Willis

Stroke Survivor - male
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    ksmith

    Posted

    I have Raynauds but it's milder a bit. Lucky for me I rarely have to go out in this Michigan winter weather. When I was 36 in Jan. 1987 I decided to try skiing to get a family activity going and we did it until I stroked in 2015. The skiing was the when I discovered what that numb hand and foot was called. It could happen in the summer if I was holding holding a cold beverage say but winter and skiing really were challenging. Mine I believe was circulatory. I was told to raise my arms above my shoulder height and rotate them in large circles and it actually worked. I would pay good money for a video of me riding on a chairlift flailing my arms like a helicopter.That must have looked interesting.

      Oh yeah April still gets hot flashes and like her older sister and figures they will continue the rest of her life.I hope the professionals get this figured out for you. 

    Sincerely Willis 

    KevRider

    Posted

    1 hour ago, heathber said:

    The measure my physio uses with me in this stage of recovery is "did the extra push through affect you for more than the day you did it?"  i.e. if it stopped you sleeping that night or meant your daily activities the next day were effected then you pushed too far.  I do find I sometimes get so tired I can't sleep which sounds weird but is what happens. This doesn't mean I don't do things it just means I need to allow myself a little slack occasionally and be prepared for consequences when I increase loads or push limits.

    and there is the rub Heathber. I am dealing with something not exact but similar with my recumbent bike. As I stick with it ( 28 of 31 days in January) I inevitably feel the need to increase the distance I ride and resistance to pedaling. I have a hard time reminding myself of my age and condition. For Feb. I've increased the distance slightly but not resistance. A bit harder. Enough to notice but nothing over whelming. 

    GeorgeLesley

    Posted

     I look at my occasional crying jags this way. Have any of you been to a park for kids that has a "Splash Pad" ? They are for summer days and they have all kinds of contraptions dumping water on the kids. One of them is a ring about 25 foot in diameter and 8 to 10 feet in the air. It has 5 or 6 different colored buckets spaced evenly around the ring. They each have their own water supply and they each constantly are filled and then tip over on the child standing below with each dumping at different times. They are on some type of pivot that makes them eventually spill when they become full and then refill again and repeat this over and over. They didn't have that stuff when I was a kid! So I see me and us as the buckets. We have a constant supply of challenges filling our buckets all day everyday and after so long that bucket becomes too full and needs to be emptied.

     

     

    GeorgeLesley

    Posted

    Thanks Heathber! Yes I knew where the tears were coming from. Same place as one, two maybe three months ago. Here's one for you. During one of those crying jags I'm riding my recumbent bike with my ear buds listing to inspirational workout music and tears running down my cheeks. Ha-ha!  Brother I think sometimes I'm my own best entertainment. I'm sleeping great for 2 reasons. I've given into the night owl life style which suits me best. My wife is out by 8 or 9 on the couch and that's ok but all that does for me if I do that is leave me wide awake at 2AM. The other is I refuse to feel any quilt about any sleep I want. I am and we are in some very difficult situations. It has been nice to not have a fatigued brain when trying to function. Eating for me I describe as eating to live and not living to eat. I am lucky to be married to the salad gueen. If I eat fast food it's big news to people who know me well.  

    GeorgeLesley

    Posted

    Good read Gizmo! Particularly from my seat as a 70 year old.  I remind myself there are 10,000 things I can still do (in spite of my left side having mobility still but little sensation) instead of the 1,000 I can't. What I have come to dislike is this labeling that's done to everything these day. What started this was I had a few days of tears and sadness. My wife and caregiver asked if I was depressed. I had been thinking the "extra" tears already and knew it wasn't close to depression. The only time that was an issue in my life was post stroke almost 6 years back. I know what the crying was. I was angry again that this happened to me and was wanting to be 70 and not in this position. We have the right to be angry. It happens from time to time and I think it's healthy for me. "They" would like to say "Oh you're depressed. Here's a script.  uh-uh! I feel so very fortunate to be in the position I'm in but hesitate to go in much detail because I know some aren't. 

     Paying it forward. A great thing to do if we can. The local food bank was just sent a donation which will be duplicated if the dire need is still there next month. Very sad situation there. We also support the Shriner's Hospitals for Children monthly. It use to be St. Jude but I decided to switch. 

    KevRider

    Posted

    58 minutes ago, nancyl said:

    I went and got my medical card for ND. Still experimenting - with dosage. I just take a tincture - helps me sleep, I actually have more dreams - which is nice. Dan won't try it. He had the stroke and it might help with his spasticity - but he won't even try -- lol , his choice. 

    Congratulations! As time goes by I know you will discover many different benefits. Quality sleep goes a long way for one. It all starts with getting your dose right. Take extensive notes at 1st with amount taken, time between doses and time of day. You will become an expert in a short time. Hopefully the power that be make this affordable for all who understand the power this plant has.  

    KevRider

    Posted

    Very nice looking ladies Kev. I live in Michigan and it is fully legal if you are old enough. Got that covered at 70. I'm glad you have found the plant helpful. I grew 5 this year outdoors. I consume daily through edibles that are made with the butter I make from my plants. My tell is that it turns this numb left side into an annoying inconvenience instead of a disability. The key to edibles is to take ones time until you figure out the correct  dosage.

     That BP thing is tricky because like everything, normal seems to vary so much. I stopped taking even the smaller dose on Saturday and my numbers are fine so far.  We'll see.   

