It was a one step forward two step back kind of week.

I am being referred to the Mayo Clinic in Florida. We had a little snafu with insurance, but it was resolved and I should find out my appointment time and date this week. We have used up our resources here in NC and we still have no answers. Not to mention, we'll be in Florida! Mom, Dixie and I will make a stop in Charleston at my grandparents' house and possibly pick up my grandmother then head down there.

Unfortunately, I also went down hill this week. I thought things had leveled off again (I even mentioned it to my therapist) and was happy. Sunday afternoon I was working on some school work when, out of the blue, pain like I haven't felt before shot through my left chest. It sent me into tears immediately and Mom and I were trying to decide if we should go to the ER.

We decided not to since there is nothing they can do and it isn't worth the hours wait and 200$ co-pay for a pain injection that will wear off in a few hours. I took some more pain meds and laid down to just wait it out.

About 20 minutes in to this, Dixie started alerting that an attack was coming. I took my meds and she stayed by my side the entire time. It was really a short attack and not as severe as the ones where she wasn't there to alert. I am honestly so so amazingly thankful for my wonderful dog. She improves my quality of life in a way no one else can.

Today the pain is still there but I haven't had any more attacks. I can't use my arm at all any more since any movement makes the pain worse. It is kind of scary, I guess I just wasn't prepared to get this much worse this fast.

Please Vote for Lola and Laura

Vote for Lola and Laura!

I entered the picture below in BAD RAP's calendar contest this year. The top 12 get to be in their 2010 calendar and we would love to be one of those! All proceeds go to pit bull rescue and education.

Finally getting some forward motion

So we finally have some progress. Not towards a diagnosis but to the next level of diagnostic care. My PCP (who is wonderful and listens to me and Mom all the time and even lets us e-mail him)is referring me to the Mayo Clinic Diagnostic Division in Jacksonville Florida! Everyone in my family has heard nothing but wonderful things about them and the wonderful ladies on the Pets board I frequently shared some of their Mayo Clinic success stories with me. We really hope that this is the place that can figure me out so I can get back to life!

Dixie is doing absolutely wonderful in her training. We had a break through and are now planning on doing her certification test/performance in 2-3 weeks! She has been going with me to most places (all places if Dad or my Aunt Kay takes me) and I haven't had an attack in a few weeks! My physical therapist thinks it is because Dixie knows when I start getting too painful and will get agitated which alerts me that I need to stop before and attack is even set off. She also says I am much more relaxed when I have Dixie with me. CHeck out Dixie's blog to read more about her training.

I'm also "in class" now and I'm really enjoying it. I'm learning a lot of new things and it will be really useful in the future.

I've touched on this before, but I think one of the best things to come out of this illness is me figuring out what my calling really is. I was never 100% happy being a vet tech in a regular vet practice. Don't get me wrong, I loved the work but there was always something that was a little off when I sat down and thought about it. I realized that what I really truly love is behavior and training. Not tooting my own horn, but I have always been able to read animals and help them calm down. There were clients that would ask that I help with their "problem" dogs because they didn't get so stressed. Now that I know more, I know why that was. I want to help people work with their dogs that have behavior issues rather than dump them at a shelter or euthanize them.

Yea, its been a long time

So since I last updated, I saw a new pain doctor, which was the worst experience I've had witha doctor in a very long time (maybe ever!). He was condescending (no, the piercings on my chest do not imply I am an idiot), unprofessional and he didn't listen to what I said about my health, which results in me getting a medication that really screws with asthmatics that almost put me in the hospital (and would have if I had taken the full dose he prescibed!). So I'm going back to my first pain doctor that I trust.

I started physical therapy and it went really well! My therapist was wonderful and worked with my pain limitations. I have exercises I can do in the pool to make it less painful. They even asked me to bring Dixie when I come so they will know if we are pushing too hard and so I will be more relaxed.

Dixie's training is going really well. I've kind of slacked off the past 2 weeks, but we are getting back in to things.

I also start school (via distance ed) on Wednesday. I'm taking 6 classes and will have mostly completed my business and psychology majors.

