Happy Christmas everyone!
I love reading posts here, there's so much more than PsA. So many good-humoured, courageous and interesting people.
I sometimes ask myself whether visiting this site regularly keeps PsA closer to the forefront of my mind than it should be. But I don't think that's the case. On the contrary, you all help me to deal with it and keep it firmly in its place. Thanks for that!
Have fun! Here's hoping the coming year will be a good one for us all.
I feel same as you, Sybil, sometimes wondering if this is a good thing. But then, how could it be bad to feel comfortable talking with other people who can fully understand each other, and not judge or get bored with the conversation? It's so good for me because NOBODY around here seems to understand anything about PsA--not my family, friends or coworkers. The one and only person who seems at all interested and only sometimes is our youngest daughter, and that's because she has a lot of health problems herself, so she can relate.
Sybil, you are a fun person and I'm pretty sure all of us would miss you if you disappeared! Your sense of humor can cheer anyone up--and I've laughed out loud many times at funny things you say!
The problem with chronic pain is that it IS always in the forefront of our minds--how can we forget it when it's ever present? My feet are almost always burning and aching to some degree, and my ears are ringing so loud lately that it could nearly drive me nuts! I don't talk to my husband about those things because he looks at me like, duh, and proceeds to tell me how bad his this or that hurts.
I also want to wish everyone a happy and peaceful Christmas and a healthier year ahead! :-)
Merry Christmas! It is pleasure to have everyone here on this site! I love your humor and optimism you throw into your posts Sybil!
I dunno about humour and optimism, do you reckon anyone ever died from excessive pre-Christmas cooking?
Not in my house .... none has ever been done!!!!!!
Sybil said:
I dunno about humour and optimism, do you reckon anyone ever died from excessive pre-Christmas cooking?
You make me laugh! It’s the Christmas shopping that’s doing me and my lovely feet in! I wish I had done all of it on line, note to self for next year.
Merry Christmas everyone!!
Well, did everybody survive Christmas??? I crashed at 7:30--the last of our guests left at 5:30 p.m. and it took 2 whole hours to get all the dishes cleaned up and everything back in order. When I finally laid down on the couch, my whole body started aching! I put voltaren gel on my feet and an ice pack under my back. When I woke up after 2 hours, I was so stiff--especially my shoulders--I could hardly move! Wow, deja vu--it's like PsA all over again!!!! I'm getting too old for this stuff! We had a wonderful time, but at 62 I feel like it's just too much to put on a feast for almost 20 people. I've loved doing this the past 15 years or so, but even with Enbrel on board and relieving most of my symptoms I don't have what it takes anymore! :-( But I'm almost certain I'll do it again next year!!! My mom prepared big family dinners until she was in her late 70s. Thinking about that makes me feel guilty for letting her do all that at that age! I sure hope our kids are willing to take over long before I'm in my late 70s!!!!
What I hate about PsA is, if you keep moving you're better off--but you know there comes a time when you should stop and rest. But resting just brings on the stiffness and achiness--I guess that's why I don't sleep a lot. It's crazy!!! Is it the same for you?
I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! Time for some R & R! T.G.I.S. !!!
Wow grandma j - that’s a lot to take on! No wonder you’re aching! There was only 3 of us this year - new place we moved to in April and all of our family in the uk - so I had it easy. We took ourselves off to the cinema for the first time ever on Xmas day and after an hour I could feel everything setting in! Got to bedtime and my shoulder was so bad I couldn’t move my arm at all. Slept badly sitting up but put some kinesiology tape on and a long hot shower has eased it a bit…
I love the site - people understand your weird symptoms, the occasional meltdown and the pain. It invariably helps me to get out there and get on with it rather than moping around. Last year my wrist was so swollen I couldn’t even lift a plate let alone cook (thank you daughters for doing it)so counting my blessings this year!! Now for the fun of New Year’s Eve. Hope 2016 is the best year yet for all of us
It is a lot, but in my family it's unacceptable to be wimpy. Everybody pushes themselves to the limit. And, like I've said before, they don't understand inflammation and PsA at all! I'm going to put in a discussion about another concern I would like some advice on.
