On the mend

As you can see from the chart my C-reactive protein is heading towards normal.   This I knew anyway since my inflammation (and thus much of the pain) is dropping everywhere.

My iron levels seem to be coming back into order (and thus my anaemia is reducing) and generally I am feeling better all round.

Yesterday I was made aware of Wim Hof, who otherwise goes under the name of the Iceman.  He is from Holland and has done many remarkable things, including achieving 20 Guinness Records.  What has all that go to do with this blog, and more importantly me?

Andy's Arthritic Diet (Digestion part two)

Well not so much a triangle but at least three ways of looking at what you eat..  This is my first attempt at trying to explain my diet in terms of foods I concentrate on, foods I avoid and trying to look at this nutritionally.

FOODS TO EAT
I have found concentrating on these foods positively helps me get healthier day by day.  And by healthier I mostly mean arthritis free.

1. Every day you should be ensuring you are getting many of these: 4 glasses Water, 2 cups Green / Hibiscus Teas, 3 servings Green Veg, especially dark Greens, 2 servings other Veg, 1 tbsp Flax Seeds, 1 or 2 servings Grains/PseudoGrains, 1 or 2 servings Legumes, Handful of Nuts, esp Walnuts, 2 cups Soy or Almond Milk etc, 2 servings berries, 2 servings fruit, esp Kiwi.

To London and back, with overnight stay

A year ago I would have thought nothing about catching a train to travel the forty miles or so into central London and stay overnight whilst my wife is at a conference. Today this is a challenge that takes more planning than just checking tickets and cash are sorted.

My planning started about three days ago ensuring I was not eating anything that was going to cause a flare.  Flares from complex foods can take three or even four days to clear my system,  and after that I have to allow time for my strength and emotional stamina to build.

The first morning I am as right as much as I can hope for and I even walking tolerably well. I was up early this morning having a lovely of porridge with a banana.  Check emails, pack a case, pack my meds and have another sleep (blame a bad night of Brexit-itis!)

Digestion, part one: Nutrition

Before I begin on today's post, let me just say I swam again today despite my right elbow being painful.  And so the recovery continues...  And so to my post...

I have never studied biology at school, so if it wasn't for the Internet I would be totally ignorant about the human digestive system.  As it stands I love researching subjects using the web and I think I am beginning to get an understanding and would like to begin to share that with you.

The starting point is to say that the digestive system, or to be precise the human digestive system is a very complex system and significant parts of it seem to be a mystery - even to professionals.  Not only do professionals not know the entire story, many professionals disagree about aspects.  Let me start with one statement, one that I hold true, to show that disagreement up, "changing your diet can provide significant control of your arthritis."

Like many fellow sufferers I am a witness to the efficacy of dietary changes on my own body.  Despite those clear effects both my rheumatologist and my doctor both are of another opinion, that any recent health improvements are due to my current drug regime.  But then what do doctors and rheumatologists know about nutrition?  Certainly they do not have comprehensive training in the subject.

My rheumatologist is actually part of a university team looking at gut bacteria and arthritis.  But this team, as far as I understand it are studying this without making any significant connection to food and nutrition.

And another swim

I think I accidentally had some peanuts which are causing pain and a disturbed night's sleep.  But that did not stop me getting another swim in.  Determination, determination...

Went swimmimg today!

I would not wish to claim I swam brilliantly, but swim for 20 minutes I did. My recovery continues, for instance today I am feeling that my fingers are bending better, and I can almost make a fist.  Time for a sleep.

Lunch was hummus, rice crackers, salad and strawberries.

Recovering well, and at least in one way very well

Yesterday we went shopping in Solihull and went past a showroom for my favourite, Tesla. All I needed was £50,000 to become a happy man!  Attached is a photo of a Tesla we just happened to follow whilst approaching some roadworks in Oxford yesterday.

Anyway the big thing is my walking suddenly improved. For the first time in months there was no pain in my feet and I could walk at a half decent pace. This is remarkable since over the last three months I have taken a wheelchair round with me due to walking difficulties.  It is as if the bones in my feet have suddenly decided to work in harmony.

A purchase made was a half-decent pancake pan and so that night I made buckwheat pancakes topped with lightly sautéd mushrooms and celery with steamed cabbage and then a few shreds of Pecorino Romano cheese. The taste was glorious especially the sweetness of the al-dente celery, however the pancakes fell apart, so work in progress on that point!

Recovering

The last couple of days have not been easy, or rather they have been a reminder of how dark a place arthritis can be. Added to the pain and, yes inflammation I had my 6 monthly appointment with my rheumatologist. It did not go well.  Not sure I want to go into all the details but essentially I did not feel supported.  On top of the pain etc,  not good.

I don't like doing posts like this.  At least I am coming out of my flare-up - and emotionally I will come out stronger.

While at the hospital I found a leaflet on apps for monitoring arthritis.  I've downloaded a couple and will report my thoughts here when I have tried them for a bit.

Bad day

There is no other word for it.  Today I am stiff and in pain and going nowhere.  Inflammation is minimal, thank goodness.

Yesterdays baked beans (in tomato sauce) are likely to be my last for a very very long time.

Day Six: pain reduces further, time to try a can of baked beans

And yet another day rolls in and I am feeling good.  Not perfect, but relatively just a tiny bit better.  The remnants of pain and inflammation are less than yesterday, also I am feeling more flexible.  My flexibility test is getting shoes and socks on: how far and easily can I bend over.  Well flexibility is coming.

