Another Win

I need to give the office manager of Dr Greg Paulson a shout out! Since Friday, I’ve had a red eye, and I was paranoid. Just last week the rheumy had asked if I had any eye issues and I hadn’t…Till Friday afternoon!

Google told me that “left untreated,” uveitis could leave me blind. Except, what if it wasn’t uveitis? So I waited. I knew uveitis would feel awful quickly, but I also have a high pain threshold, so I wasn’t sure if I was just tolerating the extreme pain better.

Sunday, I tried to find emergency opthalmologists on our med aid network but there aren’t any. I debated going to Trauma, but when I’ve taken my twins for eye issues, they’ve just used a normal torch and I knew you need to test pressure too. So I didn’t go.

This morning, I started looking for available opthalmologist. Wouldn’t you know it, like too many specialists, the ones I got through to were only available in June. I’d be blind by THEN! And this is where Dr G Paulson’s right hand lady comes in. She phoned me back with MANY other options and told me to go to Trauma at our closest hospital and who her opthalmologist that’s there, would check on me. She gave me alternate numbers… She was amazing!

One of her suggestions was a Dr Mouton. I was told that he was fully booked, but that she would take my details down. “You have anky what?” Needless to say, when the opthalmologist heard, he wanted to see me asap.

And so I went!

He is a breath of fresh air too! So personable and kind. I told him how guilty I felt taking up time without an appointment. He reassured me that it was urgent and that it wouldn’t take too long. Thankfully, two patients decided not to pitch so we both rejoiced! Now I didn’t need to feel bad for making some poor people wait and wait and wonder why they were waiting so long!

Scleritis. Similar to uveitis in terms of possible blindness but not as extreme with regards to pain and where the inflammation occurs. And like uveitis many of us autoimmune disease people get it. I must continue with my anti inflammatory tablets from the rheumy, and do seven days of steroid eye drops. And take it from there! We had a discussion-started by him-on wonderful African kings and leaders. And he had quite a few patients of colour. He is a gem. I highly recommend him.

And from now on if I have a long wait, though I will definitely be in pain, and would appreciate it if they phoned to alert us about being behind like my children’s paediatrician does, I’ll tell myself the delay is because some very desperate soul had an emergency and had to be fitted in.

My eyes (and bath) are sore, tired and I have a headache. My typos will therefore be even more evident in this post as I won’t be editing it.

I’m scared. I have a swollen wrist and arm about 6cm higher up my wrist. My neck hurt when I reached up to being washing down, gave an audible crack. It’s not turning properly when I’m reversing out the garage. It’s as if my AS is speeding up and spreading more. I don’t like it. Though I began and spent many years on a vegan anti inflammatory diet and the AS didn’t exactly hide like it does for some (before I realised it was triggering IBS flare ups) I might try it again. But I will need some protein that isn’t legumes. What to do. I know where God stands. And I’ll be honest, I tried it. I can’t. I tried anti inflammatory diet with white meat protein and it’s too gross now. I’ve spent too many years not eating anything that moved that the texture, the concept… I don’t know. I need protein. And I can’t have legumes. Husband agreed that someone in my situation needed fish or chicken-free range-but I can’t. I tried and threw it out. The smell, texture and taste are gross for me. I even tried free range eggs and I couldn’t handle those either! 20 years of none of that had changed my tastebuds and tastes. But I’m struggling. I really am. I need to try halt this speeding train. Maybe this time it will help. Or, it will at least reduce the burden, reduce the amount of pain I’m in. I will see.

(I’m on a plant based diet because that’s what Adam and Eve were on and God wants me cholesterol-free and as healthy as possible. Except now I am not sure the wants me to do it and die faster.)