=====02.01.12=====
=====02.04.12=====
Just like last year, I was asked to film the Riot Squad backstage as they perform at the Wortham Theatre. My gosh, this team is pretty much twice the size they were last year. So much more heads to look after, ha. Those kids sure have great energy and spirit. They did a great job.
On the way back, AN and I were almost hit by a car crossing into the intersection when they were at a red light. Thankfully we evaded that, but still...
Back at the studio, the team had a pizza party and just imagine how much pizza had to be there to feed 30-40 dancing teenagers.
My back was hurting most of the night, but I held up. Must have been the positive energy I was around.
=====02.06.12-02.13.12=====
As a favor to my good friend MP, I agreed to take him to and from work for a week. So I had to get used to waking up early. Each one of those days I did have to take a nap at one point.
=====02.07.12=====
AN and BS are now alternating teaching classes on Tuesdays. For their first day of the new schedule they decided to collaborate and teach together. I went there to watch in support. It killed me to just sit there and not be able to participate, but I wanted to show my support for them.
=====02.10.12=====
Went to the doctor for my check up and mentioned my back. She prescribed a strong dose of Ibuprofen to help with it and also suggested I got x-rays done in case there was a fracture. So I went to get the x-rays done later on. The results (days later) showed that there were no fractures thankfully.
I also started wearing a back brace after getting x-rays.
Went to the Taqueria with MP to catch up with some good friends and their baby and go back to their place to catch up some more. It was great catching up. I ended up borrowing "Fatal Fury: The Motion Picture" on DVD since it had been a long time since I had seen it.
=====02.11.12=====
Late at night around 2AM, I woke up feeling really cold. I put on extra layers of clothing and another blanket, but I was still cold and started violently shaking. I went to see my parents for help as I couldn't stop shaking. They took care of me and I am always thankful for them to help me whenever I have weird ails. Hours later I went back to my room and was able to go back to sleep. No idea what it was, but it was just for that night. I did feel weak the rest of day. Probably because of all the shaking my body did.
=====02.14.12=====
Happy Swaggertine's Day!
=====02.17.12=====
DC came into town and invited some friends to go eat Korean BBQ for dinner. Before that, he and I went to the Houston Camera Exchange since he needed to get something. It was also a good way for us to just catch up with each other on a more serious/personal level compared to later when others will be asking him stuff.
Dinner was nice. I think our side of the table went through 3 or 4 plates of meat. That was a lot. We also had hilarious jokes that revolved around Captain Planet and Captain Pollution, ha. We moved to Star Snow so others could get drinks and so we could continue talking. Afterwards, everyone split. Thanks to DC for driving me.
=====02.19.12=====
ATR had invited friends to have Dim Sum for lunch for her birthday. To everyone's delight, she brought her new baby daughter along. We had to wait an hour, but when we finally got in to eat, we ate a lot.
After Dim Sum, we moved to Nu Cafe so they could have some shaved ice. I got to hold and play with the little baby girl most of the time, aww. I like playing with cute babies.
The group got smaller again and a few of us went to Fit. And then the group shrank one more time and I had an early dinner with LN.
=====02.20.12 To Present Day=====
This will be a big chunk of text. Not much happened in between these dates, but something big did happen. The day before, I had started feeling a strange tingle/numbing sensation in my left arm and neck. I thought it was due to the new medication I was taking for my back. So I stopped taking it just in case because it was a listed side effect. Unfortunately, the numbing sensation turned to a stinging sensation. These sensations also started to take over the left side of my head and was accompanied by headaches. I told my mom (a nurse) about it and she suggested that I stay off the medication for a while until the side effects wore off.
As the days went on, the pains had more of an impact to them my skin was sensitive from my left shoulder up to the left side of my head. Touching or irritating these spots would sting or cause for unbearable pain especially in the head. At times, the pains would just shoot up from out of nowhere causing me to just stop in my tracks and brace myself. Heat packs didn't work. Ice packs did, but as soon as the cold wore off, the pain came back right away with great intensity.
Some bumps had started to crop up around those areas, mostly around my ear and the back of my head, which made it very difficult to sleep. I would try to find a comfortable position (lying on my right side), but I move when I sleep so I'd roll over and be jolted awake in pain by having those bumps touch the pillow/bed. This went on for days and I'd only be able to get 1-2 hours of sleep per night if I were lucky. It puzzled me that most of the pain would come out at night. I could tolerate it during the day, but at night the pain just multiplied.
And after a few days I obviously grew overly exhausted and full of pain, none of which could be quelled. The sensitivity of pain grew so much that I could actually feel my facial hair growing...and it hurt. It hurt to shower. And as you read earlier, it hurt to sleep. I can't stress how sensitive my skin was. The times I did gain a couple hours of sleep, the pain would immediately be there when I awoke. Pain pills only worked for a couple days before having no effect at all. Same with any type of medicines to induce sleep. Nights were full of me fighting to stay awake while gritting my teeth and clutching my pillow to hold back the pain. I'd find myself pacing at times trying to figure out what to do to pass the time. In the end I would always try to watch something that I had seen a million times before, but it got to the point that the pain was too much that I couldn't concentrate on paying attention.
On the 26th, I finally called up my doctor. She wasn't in so I saw the other attending doctor. I didn't care who saw me because I had enough and it was unbearable. My dad drove me and I saw the doctor. After a quick analysis, he said that I had boils brought on by stress (which I couldn't figure if I had any new stresses in life). He recommended I go back to taking my daily heart medication, which I had not taken for months since I was better, as well as a new medication to make the boils recede. At this point, this would be the 8th different kind of medication I had taken this week including different pain medications and sleep medicines.
The new medication did make it easier to sleep thankfully. It didn't actually start taking away any pains until 3 days later. The pains were less frequent and the boils weren't as sensitive, but when there was pain the pain hurt as much as it ever did.
As of writing this (03.01), the boils have mostly receded and are almost not sensitive at all. The pain is still painful though. I'm still taking it easy until it has completely gone away. So much like I the past couple weeks, I'm just staying home. I don't want to be out on the road or some place fun and then have to cringe, curl up, and stop everything to brace the pain. No plans for going out for a while...more so. I also had not made much of a presence online by not Tweeting much or saying much on Facebook. I just felt like being off the radar while I dealt with this. No need for any extra worries as I am recovering. I need some time to regain some strength also. Ever since I injured my back, I haven't exercised. So that's about a month that I haven't exercised and I can feel it. I couldn't do much anything other than sit up, lie down, and watch things during the last couple weeks of February. So once my body is set to go, I'll start exercising again and work on this recovery.
=====WingedVoX & Royal Flush Media=====
All I ask is for support.
=====Final Thoughts=====
- I really don't know what to say. I was in so much pain during the latter end of February. I couldn't believe what I was going through and how much it hurt. The lack of sleep was just making it worse and I was breaking down.
I did express to my parents that I was just tired and frustrated of all these medical things I've been going through. Ever since I passed out on the plane back in July it has almost been one thing after another. If it wasn't my heart, it was my back. If it wasn't my back, it was boils. And then there were other smaller things that happened in between those like a nagging right shoulder, my pained wrist, an overly sore quad, etc. Dealing with all these things...having to pay for doctor visits...no medical insurance...taking many different types of medications...I just want it to stop and have a break and not worry about my body breaking down for a while.
Thanks for reading. Be healthy, be thankful, and be loved.
Take care.
