Author: Mary Mann

Morning time/Evening time with RA

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I have figured out how to reduce the morning stiffness and pain of my RA. I do two things. First, I take pain medication. I wake up in the early morning to use the restroom. At that time, I take a dose of my pain medication. Before I go to bed, I put a dose in a little bowl on my night table. It is easy to access and I will know whether or not I had taken it.  Then I go back to sleep for about an hour or so. It relieves me of the pain that saturates my body in the morning. I no longer feel discouraged. I am ready for my day. The second thing I do is read the paper while I have my freshly brewed Starbucks French Roast. I have time to center myself as I work out the nighttime kinks.  I read the New York Times on my Kindle. I have a cover for my Kindle that also acts a stand for it (something like a picture frame easel). …

the joy of roses

RA flares without the biologics

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I am living through my days without methotrexate. I am not on any of the biologics. Hydroxychloroquine is no help and has been set aside. At first, I felt left alone in the world without armor.  Would a flare become so severe that I would spiral down and down into total pain and immobility as I had in 2013? That was my fear. For years, a low level of pain humming in the background has kept me company. I have a degenerating spine. There are long fancy words for what has attacked my spine. Plainly said, I have a bad back. I could say I inherited it  from my dad. I am accustomed to pain. Now I have RA. Over the years I have learned to ignore the humming pain. However, there is a tipping point after the start of a flare where something needs to be done. As a flare starts  pain grows louder in the small joints in my feet. The rest of my feet ache. My left ankle develops sharp pain making …

Lockdown Update

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We are still locked down. We go to Costco and to Smiths. We travel out with our masks and our hand sanitizers. Those we meet are friendly and have smiling eyes behind their masks. If a person depended on reading lips to understand another, they are currently out of luck. Who would have guessed? Certainly not last September. Life changes so quickly. My garden is winding down. The squirrels are fat and happy after eating my tomatoes. The roadrunner couple I saw having sex in my back yard now have healthy teenagers who are as aggressive about eating birds as their parents. Our quail population is booming. They love quail blocks and nest along side the squirrels on a little used side of my property. I make bread every couple of days. I have many recipes for rye bread, but rye flour is now unattainable. Not enough planted by the farmers for the current demand. I also make a lot of oatmeal bread. Lucky for me. I make my own buns for bratwurst. I also …