24/7 Chat About Anything

[abnorm]

The only bright side is I discovered the city pool

Pool sounds wonderful........stay safe.....it takes time

 

[bullfrog !]

Morgana consider an electric bike with petal assist, they are great for movement with as little load as you desire. Getting out makes a world of difference.

 

[Overland One]

I'm no doctor, but I think the pool is an excellent idea. I remember reading a few years back, (maybe 15 years or more?) that someone finally got the bright idea of exercising injured race horses in a pool. The pool was deep enough that it took most of the weight off the injured limbs and they just kept walking them around and around that pool and the horses recovered faster and more completely than the methods used previously. I hope you have a total and fast recovery so you can resume your retirement plans.

 

[NctryBen]

So after 5 weeks of total hike verbot, I talked my physical therapist into "letting" me have one good walk, just to get a sense of how things are before my re-evaluation which is coming up tomorrow. If anything, it's worse than before treatment.
I wish I trusted these guys more. They don't communicate well and I seem to be caught in a turf war between two PTs (the one who actually seems to know what she's doing backed off the minute she realized she pissed the other one off, and now I'm having to beg for each round of a protocol that they've said is supposed to be done x number of times once you start it) ... I ask a million questions but the answers don't add up.
I've been at it about 10 weeks with these guys and ~5 weeks before that with some really bad PTs in a different shop. I had to push to get reassigned from the bad place, and I'm afraid if I complain to the doc again I'll get labeled a problem patient and really nobody will listen to me.
There's no mechanism at the PT shop for patients to express concerns (a bad sign, right? everybody has feedback systems these days) -- I've asked tons of questions and made plenty requests, but it's not helping. I keep trying to give them benefit-of-doubt, I know this is complicated and hard to understand, but yikes.
I'm religiously doing everything they ask, AND not doing everything they say not to do -- they'll never have a more compliant patient, I wish they'd meet me halfway. Meanwhile everything I planned for retirement is on hold, it all involved lots of walking and standing. And I am an absolute walking fool, it's the one thing I always did every day no matter what was going on, and sitting it out is making me loony tunes.

The only bright side is I discovered the city pool, so I'm going there as often as I can. (Not sure why none of these geniuses thought to recommend that.) I can do non weight bearing things so I do that and the stationary bike. And it was really gorgeous out there for my one sanctioned jailbreak today. \_(**)_/ that's something at least.

Sorry to be a downer thank you for listening!!!!!

That’s where I’m at... the hand dr says it’s my neck and the neck dr (neurosurgeon) says it’s my hands. I know it’s both! But now the orthopedic surgeon (hand dr) wants to go back to square one. The pain is more my neck... but the puffy numbness I feel is my hand. But I’ll be long gone from here before I’d get to the tests that I think would be beneficial. I’m determined now to change my domicile to maybe Arizona and try to get into the Mayo...
Morgana, your statement about communication is huge. My biggest complaint of health care. Get a copy of your actual medical record... compare it to what you were told. I’ve wondered if I may have got my records mixed with someone else’s. I’ve had some great conversations with great doctors. But it’s like they are just really burnt out many of them... they just want to shut up and muddle through.
I’ve let it all get me down big time... I’m the one burnt out living in a higher pain.
It’s like the movie ground hog day where every time I wake up I’m back to square one! So I’ve always figured to get different results you have to do something different. The only thing that gives me relief is pharmaceutical drugs... like they want to keep me there.

 

[Morgana]

What Ben said about communication!!
I swear, every (mis)adventure I have had in life comes down to that.
People just loooove to pay lip service to how Communication is Key! But IRL they blow it off and then they're surprised when things don't work out.

Ben, I really hope you get on track soon with a coherent plan and some practitioners you can trust. These docs should be talking to each other instead of working at cross purposes.

I think we are both living proof that if someone has a problem they should get it seen to sooner rather than later -- because that first visit to a doctor might be only the start of a looooong process.

Good luck, kiddo. Keep fighting!

 

[vanbrat]

I would be curious too.

 

[vanbrat]

The thundershower held off until 3 this afternoon so at least I got some work done that required out of doors time. I need another month or three of just right mornings, not cold, hot, windy or rainy. But I was grateful for just this one while it lasted

Now the thunder has started its afternoon grumbling session. I did have a visitor this morning. A guy and his long haired chihuahua came by on his mountain bike. Just the typical person curious about my unusual travel trailer. We mostly talked about his dog who was a rescue he adopted.

I would be very curious too

 

[tx2sturgis]

I will be replacing the 'tank-top' propane heater in my comm trailer and this is the unit I have decided to try.

Mr Heater now has these catalytic heaters. They make all the 'Buddy' heaters, those are all infrared, this one is catalytic, like my Camco Wave 6 and Wave 3...this one, a Journey 6, is a lot heavier, thicker steel I guess, it includes a steel cover, and this one has a standing pilot and an ODS (Oxygen Depletion Sensor) plus a tip-over switch, unlike the Camco catalytic heaters.

I hope to have it installed within the week and will be trying it out soon.

YES! I know its nearly summer! I better hurry!

