One set of problems taken care of....

then I fall on my face....


not just once, but .....


TWICE!!!!!!!

Fall #1
Last Tuesday evening, I was heading down the stairs from our bedroom to the kitchen. I was daydreaming about nothing in particular, but it was enough to allow me to miss the bottom stair....



Fall #2
Then, a week ago, I went to the movies and saw a really good indie-movie called, "Higher Ground."
and I came out of the theater, once again not concentrating on my walking, and I tripped over the door frame and...you guessed it...landed on my face!



The really frustrating part of all of this, is that no one came to help. I couldn't get off the concrete because my legs were so unsteady. My face was bleeding into my eyes. After I finally was able to pull myself up, I had to find my car. Again, no one came to help. In all honesty, I'm kind of glad that no one came to help me because I was looking pretty scary.

Anyway, that's why I've been absent from the blogging world yet again.

Thanks for reading.
Annette

Oh for crying out loud!!

It was a tough, tough summer. I'm seriously sorry about ignoring those of you that have asked me to post. But, when you're exhausted, nauseated, shaky, etc., etc., etc. you have little or no motivation to finish things, or even start them. I sent the following email to a friend, who seemed upset and worried about me. I think it might clear up a few things.
Again, I'm so, so sorry.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I can't believe how much of a hermit I've become! I have had a bit of a rough couple of months. It started in July out in San Diego when I discovered a crack in my line. But it was underneath the blue connection. So, I decided to switch the two lines since there was no leaking and my site was absolutely fine. (I have a double lumen Hickman line.) (This is NOT my chest. I'm much more "endowed")

There was no redness, or anything else so I wasn't concerned. I was suppose to stay out in San Diego for another 2 weeks.
But then, after a few days, I started vomiting. So, I decided to go home. I got a bit better but, then a couple of days later I was vomiting again. Eventually I agreed to go to the hospital and soon discovered that I indeed did have a line infection, I actually had both bacteria and yeast! We started antibiotics and anti-fungal medicines through an IV. Then, when the surgeon took out the"old" line it broke, causing all of the bacteria and yeast to leak out of the line. I soon had unbearable lower back pain that seemed to last several hours. (I actually doubt that it was that long. It just FELT like it!), Rod got in touch with the doc in charge of the ICU. He had a couple of tests done including an MRI which discovered a compression fracture in my lower back. We also discovered that the bacteria and yeast went to two weak spots, my lungs and my back where there is this fracture. I hurt my back two years ago while sitting in the back seat of my car, with Nick (driving) and Kara. I was stupid and didn't buckle my seat. Nick hit a very, very deep speed bump causing me to fly, hitting my head and then coming back down and hurting back. I went into back spasms. We had no idea how badly I was hurt.

The doctors told me on Friday that I needed to stay in the hospital and get my new line on Monday. So. after a 10 day stay in the ICU, I finally got to go home. I'm still trying to get my stamina back and all. Dr. Thompson (my pulmonary doc) told me it would take a couple of months to get back to where I was, prior to the hospital visit.

There is other crap that I could tell you. But, "For crying out loud!" Aren't you tired of all of this?

Let's take a break from this depressing news and look at this nice picture of the old Markins and the new Markins and one future Markin. Plus, I could never forget "my boys" Asa and Haver.









Well, I think I'll head off to bed. I'd like to thank each and everyone of you for hanging in there with me.
Thanks for caring.
Thanks for reading.

I got my feelings hurt last week and my body hurt last night!!

Last week I had a unique way to celebrate my birthday....I went to THE DENTIST!! It was one of those "every 6 months" appointments that I'm sure I wasn't paying attention to when it was scheduled. Otherwise, even on my most mellow of days I would not willingly go to the doctor to celebrate anything, especially my birthday!

I was actually suppose to go to the dentist about a month ago. But, the appointment was scheduled for just a couple of days after my fight with gravity. So, I rescheduled, obviously without thinking.

Anyway, I've been going to this dentist for over 5 years. About a year after getting diagnosed with PH, I realized that I needed to "put my teeth in the hands of a professional" who had some kind of experience with patients with "unique" physical issues. This man and his staff came highly recommended and have always been very understanding and on top of their games.

