Thursday, December 29, 2011

Vacation

I had one week of vacation coming to me. So I decided to take the week between Christmas and New Years. It's been wonderful, I needed time to sleep in, read my book and just relax. I have been feeling really good, I've been stiff in the morning but that's it. I'm not complaining one bit.

 I learned about a new app for my iPhone. It's called Instagram, it's like twitter for photos. My son told me about it and I'm hooked. I suck at taking photos but like everything else you learn and get better with time. If your interested I'm jreinke.

 I feel so bad when reading other blogs and updates on the struggle people have with this ugly disease. I hope to stay as positive as I can when writing this blog but I also want to be honest. We all get depressed from time to time and I'm making a commitment to write on those days as well.  Well if anybody's reading this. If anybody is I wish you a Happy New Year and I hope you feel better cause:

Remember You define yourself don't let RA define you.

JR

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Merry Christmas Eve

I'm wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Let's not forget what this day is about. Check out this cool RA page, http://www.showusyourhands.com/ .I hope everyone is free of pain and can spend these next couple days with their loved ones.




 Talk to you next year. 



Remember you define yourself don't let RA define you.........




JR  =8^)

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

A New Day

Well I have to admit I'm feeling better. The cold LA weather is a killer, did I just say that; COLD WEATHER?. The cold weather is very uncommon for us warm blooded folk who usually get about three weeks of what we think is freezing temperatures. I due have to say that I think the supplements I'm taking help extinguish the flares I get faster than normal. I kind of judge how I'm feeling on how many pain pills I take and what sort of physical shape I feel like when I get home from work. I'm taking less pills and I only had two days last week that I couldn't work in the garage at night. Now let me explain that working in the garage still is slow for me. My hands and fingers burn when I work a wrench to long. But I take brakes and try to set small goals so I don't get frustrated. The not so good two days I felt like I had a shallow breath and my chest burned when taking a deep full breath. By morning my joints were sore when I got out of bed but back to work I went and I felt good.

I hope your feeling better and remember, you define yourself don't let RA define you........................  

Saturday, December 3, 2011

Buzz Kill

Well I have been taking the supplements I mentioned in an earlier blog since August 29, 2011. I had some amazing weeks were I had very little to no pain. This last week hasn’t been so good. I feel exhausted in the afternoon, I mean like its 2am in the morning tired. I also feel like I got hit by a Mack truck. I’m feeling my shoulders and elbows burn deep inside my joints. I know it’s just a flair up and it should pass soon, but I think the harder thing to deal with is the depression I’ve been feeling.   I think I have two kinds of depression, one is when I’m trying to work with my hands in the garage and I struggle from the pain. I get angry and feel it’s not fair, I think this project should be done already. But my hands remind me that I’m dealing with something out of my control. The second depression is it’s like my life is passing me by while I nap from the extreme fatigue or just sitting there in front of the TV. Either way I guess it just takes time while we learn how to deal with our bodies changing. I have to say I feel lucky to be where I am physically. I’ve been reading some other blogs and websites and I feel really bad for the people’s stories about suffering from RA. I can only read this information at certain times, I want to learn from other peoples experiences with RA but then I think about when will their battles happen to me. When will I be the one describing joint replacement surgeries or talking about my new walking devise.  I guess we just take every little step at a time and deal with today’s issues and problems and not worry about tomorrow. 

I hope your feeling better and remember, you define yourself don't let RA define you........................  
This a mobile blog test.

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Happy Turkey Day

I wish everyone a safe and Happy Thanksgiving.


I hope your feeling better and remember, you define yourself don't let RA define you........................  

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

6 weeks in

Well I have taken 4 pain pills in this time. The total has been 3 not so good days. Not to bad, I can for sure live like this. I have very little stiffness in the morning and no deep burning pain in my shoulders. Yes my hands have a couple knuckles that are sore and I still get sore when I'm using a screwdriver or wrench but I have seen a big improvement. I went bowling on Oct 1st for a close friends birthday party. I bowled 1-1/2 games and it felt great. I had two complete fingers very sore for 4 days afterward but I would have said your crazy if you would tell me that I could actually go bowling, IT WAS WORTH IT. It felt normal like years ago, no care, no thinking about what later in the night might feel like or even tomorrow. (the three Jack and cokes did help a bit).

 I'm looking at starting a new physical activity, Kickboxing. I need to exercise more and I just don't have the drive to go to the normal gym any longer. I'm really excited about this new opportunity!!!. I realize I wont be able to finish a complete hour session but I know I can do a half hour for sure. I'm hoping 2-3 times a week, heck it doesn't hurt to try you only live once.

I hope your feeling better and remember, you define yourself don't let RA define you........................  

Sunday, September 18, 2011

One week of very little pain to none

Well I had the best week in four years!!!!

