Sheep Art

They are just so very…ummm…talented.

The Invisible,

S.

Cool Website

I saw my PCP today so I could get a refill on my levothyroxine. He, of course, wanted blood work done to confirm my TSH levels. Since I don’t have medical insurance, I dread when doctors tell me I need blood work done. Dollar signs with exclamation points after them grow bigger and bigger in my mind.

But today my doctor told me about a company called DirectLabs. Essentially you sign up with this company and you can have any test you want done at the same reduced price that insurance companies pay. For example: The blood work I had done today was a thyroid panel with TSH. Normally (supposedly) this costs $174. I only paid $54. On a side note, I just now checked and the site is showing a price of $45. I emailed them to see if I could get a refund of the difference. Seems only fair, right?.

Anyway…the really interesting thing about the site is that you can order any test you want without a doctor’s order. This site is going to create hypochondriac junkies!  

At the lab, I used their restroom and saw an assistive device I’d never seen in a public bathroom before. My first thought: “Oh, that’s a cool one!” After a moment of horror, I quickly added, “But I hope I never need it!” The crazy RA really changes how you think.

This is kind of what it looked like. To my eyes it just looked so much more practical than the ones you normally see in handicapped stalls. Better leverage to get up and down with.

  

The Invisible,

S.

Happy Thoughts

Food for thought…

The cure for rheumatoid arthritis might already exist.

As you read this, someone could be putting in his/her mouth the little pill that could end the suffering for RA patients forever.

Except that little pill they just took wasn’t some experimental drug. No…they took that pill for the flu or an STD or for seizures.

Just look at the two drugs I take to control my RA.

          Plaquenil was originally used to treat malaria.

          Methotrexate  is a chemo drug.

It makes me happy to think a cure could be closer than we realize.

The Invisible,

S.

It’s the little things.

Last night I walked into the bathroom, looked into the mirror, and burst out laughing. I’m really not THAT funny looking, so I’m sure you’re wondering why.

Well, about two hours earlier, I ate a banana. It seems that nowadays bananas need free giveaways to get people to eat them. I’m sure you’ve seen them…the stickers.

Well, last night my banana had a sticker that said “place sticker on forehead, smile”. I’m a complete goofball, so I did it. And a few seconds later…I forgot the sticker was there. Until I walked into the bathroom last night and saw it. Hence the laughter.

I realize I’m one of those people that’s easily amused. I think just about everything can be funny in the right context, including me. And really, it’s the little things in life (like finding a forgotten sticker on your forehead) that make life worth living.

So anyway, I’m filing this one under fibromyalgia brain fog. If you have fibromyalgia, you know what I’m talking about. Sometimes you’ve just got to laugh at yourself.

The Invisible,

S.

A New Lump

Has anyone ever heard of getting a rheumatoid nodule on a place that’s nowhere near a joint? I mean, I realize you can get them on your internal organs, but I think I have one on the inside of my lower lip. Doesn’t that seem like a weird place? It’s been there about three weeks now. I forgot to ask my Rheumatologist when I saw her a couple weeks ago.

The Invisible,

S.

How Many?

I had my Rheumy visit today. She always seems so disappointed when she sees me. In all honesty my RA is not that bad, not compared to other people I know, so I always get the feeling from her that she’s upset that she can’t get me into a permanent remission. I always wonder if it makes her feel like she’s failing her patients a little bit when she can’t “fix” us. One of the difficult parts about being a doctor I guess.

My RA update:

My hands are sore with a few slightly swollen joints, but not too bad.

My feet are the worst they’ve ever been.

My immune system has now decided to add my ankles to its list of joints it has decided to over protect. Go Immune System!

I feel like my body has given me a big welcome-to-30-bitch gift.

My Rheumy is upping my methotrexate to 6 pills 1x week for the next two weeks and then to 8 pills after that. My folic acid will now be 2 mg/day instead of 1 mg. That’s what I was hoping she would do, so I’m happy with that. I really didn’t feel I was ready for a biologic yet.

