BACK to my back pain

3:18 AM 6/6/2007

      A new chiropractor?  Sorta ... same office ... new fellow.  The chiropractor wants to move his young family nearby his relatives in Pennsylvania (health problems in some older people there in his family) ... I WILL HATE TO SEE HIM GO.  He is just an excellent chiropractor & so caring & so nice!
    However, the new person is really nice, too ... & did my treatment yesterday.  I was impressed with his skill.  I know he has my office records, but I told  him my history of my back ... there are 6 problem areas, some "bare" vertebrae, some injuries back in the 70's & 80's, lots of arthritis (which I found out can be triggered by injuries).
    I mentioned that I am getting the facets at the Pain Clinic, but, found out thru experimenting that I also need the chiropractic at least once a week.  Right now, I need for the mid-upper back to stay adjusted ... otherwise it gets horribly tight & painful.  We are making progress there ,,,  after I had not been going hardly at all since Christmas, that area of my back just got to be impossible ... I need to be faithful in at least weekly adjustments, mostly between my shoulderblades & thru my lower ribs.

1:21 AM 6/18/2007
    AWAKE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT AGAIN ... BACK PAIN AGAIN!   This time it is worst in my lower ribs.  In trying to loosen it up, I got some "clunks", like shifting bones in my back there, but very little loosening.  I took some aspirins & made a gin drink.
     I had a fairly active day ... no heavy work, tho.  I potted plants, etc ... washed dishes, vac'd the rugs ... watched T.V. ... had some company.

 

3:57 AM 6/8/2007

    OKAY ... after my three asprins a few hours ago, I just took two extra strength acetominephen ... & a little more gin.  I just have to get back to sleep; my back is really bothering me.  Part of it may be due to emotional stress ... bills & the loss of my next to last goose.  The one that is left is calling for her ... breaks my heart.

12:46 PM 6/11/2007
    DAMN ... is it tension over my finances ... the extra pain that has developed in my "good" knee ... or WHAT?
     I have done nothing physical so far today ... reasonably active ... some time at the computer ... I AM IN ABSOLUTE MISERY!  I took some asprins ... even a little gin ... my upper/mid back has terrible pain & discomfort.

2:27 AM 6/12/2007
    My upper back, between my shoulder blades, & down ... esp. my lower ribs, esp the ones on the left ... are in real pain.  Not discomfort ... not ache ... REAL PAIN.  Took some aspirin, acetominophen, some gin ... should I sit up for a while yet, exercise, or just go back to bed?

3:26 AM 6/12/2007
   Still at the computer ... still hurt ... MORE GIN!

4:06 PM 7/20/2007
   I've been out of gin for quite a while ... my back is really tightened up, partly due to some stresses in my life.  Having just resolved my finanacial emergency ... I am headed out to go get some gin to relax my back.
   Several days ago ... I had the lumbar facets in my lower back.  My back had begun hurting at a level that I cannot remember for how long it had been that bad.
   Almost immediately, there was relief ... but, my upper back pain was still terrible ... tho ... the level came down somewhat.
    I am to go back in two weeks for the facets in my mid-back ... but, because of my financial condition ... I had to postpone that another week until my Social Security check comes ... probably can't change it back now.

 

The State of Misery

12:38 PM 5/7/2007

     My facets (injections) last week were in my upper back.  That

had started torturing me more so than the usual problem zone in my

lower back.  I had made the decision that I'd better start going

back to the chiropractor on a weekly basis; my upper back has been

so tight & sore. Then, I felt so great after the injections & the

chiropractor that I thought maybe I won't have to go back for the

injections in my lower back ... also might be able to go every

OTHER week to the chiropractor.  NO SOONER DID I HAVE THAT

THOUGHT THAN MY UPPER BACK BEGAN TO FEEL TIGHT & VERY

SORE ... NOW .... today, my lower back is really hurting.  All that

I did to earn that was to stand at the cupboard making up a big

batch of onion cookies.  I still have to put them on trays & freeze

the chopped onion/carrot/chives mixture.