About two weeks ago I was on a regular stream of anti-inflammatory tablets, especially on bad days.  Now it has reduced over the last days to one or two per day.  Last night I stayed up late binging on the first series of Happy Valley (now streaming on Netflix).  Being late to bed is always a bad recipe for me.  Firstly sitting in front of the TV till late makes me incredibly stiff and that lateness can make for a bad night's sleep.  And so without messing about I get some NSAIDs inside me, and to bed.

And as I say above my night's sleep wasn't too bad and I am feeling good.

Whenever I feel good it is time to try some foodstuff that is on my risky "todo" list.  Today I have elected for a can of baked beans, which is an inflammatory risk because of the tomatoes.  Beans on toast.  I have added a generous dollop of my turmeric paste, some chilli, and some dairy-free cream for added interest.

Day five, my hands are a pain, but that's it

A dismal day outside, what with the UK covered in lots of rain.  But apart from my wrists continuing to have slight pain and inflammation. Apart from that fine.

I have just watched the cow conspiracy on netflix.  If you ever thought driving a gas-guzzler like the Hummer cars could be done ethically then just contribute to avoiding eating meat and enjoy the rest of your longer life!  Oh, and watch the video.

Day four on far less medication

I am not saying I am med free, after all I am still eliminating foods and that process caries a likelihood of reactions.  So yesterday I wanted something, or rather needed something to eat after my endoscopy.  The M&S cafe inside the John Radcliffe Hospital has a very poor selection of gluten free and dairy free products.  Considering this was a service inside a hospital, I am frankly appalled at Marks & Spencer!

The only item they had was a tomato (and red pepper?) soup with (optional) gluten free rolls.  I asked for the GF rolls, only to be served with normal wheat rolls!!!!  I complained, naturally, and the waitress went to the M&S shop next door and brought a GF loaf, from which I had two slices.

Bread notwithstanding I am safe with neither tomato nor red pepper.  So overnight my wrists both hurt and became swollen.  Not totally intolerably, but I new I would need something to get me through the night.  So on with a generous dollop of 10% diclofenac gel around the wrists and my right elbow, and thence a couple of paracetemol.

Morning is here and certainly I am not recovered fully from that flare, but I will get there.  My feet feel a bit tender so I guess that's another bit of reaction.  A bit more gel and a certain amount of patience...  Whatever my inflammation is not coming back in earnest.

Let me say clearly, the road to recovery continues unabated.  At the next meeting with my doctor I hope to place the termination of my MTX medication clearly on the agenda!  The end of MTX may be a month or two, or more away, but the end is nigh.

Oh, and by the way, my endoscopy came out with normal results.  So any anaemia problems I have are not manifesting themselves in a poor digestive system that this endoscopy shows.

PS: I have just been onto M&S website and used their live chat service for complaints and had an apology and a promise of a gift voucher.

Third day almost free of drugs and bad night's sleep!

I had an awful night's sleep and with pain in my left wrist pulsating and pulsating I needed a fix at least for that.  Enter the 10% gel and a pack of strawberries.  But otherwise I am still pain, inflammation and drug free.

The main reason for a bad sleep is anxiety over my endoscopy this afternoon.  Will there be side-effects?  Will the findings reveal something critical about my insides?  Whatever I have opted for sedation, following recommendation from several friends who have had the same procedure.

A second day of no drugs

Can this continue?  Two nights ago I stopped my medication (except MTX) because I was getting to the point of confusion about what and how much I was taking.  I felt I needed a drug reset.  And now I find I am surviving without anti-inflammatory or pain-killing drugs.

A second day!  Quite unbelievable.  This is going to help my stomach and gut really get better.  It is going to help my joints to mend.

Even if I go back on the drugs I know now that such days as these will recur, more and more frequently.  I am entering the next phase of my recovery from arthritis.

No inflammation, no pain, no drugs

This cannot last! I am on a good day, that's for sure. Right now I have no inflammation, no pain, no drugs.  Actually I think I got a touch of too much sun yesterday and felt quite ill through the evening.  So I decided to stay off the drugs as much as possible to let my system settle down.

And now I am almost 18 hours later and still no drugs, and no pain, and no inflammation.  Usually my ankles might have swollen up around now just from sitting at the computer.

Mind you I did go the toilet a lot.  I know no 2's are the not most palatable of subjects for most people but my system cleaned itself out and I love it!

A weekend of camping - on the ground

I didn't expect to say this but, with very full support of family & friends I camped out over last weekend.  We have a lovely Quechua 3-person tent but now the idea of camping on the ground felt like a dream.  To be precise, having camped since I was one year old, it was a dream I feared.

In the end an incredibly supportive Les solved problems such as getting from lying down to standing (and vice-versa) with considerable patience.  Camping also meant if I wanted to go to the toilet I would need something to urinate in during the night so save the convoluted hassle of getting both in and out of the tent, getting vertical and all the rest...  Never mind the potential loss and disruption to sleep to one and all...

We sleep on a Hi Gear double self-inflating camp bed with one quilt below us and another above us. It is really comfortable.

The camping weekend had a purpose - the maintenance of trees planted five years ago in honour of our daughter who died aged 24 (see www.forjane.co.uk).  Practically speaking I was not much help.  With my actions limited to walking from chair to chair.  That is except for providing directions for cooking for the forty people over the camp fire.

With serious help I prepared a chana-dahl curry with rice & nan bread.  All was in my diet (excepting the nan bread which I avoided!)  This meant filling two jam-pans full of pulses and vegetables.  No oil was used, and spices were kept light.  But it did have kale, broccoli & lemons to help keep iron levels high.  Not bad for 40 people!