Christmas went well here. My in laws are in town, two weeks now (eeekkk!!), but they are leaving tomorrow morning. It's been a good visit. They have helped around the house and done dishes every day! Even watched my son while I had doctors appointments and errands. That being said, I am ready to have my quiet house back. I need a week of silence to get back on track. My son has a blast, he's 5. All Christmas magic this year. It was nice.
On the 28th is the birthday/ death of my second child, Oliver. Born early and terminal. It's a hard time for our family but this year hasn't been as bad. It's been 3 years since our baby died. We were advised to not have anymore children. We did try again and lost another pregnancy early on. (Not to be a buzz kill, just some background info.) They think my troubles might be autoimmune related but they weren't sure out to prove it.
We did Christmas crackers this year. Very fun! We wore the crowns and they had lame jokes inside. Now we are cooking turkey gumbo with the leftovers! Ooooo pie......
Amielynn ... I'll be thinking of you tomorrow. Yes, time does heal but you can never forget a loss like that.
It does sound as if you've had a good holiday all the same. Two weeks of in-laws? You, my friend, deserve a medal! Two weeks of any relative other than your nearest and dearest requires major effort. Congratulations! What is it they say about relatives and dead fish?
Christmas crackers are fun, even if they are silly. Hope you got some good pictures for posterity!
Seenie
OK, my friends ... or are you still my friends? It's been so long since you've heard much from me, that you'd be right to cross me off your list. You're not the only friends I've neglected (not that that is any consolation) -- there are people all over who are wondering whether I've dropped off the face of the planet.
The truth is that I've been working behind the scenes at Ben's Friends since September. It's really interesting, as I get to visit and help out on many of the communities, and I've learned a lot about the struggles that other people have with their rare conditions. I hate PsA as much as anyone, but to be honest, most days I feel lucky not to have something worse. And there are lots of conditions that are worse. Anyway, we've been shorthanded at Moderator Support for a couple of weeks, and I've disappeared into the vortex of community management. It's kind of like laundry ... you just get the last load put away and then ... THERE'S MORE!!! And then you get the odd bit that is "hand wash only" and those always take extra time. So it is never done. And at the end of the day, when I finally switch the monitor off, I honestly don't feel like writing email. So this afternoon, I've simply walked away from the piles and closed the laundry room door and come here.
Anyway, we had a very quiet holiday with my sister, her DH and their 10 month old 70 lb Weimaraner. He's adorable, but very ... well, shall we say "exuberant"! Our fifteen pound four year old terrier taught him quite a few lessons, and it did not take long for Susie to explain, in no uncertain terms, exactly WHO was boss. So lots of activity and laughs. And food. GROAN, know the feeling? And I have Christmas baking to give away ... any takers?
I feel like I've neglected you all! Me, I've been OK. They informed me at the PsA clinic in October that I was not OK. I guess they were right, but I'm pretty good at ignoring stuff, and I had to admit that I was very tired. They switched me to Humira. Until this week, I wasn't sure it was doing anything for me, but I'm beginning to think that I might be getting a bit of response. Here's hoping ... I'm heading out for vacation at the end of the week, so it would be nice if I started seeing some steady improvement.
We've had a very mild start to winter this year. Only today did we get snow that may stay: usually, we've had the white blanket on the ground for a month or so at this point.
Thanks for starting this thread, Sybil! It's fun to hear from old friends.
All the best to you.
We did have a great time. Today I spent the day cleaning the house. It was a mess! I'll take that medal my friend. Thank you for your thoughts.
Seenie said:
Amielynn ... I'll be thinking of you tomorrow. Yes, time does heal but you can never forget a loss like that.
