In-Cognito....

I've been in the Federal Witness Protection Program...and that is my excuse for not blogging for the last 3 weeks!!!   

I've been taking pictures and "planning" in my brain to write blog posts, but I'm either too busy with "life" or I'm resting trying to recuperate from "life".  With our recent vacation to Georgia (that will be a post coming up soon, I hope) and working two part-time jobs, I haven't had much time to quilt, so the little amount of "down-time" that I've had lately has been spent in my quilting room bonding with the quilts I am currently working on (a subject for another blog post soon, I hope).

But for now, let me tell you about a recent event that I was fortunate enough to attend...and not just as a visitor but as an employee!

Enliven Chiropractic, the chiropractic office that I work at, moved into a bigger office/work space this past summer and then recently celebrated their 2-year Anniversary!  To celebrate both of these accomplishments with our patients and community, we held an Open House this past Friday.  

Yvette...the Office Manager

Dr. Leonette and myself...

this is THE DOC that has given me back my life!!!

(Geeze, I didn't realize he was so much taller than me till I saw this picture!  Ya know...I don't realize how short I am till I see pics of myself with somebody else!  Crazy...I know...)

left to right:  Linda (Doc's mom), Faye (longtime family friend of the Leonettes), Yvette, Rebecca (a psychologist that uses a room in our office suite), and myself

We had a good turnout and it was a lot of fun!  For a shy person like myself, it was a stretching exercise to chat with people I didn't know, but I was able to step out of my comfort zone a little and do some tours of the facility.  We were also giving free demonstrations of our Mind Spa, and I set people up with that (which is something I do there, anyway), otherwise, I busied myself with setting up and keeping the food and drink table stocked.

I am blessed to work with such a great group of people! 

Loretta 

Happy Anniversary to ME!!

Quote for the Day:

"It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver."

~Mahatma Gandhi

One year ago today, I sat in my primary care physician's office and heard these words, "We need to think about putting you on disability.  Not today, but soon."

I was at the crossroads.  My pain medicine doctor could only offer me radio frequency ablation of the nerves to help with my day-in, day-out back pain.

The physician uses x-ray guidance (fluoroscopy) to direct a special (radiofrequency) needle alongside the medial or lateral branch nerves.

• A small amount of electrical current is often carefully passed through the needle to assure it is next to the target nerve and a safe distance from other nerves. This current should briefly recreate the usual pain and cause a muscle twitch in the neck or back.


• The targeted nerves will then be numbed to minimize pain while the lesion is being created.
• The radiofrequency waves are introduced to heat the tip of the needle and a heat lesion is created on the nerve to disrupt the nerve's ability to send pain signals.
• This process will be repeated for additional nerves.

Burn my nerve to stop pain impulses???  Ummm...no...thank you very much. 

My neurosurgeon said I wasn't "bad enough" to qualify for surgery because "we don't do surgery for pain, we do surgery for function"...and I hadn't lost "function"...yet.  "But call me when you can no longer use your hands or fingers, or when you start falling, or lose bowel or bladder control."  

Ummm...gee, thanks for that encouragement, but that doesn't sound like fun at all!

By this time I was in my second go-around of physical therapy, but it didn't seem to be helping at all with the pain.  

I was barely able to keep up with the part-time work load of my Recovery Room job that was 2-12 hour shifts/week.  I was definitely at a crossroads and didn't know what else to do or try for what was, by that point, a three year stint of back pain.

As I sat in my primary care doctor's office, I told her that I wanted to try one more thing before we gave up.  I had an appointment with a new chiropractor that afternoon.  She told me to try it and see if it helped.

Later that afternoon, I sat in Dr. Leonette's office at Enliven Chiropractic while he looked over my MRI and x-ray results that I had brought in with me.  He looked me in the eye and told me, "I can help you".  And that, folks, was like throwing a drowning person a life preserver.  He had such conviction in his voice that I couldn't help but believe him.

He proceeded to do the initial exam, x-rays, etc.,  When he was done he said he would look over the x-rays and I was to come back the next day for my first adjustment.   

Here it is, a year later, and not only am I NOT on disability, but I am actually working TWO part-time jobs...my Recovery Room 2 -12 hour shifts/week, AND 8-12 hours a week for Dr. Leonette!!

Cured???  No.  But my life...and health... have been given back to me, and for that I will always be grateful!!  I am once again able to do activities of daily living that most people take for granted...but I never will again!!!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY TO ME!!!

