One Foot Forward & Two Steps Back

I waited patiently and expectantly for the Lord; and He inclined to me and heard my cry.

Psalm 40:1

After having about two days of little to no inflammation and my right leg feeling almost perfectly better, I was feeling rather hopeful about being able to walk again soon. Perhaps I overdid it. I don't know but it does appear that way. Because today I was in excruciating pain.

We are fully into the Fall season here but have had a lot of rain already. I love to walk outside when it isn't raining and enjoy the Fall colours.

The pain started up again on Thursday night while I tried to sleep. It slowly got worse. Yesterday I walked about 18 city blocks and for 7 of those I was carrying heavy bags of groceries. Did that aggravate my leg pain?  In retrospect, probably "yes".

I especially like to see all the leaves on the ground.  The moment I stepped off the city bus, I was captivated by this red leaf amongst all the golden ones.

My acupuncture doctor said I should be taking it easy and go slowly, very slowly with my activities. I told her that until one tries something and realizes it was too much, how is one to know that it was too much? I said that it is only normal to do things when you start to heal.  She thought I was making excuses. She said the healing takes time and that as long as I am moving forward (with healing) then we are going in the right direction.

I had to capture the red maple leaf up close. This is the leaf that is on Canada's flag.  Isn't it pretty?

I do totally agree that healing takes time but I figure I have given it a lot of time already (about 7 weeks) and so I thought we were kind of getting to the end of the healing process. My acupuncturist shared with me that she herself had similar leg issues which took a year to get better and she is a healthy person with no previous illnesses, as well as a Tai Chi instructor. I thought "wow!".  If it took her that long, it is going to take me even more time!  Here I thought I was nearing the finish line of therapy. That's a laugh.  I guess I have to take it easier than I thought.

I'm learning that I don't have a lot of patience. I am raring to do things and move normally.  I've been praying a lot for myself and especially as I get my treatments.  The scripture verse at the top tells me I need to be patient and expectant.  When my body says slow down.  I must listen.

Are you a patient person or an impatient one?
How do you deal with inconveniences like what I'm dealing with?

I like the wild English garden look in this photo. I don't know the name of the flowers.

I took some photos that brightened my day. It won't be long before there are no more beautiful flowers to photograph here. Hopefully, I've taken enough of them so I can share them now and then during our long, rainy winter.

I take this time to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving as we celebrate Thanksgiving here on Monday, October 11, 2011 this year.  If I am up to it on Monday, I will make a small dinner.   I won't be making a large turkey. Instead I will make roasted chicken, mashed cauliflower (or mock mashed potatoes), kale salad and pumpkin pie. I'll post the recipes later. Have a blessed holiday.

Update on My Leg

Well, I'm trying very hard to be on a diet (about my 4th day now) and also to eliminate water to reduce edema and relieve the pressure on my leg. I am still seeing the acupuncturist and I am also now receiving pneumatic compression therapy on the legs.

I look a little like the lady in the photo immediately below when I get my legs compressed except that the garment stops at my hip area. The compression feels a little strange but I enjoy it because it relieves some of the pressure and heaviness I feel in the legs.  Hence it reduces the pain in my knee and my foot though the feeling doesn't last so long.   I will get about 8 of these treatments altogether as they are very expensive.  I also continue to get the acupuncture.

Photo credit: Squidoo

Photo credit: me

My acupuncturist has me on several herbal medicines to eliminate excess water (not drugs as those weaken the kidneys even more so) and to address pain issues. These aren't working that quickly so yesterday I just found an herbal remedy containing boswellia and tumeric for aches and pains.  It seems to work quickly but is double the price of what my acupuncturist gives me. She only charges me at cost not at retail prices. I will continue the boswellia mixture for a short time while I wait for the Chinese herbal remedies to hopefully take effect soon.

My diet is self-initiated and consists of lots and lots of steamed veggies of all kinds, canned tuna and wild salmon,  beans & legumes, millet, squashes, sweet potatoes/yams, basa fish fillets and a piece of fruit each day.  I have very little red meat or dairy though I will allow myself a sweet treat about once every week or two.

In the Chinese medicine belief, excess weight is caused by too much mucous and water in the system and the presence of these makes it nearly impossible to loss weight. That might explain why diets and exercise very seldom do anything for me no matter how much I try.  The doctor also says I have too much damp cold inside and my body has to work hard to warm it up and hence I get too hot.  Additionally, she says that wind or cold is not good for me.  All this makes a lot of sense since I tend to get leg cramps when I have wind blowing on my legs. I'm sure she is on the right track but it does take time and I am impatient. After all I just want to get over the pain and be able to walk again.

Today's treat is chocolate no bake macaroons. I will take some to my acupuncture doctor tomorrow who is always happy to eat whatever I bring her.  I also have someone at home who enjoys the treats.  That way I am not tempted to eat too much.

