Wednesday, January 6th - Shock Treatment!

Hi Friends, Today we had to be checked in at the clinic by 7:45, which ment that we had to catch the 7:00 AM shuttle. We checked with front dest and their van driver doesn't start till 7:00 AM so we had to race for the shuttle ourselves. It was still dark and I was cold. I was quite nervous about missing the shuttle because they come only ever half hour and you can't be later for your registration. They will make you reschedule your appointment. So there we were huffing it in the cold, well about 48 degrees cold. Hoping and praying we would make the shuttle. We even jogged a little. This is 2 people who are still sore from the accident on Monday. I think I thought of several things I was going to tell the hotel manager when we came back but stayed focused on the road before us. So we crossed the street so that the cars were coming towards us..in case we had to flag down the shuttle. People driver crazy in this state. Karen and I watched 9 cars in a row run a stop sign. Finally we got there, we were warmed up for sure. The shuttle was just closing his doors and then saw us coming. So away we went. I was ready to go back to bed for sure...We got to the clinic and up to registration. We didn't have to wait that long to be called. The doctor came in. He is the specialist that deals with neurology. He looked at my charts and all the meds I was on. He then had me walk, balance, touch me nose and do all kinds of things. I felt like I was taking a test for drunk driving..lol. I don't think I would have passed. He seemed most concerned about the amounts of medications I was taking and assured me that I probley was forgettful because of amount of medications and the variety of medications I was on. He tested my short term memory and said it was fine. But he was concerned about my hands and nerves in them. I was then sent to Audiology for a hearing test. I passed wth flying colors. I was telling the doctor about needing the words on tv, but he said the a lot of tv shows and movies don't show the actor talking and we do more lip reading then we realize. He also gave me a card on better communication. I kinda felt a little dumb after that appointment. It was only 10 AM and I was ready to collapse. Luckily my next appointment was not until 2:30 so we caught the shuttle back to the hotel and I climbed back in bed. I think I was asleep before my head even hit the pillow. Karen took the hotel shuttle to do some grocery shopping while I slept. At 1 pm I got up, ate some lunch and prepared to go back to the clinic for my Electromyography with Dr. Ross. I was quite nervous about this test because you had to be very warm and I always seem to be cold and it had the word electro in it. The instructions stated that the test could go one to three hours...I was instructed to lay down and they covered my hands and arms with a blanket. Then the two techs came in and they were very nice and explained everything they were doing each step of the way. Basically they started with placing electrodes along my hand, back of hand, wrist, arm, elbow and up by my shoulder..then they hooked of wires to the different points and sent shock waves..started smal..not so bad, but each turn of the knob got worse. My arm moved on its own accord a couple of times. I think it was trying to slap the tech..lol. Finally they took off everything and I was like ok well that was not sooo bad and boom..they are swing my bed around and rehooking up my OTHER arm..I just smiled and tried to make the best of it. It was funny because when the test was done, both techs said to me "don't you run away, the doctor will want to see you and do his own tests" "He doesn't like it when the patient dissappears." At that point I seriously was considering making a run for it. LOL..I waited for over another 1/2 hour and the doctor finally came it. He was so nice. Dr. Ross said that the tests showed that I had severe carpal tunnel in my left hand and all a pretty good case in my right hand also. It was so good to hear that I was not dropping things for no reason. I wasn't imagining things..something was wrong. He talked to me about getting surgery, the sooner the better, but preferred to wait till I was home in Spokane so I would have a doctor to follow up with. Then he had to do his tests..he stuck needles in my arm in different places. The needle went down far enough to make me bleed and then he would run the electrical currents through wires attached. He was double checking that the problem was in my hands and not stemming from my neck muscles which would have meant a muscular disease. After that he pulled out all the sharp owies and told me how great I did and that he would send a report to the main doctor. I did run out that time. We came straight back to the hotel and have just been hanging out. Karen's camera is missing, so we are praying it will be found.. For dinner we just went downstairs. The hotel was having BBQ night and there was free hamburgers, hot dogs, potato salad, ranch beans, potato chips and ice tea and lemonade. Now we are in our room getting ready to work on Thank You cards to all the generous people that have helped us get here. Tomorrow I start the day at the hospital with an ultrasound of my heart, then to the clinic for an appointment with the heart doctor and then more labs. I took some more pictures today. It is so pretty here and the days are just more and more pretty. A lot of the cati are blooming and each day we see something new. I saw woodpeckers yesterday, and humming birds. Both the sunrises and the sunsets are a sight to behold. Thanks for taking this journey with me. I have receive so many kind words, texts, and comments on my facebook page. I truly appreciate your support. Love and smiles, Becca