Because I’ve noticed that my post on augmentation has been read recently I thought I should follow up. Since stopping both the elavil and requip I no longer have symptoms of restless legs with few exceptions. It wasn’t easy and it took a good three months of misery to detox but I’m very thankful that I persisted and hope this gives someone encouragement though I don’t suggest anyone try to do it without good support and medical advise.
Life has been busy
Richard has been diagnosed with atrial fibrillation. He got zapped and that stopped it for awhile, but it’s a wait and see kind of issue, unhappily he didn’t leave the hospital without a infection from his IV site, so he has that to deal with too.
We are old, stuff happens, we just take care of each other the best we can every day. I’ve got some gardens started and that makes me get out to dig in the soil and water my seedlings, and that is good for my anxiety and my body, even though it complains.
I’m learning to cook a little, seems Richard likes most anything but I’m not used to meal planning, I’m taking a basic online class about steaming, roasting vegetables as we are trying to stick to a plant based diet with a few exceptions, eggs and fish. I’ve made a few messes, we eat them anyway !
I tried to add a few photos here but my iPad got stuck so maybe they’ll be here or maybe not
Sneezed, I don’t mind sneezes, if they don’t mean I ‘m getting a cold or have a cold, they help clear your sinuses, three in a row is not excessive but it reminds me of something I read a while back, I may be misremembering, but back in Victorian times the ladies used to sniff pepper to make themselves sneeze. It was considered a mini orgasm, where you lose control, who controls a sneeze? You just can’t control a sneeze, you barely have time to grab a tissue or bury it in your elbow. Poor ladies!
Anyway
I guess I put my bra on inside out the other day. My boobs kept falling out, not entirely unpleasant but realized something was amiss and checked it out the second day wearing the damn item more carefully and everything stayed in. I hate wearing a bra but when my circumstances changed and I felt I had to conform I went out shopping with my sister for bras at Macy’s in the mall.
Immediately encountered problems, right chest size, right cup size, lovely expensive bras but I failed to fill the cup! That’s what happens to 80 year old boobs, unless you have prepared with inflationary measures. the bra cup nearly turned itself inside out, not an attractive look. I bought a few bras, anyone that can fill them is welcome to them. I moved on to JC Penny with no greater success, but bought a couple, on to Target bought a couple that I thought would work and are more comfortable until it rides up under my arms leaving my poor boobies hanging under or even more interestingly above the bra.
Gravity!
Finally Walmart tees under a shirt! I have gathered quite a collection of uncomfortable bras, I’ll wear one now and again when it’s cold a droopy nipple is not attractive but I found it didn’t matter what I wore under my shirt when I wore a smile on my face.
Usually
It’s 5 am and I haven’t been to sleep. I have sleep anxiety, nothing but going to bed when I’m sleepy seems to help, if I don’t go to bed while sleepy, say 9-10 pm, I wake up too much and spend the night watering the plants and moving furniture. You’d think there is a simple fix, go to bed when sleepy but I love to sleep with my night owl, one who takes naps, but I can’t nap, it doesn’t happen for me. We need to get up soon, it’s already 6am, I’m not ready to greet the day but day is almost here.
I have enjoyed the Texas wild flowers, we have blue bonnets and a lovely white blooming weed called stinging nettles on the property. We also have stickers that really really hurt trying to get them off your shoes and clothes, tip….use a comb.
Charlie has proven unreliable as a house dog. Being a male dog he tends to view all things vertical as an appropriate place to lift his leg, on furniture, vases, columns, (yes we have columns) couches, chairs, tv’s and even the piano!
But our life style has changed, now we life in a beautiful home with many beautiful vertical objects, plus marble, granite and carpet flooring all of which look better without a yellow stain.
Charley is not the only abuser, Susu, a Pomeranian pooch does her share, but in smaller quantities, plus she is the Reina, she has lived here longer and is in tight with Richard, plus she doesn’t lift her leg!
Charley was a great RV pal, living outdoors, he was free to pee pretty much anywhere and not get into too much trouble, he never had an accident inside even when I was gone for hours. He was a great guard dog, kept us safe but now we have gates and alarms, though he can still be our first alert together with Susu, nothing gets close by without their atención
Alas, Charley will need to abide with new house rules.