No Bake Chocolate Macaroon Cookies

Here are the cookies setting before going into the fridge/freezer.  As you can see, I didn't bother to make them too perfectly shaped.  I like my cookies in different sizes and a bit "rough" around the edges.

  Ingredients

• 2 cups white sugar
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup margarine
• 3 cups rolled oats
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup flaked coconut

Directions  In a saucepan over medium heat, combine sugar, milk, and margarine. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally, then boil for  2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the oats, vanilla, cocoa and coconut. Spoon onto waxed paper and allow to cool for at least an hour then put them in the refrigerator to harden up.  Store in an airtight container.

Recipes alterations:  The recipe has far too  much sugar for me. I reduced it to 1 cup and there was no problem with the mixture sticking together. It is still plenty sweet enough. You can use splenda or some other artificial sweetner but given my issues with water retention I try never to use any artificial foods or at least to eliminate them as much as possible. I will look for some stevia next time I can get to a health food store.  You can also use 1% milk or skim milk like I did. I imagine that a milk substitute like Almond milk would also be fine if you are lactose intolerant or a vegan. You will also need to use a margarine substitute. In  my case I used real butter rather than the artificial margarine. If you use slow cooking oats, you will need to cook the mixture for a minute or two longer. 

I think I've only had these cookies once or twice since I was a school child. A school chum would bring these for lunch and sell them to me as my mother never made them. I wonder if the girl ever became an entrepreneur. These cookies are approx 100 calories when you use the full amount of sugar so I calculate my sugar reduced cookies at 50-70 calories each depending on their size.  Not bad at all.

Leg Problems & Acupuncture

For a very long time now I've been having issues with my right leg. Problems started in my heel and later I noticed problems with my knee. I got physiotherapy for the knee and began using my stationary bike a lot more. The problem seemed to get better in the knee but returned with a vengeance.

After my recent trip to the north country (which I've posted about), I could barely walk. This wasn't the first time things had gotten that bad. I was told by my doctor that the heel problem is plantar fasciitis and by the physiotherapist that the knee problem was caused by tight muscles. Neither of these medical professionals associated the two problems as being related. My own assessment is that the heel problem which was long untreated and for which western medicine can't seem to do too much except surgery (yikes, I'm not having surgery on my feet), led to the other problem of tight muscles.

Many years ago I'd gone to a Doctor of Traditional Chinese Medicine (DTCM) for treatment of a heel spur on the opposite foot.  I resolved to go again because the problem is really limiting what I can do both inside and outside of the house. Some days I can't walk too far and the pain is excruciating.

I'm happy to report that after the 2nd acupuncture treatment I was feeling huge relief. Unfortunately, I had to walk very far on the day of my 3rd appointment and over did things. My pain is back in spades but the acupuncture once again is helping to alleviate it. I know the problem has flared back up but I also know the acupuncture is working so I will continue with it.  I am now getting treated twice a week and I take some herbal Chinese medicines to relax the muscles and improve the blood flow.

The Doctor of TCM that I see, normally charges $60.00 (Canadian dollars) for one acupuncture treatment.  Sadly it is not covered by my extended health care plan.  I was blessed to have my doctor charge me for the herbs at cost and give me 2 acupuncture treatments for $25.00 (Canadian) instead of $120.00. I think that is quite a bargain!  In return, I am helping her with some drafting work she is doing. I edit and advise her on preparing some important documents she is working on. I also give her some advice related to some committee work she is doing.  This is trade and barter and I love it! It is a good way of being frugal.

Here is my leg with all the needles in it.

The basic idea behind the acupuncture is that the needles and the heat lamp put over the area while the needles are in the skin, help to unblock the blood and fluid stagnation. In Chinese medicine they call the stagnation, "blocked chi" or "blocked energy". The purpose of acupuncture and chinese medicinal treatments is to unblock the chi or energy. In western terms, you can say to unblock the stagnation.

While the needles are in the skin I feel very sleepy and relaxed. Sometimes when the doctor puts the needles into the skin it might hurt but this is momentary.

I feel fortunate to have this treatment available to me. If I lived in a small town I would not have this service and I would not have a way to address my pain and mobility without drugs or waiting for surgery. I'm also going to order some heel pads for my shoes. My doctor has suggested orthotics but I know from my mother's experience that orthotics didn't help her. I'm going to order heel pads on line. These pads seem to be working for many people who said they got orthotics made and the orthotics didn't work.

Anyway, I hope my regular readers will understand now why I haven't been posting or commenting as much as usual. Things have been busy for me and my mobility is limited. I'm also feeling more tired than usual but hopefully that will pass in a few weeks.

On an unrelated note, I see that my blogging posts have hit the 500 mark. I am a little suspect about the count given.  By Blogger's count I was at 489 posts about 3 months ago and have been posting steadily since then so the number should be higher. At any rate, I'm sure I've now passed the 500 mark, possibly a bit more. I've thoroughly enjoyed the blogging experience and wouldn't trade it for FB.