My back update (oh dear...) and Sunny Blackpool shocker

Yes dear readers...we have been having unseasonally lovely hot weather this past fortnight...hence the fact I've been a bit quiet on the Blog front...I've either been out in it or laid up with bad back and neck.

Firstly, the trapped nerve in the neck has been diagnosed at being at position C5, near the base of the neck. The Chiropractor has narrowed it down to this being the 'Bad Boy' of my problem- mostly down to my 'input' and the experience afew weeks ago...

C5- this is where my nerve is trapped...in here...this is the wee bar-steward causing the havoc...

The 'input' and 'insight' I gave to the Dr was simple...two weeks ago this Friday, I began to have a niggling, dull headache start in the middle of my forehead, travel across the left of my head, around and behind the eyes stretching round into the base of my neck, like a migraine starting.
Then I started to get strange feelings in my left arm and the first finger on my left hand started to jump and twitch all by itself. I'm quite accustomed to this, so ignored it- I fondly call it the 'X-Box finger'. I began with this headache and twitchy hand whilst upstairs, so, putting it down to a stressful day, I pottered down into the livingroom to get some painkillers from my handbag.
I remember going to sit down on the sofa, and then...I remember a haze, being rudely awoken and feeling disorientated...I was laid out on the floor with Darren over me shouting "Celia, Celia! Do you want an ambulance?!" I'd blacked out, and collapsed onto the floor. Thankfully, somehow, I'd missed the corner of the coffee table, otherwise it would have been much more serious.
I've actually experienced these before, but always put it down to 'low blood sugar', a 'hypo'. Although I am not diabetic, I did go without food for 8-9hrs once in my teens and flaked out was told by the GP it was low blood sugar and not to go without food for too long. So when this -my third- blackout happened, to be honest I eventually came round, got up, brushed it off, and had a few sweets to bring my suspected low sugar level back up again.

However, at the following Chiropractic consultation last week, I happened to mention this blackout. I was beginning to suspect something wasn't right.
The Doc gave me a full all-over check, muttering and umm'ing as they do, and started asking 101 questions such as;

" Did you have visual disturbance before or after?"
"No" I replied.
"Did you have any slurring of speech before or after?"
"No" I replied again...and from my dealing with medical reports, conditions and medical evidence everyday at work, I started to get a niggling feeling that I knew where this was going, and so added, " No, and I do not believe I have had a TIA (mini stroke)."

He sat, he pondered, and he asked my reasoning behind this. "Well the symptoms don't fit with the diagnosis of a TIA, and I've actually had these blackouts before." I replied, and then froze- I'd forgotten to tell him this before, as of course, I didn't believe it was relevant.
Now I knew it was. I told the Dr about the first one when I was 18, being checked for diabetes, clean slate etc. It suddenly dawned on me, that I had then gone for 16 years before experiencing not one, but three including this one in the past 16 months...since I'd hurt my back. I told him this, and that I'd never said anything because, well, I didn't think it was relevant, and the GP had never paid much attention except for occasional blood tests showing I was fine and dandy.

The Dr was satisfied with my account of the signs leading up to it- textbook compression, apparently. He declared that the trapped nerve is at C5- the base of the neck, and right-bang next to it, are the main blood vessels to the brain. Basically...when the medial C5 nerve kicks off, it compresses the blood vessels in my neck, my blood pressure suddenly drops and 'Bang!' I hit the floor unconscious because of a mixture of no blood getting to my brain and oxygen deprivation. (No jokes, you lot, about me actually having a brain lol).

This made sense- I added that the old hospital physio last year tried to crack my neck twice, didn't know what she was doing, and made me violently sick and dizzy for 24 hrs after each treatment. When I told her it had happened again (after she ignored the first one) she panicked and refused to touch me again and just gave me rubber bands to exercise my shoulder with!
My GP, upon hearing this complaint at the time, cheerfully said, "Ahh, yes, I understand her reluctance to treat you...if you had been older, she could have caused a stroke". (insert your own expletives here).

So anyway, it's looking good now, because we have the answer! I am prepared and safe in the knowledge that if I get that tingle again along with the headache...to support/rest my neck immediately and I can avoid it happening (hopefully). Plus I am now receiving the treatment my body requires to adjust the nerve back into its rightful position. In a strange way, I'm glad it happened- I have received specific diagnosis because of it, which benefits the Dr with his Treatment Plan. It was also proof that although I am still susceptible to these blackouts, that my autonomic nervous system is working again- I was proudly displaying the bruise on my left arm where my arm had tried to stop the fall whilst unconscious...I have been without this reflex for 15 months. My body is starting to work again!!! Result!!

So now you know why I wasn't near the PC until last night- because I can't touch-type and I haven't wanted to bend my neck lol!!!


Summer...

Summer Cat

Now, back to the Summer....ahhhhhhh....been Hell at work (no air conditioning and no fans in the buildings and we're hitting 33 degrees some days) but fantastic at home on weekends and evenings! We are just so NOT used to this weather. Southern England are on drought warnings and some parts of the country are on restricted water use. Up here in Lancashire, we're fine as the amount of water in our reservoirs is healthier, due to the usual large rainfalls in Winter/ Spring.


Alot of BBQs have been had (yumm yumm) and a few weeks ago, after watching England get kicked out of the World Cup, the Gang returned to Gill's house and had a BBQ. I made my new-found obsession, potato salad too (recipe courtesy of Karen and Stef who gave me it) and we relaxed and had afew drinkies as the daylight faded into twilight, into darkness, lit by garden candles and the coals of the BBQ.



D and I have also been having min-BBQs on the spur of the moment when returning home from a long and arduous day at work, grabbing disposable BBQ trays and having dinner al fresco in the garden with cat for company!










Greebo pretending not to smell the cooking meat...

...and the providing Man of the house providing lovely grub!