So what does that bring my daily pill count to? Well, I’ve also started taking two different multi-vitamins, so Sunday through Friday I will be taking 10 pills/day. Saturdays will be 16 pills for the next two weeks and then 18 every week after that. I literally had to figure this out on paper because there were so many.

It’s hard for me to believe I now have to take this many. Just a few short years ago, I wasn’t taking anything. Then I found out I had hypothyroidism. That was one pill a day for the rest of my life. No biggie. I could handle that. But 18!?! Seriously?? I’m 30, not 90.

I’m sure my other invisible illness buddies are feelin’ me on this one, right?

The Invisible,

S.

I’m Home

I’m back in my own lovely little house. Now I have to unpack.

The Invisible,

S.

Creepy!

I found out a couple of days ago that my husband is coming. He’ll be here on the 7th. I’m not happy. My mom thinks he might have been afraid I wasn’t going to come back home. I suppose he did have a little reason to worry. This is Hawaii after all.

That wasn’t the creepy part of my story. What’s creepy is my mom’s van. Super Creepy! Yesterday we went to leave the house and the van was completely dead. What’s funny is that we were just talking before we left the house, about how we really should be taking my dad’s truck to get his tire fixed for him before he gets back on the 6th. But it was just too much trouble, so we decided to take the van. God had other plans.

The van was dead, but acting weird. After taking the key out of the ignition, the radio lights and one of the -ometers (I can’t remember which one) was staying on and blinking and buzzing and all sorts of crazy stuff. The dome light was all blinky and spazzy.

So we took the truck and got the tire fixed. We could take a hint. We half expected to get home and the van work fine, but no such luck. LOL

Today, we went out to see if the van was working (just in case), but it wasn’t. We decided to clean the van out so we could take it to get a new battery. An hour later, I closed all the doors on the van after I finished vacuuming it and went into the house to tell my mom I was done so she could help me bring some stuff in the house. We walk into the garage, and my mom says, “Where’s that music coming from?” I tell her it’s probably from a neighbor because it sounds so faint.

“Are you sure?” she asks, as she opens the van door.

The music stops! It was coming from the van! It had been an hour since the last time the key was in the ignition, and the radio had been off the last time the van worked.

“It’s possessed,” I say, only half joking.

See? Creepy.

Anyway, I’m sure it’s an electrical problem. It would have been so much easier if it had just been the battery. I’m guessing the radio came on sometime during the night, the other night, and killed the battery by playing all night long. Maybe we’ll get lucky and it will just be a fuse or relay issue and not a major wiring thing.

The Invisible,

S.

I’m blotchy, but what a day!

Bellows Beach. Can you say postcard? Yeah, it was that amazing. Can’t wait until I can upload pics for you guys.

That’s where I spent my day today. Six hours of my day. Yes, little ol’ pale me spent six hours in the sun. After repeated applications of a spritzer-type sunscreen throughout the day, I now have a stunning sunburn…with lots of white blotches. It seems the sunscreen decided to protect only PART of my sun-sensitive (thank you RA meds!) skin. I look sooooo sexy.

We went snorkeling (sadly there was nothing to see but seaweed) and boogie boarding. I have never been boogie boarding before, but I loved it. I was giggling like a little girl even as the waves tried to rip off the top of my bathing suit and replace it with sand. Hmmm, maybe I wasn’t doing something right. LOL.

Speaking of sand…the sand at this beach was like powder. It was so soft. I really wanted to take some home with me so I could sift my fingers through it forever. But I was a good girl and didn’t take any. But if we go to this beach again, I may not be able to control myself a second time.

Hope everyone had as good a day as I had!

The Invisible,

S.

RA and the Beach

Did you know that it hurts to walk on the beach when you have RA? Well, it does. The sand conforms around every crevice in your foot and presses each and every one of your sore spots.

My RA started flaring this week. Super snazzy!

The Invisible,

S.

