Sleeping Crippie

Greetings!

I hope all my crippled comrades had a marvelous weekend, Crippie especially hopes that her local cripples enjoyed that heatwave. It was so freakin' hot this weekend, my goodness. Luckily I didn't have to outside for many reasons. I was worried about all of animals but thankfully I had no reason to worry. The piggies got through the heatwave unscathed, Helen enjoyed sleeping in the warm grass when she would go out for walks (she really is lazy), and Angel hated the weather, but she got ice cubes in her water which she enjoyed. So all is well in Crippie's animal kingdom.

This weekend was rather eventful for my family. I got the see the final two performances of my sister's show. The last couple of shows were damn near sold out. While I have no proof, I'm gonna say that my publicity is totally responsible for it. Crippie had a jolly time at all of the productions and I have now memorized most of the show. This happens every time I see one of my sister's shows. I end up memorizing 'em. I can still recite most of the songs from "Into The Woods" and that show was over 5 years ago :D. Anyways... here are some pics I took over the weekend...

Helen is a lazy bum

She steals my pillows, all the freakin' time 

A view near the playhouse, gotta love the Hudson River!

Passed a carnival on the way home 

Sunday on the Hudson with a Sailboat (broadway humor) 

And Crippie was killing time by taking pictures

Moving on, Crippie has a question for her readers. It seems that I have a loooooot of difficulty in the "going to sleep" department. My usual night time schedule is to usually go on the computer until I feel like I'm going to pass out. At the point I fall asleep rather quickly. The problem is that it is around 3-4 in the morning when this occurs. I could simply get off my damn computer at a decent hour, but here lies the problem... say Crippie is rather tired, but not ready to pass out tired. If I were to simply go to bed all of the sudden Fanny would decide to act up, so you've got a good 45 minutes of tossing and turning there. After I get comfy-ish my shoulder will be like "OHAI... I'm gonna hurt you now!" so I spend another 45 minutes popping my shoulder and tossing and turning. THEN my neck will be like, "Ya, know... I was comfier the other way". THEN my hip will be like "WTF... I WAS COMFY BEFORE!". Long story short it takes me hours to fall asleep. Me thinks I need to find a way to get to the "I'm about to pass out" stage sooner. Any suggestions readers? 

Crippie's Tippie - One thing I've tried that has had mild success was to do sudoko puzzles at night with low light. It strains my eyes and makes me sleepier sometimes. Other times I get really focused on the puzzle and stay up trying to solve it. Not perfect, but better than nothing.

Well, There's Your Problem

'Ello

The Mama Pig Update - Mama continues to stabilize. She still not 100% back to normal. I'd probably say she's about 90%. Crippie is gonna monitor her throughout the day tomorrow since I don't have work. Since Mama Pig is feeling better I can finally devote more time to my other piggies. Tonight I was chilling with Nellie. Nellie missed all the snuggles.

I call this look "Stare Vacantly at the Wall While Mommy Gives Me Rubs"

Crippie was supposed to have her second MRI in a few hours. BUT we ended up canceling it. Why? Because the people at the radiologist's office called us and said that the first MRI should provide my doctor with all of the information he needs. Crippie is gonna pick up the MRI disc tomorrow and send it to my doctor. If this is the case, that my problems are so blatantly obvious that a second MRI is not needed... CRIPPIE REALLY WANTS TO KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON! Crippie is pretty sure that Fanny is pressing on the sciatic nerve but I have no clue with what's causing my sitting problems. I really hope the answer is super obvious and more importantly, super easy to treat. Although, Crippie is being very cautious about this new development of sorts, cause let's face it, the radiology office could just be seeing tumors and assuming that they are the cause of my problems. Once Crippie's ortho sees the images from my first MRI he'll let us know whether I need another MRI or not. 

