9 months

It has been nine months since I had my second stroke.  I like to think I'm doing rather well, but then something will happen that brings me right back to the beginning.  I had a laundry list of things that were seeming rather "off", so I went to see the doctor last Tuesday.  It turns out that the blood pressure medication that I'm on causes swelling in the lower extremities, which means my ankles look like grapefruits.  I'm on a calcium channel blocker called Verapamil, which was chosen not only because of its benefits for blood pressure, but because it helps prevent migraines.  If I can have one med that does two things, that's better than two meds, right?

Except maybe not so much.

So, I'm back to compression hose, but now I have to wear the high compression hose, and there just aren't many cute options out there for high compression hose.  Well.  Unless I want to spend about $50 per pair, and I'm not exactly on a champagne budget, here.

I got new meds for my allergies, so I've switched that this week.  I was having some pain in my left shoulder, and it turns out that I've got a frozen shoulder.  I'm in the first stage (freezing), where it's painful, and then there will be the actual frozen stage, where I'll lose mobility, and then finally the thawing stage, where it will all magically get better.  In about 1.5 to 3 years.

So.  Physical therapy.  And I've been told it's going to hurt a lot.  A frozen shoulder happens frequently in white women, pushing 40, with diabetes, who have had a recent stroke.  Look at that....I fit all the categories.  What basically happens is that adhesions form in the capsule around the shoulder joint, causing thickening and inflammation of the capsule and limiting room for movement.  The only solution is to tear those adhesions and then allow the rest of the stages to unfold--hopefully in a smaller amount of time.  The medical name for a frozen shoulder is Adhesive Capsulitis.  Back in December, I fell getting out of the shower, and I thought this all resulted from that--and partially it might have, but partially it's from the stroke, too.  So my doctor thinks that what really happened is that the frozen shoulder is masking a potential rotator cuff injury.  I'll do six weeks of physical therapy, and then go back and see her--if it's not any better, then I'll go in for an MRI to see if I potentially need surgery.

My life is a total party.  Non-stop.