Daily Log
11:30
I woke up shortly after 9, and idled around until the bathroom was free. I felt somewhat rested despite not sleeping particularly well; I remember lying in bed and thinking for at least an hour to an hour and a half in the early morning. I woke up on my own, though, and I felt all right. My pain level was moderately low, no specific pains came to my attention.
When I stood up I got some nerve twinges from my feet, the kind I get from swollen tissues, but that resolved itself -- they're now in their usual state, slightly sore and stiff. I took a shower and gathered up my laundry, then took a little time getting dressed because I was chatting on my phone. I went downstairs to check something on the computer, then realized that I had left the contents of my pockets and my belt (and my laundry) upstairs. Climbing the stairs again took a significant chunk of my energy... I had been feeling halfway decent, but I took that as a warning to go slowly today.
I carried the laundry downstairs and got it started. After resting for about ten minutes, I got up to make some breakfast. The fifteen minutes of standing I had to do to cook food left my legs (especially my thighs) weak and shaky. After sitting down to eat and do a few things (about 20 minutes of sitting), I got a phone call; I usually take those outside, because the reception inside the house isn't great. Again, 20 minutes of standing and slow walking on that call left me quite shaky.
I'm going to head out to Berkeley soon for an appointment. I do feel reasonably alert, which is good for driving (and an improvement on yesterday). I'm hoping this is the start of some steady improvement in my energy and stamina, and I'll try not to push myself.
20:00
I hit the credit union to deposit a couple of checks before I went to Berkeley; I parked very close to the ATM, and it went quickly since there was no line.
The drive out did not go quite so quickly... I got to Dwight and Telegraph in 35 minutes, parked about 300 feet from Telegraph, and walked to one of the stores around the corner and another 100 feet up. It was a quick transaction, so I was back in the car about ten minutes after I got out. I was pretty tired -- two-thirds of the way to the store I could feel my energy draining, and I hoped I had enough to finish the errand.
It was another 10 minutes to my next stop. I didn't have to walk very far at all (about 20 feet) to get to the door of my bodyworker. He manipulated and mobilized things while we talked; apparently my upper shoulders were particularly bad. When I got up after an hour I had to ask how badly mis-aligned my hips had been, and he answered "very". I felt weird when walking, almost knock-kneed, which means I'd been walking with my knees pointed to the sides for a while. No wonder standing and walking had been so exhausting.
I left the office and drive a few minutes to a meeting spot. I spent about 45 minutes standing and talking with a couple of teammates; when we broke up I was to the point where I felt I really needed to sit down, despite the fact I had been leaning on my car hood most of that time.
On my bodyworker's suggestion, and because I felt somewhat revived, I went to UC Berkeley and parked on the south side, then got out and started walking around. He felt that some walking would be the best way to get my joints and muscles reaccustomed to being in alignment again, and I know from experience that a long drive afterward will sometimes cause a relapse. At 4pm on a weekday, driving back to Concord would be a very long slog, so I stuck around to play Ingress for a while and let my body settle into place.
I wasn't walking very fast, and I needed to stop and stand for a half-minute every ten to fifty feet, so it took nearly two hours to cover a corner of the campus. The phone says I walked 2km (that's rounded, so it might have been a little more; I don't think it was less). That includes sitting for about fifteen minutes to have something to eat.
By the time I was headed back to my car I was a little tired and my feet were sore, so it was time to quit. I drove back home in light traffic, which took a half-hour, and got myself some dinner to eat in front of the computer.
I feel pretty decent, which is a nice change -- not exhausted, not in much pain at all. My pain level is lower than it's been in weeks, to the point where I actually have to think about it to find it. My feet are sore and crunch a lot when I walk on them, but that's the worst thing going on right now.
00:15
I watched TV for a little longer, then I decided to have a look at my javascript code. I tracked down a bug, then discovered that the dependencies had changed under me and I spent almost two hours figuring out the extent of the damage. I finally decided it was too big a project for tonight (or perhaps at all; I may need to start over) and sent a couple of chat messages, then closed up what I was working on.
My shoulders are tight and stiff again from peering at the computer -- I really have to do something about my posture, but I'm afraid it may involve getting a larger screen so I don't have to hunch forward to see some of the text on the dialog boxes. When I flex my shoulders, however, I can feel things pop and loosen, which means they aren't stuck... the mobilizing work earlier today is still in effect. Sometimes it lasts longer than others. When I'm not flaring all the time, it can last for weeks.
I seem to be breaking out in eczema (dyshidrosis) on my left forearm, which started yesterday and continued today. I don't know what I came in contact with, but if it continues to spread I may have to take something for it. I try to avoid steroids when I can, but I have a Chinese herb mix which helps a great deal... it's strong stuff, so I'll see whether this settles down on its own.
The joints in my feet are definitely sticky; about half of them feel stuck, even though they were mobilized along with everything else today. I'll see if I can get by without fixing them tomorrow, as I'm due to see the podiatrist.
My energy is still good, but I'm sleepy, so it's off to bed.
I have an account as Torquill on Dreamwidth, and that's where I posted this. You can sign in with OpenID to comment on the original post, or you can go ahead and comment here; either way works.
