On Again, Off Again

And by that, I mean my workout routine.  I did well last week, but this week I haven't been to water aerobics once!  As I mentioned previously, the red truck is out of commission.  We're pretty sure we know the problem now, so hopefully it will get fixed this weekend, but until then, Bryan is still taking my car to work.  I don't mind this whatsoever, but it has kept me from getting to the morning water aerobic classes.  I must admit, Monday I just didn't feel like going and yesterday our errand-running took more time than I had anticipated.  That said, I did work in the garden for two hours on Tuesday, so this week hasn't been an entire loss exercise-wise.

I have not been counting calories.  As I anticipated, I was able to do so consistently for about a week.  Then I fell--more like jumped--off that particular bandwagon.  That said, I have relearned portion control and my brain and my stomach are once again in agreement about controlling caloric intake.  I'll weigh in tomorrow and see how I'm doing on that front.  I hope I've at least stayed the same, but I'm worried that the lack of exercise this week (plus the piece and a half of cake I've had) might result in an unwelcome outcome.  We'll see!

Oh well, at least I haven't been missing classes because of a flare!  In fact, other than my ankle and wrist persisting in being stiff and slightly sore and puffy, I'm doing well.  At my last infusion appointment, Dr. C decided to keep my Remicade at the same level.  He's still not happy with my wrist, however.  He did want me to come back in if it had not improved within a week or so and get a corticosteroid injection--but I've been there, done that, and the effects never last more than a few days.  So, even if I had use of my car this week, I don't really want to drive an hour there and an hour back for an injection that wouldn't effect a lasting improvement.

We (Dr. C and I) are hoping that the current level of Remicade in combination with my other drugs AND (most of all) the removal of the school year stress will result in improvement in my wrist, elbow and ankle.  I still need to schedule a surgery consult on my elbow.  I'll get around to it eventually :-).


I must say that, school-related stress aside, being a stay-at-home wife this summer has been wonderful.  I have been able to break chores and gardening into manageable chunks, which lets me keep the house clean and the gardens neat without working for several hours straight, at the end of which I'd end up with stiff and swollen joints.  I also have the time to plan out some household projects, which I shall be posting about as they come around.  It's such a wonderful combination of productivity and rest that allows me to feel as if I am being effective while being able to avoid both flares and serious fatigue!    So once again, HOORAY for summer!