| 15 Months Post-Op |
| I am coming up on my 15 month anniversary in 2 days. You may be wondering how things are going. The biggest change is that I am now on a disability leave from work. I have noticed an enormous difference without the stress of attempting to work full-time, mothering responsibilities, and household duties. The first change I've noticed is that I can nap, as I feel the need to do so. That in itself has allowed me to channel my stamina on a minute-to-minute basis. As people living with parkinsons notice, symptoms vary day to day, and minute to minute. I have learned to do as much as possible when I am feeling well. The next change that I've noticed is that I have more patience to handle my mothering responsibilities. I definately attribute this to the fact that I now have the stamina to deal with children's demands that go along with having kids in school (open house, homework, discipline matters, etc.). As far as my household responibilities, I make the bed daily, instead of weekly. The dishes are washed after each meal. Cooking continues to be an effort though. I still haven't figure that out yet. I am still in the process of streamlining my home to make it easier to take care of. I am on the homestretch of remodeling my kitchen to make it more manageable for my ever changing needs. Physically, my foot continues to be my major source of pain. The dystonia is baffling my neurologists--all 3 of them. I have received an adjustment, which tends to relieve the spasms, but it tends to be short-lived. I received my last botox injection in August, but the relief was very short-lived as well. The neurologist that gives me the injections is not sure what to do next. She did refer me to an orthopedic surgeon for a consult to possibly have the tendons clipped. An idea none of us are pleased with because it is a permanent process. I notice dyskinesia, enough to make walking difficult, if I take my sinemet on an empty stomach. I've been trying to adjust my meds/food intake accordingly. The good news is that I continue to be tremor free. Also, my depression seems to almost minimal now. My surgeon explained that many dbs patients are noticing that depression decreases post-op! I still have pd, but I feel that the dbs and going on disabilty have tremendously improved my quality of life. These were two very imortant life decisions that I have had to make. But I weighed the pros/cons carefully, did alot of soul-searching as far as my priorities were concerned, and asked God to guide me in my decision making process. |