So, imagine my surprise when I sat down in "the chair" and had the hygienist say, "You're the one that can't lay flat, right?" (Many if not most of us with PH can't lay flat. It is very uncomfortable and really makes it difficult to breath.) I said, "Yes." And, she promptly lowered the chair and flattened it to the point that my head was actually lower than the rest of my body! I held onto the sides of the chair and sat up the best I could, fighting gravity since the feet on the chair were so elevated! I said that I couldn't lay like that. She didn't apologize at all as she reluctantly move the head back up to a more comfortable position. She then announced "I can't do this procedure! I can't work with the chair in this position!" I turned to her and said, "Fine. I'll be more than happy to leave and schedule with someone else. She back-peddled to the point where she thought she could do it.

The whole cleaning was filled with snarky remarks about how difficult this was for her...blah, blah, blah...At one point she did notice that it was my birthday. She joylessly told me "Happy Birthday" commenting on hating to "get old." (She was at least my age if not older.)I told her that I was THRILLED to turn 55! That I was not supposed to live past 52-53, so I look at every year as a celebration! She didn't say a word, but went back to her job, complaining the whole time!

By then I had decided for sure to tell the dentist what happened. He had been taking care of me for years. Except for this broad, I've always had excellent hygienists and have never had any problems. So, Dr. X came in, said a couple of nicey- nice things and then said, "Annette, why can't you lay flat?" Oh For Heaven's Sake!! He proceeded to complain. But, by now I was so livid that I blocked both of them out and tried to visualize finding a new dentist! When he was finished and tried to move me on for his next appointment, I asked him, "Why, after 5 years, there is now a problem and complaints about my inability to lay flat?" Back-peddling began again, with him trying to tell me it wasn't anything to "stew" about. I continued to fantasize about a new dentist.



So, here's the deal. It's hard enough living a good life with this disease and it's restrictions. But to have two professionals make a big stink out of it, is very disheartening. Maybe I'm too thin-skinned. I don't know, but, I was very upset and felt that unique ache of having my feelings hurt. Plus, IT WAS MY BIRTHDAY!!!.

Now, onto last night.........

Many of us are experiencing some wild spring weather. You might have pets that get nervous and might need a little extra TLC. Well, Haver the Fat needs lots of reassurance and is only happy when he's on the lap of an adult.





Yes, Haver hurt my body! The hardest part was sitting there with "His Wackiness" cuddling in fear for about 45 minutes! My legs were really going to sleep!!



Yeah, I know. There's no way to get mad at this guy. But, when the storms continued until about 2:30 a.m. I can honestly say he did lose some of his appeal!


OK, that's all for now.
Thanks for checking in.
Thanks for reading.

So, I was having a conversation with Asa and Haver yesterday.....

They were asking me why I hadn't blogged for TWO WEEKS!! I told them that there were 3 big reasons why I hadn't posted anything these last two weeks.

#1. I was still recovering from the concussion that I received a month ago, when I passed out and hit my head on the kitchen counter. I've finally gotten to the point where I can bend my neck and turn my head enough to type and not have the world spin like a top!

#2. I have also completely recovered from a bout of the stomach flu that I somehow caught this last week. I got the flu shot last fall. I just thought that would cover things. Oh well, lesson learned.

#3. I'm lazy.










After talking it over, "The Boys" agreed that I was indeed very lazy. In fact, they were wondering why I hadn't fed them in the last 5 minutes!

I hope you're are all doing well. I want to let you know how much it means to me that you are still reading this blog. I'd also like to thank you from the bottom of my heart for your prayers, notes, comments and emails. Don't ever hesitate letting me know if there is something I can do for you.

Take care.

Annette

Lovely Weekend and..... Don't You Think It's About Time for a Movie and Book Review?

The Nebraska version of "Mother Nature" was smiling on the Markin family this weekend! The sun was shining, the flowers and trees were blooming and the diamonds on our future daughter-in-law's ring were incredibly brilliant!