The heat wave has been continuing by me. It was again insanely hot on Tuesday. Crippie shockingly decided to wear shorts to work (it's hot and our dress code is very relaxed). I'll admit even though I am ok with showing my legs and my scars to random people, I was afraid that my coworkers would notice all my scars. Yes, I already walk with a cane so it's kinda obvious that something ain't right... but I don't like having my coworkers know the extent of my crippledness. I'm afraid that once I make it really obvious people will always treat me "special". For now they treat me like any other coworker, I like being treated like a normal and I thought showing my scars might jeopardize that. That being said, it was insanely hot and my office is full of windows and not so stellar AC. So, Crippie again decided to put on her big girl panties, suck it up, and put on the damn shorts. Much to my surprise no one noticed or cared about my legs! No one said a word to me, no one asked what happened to my leg, NOTHING! Well, I could tell that someone was staring at my leg at one point... but still... not bad. Crippie has to remember that adults have better things to do than notice my legs. That's probably one of my favorite parts about being surrounded by adults, they treat me like a normal human being. I reckon I'm still transitioning from being around younger, dumber people who would treat me like crap because of the whole cripple thing. 

Before I depart for the night, Crippie has to give a quick shout out to my Mom & Dad. Yesterday was their 25th wedding anniversary! Happy Silver Anniversary!!! <3

Crippie's Tippie - Just because a problem is visible to you, that doesn't mean that everyone else will notice it.

Piggie Post - Beat The Heat

Greetings!

Crippie hopes all of her crippled comrades enjoyed their weekends. Today (yesterday, whatever) was again stupidly hot. I didn't do a whole lot today, I mainly rested and played with the pets. Crippie did manage to take Mama Pig out for a drive. My sister needed some driving practice so this seemed like a perfect time for Mama Pig to tag along. Everything for the most part went as planned, Mama freaked out and pooped. One thing I stupidly did not think about was how hot it was going to be in the car. It was well over 90 degrees outside and an air conditioner will only go so far. Guinea Pigs are very sensitive to heat and a heat stroke can easily kill them. I realized this when Mama Pig had calmed down in the car and fell asleep. At most it could've been 85 degrees in the car while we were driving around (driving slowly so the AC isn't too strong). Luckily she wasn't exposed to the heat for a terribly long period of time. When Crippie returned home Mama Pig was wiped out. She went straight into her cage and passed out in a tunnel. After I observed her for a few minutes I realized that she didn't look happy and was probably really hot and uncomfortable. So, Crippie took the following steps to revive Mama Pig.

1) Get some cold water and put it a little bowl
2) Get an ice cube or two and put in the water
3) Let the water get really cold for a minute
4) Syringe feed the pig the water (1 or 2 cc's)
5) When you're done feeding the pig, use your fingers or the syringe to put some water on the pig itself. Just enough so the pig is slightly damp and cooled down, not so much that the pig is soaked

I cannot begin to tell you guys how much Mama Pig enjoyed this treatment. When I took her out of her cage to be fed she was tired and not happy. She started purring the instant that she starting drinking. She gobbled up the water, purred while she swallowed, and demanded more. I used the syringe to drop little drops of water on to her skin and then massaged them in. She purred even more while I was doing this. It was pretty much a non-stop purr-fest. When I was done Mama Pig looked refreshed and happy. I continued to give her freezing cold water periodically over the next hour or so just to be on the safe side. Crisis averted.

It's hot in here Mommy! 

Now, when it does get hot like this piggie owners need to make sure their pigs stay cool. When I'm not almost accidentally killing pigs I try to make sure that they are always cool when they're in their cages. We have an AC unit in the room next to them which makes for a very pleasant overall temperature, and their cages are placed near a ceiling fan, which we constantly have running on low to keep air circulating around them. Pig owners need to have a plan B for the event of a black out or a broken AC unit. Crippie's plan B includes the following...
1) Reusable cold packs are kept in my freezer at all times, in the event of a black out they would be covered with a sock or some form of fabric and put in the cages.
2) Freezing cold water - ice cubes in their water bottles to keep them refreshed
3) Portable fans placed very closely to the cage
4) Give 'em a cold-ish bath if all else fails

Also, during the summer months Piggies enjoy their frozen treats. Watermelon, blueberries, carrots, cucumbers, etc make fantastic summer treats. My piggies love watermelon more than life itself.

Crippie's Tippie - If it's really hot outside... KEEP YOUR PIG'S INSIDE AND COOL

10 Awesome Things

Ohaiiiiiii


Yup, another "The Prince of Egypt" song. This one is about the 10 Plagues. It actually makes for a decent segue to today's HAWMC blog prompt! 10 Things I Couldn’t Live Without. Write a list of the 10 things you need (or love) most. Alrighty, here goes nothin...