Loretta

Starting Off Healthy...

We are currently in Tennessee spending time with Erin's family and our newest grandson, Clark!  He is sooooo precious!  :)

Today was Erin's first post-partum chiropractic adjustment, so I went along to meet her doctor, Dr. Nicole Zyla-Herrera in Franklin, TN.  Last fall Erin asked me to ask my own chiropractor if he knew of any good Atlas Orthogonal chiropractors in her area.  He recommended this particular doctor and Erin started going to her.

Her office has an open adjustment area so I was able to watch the doctor do an adjustment on one of her patients and I was very impressed with her thoroughness.

After Erin had her own adjustment the doctor adjusted Clark....

Birth is a very rigorous activity and if you think of what the baby's body has to go through to get out of the birth canal, you realize how important it is to get a newborn adjusted!  

Clark had been fussy and crying the during the 40 minute car ride to the chiropractor's office, but as soon as she started adjusting him he became quiet.  Then the doctor put a couple of dabs of lavender essential oil on the padding on his car seat straps and he proceeded to go to sleep and slept all the way home and even during a stop at Joann Fabrics!   :D

We are enjoying holding and spoiling the newest member of the family!

Loretta

I Am Very Blessed...

To day I am feeling VERY, VERY blessed!  

This week I have gone through my first two days at my new job with Enliven Chiropractic in Bridgeport, WV, and have come out the other side still alive and kicking!  :)   

The first day and a half, I was beginning to feel like a fish that had been washed up on the shore, gasping for air...hoping someone would throw me back into the waters in which I am "comfortable".  I  kept repeating to myself that "it's good to get out of your comfort zone...you've settled for your comfort zone way too long."  

Then, on the afternoon of the second day, some things started to "click" for me as there were some cases where I was able to integrate my nursing knowledge and skills over into the work I was doing.  At the end of the day, I felt stronger and less stressed because I actually felt like I was "helping" instead of being in the way.  I came home exhausted, but a healthy exhaustion.  The act of starting a new job out of my comfort zone has caused me a lot of mental stress this week, but I'm glad I took this career step and believe that I am really, really going to like this job with Dr. Leonette and his very kind, helpful, and EXTREMELY PATIENT staff.  

Did I mention they were PATIENT???? 

By the end of tomorrow (Saturday), I will have worked 36 hours at my hospital job and 15-16 hours at the chiropractors office this week!  NOT TOO SHABBY for someone who a mere 7 months ago was being told she needed to think about going onto disability soon!!!  

So, yes...I am feeling VERY BLESSED and GRATEFUL to have my HEALTH and be able to WORK! 

Loretta

Career Changes Coming Up...

This past week brought a part-time job offer my way that I was pleased to get and I readily accepted!

My chiropractor, Dr. Leonette at Enliven Chiropractic, has asked me to join his practice as his "medical liaison".   How cool is that???  A few months ago, I was on the brink of disability, but thanks to Dr. Leonette's excellent care/treatments, I am now going to be working TWO part-time jobs....my 2 - 12 hours shifts per week at the hospital, and 8-10 hours per week in his office!!  

I'm not going to go into all the details of this new position, but basically I will be bringing my 31 years of nursing experience and knowledge to his office and helping him integrate the chiropractic with the traditional medical care the patient may be receiving.

I am excited beyond belief to be taking this step with my nursing career even though it is WAY outside of my "comfort zone".   

I have Dr. L. to thank for the fact that I am even able to continue working my hospital job, much less have the health and strength to take on this new position.  I believe in chiropractic and I believe in him.  I guess you could say that after he was able to do so much for decreasing my pain and improving my quality of life, I "drank the Kool-Aid" and am now one of his most fervent ambassadors.  Since the beginning, I've carried his business cards in my purse and recommend him to anyone that confides to me that they suffer from pain.

I start my training this week!!!!!!  I hope that I am as smart as he thinks I am!  ;)  I also hope that I can be of assistance to him as his practice continues to grow by leaps and bounds!  I'm truly excited to be involved in this adventure and we'll see where it leads!


On the quilting front, I wasn't completely pleased with a couple of areas on the baby quilt I made for my grandson that is due in June, so I added some extra quilting to a few places.  I'm much happier with it now, especially after I washed and dried it.  

I also made the label yesterday after several false starts...I kept making mistakes and have you ever tried to rip out machine embroidery???  It was just easier to just start over.  Finally, on my third attempt I got through most of it till the last line that contains the date...AND...I ran out of the color of thread I was using...