Yes, I said "Our future Daughter-in-law!" Chris and Suzie drove 8 hours on Saturday so they could spend some time with us! This is an incredibly special ring. It belonged to Rod's mom's mother, which would make her Chris' great-great grandma!! Because of the age of the ring, the jeweler was unable to separate the engagement ring from the wedding band. I think Chris and Suzie might look for another simple band to add to the top of the ring, but, I'm not sure. I asked Suzie if she was okay with having Chris' great-grandma's ring, or, would she rather have a new one. "Oh no," she said. "I love it! In fact, I had been looking at rings online for a few weeks, but, wasn't able to find anything that 'seemed right.' When Chris proposed and put this ring on my finger I thought, 'this is the ring I was looking for! It's perfect!'" Talk about a sweetheart!!














We were able to celebrate the engagement in style. Nick, Kara, Chris, Suzie, Rod and I enjoyed a great dinner at Firebirds.






We were actually having so much fun, that we evidently stayed a bit too long for the busy restaurant because everyone from our server, to the water guy, to a variety of different "table cleaners," and then finally to the manager came to our table asking if "We had a nice meal." if there "Was anything they could do for us," yada, yada, yada! At that point, we figured it was time to go!

There is nothing better than having your family around! And, when I say "family" I am including the beloved dogs...



Deoji is so...Deoji!



Asa, showing off his sleek body!!




Haver. showing off his large, grumpy self! To be fair, I have to share that Haver had every right to be grumpy. Deoji spent the day before trying to be "romantic" with Haver. And, as you can guess, Haver was in no mood for romance!!

We are so incredibly blessed.

Now, how about a couple of movie and book reviews??

Heaven is for Real!




I've been struggling with the right words to do a review on this book that would not give away too many details, but also would help you realize how powerful this book was. So, I found a review by a real-live writer and copied his words.


"A young boy emerges from life-saving surgery with remarkable stories of his visit to heaven.

Heaven Is for Real is the true story of the four-year old son of a small town Nebraska pastor who during emergency surgery slips from consciousness and enters heaven. He survives and begins talking about being able to look down and see the doctor operating and his dad praying in the waiting room. The family didn’t know what to believe but soon the evidence was clear.

Colton said he met his miscarried sister, whom no one had told him about, and his great grandfather who died 30 years before Colton was born, then shared impossible-to-know details about each. He describes the horse that only Jesus could ride, about how "reaaally big" God and his chair are, and how the Holy Spirit "shoots down power" from heaven to help us.

Told by the father, but often in Colton’s own words, the disarmingly simple message is heaven is a real place, Jesus really loves children, and be ready, there is a coming last battle."


I rate this: 8 puppy paws up!





The movie review for this posting is such a gem! I would recommend it for the entire family (as long as the family doesn't include pre-teens...a little bit of cursing..)




This role seems to have almost been written for Paul Giamatti! He is a family man with a struggling law practice. "For fun," he coaches the local high school wrestling team. One day his two worlds meet up having a huge impact on his family life.
Again, I'm leery to give too much information. Just realize that I'm giving 8 puppy paws up and would love to give it more! (But, I only have two dogs and they each have the regular 4 legs...so I'm kind of stuck!)




Well, I think it' time for me to end this posting. I greatly appreciate you coming to the sight and reading my blog. I'll do my best to continue to post and keep you informed with all things exciting! (Well... at least keep you informed....)

Thanks for checking in.
Thanks for reading.
Thanks for your prayers and your friendship.

Much love

Annette

And the hermit's cave is opening.....

Hello to all and anyone who still checks this blog out from time-to-time!
I'm sorry that I've been gone for so long! It was just due to the "normal" things in our lives...

*The roller coaster of life, better known as "Living with Pulmonary Hypertension and Addisons Disease." I can honestly tell you though, before this last downward ride, I had been feeling better than I have in years! I no longer use oxygen during the day!! I still need it at night and on those days when the roller coaster is taking a dive. I'm still on only 18 ng's of Veletri (same family of drug as Flolan, only it doesn't require being kept cold while in use!) down from 54 ng's in November! As my phriends know, the positive things are what we grab onto....tightly!

*Holidays. It was such a strange December/January that I didn't even write my annual Christmas letter. So, see? I haven't just been ignoring this blog!