I have had one full week as of today that I have not taken one pain pill, not even an Advil. Amazing to think that for the first time in what feels like forever I can do anything I want. As I said before everyday by 4pm I have popped a pain pill. My shoulders would burn or my hands would sting and ache. I'm praying that this is my future and I can return to a normal life. I will say that I still have some joints in my fingers that have some pain but either I have learned to use them differently or maybe I'm just accustom to it.  I don't know what the future brings but I do have Faith and with my family's support I will be ok.

 I would love to play in a softball league again. I would love my kids to see me play on the field and support all those stories I told them about my greatest plays. I'm not the best baseball player but I can hold my own. I'm going to take my family to the batting cages next weekend if I have another week like this one, I'll let you know what happens.....................

I hope your feeling better and remember, you define yourself don't let RA define you........................  

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Feeling Better

On Monday August 29th I started a new program. I started taking supplements I am taking:

AM
Omega Fish Oil, Multi Vitamin, Grape Seed, Vitamin C, Glucosamine,

Lunch
Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Vitamin D3, Vitamin A

PM
Milk Thistle, Dandelion Root, Flaxseed Oil,

The first week my stomach felt a little upset. In 8 days it was like no big deal I mean its still hard swallowing a hand full three times a day but you get used to it. I just started week three two days ago and I haven't taken a pain pill for three days. Yea my fingers hurt a little but no deep shoulder burning pain that starts any where from 1pm to 3pm every day. I do have to say the last three days I have had very little stiffness in the morning and getting up has been easier. Now I still had a few nights of flu like systems but I can deal with that.  Let's see whats happens next............

I hope your feeling better and remember, you define yourself don't let RA define you........................  

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

The History of Me

I remember the first time I woke up on a Saturday morning and my left had hurt. I didn’t do anything special or different the day before so I was sort of worried. It was a pain in my wrist that I had never felt before. It was stiff and swollen but deep inside and it there was a sharp pain if I moved it the wrong way. We had planned to clean out in the garage and throw stuff away we didn’t need and reorganize. I pushed through the day with it never getting any worse but now I know I should have stopped. At about the pain was really bad. I always have had a high pain tolerance and I would tell my wife a 9 or 10 pain scale should be a hospital run. I was freaked out my fingers became swollen and looked like sausages. By I was throwing up in the bathroom because the pain was now a 10 plus. My wife rushed me to the hospital and we thought maybe I was bit by a spider while working in the garage. The doctor at the emergency room gave me shot for the pain and inspected my hand. There were no visible marks from a bite so the Doctor said he would take blood and run a few tests. After a while he came back and told me that I had a high RA factor and that I should see a specialist.

 On Monday morning I noticed that drying myself off after my morning shower I was out of breath. I thought nothing of it and continued to get dressed and go to work. The whole day I felt winded and tired like I couldn’t take a deep breath. Tuesday morning I woke up with a pain in my chest when I took a breath. When I was a child my parents had a pool and on smoggy days in LA after swimming you would get out of the pool and if you took a deep breath you would get this pain in your chest or lungs. This was the exact pain I was having. By Tuesday afternoon I left work early because I started freaking out from the shallow breaths I was taking. It was like I just finished running and I couldn’t catch my breath. I went to emergency care and they took an x-ray. They showed me that my lungs looked like I was 90 years old and they thought I had pneumonia. They gave me some penicillin and said it would clear up in 4-5 days and to schedule an appointment with my doctor for a follow up. After a week I was no better and at my physicians office they took another x-ray. They told me that I needed an emergency cat scan of my chest. My wife and I drove to the location and had the test done and waited for the results. When the results came they asked me to visit a lung specialist across the street and she was waiting for me in the office and it was by now.

The lung specialist showed me the photos and told me I had two dark clumps and tons of inflammation going on in my lungs. They need to schedule me for and emergency biopsy of the dark spots within two days. After the procedure was done the spots were nothing more that inflammation, they thought it could have been TB. The lung specialist told me that I needed to see a Rhueme doctor and see if RA was doing this to my body. Well after meeting with the
Rhueme Dr
several times it was said to me that all the inflammation in my lungs was from the RA.


That was 4 years ago and I have good days and bad days. I’m starting a regimen of natural supplements soon; I will update info as soon as I get some.


I hope your feeling better and remember, you define yourself don't let RA define you........................  

Sunday, August 21, 2011

Great evening walk

My wife and I walked thru La Verne
Tonight for about 45 minutes. Now after being
Home for a while my knees and ankles
Hurt. Feels good to exercise more to come.

I hope your feeling better and remember, you define yourself don't let RA define you........................  

First Time

Well this is my first blog. I plan to offer daily or weekly updates about my life. I'm 43 years old and they told me I had succumb to RA 3 years ago. I'm going to beat this and I wanted to create info about this chapter of my life.


I hope your feeling better and remember, you define yourself don't let RA define you........................