Look at that thread spool...not enough left to do the date.  **very sad face here**  

I was so frustrated that I finally just grabbed another shade of the green from my thread stash and finished it off...

Hopefully the little baby...or his parents...won't mind that the date is in a different color!  I had to cover up the name in both pictures because my daughter and son-in-law are not announcing the name till the baby is born.

Now I need to get the quilt wrapped up and packaged up with all the other baby gifts and get them in the mail.  The baby shower is scheduled for May 17 and unfortunately I will not be able to attend.  **more sad faces here**  Once the quilt and gifts have been received and opened at the shower, I will post pictures!!

Loretta

Here It Is!!!!

Quote for the Day:

"To keep the body in good health is a duty... otherwise we shall not

 be able to keep our mind strong and clear."

~Buddha

Many of you know that I have just spent the last three years living with debilitating chronic pain due to arthritis, herniated discs, and spinal stenosis.  

In October of 2013 I found a new chiropractor who has CHANGED MY LIFE!!!  

He asked me to do a taped testimonial, which we worked on last week and this week.  Jason, the cinematographer, did an EXCELLENT job and it was a pure joy to work with him!

So now, without further ado, here is the finished product...





Loretta

Bright Lights, Big (???) City...

Quote for the Day:

"In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes"

~Andy Warhol

Today my dining room was turned into an interview set and day one of filming is now in the bag!!!

My chiropractor hired a professional cinematographer to make a videotaped "testimonial" of the amazing changes in my life since I started getting treatment.

Dr. Leonette first asked me around Christmastime if I would do this.  I readily agreed but no definitive date was set.  The subject came up last week and suddenly we decided to get it done this week.  I've been fretting over this ever since I found out we were doing it this week.  

Today was the interview portion as well as some "B-roll" footage.  The interview portion was obviously the hardest part and I'm glad that portion is over.  I'm not comfortable having my voice recorded and, for obvious reasons, it is hard to talk about this very difficult time in my life.  Tomorrow we are filming some more "B-roll" footage and then Jason will edit it into something that is, hopefully, worth watching!

In other words, I'm hoping Jason can turn this "sow's ear into a silk purse"!  :)

Loretta

What's Going On In My World...

Quote for the Day:

"There aren't enough days in the weekend."  

~Rod Schmidt

What do you do with a slightly-too-ripe banana?

Add a serving of Greek yogurt and a cup of frozen berries...in this case, frozen blackberries from my backyard bushes this summer...and blend well...

MMMMMMMMMM!!  Better than any purchased smoothie!  Ever!

I've been working on my customer's sailboat quilt and this is a glimpse at some of the stitching close-up!

Last week, I started a new type of chiropractic treatment for my back.  It's called Atlas Orthogonal Treatment.  I've been in chiropractic care for 26 years now and I'm certain that it is the only thing that has kept me upright and working all these years.  It's also the only thing that has ever relieved the daily headaches I had before starting treatment.  

But with the severe arthritis in my back now, I can no longer take the hand's-on adjustments and the crunching and popping movements of traditional chiropractic.  A friend told me about the new technique and her doctor that does it.  I started going last week and am more hopeful about my future than I have ever been in the last 3 years.  If you live in the area, I highly recommend Dr. Lionette and his team at Enliven Chiropractic!  They treat with a holistic method that treats the PATIENT and not just the "condition".  

To help with my treatments, I've taken to drinking LOTS of water, watching my sugar intake, and have lightened up my purse from 10+ bag of "everything but the kitchen sink" to a little 2.5 pound
"only the basics" clutch-type bag.  

I put our phone in front of it for size-comparison purposes.  My old purse could have been used as a lethal weapon, but this new one...not so much.  :)

I have also purchased an exercise ball chair to use at my computer.  This helps strengthen the core muscles.

What I've really noticed with the new chiropractic care is the difference it makes in my right knee pain and stiffness.  Up till the day I started treatment with Dr. Leonette, I was using a cane to assist me in going up and down the stairs in my house.  Since my first adjustment with him, I no longer need it!  

With regards to my back and leg radiculitis, I'm not "pain free", but I do have long periods of time with no pain...sometimes up to 48 hours in one stretch, but most of the time it is in 4-6 hour periods.  

Now you can see why I'm feeling more hopeful now than at I have in a long time! 

Loretta