*Traveling. I was given the gift of being able to spend some time in sunny San Diego, missing several big snow storms here in Nebraska! (It's all about the timing!)

*Family. Our oldest son Nick, and his beautiful bride, Kara are doing very well. They're both working hard and doing very well!
Chris (our baby!) just got engaged Saturday night! His fiance' is Suzie from Chicago! The first time that Suzie came for a visit, she immediately felt like a member of the family! We absolutely love her! God has completely blessed Rod and I with two wonderful men who fell in love with two wonderful women!

*Animals. I debated whether to include our beloved dogs with the "family" update or here in the "animal" section. I decided that no family member would kill a baby squirrel and bring it around for show and tell (thank you Haver)! They're both doing well or at least as well as two dogs on Prozac can do! Haver continues to be HUGE, while Asa actually looks like he's dropped a few pounds from time to time!



In case you couldn't tell, Haver is on the left and Asa is on the right.

Well, I'm going to end this update for now. I'll have to see if anyone is still checking it out. If not, I'd certainly understand. There are consequences for being a hermit.

Take care.
Thanks for checking in.
Thanks for reading.

Annette

Hello! Happy Friday!

Well, it's been quite a week. The last time we visited, I had experienced an insane reaction to Flolan, the IV medicine I use that helps reduce my pulmonary hypertension symptoms. Well, a week later, we don't really have any answers. In a matter of a few hours I had to reduce my dosage from 50.5 ngs to 18 ngs. Since then I've reduced it again to 17 ngs. I don't know if this is going to be my "new normal," but, it is a good thing that I need less medicine!

I was also planning on switching to this new kind of Flolan that doesn't require me to include ice packs in the fanny pack that hold my Flolan pump and that I wear around my waist. But, because I appear to be "unstable" (no cracks from the peanut gallery) we're now holding off this switch to sometime in December. I'm sure we'll have a much better handle on things by then!

Plus, I'm actually feeling better! I certainly feel better than I did last week. But, I'm starting to think that I'm feeling better than I did BEFORE all of this happened.

Here's where it gets a bit frustrating...
I would really like to think that I've had a little miracle here and, that I really AM better. I'd like to think that maybe this Flolan did some remodeling of the cells in the pulmonary arteries (which is something that scientist are trying to determine)and that I am really, truly better!

But...since this came on so quickly, I'm concerned it can hit again and I'll need to start increasing my dosage again. This disease is really a roller-coaster ride. Although I've never had moments where things looked this good, I have had moments of improvement. Then, in a few hours, or days or weeks, I'm once again on the down-slide of the roller coaster.

So, here's the plan. Since I seem to be riding on the top of the roller coaster right now, I'm going to enjoy it and take advantage of it. But, I'm going to keep one foot planted on the ground so that when (or if) the ride heads downward, I'll be somewhat ready for it.

Does that make sense to anyone?

Well, I think that's all for this post. I woke up very early for some reason and now I'm having a hard time keeping my eyes open. So, I'm going to sneak in a little mid-morning nap.

As always, thanks for checking in.
Thanks for reading.
Thanks for your prayers and your friendship.

Much love
Annette

It's been a rough week...

I thought I'd share a couple of things...
1. Thanks to all of you who came to our "5th Annual Phenomenal Hope for a Cure" that was held this last Saturday, November 6th. I promise I'll give you more details when I get better. It usually takes 1-2 days to recover from the amount of fun I had on Saturday. I was feeling pretty good on Monday, and then really good on Tuesday, until Tuesday night.

The following is what I posted on the PHA discussion boards looking for some help. I just can't write a better explanation, and, I really need to get some sleep.

"Horrific Flolan reaction! Anyone else?

On Tuesday evening, I did my normal routine of switching out the cassette I was using to a new cassette. I then mix a new cassette to have ready as an emergency back-up or to use when I switch out the cassette again the next evening. About 45-50 minutes after switching the new cassette, I started having some flushing problems. Now, if you are a Flolan user, you know that flushing is a side effect. This has happened maybe 3=4 times in the 6 years that I've been on Flolan. We were told to bump the pump flow down a notch or two to see if that helps. It always has helped and I either just keep the pump that rate until I mix and switch the next night, resetting the flow rate to what it was before. It's never been a problem beyond that. My doctor felt that, because Flolan is so sensitive that I maybe mixed a little incorrectly. As long as everything went back to normal when I put on a new cassette, there was really nothing to worry about.