 

[Overland One]

Well, I had a bit of an adventure. A week ago or so I had a bad wheel bearing I was going to change out so I ordered new bearings and seals for the rear left and right sides. I also bought a gallon of gear oil (which cost $50) and a new differential cover gasket. This van has free floating axles and you have to open the rear cover, drain the fluid and remove the pinion pin retaining bolt to remove the pinion pin so you can remove the "C" clips that hold the axles in. Then you can replace the bearings and seals and put it all back together. Well, to my horror when I got in there, I discovered that someone before me had broken off that bolt deep in a blind hole and just left it like that. I researched online and found that without being able to remove that pin, nothing can come out of the rear at all so, I could not even buy a new assembly to replace everything in there (about $500) because the old assembly can never come out unless you remove the axles, which you can't do with taking that pin out. I just laid under the van wondering what I was going to do and I did not have many options so, I cleaned the gasket surfaces up, put it all back together, dumped in all the new gear oil and did more research.

 

[Overland One]

I found out that some brilliant guy made a nice kit that I might be able to use to extract this bolt, even though there was no way I could see to get a drill in there to drill it out. I watched about 5 videos of people using this $30 kit successfully so I ordered one, along with another new gasket and another gallon of gear oil and a new, special bolt. Long stressful story short, my items arrived and yesterday, I was indeed able to get that bolt out! It took me 2 hours to do it but it is out. I then spent the rest of the day pulling the axles and old seals and bearings and installing new ones. I finished before dark and was beat, but very relieved and very happy. Here you can see how well the hole I drilled in the broken bolt was centered. This was due to the genius design of this kit because it came with two 5/16-18 bolts that were center drilled to use as a guide to center and keep the drill bit centered. It came with a 12" long .125" drill bit that allowed me to use my hand drill far enough away from the bolt that the drill flexed enough to allow me to line it all up and everything was kept concentric. I then used one of the 2 styles of bolt extractors supplied in this kit and that bolt came right out. I can not describe how relieved I was. Even a junkyard axle tube/rear differential assembly would be about $1,000 and who knows, that one may have a broken bolt too, or terribly worn gears or other issues. So, I am very pleased with that $30 kit and wanted you all to know about it in case this happens to you. As of a week ago, I had no idea such a kit existed.

 

[Morgana]

it takes time

Haha tell that to my PT.* She told me at my 2-month "re-eval" today that we should discontinue treatment because it wasn't working. (I'm 99% sure that is nuts. I think there's something really wrong with her but without making this post 10 pages long it's hard to explain.) She talked more like a lawyer trying to prove me wrong than a healthcare worker trying to fix things. Other times she talks like a student called on in class without having done the homework, just trying to blarney through. Maybe she is a space alien impersonating a PT, and the space aliens didn't send their A team. Alas, the owner seems to like her.

Did I mention how much I haaaaaaaaaaate medical assertiveness? I'd seriously trade it for a root canal if I could. I'm pretty sure (mehhhhh.... 78% sure) I can handle this but it may necessitate exceeding the ice cream budget for May. Pool tomorrow, thank God. *Abnorm, you are, of course, absolutely right; the snark is not directed at you.

2000 eye roll emojis.
Thanks for listening.

 

[maki2]

Two months without progress and still in a lot of pain means perhaps it is time to go see a spinal orthopedic/neurologist for a re-evaluation. I had to do that following my first back surgery. The fix they used that made a big difference was a cortisone injection into the spine area of the surgery to help reduce scar tissue and inflamation. Very much painful to get that shot but it really did help a lot. I will never be totally free of back pain but I have learned to keep out of the worst of it.

 

[maki2]

Just a reminder… major 3 day camping weekend, Memorial Day weekend is coming up towards the end of the month. Be sure to arrange your move schedule so you are settled in a good place well ahead of the 3 day weekend crowds.

 

[vanbrat]

That crazyness starts here last weekend. We watched as a zillion campers and trucks and vans and and .... filled the ferry system and campgrounds around us. Started last wed.

 

[maki2]

Woke up to find a more encouraging long range forecast! Only a 30% chance of thunderstorms around noon today. Then partly sunny tomorrow followed by a string of sunny days in the 70s! Now that is more like the weather I remember from previous visits here. The Arizona news stations were calling yesterday’s heavy rain event a May-soon. Fortunately the rain was not as heavy here as the torrential downpour with lots of hail that happened further south in Cottonwood.

The main forest service road to the Dogtown Resevoir dispersed camping did get regraded the other day to smooth it out all the way to the lake. I might drive out there today.

 

[maki2]

That crazyness starts here last weekend. We watched as a zillion campers and trucks and vans and and .... filled the ferry system and campgrounds around us. Started last wed.

I have been in that end of May, WA state escape the city crowd many times. I have spent many hours riding the ferries from Bainbridge Island and Kingston during the years I owned houses on the peninsula side of Puget Sound. With the occasional ferry to Whidbey Island run to see family.

 

[Happy Camper]

Morgana,

If you're in a position to do so, research all the pt places available to you with your insurance. Find the best option, and request a referral to them. If insurance questions it, tell them you don't want to waste their money going to substandard care.

I have unfortunately had to fire a few doctors and specialists. Once I realized I could, I made changes to my medical lineup. Some of my doctors were great to begin with. Others I had to move on and find the best options.

I'll never go with the first referral if I look them up and they aren't great. Insurance is paying regardless, and they would rather pay once for the best care. Bad vendors cost them more over time and they are all about saving money.

Some patients are picky for no reason so insurance might be a little dismissive at first. But if you show them you're informed and have valid reasoning, you should get better results with changing your medical lineup.

 

[tx2sturgis]

Got the Journey 6 heater installed and it works well!

 

[maki2]

^^^looks like a great warm fire!

 

[maki2]

The ground is much firmer this morning! It quit raining before dark. I am mostly packed up so I can likely make it out by noon. Or departure time can wait until tomorrow. The weather ahead is finally sunny side up!