Like Buses

Hello dear readers!

Firstly an apology. I’m sure you will have spotted that last weeks blog post was sadly absent. This time, this was not due to any ill health or hospitalisation on the part of yours truly but more because of a poorly laptop. This issue has not been fully resolved but hopefully I may be able to get through this week’s offering without the accursed thing shutting down randomly and erasing all my hard(ish) work.

Anyhoo, onward and upwards.

Long term sufferers of this esteemed blog may remember that last time we spoke I was somewhat becalmed. After my recent diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis (see here), I was left waiting for appointments galore and, quite frankly nothing was happening. I was left kicking my heels (well, figuratively) at home.

It was all quiet on the western front with not much happening on the Eastern. Northern, or Southern either. Then, very much like buses, three things all turned up together to busy life up a little.

Nurse! Nurse!

Now, before you get too excited, not all of the three were medically linked. I still need to wait another couple of weeks before I see the specialist but, in the meantime, an appointment to see the MS nurse had turned up and the date for that appointment had come around.

Still unable to drive (grrrr) Myself and my lovely wife, Tina piled into the back of an ambulance and made our way to Pinderfields hospital. I was nervous. Although I wasn’t expecting any treatment or tests on that particular day, I really wasn’t too sure what to expect. It turned out that my nerves were unnecessary.

The nurse was a lovely lady, capable of handling what was pretty serious business with a wonderful lightness of touch. She shed a little more light on the nature of MS and actually answered some of the questions that had been burning through our minds.

Question Time

These were pretty much what you’d expect. The likely progression of the illness (unknown, as MS presents differently in just about every case.), what could be done to manage it (not a lot unfortunately. Diet and exercise would not be helpful and a certain, um, herbal remedy is vastly overrated), What might happen next (A possible second MRI, this time with contrast), and crucially, what support we would receive.

This turned out to be the nurse herself. We were given a number to ring should we have any further questions (really should have written them down), and we were told to ring it should nay new symptoms present themselves for a duration exceeding twenty-four hours.

So, after that it was back in an ambulance, a short lecture on having the wrong kind of wheelchair (you need arms an a footrest to travel by ambulance apparently. Who knew?) and back home to continue the endless waiting for further appointments.

Luckily not all of life is Multiple sclerosis.

The Whole Wide World
As you can probably imagine the recent diagnosis has meant that life has been turned upside down, or at least a little skew-whiff. Some normality was therefore needed to get life back on track. With this in mind we resolved, with some light trepidation, to return to the world of slimming, known as, um, Slimming World. This was the second event of note.

I mention trepidation but this has nothing whatsoever to do with meeting up with the group again. They are a lovely bunch. Very supportive, and I was, in fact, bowled over to receive a ‘get well soon’ card from them. During my absence from their midst. It was nice to get back and have a chance to say thank you.

No, the nervous butterflies were more to do with the fact that enforced absence I had, quite frankly, been eating like a pig, possibly two pigs.

You could partly put this down to the whacking dose of steroids that I had been given on my release from hospitalisation which was ten times the dose mentioned in the accompanying leaflet and meant taking five tablets every morning for five days. It also gave me a seemingly insatiable hunger and a craving for the dirtiest, most unhealthy food I could get my hands on. At least, that’s my excuse for the pizzas and take-outs and quite frankly, I’m sticking with it. It was, therefore, not exactly a shock to find out that I had put on a whopping 11 pounds!

Of course this was a serious setback but it has rededicated both myself and Tina (who hadn’t put a single pound on) to get as healthy as we can. We’ve both lost in the following week, myself a very satisfying amount of 7 pounds. Get in!

Oh, Happy Day

But, hang on,I mentioned three things didn’t I? Well yes I did and I’m possibly saving the most important until last. His was the advent of International Mark Rankin Day... also know as my birthday.

Yes, once more, a year has passed in which I have successfully cheated the grim reaper and as custom requires this was marked by small amount of celebration, at least some of which may have contributed to the aforementioned weight gain. The most notable of these were the traditional get together with the family; parents, sisters, niece and nephews and, upon this occasion, an aunt, an uncle and three unexpected cousins.

Presents Of Mind
I say unexpected as I’d not seen at least two of them for a number of years and had never met their kids (I can never work out the relation to myself… Second cousins?) but it was lovely to catch up with them and lovely to hear the sounds of the kids messing about in and around the various conversations whirling about. There was of course cake and niece-and-nephew-made chocolate brownies (yum!), to go alongside the giant Toblerone and bottle of JD. Really it’s a small miracle it was only 11 pounds I put on!

What was notable was just how tiring I found the day. It’s a theme I’m discovering more and more in life. It is taking very little to exhaust me at the moment and as the possibility of a return to work pops it’s head above the horizon that is something I’m going to have to get my head around.

Until next time...