Well, Tuesday night became a nightmare. The flushing came on fast and furiously. My entire head became bright red, then the flushing spread down my arms. Then I got a butt-kicking headache. So, we turned the pump down a couple more notches. I was at my normal pump rate of 76. We went down to 74 then 72. But the Flolan side effects continued to get worse. I started sweating profusely, all over my body. We bumped it down to 70 and things continued to get worse. I was feeling extremely nauseated and really felt like I was passing out. My husband ran downstairs, mixed a new cassette and hooked me up. I was having the same problems. My husband wanted to take me to the hospital, but we all know how "helpful" those ER visits can be. So, my husband called our doctor and he said to just keep decreasing the pump rate to see if we could get things settled down. Finally, at a pump rate of 62 (down from 76)the sweating stopped, the flushing was better and I felt alert. My doctor said to keep the pump at that rate and try to "sleep" it off. Things got quite a bit better, except that I've been extremely exhausted, continue to have an annoying headache and I did end up throwing up yesterday. Today I'm a bit less tired, very light flushing and still no appetite. I don't know what's going to happen next. This is so frustrating! We had our 5th Annual Phenomenal Hope for a Cure fundraiser this last weekend. I was so thrilled that I had backed off doing much for the event because I wasn't overly tired.
CRAP!

Have any of you had a similar experience? We're wondering if I have a "bad batch" of Flolan.
Thanks for reading."


**Since I wrote this yesterday morning, I had to decrease my pump again..twice. So, now I'm on a setting of 56, down from 76 when all of this started. It's very confusing and frustrating.

I'm asking for prayers that we figure out what is going on and that everything settles back down.

Thanks for checking in.
Thanks for reading.
Thanks for your prayers.

Annette

I'm having a hard time getting to sleep...

I'm stopping by for a quick request. I'm scheduled to take yet another "fricken" test tomorrow. This one is called an "Exercise Pulmonary Function Stress Test.

Now I've done the treadmill stress test before.




I've also taken a pulmonary function test before.




It's just that I've never taken an "Excercise Pulmonary Function stress test."



I honestly feel that I'm being a wimp and have no reason to be nervous about this test. It's just that I'm a bit tired of doing uncomfortable tests, with results that come in with no answers. I'm worried (irrationally worried I should add) that I'm going to take yet another test, and learn that the only thing wrong with me is that I'm an old woman who is overweight and out of shape.




So, if I may be selfish, would you please pray that this test is not too difficult, I'm able to push myself hard enough so that the doctors can analyze the information and get some answers, AND that the results do not include any of the following words, "Mrs. Markin, these results show that you have turned into a lazy lump. Your biggest problems are that you are just really overweight, really out of shape and lazy."



I will also be getting my blood drawn to see if I'm still anemic.

OK, that's all for now. I really need to be trying harder to clear my head and get some sleep.

Thank you so much for checking in.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this blog
And, thanks for caring.

Annette

I said I'd try to post a bit more.....

But, this is going to be short and sweet. I went to the dentist today (6 month cleaning....soooo exciting, aren't I?) AND I went to a movie this afternoon with my dear daughter-in-law's mother, Jeane. I tell you, we really hit the jackpot when Nick married Kara! Her entire family is incredibly wonderful! Anyway, Jeane and I went to see "The Social Network" which is the movie about how "Facebook" came into being.



It was a really interesting and well made movie. I do have to admit though, there were many discussions about computers and algorithms that were way above my head!
I give this movie 8 puppy paws up!



When I got home from the movie, I fell asleep on the couch until about an hour ago. Now I need to go take care of my medicine and get to bed. I sure hope these iron pills kick in soon. Sleeping away my life is not my idea of a good time. (Sorry. I told myself I wasn't going to do any whining in this posting.)

Thanks for checking in.
Thanks for reading.
Thanks for hanging in there with me.