His new house, looks like an igloo, very nice and he’ll have a long run and an inside crate to stay in when indoors. His new house should get here tomorrow so we’ll get him all set up outside cozy and comfy. I’ll add photos later. He can sleep upstairs in his crate, He doesn’t mind it upstairs but needs treats to be coaxed into his downstairs abode.
I feel a little sad, even shed tears but I refuse to scrub pee from the carpets one more time, and clean anywhere else he chooses to lift his leg, we need to adjust to life changes, especially when the changes are so unexpected and wonderful.
He’ll still be able to chase the deer in the early morning at least for a while before put on a leash again.
Photos to follow!
This got lost somewhere so I’m republishing and will send photos later, Charlie still sleeps upstairs!
Not everything has been so wonderful for me for the past 6 weeks, thank goodness I have a understanding and caring partner because the crazy lady has made appearances with regularity.
There is a drug on the market and still used as primary treatment for restless legs, that actually causes an increase in symptoms the longer you take it. I took it for about four years until I realized I was getting worse, I’d not sleep for whole nights because I couldn’t sit/ lay down or be still.
This terrible drug, still being used as first line therapy is Requip and should be banned! Responsible knowledgeable MD’s no longer use it, yet many doctors are not informed.
I started tapering off the drug in late September without understanding how hard it would be and didn’t immediately realize what was happening to me. Many nights of absolutely no sleep lasting for days. Chills, cold sweats, hallucinations, bowel upsets, runny nose since October when I finally realized what was happening and saw a doc, who had no clue what was going on.
He gave me an antidepressant, I still didn’t sleep he gave me a sleeping pill, I still didn’t sleep. I took some left over Xanax we found and slept for 3 hours. The first in many days, I’ve felt like a crazy lady, as you can imagine.
Since I’ve taken small doses of Xanax and was getting better, ready to quit the Xanax completely,when it started all over again. Cold sweats, sleepless, upset gut spit and spatter.
So what’s the answer! I’ll get a sleep study done for one thing and hope that medical Specially will have a better understanding of the condition and not be afraid to order a fast acting opiate which is appropriate therapy for my three sleep deprivation conditions, IC, RLS and insomnia. It’s safe and effective in people like me who do not have an addictive personality.
I’m writing this depressive note of warning to others with RLS, talk to your doc about detoxification it probably doesn’t have to be so hard if you find a doc familiar with the drug..
February update!
Finally detoxed from both amitriptyline and requip I have not had one single RLS episode except for once when my IC was flaring and I took 50 mg of amitriptyline which immediately gave me 8 hours walking with restless legs. That tells me that it was contributing to RLS and I have not taken either medications again. Happy days!
I was happy in Caballo New Mexico in GG with my studio, my garden and park pals for 4 years. Life was good. But it was time to turn the page, look for something new, maybe even find love. So I did as so many lonely people do, I tried online dating and found Richard in Texas.
He thought that artsy woman in Caballo seemed interesting, and there you go!
Who is Richard Currie?
Besides being a kind and loving man, he is a life-long entrepreneur, business man, family man,man of science and composer of great music. My Renaissance man.Our goal is to stay healthy, live long and take loving care of each other without change in our legal status because who cares!
So GG has a new place to park,Charlie gets to chase the deer,and never wear a leash and I have plenty of space to spread paint and a somewhat larger kitchen!
Home sweet home
We hope you have a Wonderful New Year full of Love, Peace,Hope and Kindness
I’ve been very busy in my new life in Adkins Texas.
A quick recap of the last 6 months
Awhile back I decided to do something about my single status and joined a dating site for silver singles, I met a very nice guy, you remember Colorado man, it didn’t work out for us fortunately, because after that discouraging episode I got back on another site and met Richard in June. We wrote and talked on the phone until SEPTEMBER WHEN I DECIDED TO BITE THE BULLET, and move to Texas while keeping GG close by just in case I needed to skidaddle. No skidaddling happening here. I now live in a lovely home a bit larger than GG, she could easily fit into my dining room! This is a photo of a bit of my living room.
I’ve had fun rearranging everything, rearranging Richards life, his furniture, his Knick knacks, and trying to make it feel like home for us….adding lots of plants has helped me feel less homesick for my friends in Caballo.
Charley fits right in, hasn’t worn a leash since we got here. But the best part of the move is not the large beautiful home, the best part is definitely the man. Generous, gracious, kind, loving, all describe my Richard. I am very fortunate and do my best to deserve my good luck and am happy to say that he feels the good luck is his.
