Valentine's Day postponed...

The Mr. normally drops the ball on Valentine's Day.  It figures the year that he actually plans things out and makes reservations at one of my favorite restaurants, I get the most horrible migraine.  I couldn't even eat my chocolates.

 

It started Sunday & was mostly gone Monday.  It returned in greater force on Tuesday (and stayed until Thursday) and some lucky person scored our dinner reservation.  The good news is I had a doctor appointment Friday & I'm getting my MRI on Tuesday.  Now I'll find out if this is a Chiari Malformation or a massive nerve disorder.    



This is what I was going to wear to dinner.

We were waiting to reschedule dinner to make sure the migraine doesn't come back again, but after my appointment I went to the mall to get a new garter belt (which no one had) and ended up getting hit by a car .  The girl backed into me, but I ended up bouncing between her car and mine.  She was 16 and talking on her phone.  She panicked and took off, but a police officer happened to be sitting in the parking lot and saw everything & caught her (she didn't get far).  I know she was charged with Hit & Run, but I think there was at least one more charge.

 

My car is OK, but I'm not.  I ended up with a sprained ankle, new dislocated ribs, dislocated pubic bone, torn tendons in my wrist & lots of bruises.  If I didn't have Ehlers Danlos, I probably would have walked away with a few bruises and some sore muscles.  It could have been much worse, so I still consider myself lucky. 

I need my own charity...

Having a chronic illness is expensive.  I do have insurance, but they only cover so much.  Today ButYouDontLookSick.com posted a link to GiveForward.com, which is similar to Kickstarter.com, but for medical bills.

 

I've seen other people that blog about their medical issues with donation buttons on the side of their blogs and I've debated doing that as well.  My biggest issue is that I was raised not to whine about my problems to strangers (or even most family) or to ask for money.  I have a hard enough time letting my friends pay for my lunch, much less asking strangers to donate for my medical needs.

 

On the other hand, the list of surgeries/procedures/tests/devices I need is getting longer and the things I've been pushing off are getting to the point where I can't push them off much longer.

 

Right now I need:

 

Ligament repair (right knee), new braces, MRI to confirm CIPD or Chiari Malformation then surgery to fix it if possible, two rotator cuff repairs, two ankle fusions or ligament reconstruction, ligament repair in my right thumb, gum reconstruction, spinal fusion or spinal cord stimulator, surgical mesh replacement & they need to clean out the arthritis/cartilage tears in my hip & maybe tighten the joint.

 

I'm also having major issues with collar bones, ribs & my sternum dislocating.  Yes, this can happen and it can be quite painful.  I don't know what they can do to fix this, maybe fusion? 

 

The hardest one for me to face is I may need to buy a wheelchair much sooner than later.  I have to have an ultra light model due to the Ehlers Danlos. 

 

So, is it tacky for someone with an incurable chronic illness to set up a donation site for themselves?  Would you do this?

Medical Update

First off, I have followers now!  Hello!  :D

 

Taking care of my Mr for 3-4 weeks really took it's toll on my broken body.  If you've ever had an extended stay at a hospital, you know that they're understaffed & the nurses work their asses off.  I stayed at the hospital the entire time he was there to help out.  I did leave a few times to run errands, but I wasn't gone long. 

 

The nurses were impressed with my abilities & kept trying to convince me to go to nursing school.  They were nice enough to bring me ice packs & tried to find a bed for me to sleep on instead of the chair.  One nurse panicked when she saw my bendy body slumped in the chair.  I woke up to her trying to prop my head up with some pillows.  They were also nice enough to get my shoulder back into place when it dislocated. 

 

I had a doctors appointment the day after he was released and they said I was in terrible shape.  I have higher doses of medication for a few months until things settle down.  So far the list of damage is:

 

Torn Achilles tendon

Torn plantar fascia (tendon on the bottom of the foot)

Almost herniated another disc (saved by 24 hour Walgreens having a back brace)

Severe ankle swelling that still hasn't gone down

Dislocated shoulder (it was put back in, but it still sore and keeps slipping out)

Subluxed both hips

Four dislocated ribs

Both knees are shot (esp. the one that was just fixed)

Neck is now is worse shape

 

I've had to do so much more than I should.  The Mr is on a super healthy diet, so I have to cook until he's recovered enough to do it himself.  Since I'm cooking more, there are more dishes to clean.  I have a stool I can sit on in the kitchen, but it's a bit short & it's hard to move around.  I've tried to find one with wheels, but haven't had much luck. 

 

The thing that is giving me the most trouble is food shopping.  I usually just have to pick up a few things at the store.  Now I have to get everything (on my limited income), get it in the car, into the house & put away.  Once I get that taken care of, I pass out on the couch. 

 

I'm exhausted.  I feel terrible & I haven't done the dishes in a few days.  The Mr has gotten so used to being waited on & keeps asking me to get him things that he's capable of getting himself.  He's not ready to clean or help out, but he can get his own drinks.  He needs to move around anyway. 

 

He's going back to work this week, so I'm hoping I'll recover faster since I won't have to cook 3 meals for him.  I really need rest.  It's good for me to move about, but this has been too much.  I feel like I could sleep for a month.

 

I do have something fun planned for next week.  Two of my friends are taking me on a road trip.  I know it's going to wear me out, but I need to do something fun.  We planned to go months ago, but postponed it.  Now that it's cool outside, I think it will be a more enjoyable trip.  We'll be going to the Ava Gardner Museum & I will post a full report when we get back.  I haven't been to the "new" location, so I'm excited.