It does sound as if you've had a good holiday all the same. Two weeks of in-laws? You, my friend, deserve a medal! Two weeks of any relative other than your nearest and dearest requires major effort. Congratulations! What is it they say about relatives and dead fish?
Christmas crackers are fun, even if they are silly. Hope you got some good pictures for posterity!
Seenie
Amielynn, either you have extremely nice in-laws or you're an extremely nice person--from what I can tell, the second is definitely true, so hopefully, the first is true, too. My in-laws were good to me. My MIL had a MIL from hell, and she didn't want to be like that. She was always nice to me, but all of our relatives live fairly close so we never had people stay over. And thank God because that would drive me nuts.
So sorry about your little Oliver! Losing a child, I've always thought, has to be the absolute worst loss--no matter how old or young they are. It's something we all hope and pray will never happen, but, unfortunately, we aren't in control of everyone's destiny. :-( I'm glad this Christmas was fun for you and your son had a blast--5 year olds make it more fun! Our two 4-year old and one 6-year old grandkids believe, and it's magic for them....the twin 11-year olds--one still believes and the other doesn't. The little ones really get into the elf on the shelf. I know some people think it's creepy, but we think it's cute.
I didn't know what Christmas crackers were, but now I do. That sounds like fun! Maybe we'll do that next year.
I hope you are OK, Amielynn, and although tomorrow is a day of sadness for you, your 5-year old is such a treasure I think he will keep you smiling! Have a happy and healthy 2016!
amielynn38 said:
Christmas went well here. My in laws are in town, two weeks now (eeekkk!!), but they are leaving tomorrow morning. It's been a good visit. They have helped around the house and done dishes every day! Even watched my son while I had doctors appointments and errands. That being said, I am ready to have my quiet house back. I need a week of silence to get back on track. My son has a blast, he's 5. All Christmas magic this year. It was nice.
On the 28th is the birthday/ death of my second child, Oliver. Born early and terminal. It's a hard time for our family but this year hasn't been as bad. It's been 3 years since our baby died. We were advised to not have anymore children. We did try again and lost another pregnancy early on. (Not to be a buzz kill, just some background info.) They think my troubles might be autoimmune related but they weren't sure out to prove it.
We did Christmas crackers this year. Very fun! We wore the crowns and they had lame jokes inside. Now we are cooking turkey gumbo with the leftovers! Ooooo pie......
Seenie, I did miss you! Somewhere along the line I think you mentioned you were working on Ben's Friends, so I figured it was taking up a lot of your time. It was nice that you spent some time here today. I actually saw you were in the "members online" earlier and I wanted to say hi but wasn't sure you'd have time to chat!
I don't remember off hand what province you're in, but I noticed the temp was below zero (Fahrenheit ) today in Edmonton, Alberta! We were at about 10 above! We also had very little snowfall this winter up until yesterday. No white Christmas for us, but I didn't mind. The snow seems to bring colder temps!!!!
I saw the pic of the big and little dogs on FB....hilarious the little female is da BOSS!!! Little dogs usually can be more authoritative! When I was a kid our old neighbor lady had Cindy, a little chihuahua. Boy, that little thing was scary--her bark was terrible--and she bit, too! Such a cute little brat, though! I tend to favor the big, fluffy, mellow dogs. :-)
In 2 days I'll be heading to the GA/SC border at Augusta. It's around 75 degrees there. I'm not gonna miss the snow and cold, but trouble is I'll come back to even colder weather on Jan. 6! I'm hoping Anne loves it, just getting away from the terrible MN winter! She is sure having a lot of anxiety about this move, though. I hope the job and people there are nice to her. Time will tell! We all have been shedding a LOT of tears thinking about her and little Finley being so far away. Our kids are close. We're going to downplay family times to her so she doesn't regret having to miss them. With facetime and texting it really isn't so bad.
Well, people, some of us have had a pretty good year, some okay, some not-so good, and some horrible! Let's hope 2016 is at least okay or, even better, pretty good, for all of us!