That’s what I was told on September 7. I should has said, come get me. But I was shocked and scared, which was just what he wanted, he said I could could get a lawyer or he could help me. It was a dramatic and devious plan he had for me, and I was distracted by everything else going on, the move, the sales and THE move. I was to tell no one or it could impact my case of money laundering and fraud.
Can you imagine? So how did all this come about? Let me tell you and warn you because I’ve found out that this is not unusual and happens to us older citizens very often and if caught up in their lies there is little hope of recovery.
It all started with an email notifying me of a charge on my Bank of America charge card of $900 . Did I make this charge and if not call this number. I had not so I made the call, first mistake, I should have called Bank of America to clarify.. the call was answered by a man possibly Indian sounding who asked if I knew this person who’d made the charge or knew a email address, I did not. He informed me that I’d either been a victim of ID theft or was complicit in money laundering and my social security number was used to open boa bank accounts in TX, CAL and NM.
Then a Mr Wilson from the”social security “ got on the phone to tell me my account was red flagged and I would shortly be arrested that the Truth or Consequences police department had an order to arrest me, but that he had put a hold on it during his investigation. I could get a lawyer and go to court or the ADR could help me resolve and investigate the case. I was told various times to not tell anyone as that could involve them or look like I was hiding information.
Of course I was in tears.
I was to account for every dollar I had, first by removing it from my bank account which I gave them all the information they needed, innocent that I was! I was to go to my bank and remove all my money, but my bank is not located close by nor is a branch atm, so I went to Walmart and was only able to remove $800, thank god! He stayed on the phone with me from home to Walmart and then sent me to a place where there was a BIT COIN MACHINE WHERE I RECEIVED A BAR CODE ON MY PHONE. AND I PUT MY MONEY IN IT.
I was told the money would be put in my new account with my new social security number. But I needed to withdrawal the rest of my money! I had also told him I planned to travel and was selling my car. He wanted those funds as well. I went home to think. I decided to use the rest of my money to pay some bills instead of withdrawing it. When I told him what I’d done I didn’t hear from him again until the next day when he called to see if I’d sold my car! I had not because I didn’t have the title. Then I told him I knew he was a con artist and that I’d reported him to the FBI and anywhere else I could. He assured me I was wrong, that it was all in my head and that I would be arrested, finally I said, bring it on,
And that’s my sad tale. Embarrassed to admit I was so taken, in but if someone reads this and questions the next too good to be true, or anything similar to my story and reports it to authorities it will be worth the embarrassment. There seems to be no recourse for me, I reported it to the local police without a response. My banking will be more complicated for a while, my credit cards will question each purchase I make., I will have to check my accounts frequently, a real change for neglectful me.
My daughter tells me I’m too trusting, I chose to believe that no one chooses to cause me harm, my eyes have been opened. There are some real assholes out there, watch out!
The studio is sold, I’ll believe it when it rolls away but a young couple is getting the money together as I write this now, they expect to take it not far from here and live in it! I put it on Facebook and have had about ten calls for it, I didn’t expect it, it’s really a good deal for them and a relief for me.
Sold my car too! I need to wait for the title to arrive and fix a small brake issue this week, do my errands then call the buyer to come to pick it up.
Monday I have an appointment to get GG ready for travel, pick up my art at the gallery and off we go to Adkins Texas, 10 hours driving to finally meet my man Richard.
No worries, he has been vetted by friends and family and especially me and comes out true, honest and thoroughly lovable. I’ll have a good space to work on my brushstrokes and won’t miss my studio at all.
We’ll drive up to meet my family in Dallas area, I’ll fly to the wedding in South Carolina ,and return to Dallas and finally home to Adkins with either my sis or son to meet my new Home Sweet Home. We are so excited about these new possibilities!
Getting rid of my stuff has been a joy, I’ve never felt so light and free of the weight of Stuff. Giving it all away brings a smile to the face of both the receiver and me, hoping I’ll be remembered as a generous friend not easily forgotten…plus I wrote cards with my new address on them!
JP has been a great help to me during these days, surprised? All good, forgiven and forgotten, he filled up his dumpster with my junk saving me a dozen trips to town with trash. And shared a few glasses of wine and conversation. I’ve made friends and met some fine people while living here and hope we keep in touch, of course I’ve invited them all to visit!
TailGateArt- Tears and Laughter-Othon.com 