Annette

Excuse me while I rev up my engine..vroom...vroom..vr...

Thank you for continuing to come back to "AnnettesexcitingBlog" to see if there is anything exciting being posted, or at least to see if anything NEW has been posted.

It has been a lo-o-o-o-o-ong summer and proving to be a lo-o-o-o-ng fall. And NOW it looks like I was given incorrect information that, in turn, makes me look like a LIAR! LIAR! PANTS ON FIRE!

After my last post I had an appointment with my "GP." I soon discovered that I misunderstood the results of the procedures done in the hospital. They did find an AVM, but, it wasn't actively bleeding. The good thing is that with all of these tests, we were able to rule out really bad reasons for being anemic. But, we're left with no explanation for the anemia. The "game plan" is still the same, though. Keep taking the iron and....wait! That is the worse 4-letter word in the world! I'm so sick and tired of WAITING to find out what's going on. I know that I need to be thrilled with the fact that the doctor's were able to rule out really bad reasons for the anemia and tiredness. I have never been a patient individual. Having PH and Addison's have forced me to become a very patient woman, or I would go crazy. I've felt, ever since I was diagnosed, that knowledge is power. The more I know and understand what is happening with my body, the less afraid and more confident I become in fighting these illnesses.

OK, that's all of the whining for now. I'm going to walk down to the street and grab the mail and the newspaper. I'll be back soon, maybe even tonight, and write a bit more.

Thanks for staying with me.
Thanks for reading.
Thanks for your support.

Annette

A Quick Update

First, thanks so much for all of the posts, emails, cards, calls and prayers. I'm home and really tired. I wanted to let you know what we learned and I'll fill in more later. But, the basic info is that they discovered the source of the bleeding. I have a AVM, which is an arteriovenous malformation in my colon. I have an artery and a vein that have grown together, causing some slight bleeding or leaking.Usually it wouldn't be a big enough deal to cause anemia, but, because I'm on blood thinners, it is bleeding a bit too much. I'm going to see the doctor next week, but, the general thought is I'll just continue to take iron pills.
OK, I need to take a nap.

Thanks again for everything.
Annette

A Quick "Hello."

I'm heading into the hospital tomorrow. I'm scheduled for a colonoscopy and endoscopy on Thursday morning. The plan is to find a cause for this anemia I'm been dealing with for a couple of months now. It's crazy how we "hurry up to wait" and "hurry up to wait" again in our society, getting no further than where we were before we started that insane dance!

So, today I prepared for being on a liquid diet for tonight and tomorrow before being admitted into the hospital. I've also had one of two Lovinox shots just for today that will help thicken my blood that I try to to thin on a regular basis with blood thinners.
I thought about going on a food binge...but I kept hearing the song, "Spinning Wheels" by Blood, Sweat and Tears...."What goes up, must come down..."....only in my head, the words changed a bit..."What goes in, must come out!" So, I decided that a "food binge" wasn't such a good move (so to speak).

Going to the hospital and, especially having to spend the night, is a big mess when you have Pulmonary Hypertension and Addison's disease which both require lots of drugs, ice bags and cassette's of mixed medicine.

I would love to ask you all to send a prayer my way and some good thoughts that things go well and that we finally get some answers and I can get back some energy.

Thanks for stopping by.
Thanks for checking in.
Thanks for reading.
Thanks for listening.

Annette

Hello. I'm here...it's been a lo-o-o-o-ong summer!

I would like to thank so many of you who have written, called and emailed to let me know you're out there and that I'm not here alone. I even received $$ from a friend (thank you Mary Jane!) so I could go out and get a magical Blizzard!! Of course, Rod's comment when he saw the kind card and cool cash was something like, "Annette, maybe you should start talking about how much a new Corvette would help you and that you might actually be CURED if you had a new Corvette!" That Rod is such a funny guy.....ha...ha...ha......

It's just been tough month since I wrote last month. The "car incident" is just a memory. But the high-velocity back-dive into the dresser is still causing some problems. Being on blood thinners seems to have slowed the healing a bit. But, the fist-size blood clot is almost completely dissolved.