    KevRider

    Posted

    Happy Halloween! Nice gourds. The neighbor behind me has 11 acres and grows a huge garden every year. I tell Tom every spring that he isn't a gardener he's a farmer. Which is more accurate considering he works with a Massey/Ferguson tractor and he also raises layers so fresh eggs are always in our fridge. We also benefit by a few weeks of corn on the cob as it comes in. Sadly I BBQed the last 2 ears yesterday.  

     The pictures of your piece of the plant are interesting to me always. I can relate to much of what you are doing as I try to keep things going on my little two and a half acre patch. I wish I had you energy sometimes. It comes and goes but seems to get a little better all the time. It is therapy for us. My BP was an issue that I took care of myself. In the past few months I was feeling lightheaded often while reclining even and getting blurry vision occasionally. Fatique, stomach ache, short breath, pounding heart, off and on. My Doc likes the typical 120/80 #'s and is ok with the senior #130/90. I know it's a person to person thing too. These symptoms had me using my monitor regularly and my BP was mostly low. Mid August I decided to buy a pill cutter and cut the 2 different pills I was prescribed in half and continue to monitor a few times a day. Well what do you know? The BP barely changed at all and after a couple weeks the other things either went away or became very minor. A week ago I went in for a flu shot and quick check up. I kept track and printed close to 3 weeks of BP#'s and showed the doc. I'm happy to say he was on board because he said I did the right thing by keeping an eye on my BP. He said if I didn't do that he would have scolded me. He prescribed the same meds at half the strength and said we will discuss stopping the meds altogether. Music to my ears!

     When I was put on a BP med over 10 years ago, I was still working, weighed about 25 more pounds and didn't have a fine tuned diet let's say. He felt that was all good but said the ticket was me being committed to riding my stationary recumbent bike almost daily. Walking is something I can do if I really have to but too hard to be of any value to me exercise wise. The bike lets me sit back slide my feet under the straps and on to the peddles. My left leg is mostly numb one and I spin it around and around with 4 separate rides of 5 minutes whice adds up to 20 minutes and about 3.2 miles a day.         

    HostTracy

    Posted

    That could be the best report I've read since however long I have been a member. Tracy I have done that on the phone when I'm the one forced to have the conversation. If I can humble myself I let the person know I'm stroked. That usually help. Just thinking about explaining those things is exhausting. What were the odds of talking to David? I have often thought it would be nice if the person at the other end of the phone knew somhow we were challenged. 

    KevRider

    Posted

    We just began composting again for the 1st time since I was whole back in the summer of 2015. I had several pallets and put together a pretty simple bin pounding in some longer pieces of rebar I had to hold it all together. Nothing fancy but from past bins I've built this will do the job. We eat basically a plant based diet and have daily scraps and I put the bin next to the leaf/clippings/mulch dump spot so there is cover right there to cover things. This method does take longer and calls for some patience. It won't be ready (on the bottom) for at least a year. I have looked into the barrel method and know it is much quicker. I will be looking forward to a report.

    Willis

    Posted

    5 hours ago, GreenQueen said:

    Willis, amen to that.  The level of comfort required is a very hard one to explain. 

     

    We've been to Perth recently. 

    4.5 hours in the car there, two days driving around doing stuff, 4.5 hours in the car coming home.

     

    The muscles in my right bum cheek are still screaming at me.

     

    I have physio next week; I'm hoping she'll get me sorted.

     

    💚👑

    Ha ha yep the bum cheek! Left side for me.😅 

    Willis

    Posted

    18 hours ago, GreenQueen said:

    Willis. I'm really trying to run with this kind of thought:

     

    I cannot help people's feelings about situations.  They may be disappointed I don't attend certain things etc. Not my problem. 

     

    The other thing.  They've all got two feet and a heart beat. Why couldn't they come in and sit down and be with you? Instead of making you do all the work.

     

    I'm gonna say it again.  YOU are NOT disappointing. 

     

    Any one of the fam bam makes you think different, give them my number.

    I got you.

    💚👑

    and you know what would help is if we could get folks to understand it's a comfort thing with us. At least for me it is. I need a couple square pillows or something soft but firm to sit on and even that is uncomfortable before too long.  🛌

    KevRider

    Posted

    1 hour ago, heathber said:

    Possibly comes from the south American animal. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sloth

    But is also one of the seven deadly sins (pride, envy, gluttony, greed, lust, sloth, and wrath.) I'm a practitioner of most of these from time to time as are most humans.

    I'm guessing the animal was named from the sin, given it spends so much time not moving.

    Oh yeah the 7 deadly sins. Haven't thought about or looked at them for quite awhile. Won't hurt but I know I will be checking them off after your comment. Ha -ha  ✌️ Just checked and got em covered but will have to get clarification on wrath. 😅

    Willis

    Posted

    6 minutes ago, HostTracy said:

    I very much relate. Thankfully not all but a small few have or at one time have judged me this way. All I can say is that I have learned the true value of inner peace and sometimes that does not involve other's opinions. My best lesson has been that I don't have to prove ANYTHING to ANYONE. I can still love the fools. I can close my eyes and imagine the serenity of your woodland getaway. I have nothing but happy feelings in my heart. Now this is what I seek! 

    You say the coolest stuff and have the right attitude in my opinion! I read that and thought "did I say that".

    KevRider

    Posted

    That hoop garden is of particular interest to me, I have a new unused dog pen 😢 next to my garage. I haven't measured it yet but 3 side have an 8' cyclone fence. The plan is to turn this approximatley 20'x 10' space into a Michigan greenhouse for us. I believe I can use 3/4 PVC pipe and make a removable hoop cover. We will see.