FEEDBACK, Queens, and Sweetness

        Thank you to everyone who gives me feedback on my blog, especially about their experiences with medications. I almost always get weird side effects from medications so it is especially helpful to me to know what to look out for!  This PD Journey has not been fun but it has proven to me that there are so many wonderful people in the world.  So many people are willing to share their personal medical issues. I mean if you can discuss constipation with people, you know that they're people who want to get and share info with others!
        Today I am going out to lunch with two of my best friends!  I am so excited! I even put on make-up!  The Topiramate medication that I am taking for Sciatica has decreased my appetite.(That in itself is a miracle because I LOVE food). Almost three years ago, I lost twenty pounds over a year long period by working out and eating better because my daughter Renee was getting married. Since that time I have put back on about 8-10 pounds and I have been trying to get rid of it. Now I have almost gotten rid of it because my appetite is just less. I wish I could go to the gym to exercise but my Sciatica is just too painful. I am supposed to take one whole tablet of Topiramate every night then increase to two at night and then increase to one more during the day. So many people have commented on the bad side effects that I am a bit scared to take so much so I am only gradually building up to it. At one  point I was taking 600 mg of Gabapentin daily and the room was spinning and I could barely walk and was afraid to drive.  My neurologist told me to switch pain management docs and I did that.  The new pain management doc told me to stop the Gabapentin because it wasn't helping me at all with the pain. He prescribed the Topiramate for me. I also have a steroid shot scheduled for the end of Feb.

       Lunch with Carol and Jackie was SO much fun!!My only problem was getting in and out of the booth. I had to really grab onto the edge of the booth to get a good grip to pull myself up. Everything that comes out of Carol's mouth just cracks me up. She should do stand-up comedy! I gave them one of the Fabric of our Community forms and they are going to fill it out.  A few years ago, the four of us in the birthday group started this "Queen" thing for our birthdays and we all kept adding to the ensemble.  We passed the items back and forth, we had a crown, a robe, a ring, a scepter, and a queen necklace and gloves. They are going to use a piece of the fabric from the robe and write the story!!

        My daughter Olivia is a hair dresser/cosmetologist and this is our conversation while she was at work. I am so proud of the young woman she has become and of the values she upholds. And that is why I want her to eventually marry someone  from a  family with the same values she was raised with. Joe and Renee both married into nice families.

Olivia

I just had this woman bring in her special needs daughter who is also blind to come in and get her hair done and she was so good didn’t freak out or anything and after I was done she goes am I beautiful and I looked at her and I said you looked beautiful before I even touched your hair and she started to cry and hugged me and this is when I noticed I love doing what do

Me
I said to her, aww, that made me cry

Olivia
Me too. Her mom pulled me aside and goes thank you so much sometimes she needs to hear someone besides her mom tell her that she’s beautiful and she doesn’t get that much.

It’s messed up. And I have noticed that people look at disabled people a lot different. Extra chromosome or not everyone should feel pretty and treated like any other human being.