Unfortunately the tiredness has not improved, it's actually gotten worse. Another appointment with my endocrine doctor provided some answers and some more "crap" to deal with. (Sorry...I've really developed a bad attitude) The increase in my thyroid medication has not increased those low levels. Plus, I'm severely anemic with significant iron loss. Those results lead the doctors to suspect bleeding from somewhere in my body, most likely my colon or my stomach. So, in two weeks I "get" to go into the hospital for a couple of days and have a colonoscopy and an endoscopy (The GI doctor whimsically calls it a "Tops and Bottoms!" Ha, ha, ha, ha....) Because I'm "so complicated" I need to be in the hospital for a couple of days, because I'm on a blood thinner I have to give myself some special shots for several days prior to the procedure....etc., etc., etc., whine, whine, whine...)

In the meantime, we've increased the thyroid medicine, added iron pills and, oh, I almost forgot, I've also added a new medication to take care of a case of thrush (a yeast infection in my mouth) I'm so proud to be able to share that little tidbit with all of you.

So, all of this whining and moaning and groaning is why I've stayed away from this blog for a month. First, I've really been tired and just didn't want to try to figure out what to write. But, mostly, I didn't want to come here with "doom and gloom." I'm hoping now that I've written it all down I can try to write some much more fun postings.

OK, I'm tired. I think I hear the couch and the TV remote calling my name.

Thank you so much for checking in.
Thanks for letting me vent.
Thanks for reading.

Annette

A (not so) funny thing happened on the way to a funeral and other problems and incidents since the beginning of July...

It has been a tough summer. I don't wont to boor you with a laundry list of aches, pains and problems, but I also don't want you to think I've been a lazy old woman, lounging on he couch eating bon-bons and having Asa and Haver peel grapes for me. So, I'm going to just try to do a quick little list to bring you up to speed.

I starting doing some significant "butt-dragging" after Memorial Day. We spent most of June assuming it was the progression of the PH since I have been fighting this beast for 6 years now. But, in July we contacted my endocrine doctor to see if she had any insight. She came to the conclusion that much of the tiredness and body aches could be related to the Addison's disease (that, quite frankly, I'd forgotten about...even though I take supplemental steroids and thyroid every day). She suggested I try a round of increasing my steroids and see if that helps. About a week later I was actually starting to see some improvement when a (not so) funny thing happened on our way to a funeral. Nick, Kara and I drove down to Lincoln to attend a very good family friend's funeral. I was sitting in the back seat and was too stupid to buckle my seat belt. Nick did not see this drainage ditch/speed bump and we hit it going at a pretty good clip. I flew off the seat, hit my head on the ceiling and jammed my back on the landing. I went into complete back spasm with a pain level of about a 15 on the 1-10 scale. Luckily I had a doctor and a med student in the car with me. It was obvious that it was just muscle spasms so we went to a Walgreens and got some muscle relaxers, a heating pad and headed back to Omaha. If I needed to go to the hospital I was going to go my MY hospital where all of my doctor's practice.

After about a week of heating pads, ice packs and lots of drugs I was starting to feel better. Then...

Haver came up to "give me some love" which means he rubs his face and his body against my legs, very similar to what a cat does. The difference though between a cat doing this and Haver doing this is that Haver weighs 135 pounds! Consequently, as I was trying to get away from him without hurting my back again, he nailed the back out of my knee causing some kind of painful damage that resulted in immediate swelling. After a couple of days of icing the knee, it was starting to feel better. Then...

A week ago Monday, I was returning to bed after a midnight bathroom break when I lost my balance (God only knows WHY) and fell backward into my dresser gouging my back and my backside with a couple of the drawer knobs. I am still not able to sit down like a "normal" person and the backside wound is still oozing, but, the back wound is almost completely healed.

So, how has your summer been?

I so greatly, greatly appreciate so many of you coming back to this blog to see if there was anything happening. I also really, really appreciate all of the people who sent emails and left messages on this site. I would really like to give out cash prizes to all of you who tried to claim "your prize!"

