22 April 2012
After putting on this seven-day slow-release pain patch, I had high hopes of a substantial improvement in the reduction of painful joints in bed at night. Sadly, this did not turn out to be the case. However, as Alice says, it might take time for these patches to work, so we will give it a week or so and then review the situation again. The early part of the night was fine and even at three o’clock it was only my knees which were irritatingly uncomfortable and perhaps a slight discomfort in my hips, which were not of any concern. But then between 04.00 and 06.00 my right shoulder started getting more and more painful, until by the time to get up, just after 6.30, the pain in my right shoulder was excruciating. I really think I must get an x-ray or scan and see what’s going on.
I apologise to my readers for beginning recent entries by discussing my sleep and pain, but as one of the main objectives of this blog .is to help other sufferers, and perhaps their carers, I think it important to follow these things through in case there are other patients out there with the same problems. I asked Doctor Chris whether such extreme pain was common with MND patients and all he could say was that it varies from one to the other but the general immobility during the day could cause some pain at night. However, from my point of view it seems to me that my pain is excessive.
I am well into my copy of Charles Dickens: The Life by Claire Tomlin, and was surprised to read that Dickens wrote to a friend complaining that he was suffering “from queer and trembling legs which prevented him from sleeping” , in other words muscles twitching as experienced by anyone suffering from MND which is affecting their legs. I shall be interested to see if there are any other MND symptoms mentioned by Dickens in the latter part of the book.
April is traditionally known to be the month of sunshine and showers but here we are almost through April and there have been very few showers but as the weather pattern seems to have been turned on its head we have one or two hailstone storms. One yesterday, was reported to me , by one of my carers, to be quite violent with large hailstones, not quite the size of golf balls but large enough within a few minutes to cover everything in sight like a heavy fall of snow.
There have been howls of protest over the recently announced tax adjustments. Explained by many as robbing the poor to benefit the rich. If you have been puzzled by these tax changes click here and see how the tax system works in buying a round of beer.