1) My Family

- I think this one is pretty obvious, my family is my rock and I love them very much.

2) My Pets

- My pets help me stay sane, they love me regardless of what I can or cannot do. Also, they're freakin' adorable.

3) My Friends

- It's pretty safe to say that my friends are awesome and they support me when things get difficult.

4) My Job

- My job gives me a reason to get out of the house, interact with people, discuss zombies, design things, and makes some money. What's not to love! 

5) My computer

- At times it seems like my entire world is on my computer, especially when it's hard for me to move or to do anything

6) This blog

- Crippie enjoys sharing parts of her life with y'all, the piggies also enjoy the "fame"

7) NPH

- Well, NPH is the greatest actor of all time, but I also mean my heat pack. It's helped my pain levels dramatically.

8) My imagination

- There are times when certain aspects of my life flat out suck, when this happens I use my imagination to take me somewhere else. I don't know what I would be like if I couldn't do that.

9) Graphic design in general

- Looking at pretty things makes me happy. 

10) Funny pictures on the internet

- Sometimes a meme or a kitteh is all that is needed to brighten my days

YAY, Crippie successfully completed the list without coming up with stupid answers!!!!

Crippie's Tippie - Making lists like this help remind you of all the awesome things in your life

It's A Sunshine Day!

Hi Y'all

I don't know about you guys, but the weather today was AWESOME by Crippie. Mother Nature might be a bitch most of the time but this 70 degree day was totally awesome. Crippie actually got a lot accomplished today!
Since the weather was so awesome we decided to the dogs to the park! We didn't realize how windy it was so it was short lived trip to the park. The dogs had a blast in their quick 10 outing, I reckon that's all that matters.
After that Crippie drove to the pet store. Seemingly not a big deal, but I haven't driven there in years. It was almost like driving to a new place, and I didn't have a panic attack... YAY ME! Mini cripple rant... while at the pet store I could help but look at the guinea pigs... PET STORE OWNERS... TAKE CARE OF YOUR PETS. The piggies had no hay, crap bedding, were not properly taken care of, and most importantly SICK. I feel so horrible for those poor babies. I wish there was something I could do for them. If any of my readers are looking to obtain guinea pigs be very wary of pet stores, try your best to rescue a pig.
Once we finished our errands Crippie had her appointment with the pain management doctor. Since the heat pack has helped my pain levels for the time being we started forming a plan for what to do when I eventually get worse. She doesn't want me to immediately jump into an anti-depressant as a treatment, but there are some transitional medications that she would put me on. Crippie's doctor also suggested injections for pain relief. The thought of needles does not appeal to Crippie AT ALL. Have any of my readers tried shots for pain? Did they work? Were they really painful?
Annnnnnndddd after that we took a drive to the location of a potential freelance client. It was a completely foreign area to me and I was not comfortable driving there. So, Crippie and her mom are going to make some practice runs over the weekend until I am okay driving there.
Whew, what a busy day. Once I got home I fell asleep for a few hours. Crippie also rested with her piggies.

Frida Being Snuggly, she was making up for peeing on me earlier -_-

Mama Pig's Tushie!

Crippie's Tippie - When dealing with a lifelong condition, having a plan for when things get worse will make your life slightly easier and less stressful when that time comes

Frida's Tippie - Depending on where you live there are lots guinea pigs in shelters that need good homes.


P.S. Ever since a tumor split one of my finger nails I've been wearing nail polish to cover it. I recently found a "nail polish of the month club" if you will. If you want to check it out, it's HERE. If you join, use the code COLOR2012 and get your first month's order for a penny! You can always cancel after your first free month ;)

Heat Pack Challenge - Day 2

Howdy Y'all!