I have been doing lots of sleeping over the last several months. Sometimes I think it's because I'm really tired and then there are those times that I just wish if I sleep long enough I'll wake up all healed and happy and there will be rainbows and flowers all around!...Did I tell you I've been taking lots of drugs???

So, I need to get switched, drugged and into bed. My dear sweet beloved husband has been a rock through this whole mess this summer and has been mixing my medicine almost every night. I'm a very lucky woman.

Well, thanks for checking in.
Thanks for hanging in there with me.
Thanks for reading.

I think I'll leave you with the wise words of Jeane, Kara's mom. After this latest disaster, she told me, "Annette, I have two words for you...BUBBLE WRAP!" She's like the Dalai Lama or something.

Fat Dog Drinking


Not as Fat Dog Drinking



Annette

I'm thinking about offering a cash prize to...

anyone who is still reading this blog.
Annette

Another Lengthy Absence...

I can see by the visitor counter that many of you have been very kind in "hanging in there" with me and checking to see if I've gotten my butt off the couch and posted something new. I thank you from the bottom of my heart. As I've told you before, it does take some energy to get a post written, edited and appropriate pictures added so it isn't all too boring.



So, what have I been up to?

Well, Chris came home the week of the 4th. A friend of his flew in for the weekend and stayed at our house. We had a 4th of July party with about 100 people in attendance. It took several days to recover. Just as I was feeling better, I either picked up a bug or had a strange batch of Flolan that caused me to spend a couple of days experiencing extreme Flolan side effects, the worse of all of them was leg and body pain.

So, now I'm feeling good enough to at least stop by and leave a boring explanation for being gone for a week. I really hope to be able to share our recent visit to the vet with Asa and Haver in the next day or so.

Thanks for checking in.
Thanks for reading.
Annette

Hello! I'm here and I'm fine...

I had a couple of good days and now I'm paying for it. No biggie...just typical for people with pulmonary hypertension.I going to mix and switch my medicine early tonight so I can try to get an early start on the day tomorrow. I've got lots of fun stories, just running out of energy and daylight. But, tomorrow's a new day. (I think that was a Broadway song?!?)

Thanks for your patience.

Thanks for checking in.
Thanks for reading ( very few words... )
Annette

Entertainment News!!

Movie Review!



Rod and I enjoyed our regular Friday night date night by watching the new Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz movie called, "Night and Day."



This was a great movie and a real surprise! It's full of car chases, gun fights... a real action-packed movie! But, it's also really, really funny! Tom Cruise is a James Bond kind of guy and Cameron Diaz was a midwest tom boy who liked to restore cars, who was trying to get to Boston for her sister's wedding.



I'm so impressed with Tom Cruise's comedic side! Cameron Diaz was also very, very funny! I would highly recommend "Knight and Day!'

I give it 8 puppy paws up!




Book Review!



I just finished a great book called, "Walking in Circles Before Lying Down" by Merrill Markoe.



This is the perfect summer read! It funny, entertaining, easy to follow (code for "You don't have to think or pay a lot attention to the story!) and includes my favorite topic...TALKING DOGS!!

At only 270 pages, you can easily get through this book and still have time for lots of other books on your summer read list!

And, you guessed it....




OK, that's it for tonight! I hope you're having a nice weekend.

Thanks for checking in.
Thanks for reading.
Annette

It's nearly 10:30 p.m. and I need to get to bed, but...

I wanted to post something positive for a change, since I feel like I'm always whining about how crappy I feel.

So....
I feel good tonight! We had a pantyhose dinner at a country club place for Rod's work tonight. I had to put on nice clothes (including pantyhose), use all of the correct silverware while dining, say nice comments using only appropriate words and be nice to everyone! I know!! What an exhausting experience! But, I came home tonight and realized that I actually FELT GOOD! I wasn't feeling very well today. But, tonight I feel good! I don't know why, but I'm not going to look a gift horse in the mouth!
I'm not going to repeat the mistake that I've done before when I've "FELT GOOD" by thinking this is a sign that I've turned a corner. I'm taking it for what it is... a special little gift from God so I won't give up and will keep "fighting the good fight" with the mentality of a warrior!

So, thanks for letting me share something positive for a change!

Thanks for checking in.
Thanks for reading.
Annette