I’m all cool and non-touristy.

Lots and lots has happened since my last post. My sister left last Friday to go home. It was very sad to see her leave. It was also very quiet. My sis is one of those wonderful people who fills every waking second with sound. She always either talking, singing, humming, quacking (just kidding), laughing loudly, etc. You get the idea. She makes her presence known in a room. She’s special that way.

We went snorkeling at Haunama Bay one day while she was here and saw a turtle. I swam with a turtle! How awesome is that?! Very cool memory. I’m so glad my sister got to see it. My husband and I never got to see one the last time we were here in Hawaii.

My mom and I have been to the beach both yesterday and today. The “locals” beaches, so I feel all cool and non-touristy. Yesterday we went to a surfer’s beach and saw something way better than surfer’s. What’s better that hot, tanned guys on surfboards? An adorable seal cavorting on the shoreline and splashing in the waves. We took a ton of pictures. Hopefully, some of them turn out and you all can see him when I post pictures once I get back home.

We’re going to the beach again tomorrow with my mom’s best friend. I’ve met her once when I first got here, and let’s just say she’s interesting.

I’m starting to get a tan with all this time I’ve been spending in the sun. It’s been probably 9 years since I last had a tan. I’m one of those weirdo pale as a ghost people. It’s amazing how much healthier you look with a tan.

I’ve also come to realize I’m a beach person. I LOVE sitting on the beach, listening to the waves (or Seether), smelling the salt water air. I just might have to move to Hawaii. My mom keeps begging me to stay. Maybe I’ll take her up on the offer. LOL.

Also, there is a small possibility that my husband and his mother are going to “surprise” me by showing up sometime next week. I’m not particularly happy about this. I was really enjoying the time away from him. He also hates the water and the beach and refuses to snorkel. That bad boy better not come and ruin my happy time with my mom. I need alone time.

The Invisible,

S.

No F*ckin’ Way!

Excuse the language, but what I’m about to tell you was seriously that exciting.

Saturday my mom and I went to the Honolulu Zoo for a two-hour twilight tour (this isn’t the exciting part). It was a great tour. There was a beautiful elephant that waved at you, three adorable baby tigers (7 months old-ahhhhh-you know you want to say it), and a bunch of rowdy children. It’s a shame those kids weren’t behind bars. Right before we head to the zoo, my mom says we have to go pick up a friend of hers from the airport afterward. No big deal. My mom is one of those people who never stops doing things for other people.

We get to the airport, and I’m completely exasperated because this friend of hers hardly gave her any flight information. All she knew was the arrival time and airline. I get so mad when people take advantage of my mom’s niceness. We finally find the baggage claim for the flight and then wait and wait. The flight was a bit late, and for once, we actually showed up somewhere early. That’s a rarity with my mom. Finally, people start walking in to claim their luggage. My mom gets a call from her friend saying she landed. After my mom hangs up the phone, I ask her if she asked her friend what she was wearing so I could help watch for her since it was someone I hadn’t met before. Nope. Oh well. We stand there for several more minutes as things get crazier around us. My mom waves at someone way down the hallway. I plaster on my most friendly smile to meet this stranger that is interrupting my vacation (just kidding…kind of ).

I see this short woman in jeans and a green shirt dragging a carry-on suitcase behind her. I turn to my mom to say, “She kind of looks like……….”. Wait. No Way!!! That IS my SISTER!!! I haven’t seen her in about four years! We ran to each other (just like in the movies) and hugged and cried. My moms camera decided to stop working. Go figure. LOL.

It was a surprise for my birthday. I was completely shocked. I have no idea how my whole family kept it from me. How incredible is my family??? Lucky, lucky me.

She’s here until Friday, so we’ve been super busy doing touristy stuff since this is my sisters first trip here. We did the Macadamia Nut Farm and tour yesterday. My sister got hit on by our Samoan tour guide. He asked for her number and my sis gave it to him. She’s hoping for a little local action before she leaves. LOL. She broke up with her boyfriend about a week before she got here. I don’t expect she’ll be single for long if she’s already getting dates after being here for only one day.

