesting time since my last Journal on Monday, so I will start with the events of Tuesday.

Tuesday 17th September 2013

As most of you know I have scaled down on the frequency of my daily journals due to problems with my Vision using a 13" macbook pro. Although I can zoom in on the text it the constant staring at a small bright screen that has been giving me problems along with frequent head aches above the eye,s. If I do not spend extended time on the computer this problem does not arise, however I decided on Tuesday to Phone my GP in the Morning at 9.00 am, and spoke to Dr Lake who arranged an appointment with another GP Dr Eggin at 11.45 that Morning.

Speaking to Dr Lake

After I had spoken to Dr lake I spoke to Pauline on the phone and let her know and also had a chat with Gordon, before getting some cereal for breakfast and taking my morning dose of Laxido.

"Laxido" for all that is stubborn and refuses to move

after breakfast and doing the washing up I get a wash and shave and then get myself ready to go to the Eastney Health Centre to see Dr Eggin. Dr Eggin is the replacement Doctor for my long standing Family GP Dr Tyrrell, who retired last week, so I was a bit apprehensive about seeing Dr Eggin, but I should not have been, she turned out to be a very competent GP and had been fully versed on my Myositis by Dr Tyrrell and also by Dr,s Lake, Richbell and Proctor, in fact Dr Tyrrell had even passed the book on Myositis that I had brought for him 2 years ago.

The book I Brought for Dr Tyrrell

Anyway I got a Taxi down to the Eastney Health Centre at 11.30 and reported to Reception I was Number 11 so as number 10 was in with Dr Eggin, then I was next, I only had a short wait and was called in at 11.50. Dr Eggin listened to what I had to say about what was happening and then carried out a series of tests my blood Pressure sitting and standing was OK, My Blood sugar level was normal, My Blood tests from two weeks ago were all OK ( Or as Dr Tyrrell marked, "Normal for this Patient") She then checked my eyes and carried out several vision and balance tests and also checked my ears, and  came up with the diagnosis that she could see no major problem apart from the cataract that was probably causing problems with the vision ( which is what I suspected) but she also said that the headaches were probably a combination of the brightness of the screen on the laptop and the fact that the muscles in my neck were weakened and was not able to support my head properly while using the laptop in the recliner so she has prescribed 2 x co-codamol if I find my neck becoming painful ( which I had noticed over the last week or so.)

A Thorough examination

So that was a good and positive visit to the Doctors so back home in the taxi and the rest of the day was spent watching TV and having dinner and leaving the Computer alone. anyway look forward to November when I get my new computer and also a new office chair so that I can work from my desk, will start checking that out tomorrow.

Wednesday 18th September 2013

well a decent nights sleep last night and got up about 8.30, Pauline and Gordon will be down about 10.30 this morning and then it will be down to the city centre to get the shopping. Today is the anniversary of My Fathers Birthday and also my Uncle Fred ( Mums Brother) Dad was born on the 18th September 1914 so would have been 99 this year and Uncle fred was born on the 18th September 1918 and would have been 95 this year

well after texting and speaking to Pauline and Having Breakfast it was time to get myself ready for when Pauline and Gordon arrive. in fact they arrive about 10.20 and I am not quite ready but almost so that is not a problem anyway, one I am ready I get the Rollator ready and Phone citywide for a taxi to take Pauline and I down to Commercial road and then once we have left, Gordon can do the weekly clean on my flat.

Commercial road precinct.

 Once down town we go and do the shopping that we need to do and also have a coffee before doing the main grocery shopping in Tesco,s before getting a Taxi back home at 1.15. Once home we get the shopping put away and then have a coffee, a chat and a sandwich before Gordon and Pauline head home and I settle down to check out office chairs and maybe a new desk as well. Gordon had done a god job with the flat cleaning as usual so thank you Pauline and Gordon for all your Help.

Nice one Gordon

Thursday 19th September 2013

Another excellent night last night, well after listening to Dr Eggin on Tuesday I have not suffered any headaches or vision problems, I cannot wait until November to come around so that I can get my new Computer. Until then I will be spending less time on the Computer, although I have found a way to write these blogs and facebook posts by using the "Siri" facility on my iPad. this allows me to verbally dictate what I want to write I can then go into the blog on the computer and add the images and that is it,  It took a bit of getting used to the speed of dictating and I have to manually make a very few adjustments by hand but I am getting better at it and it means I am not staring at a screen for a long time.

So today I have also been looking at what Office chair to get and also looking at Desks to compliment the new iMac when I get it.
It looks like the desk and chair will be from Ikea. Just can't wait now.

Ikea Hemnes Desk with add on Unit

Ikea Malkolm swivel chair

Well that is about all my eyes will take today as far as the computer is concerned.
After my appointment with Dr Gibb my Neurologist on the 5th of this month and my Pulmonary Function test last Friday, I today received a letter from Dr Gibb,s Secretary to say that my next appointment is on the 5th March 2014 that is 6 months time the same as the last one so I would presume that my PFT was OK.
So until the next blog which I hope to write on Saturday " Myositis Awareness Day" I will say...................