 

2:57 AM 5/8/20072:57 AM 5/8/2007

     Not sure which part of my back hurts the worst.  I think it is

the lower back hurting so much that the pain is extending upward? 

I'm glad that, learning from past scheduling of injections, I did

insist upon the second set in the lower back soon after the ones in

the upper back.

     Just read about a new technique that came out of a college

business competition. I put the link to the information on my main

Journal.

RejuvaDisc

 

Click here: Back pain treatment wins Wharton's business plan competition - Apr. 25, 2007

 

10:17 AM 5/11/2007
     Yesterday, I had errands to do in town ... just headed towards

home, thinking how miserable my upper back felt.  It was so stiff &

painful between my shoulder blades ... that got me to thinking about

the chiropractor.  EVEN THO I'D CHECKED IN THE MORNING AS

TO WHAT TIME MY APPOINTMENT WAS, I ENDED UP GETTING

SO BUSY THAT I FORGOT COMPLETELY. 
    My appointment had been for 3 pm; now, it was 4:30!  Thank

Heavens, he was able to take me in!  He really had to work on that

area.  This morning, it does feel so much better.

 

3:50 AM 5/21/2007

    Here I am, up in the middle of the night because my back hurts.

 It helps to get up, move around, take some aspirins ... then, I

have to have some chicken soup or something to make sure that I

don't take them on an empty stomach.  A little time sitting up (like

at the computer) also helps.  Now, I'm going back to bed to try to

find a comfortable spot so I can sleep?

 

6:54 AM 5/30/2007

    I awoke at dawn this morning, my lower back hurt so much that

I couldn't get it loosened with stretching exercises.  I had a hot

milk/maple syrup/gin drink ... sat at the computer ... it is feeling a

bit better.  Some aspirins ... then lay around a bit more ...
    Yesterday, I had it scheduled to do a little weed-whacking ... it

tried to rain ... I talked myself into waiting until today.  My

weekend housecleaning project & activities with my daughter had

sorta ruined my back anyways ... needed a bit more "rest".

 

5:09 AM 6/5/2007

      I've spent several hours trying to exercise my spine to get it

to quit hurting.  It is not so much a sharp pain as a gripping,

sickening discomfort with the pain level of at least an 8.
      This is mostly in the small of my back, involving my hip area &

 

lower ribs.  My vertebrae would clunk as I tried various movements

to loosen up my back.  Now, it is not as bad.  I took some aspirin &

some acetaminophen ... & another gin & milk.  MAYBE I CAN GET

BACK TO SLEEP ... FINALLY?

       When I talk to my doctor, I want to remember to be able to

tell him around the first of June is when I started having bouts of

pain again. I don't have an appointment at the Pain Clinic until next

month.

     My "good" knee: the cortisone/steroid shot ... is that wearing

off, too?  Usually, unless I have a misstep, there is no pain there,

just an awful tiredness & tenderness if I've been at all active.  In

a week, I have an appointment with that doctor.

 

THE CHIROPRACTOR: I've gone back to going there every week again.  It seems to be helping, especially the terrible tightness & discomfort in my upper back where I had the whip-lash problem.  That is mostly between my shoulder blades, sometimes in my lower ribs, too.  Today, I have an appointment there.

Tags: back, knee, pain

Ready for the Day

1:14 PM 4/14/2007

   As usual ... I am more motivated to add to this when I am in total misery, which is the case now.

   I am foolishly forcing myself to do something that is almost impossible ... do my maple syrup project.

   Is this foolish pride, or trying to maintain self-esteem?

   Should I relegate myself to a lifetime of watching T.V., yacking on the telephone, playing on the computer, sleeping ... or ... try to stay active so that I don't die of a heart attack or high colesterol?

 

11:09 PM 4/23/2007

    My upper back ... where I'd had the whiplash in 1976 ... has been having bouts of making me really miserable.  The pain is mostly between my shoulder blades.  Surprisingly, my lower back hasn't been too much of a problem.  This past afternoon, when my upper back really started hurting, & four aspirins didn't help ... I made a really stiff gin drink & rested a while.  My back was hurting so much that it almost felt as tho I would get a charlie horse in my ribs.  The gin helped; I resumed some light activities.