Today, we went to Pearl Harbor and the Dole Pineapple Plantation. Always fun and educational things to do while you’re here. The car wouldn’t start when we went to leave the pineapple plantation, and we didn’t have any jumper cables. This is a tourist spot, so no one else had them either because everyone is driving rental cars. To make a long story short, it took us 45 minutes to find someone with jumper cables.

Fun, fun, fun. I certainly can’t complain.

The Invisible,

S.

p.s. I’ve been here a week, and I still haven’t stepped one foot on the beach. Incredible, I know. Must be a world record. It’s either been raining, too cold, or traffic has stopped us.

First post from Hawaii!

I’m here safe everyone! The flights were great. There was a little bit of turbulence coming into Salt Lake due to storm clouds and a bit of rain, but that was it.

We haven’t really done anything that exciting yet, but we have driven a bit around the island while doing things like grocery shopping. Seeing the “real” Oahu. Crazy, crazy traffic!

My dad has off work tomorrow, before he leaves to go to Australia on Friday, and so we’re going to go snorkeling in Hanauma Bay! I haven’t been snorkeling since the last time I was in Hawaii, and it was the only thing I really HAD to do while I was here. I’m super excited.

I should have something more exciting to talk about on my next post.

Mahalo!

The Invisible,

S.

My next post will be from Hawaii

I’m off to bed to try to sleep before I have to get up at 4 am. I am soooo not a morning person. My normal bedtime is 2 am. Between the excitement and the change in my schedule, I have a feeling I’m not gonna sleep much tonight.

Here’s a link to Honolulu.gov with links to their live web cams. The Waikiki and Kuhio Beach cams are awesome. That’s where I’m going to be! Well, not exactly. I’m actually going to be in a residential area which is pretty normal. Looks just like any other suburban neighborhood. But that neighborhood will be on Oahu!

The Invisible,

S.

The Fun of Packing

I finally finished packing just now. Took me about 5 hours! It’s never taken me that long before. I had to go through my stuff twice to get rid of things. First time because I just plain had too much stuff to fit in my bags, and second time because I was overweight. There are quite a few things that were on my list that I will not be taking with me, but I’m sure I’ll manage. I lost count of how many times I dragged/wheeled my giant suitcase (the one to be checked) to my bathroom so I could weigh it. Forty-eight and a half pounds is REALLY heavy.

I also checked in online for my flight this morning before I started packing. The first leg of my flight I still don’t have an assigned seat. I really hope that doesn’t mean it’s an overbooked flight. It would be a disaster if I couldn’t get on that flight because there is only the one connecting flight for me from Salt Lake to Hawaii. If I can’t get on the plane to take me from my home state to Salt Lake, I’ll have to wait to fly out until the next day. Craziness!

The Invisible,

S.

Birthday

My birthday is coming up on 4/15. The big 3-0. I’m completely freaked about it. I think I’m having an early mid-life crisis or maybe a second childhood. A little part of me wants to sell everything I own, leave my husband, buy a van, and travel around the country following my favorite bands around on their tours. Just go to concerts every night. Party. Get crazy drunk. Maybe become a groupie.

None of that’s going to happen any time soon. Because I’m going to be 30. I’m an old, responsible adult. Right?

Sometimes I don’t feel like I’m the person I was meant to be. Does anyone else ever feel like that?

The Invisible,

S.

The spider

I woke up this morning and found a spider on my desk right next to my keyboard. I almost didn’t see it and started typing. For most people this wouldn’t be a big deal, but I’m terrified of spiders. It’s a completely unreasonable fear and just thinking of them will give me the chills. I have the chills right now.

Of course, my husband wasn’t home to kill it for me. I NEEDED the computer, so something had to be done. Bug spray! I got it, aimed it at the offending little bugger, and sprayed. And sprayed. And sprayed. Nothing would come out of the bottle. I changed it from spray to stream. Nothin’. The creepy little thing just stared at me in triumph.