I promise I will try to update more.

This is why I don't get my hopes up about doctors

Thursday Dixie was unable to go with us to my father's graduation. Unfortunately I had 2 separate attacks and severe heat exhaustion from trying to sleep off the attacks in the car with no A/C for a few hours. I now know how animals left in cars feel like and I can't imagine someone treating their dog that cruelly.

Friday I had an appointment with the orthopedic specialist who we all thought would be the one to figure me out. He didn't and gave up on me after an hour (a record). So we are seeing another doctor, but they can't get me in until October 13th!

It is really frustrating. I also realized that this upcoming week will mark 6 months since I first got sick. I certainly didn't think that this is how a seriously sore and swollen arm would work out.

This week is also going to be an intense training week for Dixie and I. I really need to get her certified sooner rather than later and I know she is up to a quicker pace. She also has a blog if anyone is interested in her journey to become a service dog.

Dixie's Blog

Silver linings are always there, sometimes we just choose to ignore them

So I feel like I need to write a not so down update since I've been kind of blah in the past few. There have been some silver linings, they just have been hard for me to spot recently.

As I said, I'm going to be taking classes this fall. The illness is giving me the chance to get a business and psychology minor, which wasn't possible before. That will strengthen my resume and help my GPA out, so hopefully I will get accepted next time I apply to vet school.

I've gotten a break from the insanity that is a pre-vet student's life. Tons of classes that are obnoxiously difficult, work at enough vets to get the references you need and other activities to make you well-rounded. There is a reason that people who graduate with an ANS degree with pre-vet say they are crazy. You have to love and want this career to make it through. I was nearly burnt out and it was taking a toll on my health, my relationships, even my dogs.

This break has also given me a chance to think about what I want to do with the rest of my life. Now, before anyone starts thinking anything too crazy, I do still plan on going to vet school. For the past 10 years I thought I wanted to be a general practitioner. Side note: yes, I mean ten years. I have been telling people since I was 2 (we have video proof) that I was going to be a vet. Anyways, I have had a chance to look at what I truly loved and what didn't constantly stress me out. I've realized that my heart really lies in veterinary behavior. I love learning how to communicate with animals and help those that have problems. Indie and Dixie have both had behavior issues we had to work through and I loved it! I know so much more now and I know there are so many dog owners out there who don't know what to do and give up on problem dogs. There are so few veterinary behaviorists and people don't know about them. I want to work to change that.

The mystery illness sometimes gets in the way of blogging

Yes, I know, I haven't updated in a while. The mystery illness has been throwing some curveballs and it has gotten in the way of blogging.

So I continue to get worse. The swelling and the pain continue to reach new heights. I told my mom that every time I think I have reached the worst pain I've ever felt and then the stabbing pain comes back and it is always worse than the last time. Then I swell more.

We are still waiting to hear from the orthopedist. He was on vacation until today and we found out that he doesn't take all the cases referred to him. Instead, he reviews the case and takes a few then sends the rest to other doctors. The neurologist hopes that we will hear something next week. I've also been referred to a pain clinic near Baptist that deals in hard to diagnose pain. They also do alot of research so my Raleigh pain doctor thinks I might be able to get in on a drug trial. I'm seeing them at the end of the month so we will see where that goes.

Life has been pretty good otherwise. Dixie's training is getting ready to kick in to high gear as soon as we get her new backpack (around the end of this week or beginning of the next) and we make her "Service Dog in Training" patches. Lola is growing like a weed! She was 5 lbs the week she showed up and now she is around 12 lbs a month later! She is so smart and already knows how to sit. Dixie loves her and is teaching her good dog manners.

The 4th was fun, I got to spend almost 6 hours out by the pool! We had a cookout with the whole family and it was just low key. I had a great time and ate way too much food!

I've been spending alot of time with my Aunt Kay and Laura, who I am so thankful for. We've gone to the movies, shopping, and even crafty stuff. We are making a dog bed for Dixie and a fleece blanket for me and the dogs. I will post pictures once we finish!