another day living life on the dee list

i have really been bothered lately that i haven't taken the time to religiously blog at least once a week....

i do find myself busy doing other things and when it comes time to sit down for the day, i don't think about blogging, but i feel like the excuse of 'being busy' has been worn dry. with that being said, i am taking the pressure off of writing lengthy posts and keeping it simple. who doesn't need more simplicity in their life?


anyway, i figured i would fill you guys in on my day because if you are reading this, hopefully you care about it! :)

the past few months have been based around trying to find a solution to my knee pain and avoid further damage, whether the solution is permanent or temporary.

step 1: temporary fix=synvisc injection, also referred to as the rooster comb injection. the purpose of this injection is to put a gel-like substance in to help 'oil' my joint to avoid bone friction and further wearing down of the joint. essentially, adding life to my knee.

being me, i spent all day on thursday leading up to my appointment, 'googling' this injection and found nothing, but horror stories about how painful to injection was to get and that followed for weeks after. this was not helpful, my Dr. came in to find me sweating and feverishly try to calculate if this is is worth it.

needless to say, i survived the injection and was given a gold star for barely flinching. even though the needle was quite long, it was fairly thin which helped it sneak under my knee cap quite easily. plus, this Dr. kind of knows his stuff, so he knew exactly where the sucker needed to go.

2 days have passed with minimal pain and stiffness, so far, i say that's a win! my Dr. is not exactly hopeful that this will last long or even fix anything at all, but hopefully at my follow-up appointment in August, i will be able to prove him wrong....

now, to put it to the test of a run....

i am very grateful for my life on the dee list, it's fun, unexpected, challenging and not similar to any other 22 year old's (but i have gained validity with my UCare seniors when they call in regarding this injection).


off to live my life, bad knee and all!

always striving for more,
dee b.

.:happiness comes when you overcome the most impossible challenges:.

have you ever heard the phrase, 'when it rains, it pours'?

i am a 'glass half-full' type of person and really like to focus on positive things in my life, but in order for us to appreciate the good things, we have to have rainy days, right???

i haven't wasted a lot of energy thinking about these events, they happened, i am changed from them, but needed to move on.....but perhaps it would be good for me to write about them.....

you know those four-legged furry friends that act as children or siblings for 10-15 years? ya, i'm talking about dogs (sorry, Henry). but seriously, dogs have a way of adapting from 'just a pet' to part of the family. well, our little (but old) Maggie, was put down a few Fridays ago. she was a miniature schnauzer that we 'adopted' many years ago, 13 to be exact. she was our childhood dog.

we have many memories with Maggie from me dressing her up as cheerleader (with scrunchies on her ears, of course), letting all 18 lbs of her take over 3/4 of our beds, taking her on W-A-L-K s (yes, we had to spell it when she was around), to catering to her sassy-ness when we did something that was not to her satisfaction. she was an awesome dog who was extremely loyal and lovable. she demanded that she greets you at the door with whines and kisses when you got home, who cares if you only went out to grab the mail?

we all spend so much time, energy and money protecting our animals and help them thrive, but over the years our forever youthful, Maggie, was even feeling the effects of age. she was having troubles getting up and down the stairs, had those awful age bumps (gross), would whine in her sleep cause she hurt and even needed a very expensive new stomach a few years back because she decided to help herself to apples that had fallen off of our trees (there goes a college payment, thanks Maggie!) on the morning of February 10th, my parents could not get Maggie to wake up and stand up on her own, her vertebrae had collapsed, it was definitely a sign that enough was enough. as anyone knows who lost a pet, last pictures were taken and tears were shed.

my mom will eventually get a new baby (she is looking into adopting), but Maggie will always be our first dog and never replaceable. she will always be a part of our family and memories.....

RIP Maggie, we are sorry if you never thought you got enough treats....

as i have mentioned before, i have bad knees. not the 'my knees get achy when it's cold outside' bad knees(which they do), but i have 'what can i do to prevent a knee replacement at 28' bad knees. i was very excited to meet with a knee specialist at TRIA Orthopaedic Center and make a plan of action to preserve the knee that i have. did you catch that i said i WAS excited? excitement was over 15 minutes into the appointment. not only had he confirmed that my knee does indeed suck (i was hoping everyone else who had already told me that was wrong), but that he wanted to do another surgery in order to make a plan of action. the purpose of this surgery was to validate whether i was a candidate (i think he said 'great candidate') for a meniscus transplant along with an osteotomy. sound fabulous and intense? cause it is. being stubborn (or in denial), i don't want to go into details about it, but let's just say it would include 4 weeks bedrest and 8-10 weeks no walking, i would handle that well, right? the news got worse. surgery or no surgery, he said that i must give up running. i couldn't even call him an idiot because this was THE knee specialist who I had waited weeks to see. my first worry was the Lululemon SeaWheeze 1/2 marathon that i have already signed up, booked airfare and hotel for. i'm already tired of talking about this appointment and my knees in general, so to wrap it up, the Lululemon 1/2 marathon will be my last running hurrah. am i upset? hell yea. am i giving up? no. i have fought Dr.'s orders and the odds against my knees for many years and it is time to be smart. i am 22 years with a bad wheel. so, after the emotions settled and i was able to step back and realize that i want to have an active lifestyle for al ong time. running or no running. i do feel very grateful that my last hurrah will be at the greatest event that i have ever signed up for.

to date, it has been 5 weeks since i have ran (ok, i ran twice for 15 minutes each time), but i introduced myself to elliptical and stair master. we all agreed this 'love' triangle could get messy and complicated, but we are all in it for the long haul.

i am in the process of learning that there are a lot of other ways to get a good workout that doesn't include running (suggestions are appreciated). plus, i am able to dive more into my yoga practice, win-win! (kinda of....)

anyway, i am still smiling and realizing with the right mindset and the right people by my side, there are a lot more things to be grateful for than to feel misforunate about.

with the glass half full,

always striving for more,

dee b.