Crippie has an announcement to make... I am in love with my heat pack. Crippie used the heat pack again last night and yet again my hip didn't hurt! I was skeptical last too... cause the weather is going through some super fun changes which generally mean a lot of pain. I still can't believe that the heat is stopping my pain. It's weird, now that I'm not in as much pain I can really see how much pain I was actually in. I'm so used to being in pain, it's feels really strange to be without... awesome... but strange nonetheless.
To be fair, it's not like Crippie is just putting a heat pack on for 20 minutes and the pain magically vanishes. Crippie is putting heat on her hip for a solid 5+ hours. Now some people might say "Whoaaaa... isn't that dangerous?" If I was placing this on bare skin it could potentially be dangerous. Crippie is not placing the heat pack directly on her skin. Crippie is well aware that this is not necessarily the safest practice in the world, but honestly I don't care. My hip doesn't hurt. The end justifies the means.
Now all I really need to do is name my heat pack. Since it's hot I reckon it should be named after some totally awesome actor. What do you guys think I should name my heat pack?

Crippie's Tippie - Heat is awesome, but be cautious when using it in excessive amounts like me

Everything Went Better Than Expected

Ohai!

It looks like Crippie's great quest for a heat pack ended rather quickly. Crippie went to Kmart and obtained a Sunbeam Extra Large Electric Moist Heat Pack. I'll admit, I had really low expectations when it came to this heat pack... some relief and maybe it won't catch on fire. I figured I'd test out the new heat pack when my hip pain is at it's worst... at night.
First off... no heat pack product suggests that you use it while sleeping. There is a chance you can burn yourself. Crippie is rebel and completely disregards those warnings! My reflexes are quick enough to remove it if something starts to hurt. Also, this heat pack has a two-hour timer so I don't really have to worry about fires, which is nice.
I used the max heat setting, which was hot but not "OMG I JUST BURNED MY FREAKING LEG" hot, just the right amount of moist heat IMO. I was able to wrap the heat pack around the heat pack around my hip and leg area, which was rather nice because I wasn't overheating in a giant heated blanket. After about 30 of heat I started to notice that my hip wasn't hurting. I didn't have a feeling that a lead balloon was expanding in my hip. Shocked by this discovery I figured I'd just try lying down in some random position with the heat still secured to my hip. Generally speaking I can lay still for maybe 5 minutes before it gets too uncomfortable and then I switch positions. I got into my random position, watched some TV and before I knew it 30 minutes had passed! I couldn't believe it, I was able to lay down in one position for a relatively lengthy period of time. I can count the number of times I've been able to do that with one hand, and all the instances involved some really strong pain meds. After that I figured I should actually try to go to sleep, so I got into a comfy position with my heat pack and stayed in that position until I fell asleep!
I still can't believe it, I had a night where my hip didn't hurt me! I was actually able to fall asleep like a normal person! When I woke up in the morning my hip felt pretty good. I didn't notice quite as many popping noises from my hip today. I'm using the heat pack right now and my hip isn't hurting!
Crippie is really freaking happy. My hip has been the bane of my existence for 5+ years. I've had to cope with the pain every night for years, all of the sudden a simple heat pack is making it go away. To go from being in constant pain to near nothing... that feeling is indescribable. The only downside now that I think about is "CRAP... I'VE BEEN NEEDLESSLY SUFFERING FOR OVER 5 YEARS... FFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUU".
I really hope I'm not jinxing myself again by posting this, but even if I did, at least I had one night of no pain. I'll definitely keep y'all updated on the miraculous heat pack cure.

BTW - If anyone is wondering specifically what kind of pain the miraculous heat pack is curing, it is helping relieve inflammation from arthritis.

Crippie's Tippie- HEAT PACKS ARE FREAKING AWESOME... OOOOMMMMGGGG

Heat Heat Baby

Yo!

Yes, I just spoofed "Ice Ice Baby" in a title and yes, I am really proud of it. Before I begin with the actual topic I just noticed that this blog has reached over 10,000 views! I really want to thank all you guys from the bottom of my heart, your support means the world to me. The piggies think that most of the views are for them, fame really got to their heads *sighs*.

We're ignoring you mommy! 

Moving on to the topic at hand, I don't know about y'all but the weather near Crippie has been crazy irregular. One day it's snowing and the next day it's 60 degrees. These rapid weather changes are not fun for Crippie. When the weather turns this craptacular it seems that only moist heat can alleviate my weather pain. The trouble is that our microwavable moist packs keep vanishing, and we can't find any good ones at the store. All the moist heat packs we've bought recently have broken in one way or another. Can any of my readers recommend a good moist heat pack?

Crippie's Tippie - If you don't need moist heat you can make a heat pack with a tube sock filled with dried rice or beans :)