Now what was I supposed to do?

Fly swatter! Yes! I could stay a foot and a half away from it while doing the horrible deed. And I knew we had one somewhere. So the hunt began. Last time I saw it, it was in the laundry room. I just knew it was up on the high shelf. And it was. Tucked away in a far back corner. As you all know, I’m only 5′1″. My 6′ tall husband always seems to forget this. I dragged the heavy chair to the laundry, stood on it, and grabbed the disgusting fly swatter.

The poor, hideous spider didn’t know what hit it. I always feel bad when I kill them, but it’s either them or me.

The Invisible,

S.

Stress

Well, I’m going to be gone from 4/14 to 5/14.

I’m stressing about flying by myself. It’s been about 9 years since the last time I did it, and it was only that one time. Luckily, I like to fly. It’s just the stress of doing it by myself. I’m also stressing about the change to my daily routine. I’m going to be out of my comfort zone, which I have sadly backed myself into over the last few years.

I know my mom is going to want to “show me off” to all of her friends. With my social anxiety disorder, that’s going to be really hard for me. I’m also stressed that all this stress will put me into a flare with my rheumatoid arthritis. What a mess I am. So I’m making my lists of things to do and things to take. Being organized and being able to check things off, helps to keep me from totally freaking out about all this. Thank you Excel!

Stupid stress.

The Invisible,

S.

I’m going to Hawaii

I just found out I’m going to Hawaii. My mom and dad live there, and my mom is having some health problems. My dad has to go away on business for over three weeks, so they are going to pay for my plane ticket to come stay with her while he’s gone. I should be leaving in about a week to a week and a half. Things aren’t final yet. I’ll keep you all updated.

I haven’t seen her in about two years, so I’m super excited.

The Invisible,

S.

The AHDI RMT Prep Course Starts…Now

I just logged into the AHDI RMT Prep Course, so I finally get to see what I’ve gotten myself into. I know it wasn’t supposed to start until 4/1, but it’s 4/1 somewhere, right? I got an email reminding me about it starting, so I thought I would try logging in, and it worked.

So far it looks okay. It has a bit more stuff than I thought it was going to have, so I’m happy about that.

There are 12 different sections of body systems/specialties. Each one of these has a link to the pages you should study in your AAMT Book of Style, a list of books and Internet websites that you can use to further study the body system/specialty, and a short list of websites where you can find images that will help you in your study of the body system/specialty.

After that, is a link to an objective test you can take with mostly multiple choice questions. There will also be a few True/False, Matching, and Multiple Response questions thrown in for good measure.  Supposedly, you can take this test over and over again and never get the exact same test twice. Cool.

Next, are the voice clips for practice transcribing. Just sentences like you would have while taking the RMT exam. Not full transcription reports.

Finally, there is a small section of miscellaneous objective tests and a participant forum for chatting with other people taking the prep course. There is also a list of participants. There are 15 of us total. So far, three of us have logged in. I can see everyone’s email address and where they’re from, which I think is weird, but I did find where you can update your profile so no one can see your email address. Your profile can have your picture and you can also blog about your prep course experience. I already have my blog, so I won’t be using theirs. You can also choose to show your phone number and address, give access to your webpage, AIM, Yahoo, or MSN ID. You can also get messages from other prep course participants. Maybe I’ll make some other MT friends while doing this.

Essentially, you go through the course at your own speed. You have access to it for 30 days, but you could finish it in a week (or less) if you really wanted to.

I’m super nervous about taking the exam, so I’m going to study my a$$ off while I have the chance.

If you have any questions, feel free to leave me a comment. I’ll answer anything I can that doesn’t give away the $75 secrets that I paid for. In other words, I won’t be giving anyone the list of websites they offer, etc.  It wouldn’t be fair to me or the school running the prep course.

The Invisible,

S.