I'm glad Humira is helping you, Seenie! Thanks for the update, and please don't stay away so long!!!!!
Seenie said:
OK, my friends ... or are you still my friends? It's been so long since you've heard much from me, that you'd be right to cross me off your list. You're not the only friends I've neglected (not that that is any consolation) -- there are people all over who are wondering whether I've dropped off the face of the planet.
The truth is that I've been working behind the scenes at Ben's Friends since September. It's really interesting, as I get to visit and help out on many of the communities, and I've learned a lot about the struggles that other people have with their rare conditions. I hate PsA as much as anyone, but to be honest, most days I feel lucky not to have something worse. And there are lots of conditions that are worse. Anyway, we've been shorthanded at Moderator Support for a couple of weeks, and I've disappeared into the vortex of community management. It's kind of like laundry ... you just get the last load put away and then ... THERE'S MORE!!! And then you get the odd bit that is "hand wash only" and those always take extra time. So it is never done. And at the end of the day, when I finally switch the monitor off, I honestly don't feel like writing email. So this afternoon, I've simply walked away from the piles and closed the laundry room door and come here.
Anyway, we had a very quiet holiday with my sister, her DH and their 10 month old 70 lb Weimaraner. He's adorable, but very ... well, shall we say "exuberant"! Our fifteen pound four year old terrier taught him quite a few lessons, and it did not take long for Susie to explain, in no uncertain terms, exactly WHO was boss. So lots of activity and laughs. And food. GROAN, know the feeling? And I have Christmas baking to give away ... any takers?
I feel like I've neglected you all! Me, I've been OK. They informed me at the PsA clinic in October that I was not OK. I guess they were right, but I'm pretty good at ignoring stuff, and I had to admit that I was very tired. They switched me to Humira. Until this week, I wasn't sure it was doing anything for me, but I'm beginning to think that I might be getting a bit of response. Here's hoping ... I'm heading out for vacation at the end of the week, so it would be nice if I started seeing some steady improvement.
We've had a very mild start to winter this year. Only today did we get snow that may stay: usually, we've had the white blanket on the ground for a month or so at this point.
Thanks for starting this thread, Sybil! It's fun to hear from old friends.
All the best to you.
Thanks Grandma J. We will see how tomorrow goes.
My in laws are very nice and very understanding of PsA. They just get it. It's nice to have someone understand and not ask lots of questions. I don't mind having them around. Though, 2 weeks is a long time! 1 week is much better. Bad weather here, going to get off the computer. Have a good night everyone!
Nobody around here gets it. Yesterday I was talking with someone (daughter's SO's mom who has OA). I told her how I tried every natural remedy under the sun and then I finally went on Enbrel and it helped. Of course she told me I should try osteo-biflex (I think that's what she called it). She said it really works for her bad knees.
So does anybody take that stuff or know anything about it???
Maybe I should have explained to her about inflammatory arthritis....I'm sure most people are clueless about PsA.
I have tried different over the counter (OTC) remedies for painful joints and none have helped. Also, these medications upset my stomach. I guess I needed to have more food in there before I took the pills. You can try them but I would ask your doctor first.
Hi all! I've been reading and re-reading your posts while poleaxed by 'flu. Which I then downgraded to 'man cold' (I know I'm a woman, but anyway) and now just 'cold' seeing as it is going already.
I did Christmas and then I did a bit more as my husband informed me at midnight on Boxing Day that we were off to see his family the next morning. And it was all good until I got the pneumonia, sorry, 'cold', which I suppose is a seasonal tradition.
This time of year must bring very mixed feelings for you amielynn. I am so sorry to hear about the loss of Oliver. And also very glad that you and your family had a good Christmas.
Grandma J, you're a star feeding all those people. I guess it's worth pushing the boat out sometimes. And Rachael and Jules and Seenie and Golfnut thanks for your replies and here's to a bloomin' marvelous 2016 for us all.