I woke up shortly after 9, and idled around until the bathroom was free. I felt somewhat rested despite not sleeping particularly well; I remember lying in bed and thinking for at least an hour to an hour and a half in the early morning. I woke up on my own, though, and I felt all right. My pain level was moderately low, no specific pains came to my attention.
When I stood up I got some nerve twinges from my feet, the kind I get from swollen tissues, but that resolved itself -- they're now in their usual state, slightly sore and stiff. I took a shower and gathered up my laundry, then took a little time getting dressed because I was chatting on my phone. I went downstairs to check something on the computer, then realized that I had left the contents of my pockets and my belt (and my laundry) upstairs. Climbing the stairs again took a significant chunk of my energy... I had been feeling halfway decent, but I took that as a warning to go slowly today.
I carried the laundry downstairs and got it started. After resting for about ten minutes, I got up to make some breakfast. The fifteen minutes of standing I had to do to cook food left my legs (especially my thighs) weak and shaky. After sitting down to eat and do a few things (about 20 minutes of sitting), I got a phone call; I usually take those outside, because the reception inside the house isn't great. Again, 20 minutes of standing and slow walking on that call left me quite shaky.
I'm going to head out to Berkeley soon for an appointment. I do feel reasonably alert, which is good for driving (and an improvement on yesterday). I'm hoping this is the start of some steady improvement in my energy and stamina, and I'll try not to push myself.
20:00
I hit the credit union to deposit a couple of checks before I went to Berkeley; I parked very close to the ATM, and it went quickly since there was no line.
The drive out did not go quite so quickly... I got to Dwight and Telegraph in 35 minutes, parked about 300 feet from Telegraph, and walked to one of the stores around the corner and another 100 feet up. It was a quick transaction, so I was back in the car about ten minutes after I got out. I was pretty tired -- two-thirds of the way to the store I could feel my energy draining, and I hoped I had enough to finish the errand.
It was another 10 minutes to my next stop. I didn't have to walk very far at all (about 20 feet) to get to the door of my bodyworker. He manipulated and mobilized things while we talked; apparently my upper shoulders were particularly bad. When I got up after an hour I had to ask how badly mis-aligned my hips had been, and he answered "very". I felt weird when walking, almost knock-kneed, which means I'd been walking with my knees pointed to the sides for a while. No wonder standing and walking had been so exhausting.
I left the office and drive a few minutes to a meeting spot. I spent about 45 minutes standing and talking with a couple of teammates; when we broke up I was to the point where I felt I really needed to sit down, despite the fact I had been leaning on my car hood most of that time.
On my bodyworker's suggestion, and because I felt somewhat revived, I went to UC Berkeley and parked on the south side, then got out and started walking around. He felt that some walking would be the best way to get my joints and muscles reaccustomed to being in alignment again, and I know from experience that a long drive afterward will sometimes cause a relapse. At 4pm on a weekday, driving back to Concord would be a very long slog, so I stuck around to play Ingress for a while and let my body settle into place.
I wasn't walking very fast, and I needed to stop and stand for a half-minute every ten to fifty feet, so it took nearly two hours to cover a corner of the campus. The phone says I walked 2km (that's rounded, so it might have been a little more; I don't think it was less). That includes sitting for about fifteen minutes to have something to eat.
By the time I was headed back to my car I was a little tired and my feet were sore, so it was time to quit. I drove back home in light traffic, which took a half-hour, and got myself some dinner to eat in front of the computer.
I feel pretty decent, which is a nice change -- not exhausted, not in much pain at all. My pain level is lower than it's been in weeks, to the point where I actually have to think about it to find it. My feet are sore and crunch a lot when I walk on them, but that's the worst thing going on right now.
00:15
I watched TV for a little longer, then I decided to have a look at my javascript code. I tracked down a bug, then discovered that the dependencies had changed under me and I spent almost two hours figuring out the extent of the damage. I finally decided it was too big a project for tonight (or perhaps at all; I may need to start over) and sent a couple of chat messages, then closed up what I was working on.
My shoulders are tight and stiff again from peering at the computer -- I really have to do something about my posture, but I'm afraid it may involve getting a larger screen so I don't have to hunch forward to see some of the text on the dialog boxes. When I flex my shoulders, however, I can feel things pop and loosen, which means they aren't stuck... the mobilizing work earlier today is still in effect. Sometimes it lasts longer than others. When I'm not flaring all the time, it can last for weeks.
I seem to be breaking out in eczema (dyshidrosis) on my left forearm, which started yesterday and continued today. I don't know what I came in contact with, but if it continues to spread I may have to take something for it. I try to avoid steroids when I can, but I have a Chinese herb mix which helps a great deal... it's strong stuff, so I'll see whether this settles down on its own.
The joints in my feet are definitely sticky; about half of them feel stuck, even though they were mobilized along with everything else today. I'll see if I can get by without fixing them tomorrow, as I'm due to see the podiatrist.
My energy is still good, but I'm sleepy, so it's off to bed.
I have an account as Torquill on Dreamwidth, and that's where I posted this. You can sign in with OpenID to comment on the original post, or you can go ahead and comment here; either way works.