Here We Go Again

We came back to Wilderness Lakes on July 18th, and got settled in on the site behind where we had been before.  We saw Natalie for my therapy on July 19th and the 26th.  I was doing great and she discharged me, as hopefully cured of vertigo that day.  The next day, July 27th, I drove us up to Oak Glen for a nice picnic with Donna & George.  We had a great time except it was pretty hot up there.  The next day, on Saturday I woke up early, as we had several things we had planned to do that day.  When I sat up, I was hit with a vertigo episode that knocked me back onto the bed.  On the advice of Natalie, I had not taken any meclizine since the previous Sunday morning.  With Jim's help I managed to get out of bed about 20 minutes later.  I wasn't able to eat any breakfast.  Jim had to help me get my shower because I was not able to sit up straight.  Despite taking meclizine that morning and mid-day, the vertigo got progressively worse.  I got so sick that day that I wasn't able to take a third dose that evening.  Sunday was even worse.  Monday morning I called my doctor, and he wanted to see me that afternoon.  He was surprised to see how bad the vertigo had gotten.  He tested me and said it was quite awful, as if I didn't know that already!!!  He said I needed to get back into therapy as soon as possible.  He made the referral and I spoke to Natalie that same day.  She couldn't schedule me an appointment until the following Monday.  I was quite upset and told her I couldn't go on like this for another week.  She said they would call me in early if she had any cancellations this week.  I asked her if Jim could do the treatments until I could get back to see her.  She was reluctant at first, but since he had watched every treatment she said we could try it.  She suggested going through the therapy twice completely.  She wanted us to do it every day until we got in to see her.  Unexpectedly, she had a cancellation on Thursday afternoon, so I got to go see her for therapy.  She felt that maybe the vertigo had not really gone away.  Since I had been taking the medication, maybe it was masking the symptoms, and after I stopped taking it, the symptoms flared up again.  I told her I have been taking the med since Saturday but I am not getting better.  She tested me for the vertigo and agreed that it was as bad, or worse, than when I first started the therapy.  Now I am going to see her twice every week for at least four to five weeks, AND she wants Jim to do the therapy twice a day on the days I don't come see her.  Sadly for me, it has not gotten any better yet.  I haven't barfed since Monday, but we are both pretty depressed about all of this coming back.  We are trying to do everything Natalie says to do, but so far, there has not been much progress.

Today we wanted to go to to Candy Bar Bingo at the Family Center.  It was noisy and chaotic; before long I was dizzy and started to feel sick.  We left and came back home.  I was dizzy all afternoon.  Later this afternoon we did another session of the therapy, but I'm still having the vertigo.

As many of you know, we usually have a compact refrigerator outside the motorhome for extra soft drinks and ice cream (and other stuff).  This past Monday afternoon one of the park Gestapo people came by and told Jim he couldn't have it outside anymore.  They think having things like that outside make the RV Park look like a trailer park (i.e. trailer trash).  Jim had to unload it, since we had shopped that day, and carry it inside.  We went to the manager meeting on Wednesday, and I brought the subject up to Jeff.  The bottom line of it was, he said if he can't see it, we can have it outside.  We thought about getting a new screen room from Shade Pro.  We would love to have a screen room again, however, then I thought about all the work that goes into setting it up and taking it down.  We talked it over and agreed that we should consider other ideas.  We decided to get what are called Vista Shade panels that will hang off the front and the ends of the awning.  If any RVers want to know what I am talking about, Shade Pro has a web site where you can see what they offer.  They can still be seen through, but not too much.  We found a folding table that we can stand OVER the refrigerator, and we bought two flannel backed vinyl table cloths that we can use to hide the fridge from view.  We have a really cute lighthouse lamp and a vase of artificial flowers we can set on top of the table.  That way it will just look like a side table between chairs.  

We are also getting window covers for the two windows on the driver's side (over the couch and over the dinette).  These covers are supposed to block 94% of the heat and glare from the sun.  Since the RV is white with silver decals, we chose silver colored shade panels.  The nice thing about them is that you can see out through them.  YAY!  Since we are going up to Silent Valley on Wednesday, we are going to have the guy come up there on Friday to install everything for us.  Yipee.  We will include lots of pictures, the awning shades, the table over the fridge and the window covers next time I blog.




Now for a few pictures for today.

The owl on the left is actually supposed to be a "mini pocket watch/necklace" and I thought it would be cute for Jim.  When it got here he said no way, and told me I could have it.  The beautiful enameled owl on the right is from our very dear friends Diane and Jim Hubert.  They came down here before my vertigo came back and brought us a birthday dinner.  She made me a birthday card with owl stickers all over it.  It is so cute.  They gave Jim a cute gray tee shirt that says "I used to be a people person, then people ruined it".  If you look closely you will see lovely gems on the end of the feathers.  I really love the pendant.  Diane and Jim also gave me a beautiful gray owl that sits with my other owls on the shelf below the TV.  I will include a picture of that one next time.  I have been so miserable with this vertigo that I haven't taken very many pictures lately.  I'm sorry about that.

This is the owl watch Jim got for me for my birthday.  It came with a braided thread band with a knot to hold it.  I made a bracelet of beads and magnets that I like a lot more.

Last, but not least, is a picture we have seen in the VA clinic in Murrieta where Jim sees his primary doctor.  He had to go there this week for a blood test and asked me to take a picture of it.  It is a reminder of the commitment men and women of the military make when they enlist to serve this great country.  Not all who serve are sent to places where they put their lives in danger, but all who enlist have made that commitment, and therefore they deserve our respect and our gratitude.  Please remember to thank veterans whenever you see them.  Please honor them on Veteran's day and EVERY other day as well.  Many veterans suffer from post traumatic stress disorders, so please be patient and compassionate whenever you encounter a veteran who may seem to be behaving inappropriately.   As I have said before, we should try to be kinder than we need to, and this certainly applies to veterans.


God bless you all and good night.