Frustrated

Yes, I am frustrated. Whenever I can’t find the answer to a question quickly, I tend to feel frustrated.

My question is: why are my shoulder and arm still hurting?

The pain started a few months ago in the upper, outside part of my arm. Then it spread to my shoulder. Sometimes I had tingling and a slightly numb sensation in my hand.

My orthopedic doctor thought I had a pinched nerve in my neck. I had five weeks of physical therapy. At one point, the pain got better. But it never went away. And I started having more intense bouts of pain.

My doctor ordered an MRI of my neck and referred me to a colleague of his, a spine doctor.

I saw her on Monday, and she said the MRI showed degenerative changes in my neck, but no nerve impingement.

So, where is the pain coming from?

She doesn’t know. She said the neck and shoulder have a lot of overlapping areas. She scheduled me for an electromyography, or EMG. It will test the health of my muscles and nerve cells in the problem areas.

The test can’t be done until the first week of January.

Accepting uncertainty is not my strong suit. So I’m frustrated. I am challenged to accept that I can’t always know something for sure, that sometimes I must just live with uncertainty.

I’m dealing with the pain. It’s worse at night, so I am keeping up with my regular activities during the day. I’m thankful for that. I’m taking a prescription NSAID, and that helps. Most nights, I put heat on my shoulder while I try to relax.

I have done Internet searches, trying to figure out “what’s wrong with me.” Compulsive searches for information is one way my OCD manifests itself. But I am aware of what I’m doing and try to pull myself back from Google.

I have to go with the flow of the medical field right now. I have to accept that the doctors don’t know what’s causing the pain. The answers will eventually come, I hope.

And I choose to continue to try to find the fun and peaceful and beautiful moments of each day.

Here’s one: The other day, I walked by a car parked in Rustburg. On the front of the car was a red spongy-looking ball.

I wonder what that is, I thought.

Then I saw the reindeer antlers.

Car as Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer!

How do you deal with uncertainty?

Challenges with new technology

Hello, dear readers! I hope you are doing well. I have missed you while I’ve been on something of a sabbatical, at least a computer sabbatical.

As I told you last Monday, Larry and I got new computers, pushed into action because of the end of support for Windows XP.

  My new laptop arrived on Wednesday, and I’ve been navigating around Windows 8.1, not always with a smile upon my face.

 I like learning new things. New computers have never frightened me. I’ve managed to learn a lot of new programs over the years.

  My journey started in 1985 when one of my professors during my first semester of graduate studies in English mandated that we learn a word processing program.
  There was a Mac lab in the library, so I decided to learn on the Mac. I sat down with a book and the computer in front of me and taught myself. I’ve been mostly teaching myself ever since on whatever system I found I had to work with.
 
  I’m learning Windows 8.1, but I’m not finding it particularly intuitive learning. I’m having to search and search for things, including programs I just downloaded.

 I’ve also found that some of my computer accessories are woefully out of date. My camera software downloaded just fine. But for my printer and even my wireless mouse, I had to download updated software from the Internet.

  My Canon scanner is so old, there isn’t any software to download anymore. My go-to program to process my photos is attached to that scanner. So when I need to scan something, or if I want to use that photo processing program, I have to use my old PC.

All my photos are stored on the old PC, too. I will transfer some of them, but for now, I’m keeping most photos on the old PC, which is set up on my desk for easy reach.

 Larry’s new computer won’t be delivered until April 22. So when he needs to get online, he has been using mine.

  I have to admit I’ll be glad when his laptop arrives.
  Larry and I are totally different on the computer. He likes to understand every facet of things and the whys and hows. He likes finding shortcuts and different ways of doing things. He ends up knowing a computer inside and out.
  Me? I just want to get my jobs done.
  We have agreed that it’s not a good idea for one of us to be on the computer with the other one sitting close by watching.
 
  Of course, these problems and frustrations I’ve had are minor. I am thankful that I have a computer to have problems with. I’m thankful for good Internet connection. I’m thankful for the help Larry has given me when I’ve gotten stuck.
  And I’m thankful for you, dear readers, for sticking with me while I got settled with my new technology.

I’ll be back Wednesday. I have things to share, including how the garden is doing and my experiments with food choices.

 Do you like learning new technology?