    Then, this evening the pain & cramps came back.  My gin is nearly gone ... I've got enough for two small drinks.

 

10:20 AM 4/27/2007

     My knee has been making me postpone activities; my back keeps getting worse, too.  I had the cortisone/steroid injection in my knee ... not sure if it's helping?

     Next week, I have an appointment for the steroid "facets" in my back.  I've been getting them in my lower back, even if it's not terribly bad at the moment.  It is a precautionary routine that I've learned is necessary.  Then, the next step is to make sure that I also go back (several weeks later) for the facets in my mid-back.  Since my upper back has been giving me such grief lately ... should I get facets in that area FIRST?

   I've spent at least five hours trying to reduce the pain in my upper back.  The chiropractor worked on that area Wednesday; it was so painfully tight & painful.  I just must make sure that I do go to the chiropractor EVERY week without fail ... hadn't been going as much lately.

     My maple syruping project is over ... I'll bet that the task of disinfecting/rinsing the jugs out is going to cause big-time pain tho!

Almost Easter

L o i s
my journal.... Upper Peninsula, MI and beyond

3:12 AM 3/30/2007
    I've been awake for several hours ... did some wiggly-stretchy exercises on the sofa to loosen my back & the leg where my knee is sore ... watched some T.V. NOW, I hope that I can get back to sleep??? Getting upstairs made my knee start hurting, sharp pains as I take a step on that side.

 

                  

7:15 AM 4/7/2007 EASTER SUNDAY TOMORROW
    This past week, I've been thinking of adding a note here to remind me that, when the doctor at the pain clinic asks how long my last "facets", injections, lasted ... I can say that the first week in April, my upper back started hurting again ... now, my lower back is beginning to ache, too.  These are just awful aches, not really pains.
     Since my "good" knee is bothering me so terribly, I really haven't noticed my back much ... it works that way.  What back aches I have right now, could that be brought on by my knee hurting?  It is often hard for me to get around ... I just have to quit & go lie down ... take aspirins ... This, of course, helps my back, tho.

OF COURSE, SPRING IS COMING IN, BUT, NEITHER LIKE A LION NOR A LAMB ... BUT, A MULE!

APRIL showers bring frostbite ... & SNOW ! 
     Winter came back ... really lots of snow & cold ... my maple syruping, mercifully, has come to a temporary halt.  I think that I shouldn't even have tried to do it this year ... but, I'm trying to get exercise, too. 

 

     I at least have to get some pre-Easter housecleaning done ... TODAY ... & make the trek to the grocery store before I get snowed in anyworse!

Tags: back ache, bad knee, Easter

Miseries, again

7:42 AM 2/24/2007

   This, to me, is still the night before.  I fell asleep on the sofa in the evening ... as usual.  My back was grieving me; about midnight, I took some more aspirins, some more gin.
   I slept some more.  Now, I am saying, "Oh my God, Oh, my God". I have a kink in my lower back ....

4:24 AM 3/10/2007

     WELL ... ITZA 'BOUT TIME!  HERE'S A 'NUTHER ENTRY:
I am awake because I am in agony.  I  had been taking a series of 3 aspirins ... just now I added an EXTRA STRENGHTH ACETOMENOPHIN ... PLUS A STIFF DRINK OF WARM MILK & GIN  (& BROWN SUGAR) ...
     I had done a minor project of dragging stuff into my car, then, dragging the stuff into the building where the week-end gun show is to be ... Saturday & Sunday.  No heavy lifting.  Not much sustained activity.  TOTAL MISERY.  This is the first time I've had this pain since my "thoractic facets" last week.

9:03 PM 3/28/2007

    OH, MY POOR, POOR JOURNAL ... I've been so involved in other projects that I've not been keeping up with making entries.  It was easier when I still had my laptop on my desk downstairs & could make quick entries.
     NO NEWS IS GOOD NEWS? Well, sorta.  Since my last writing, I've had more facets, in another part of my back ... did another gun show, with not as much pain because I'd left a lot of the stuff still packed in my car.
     By & large, my back has been not such a problem.  BUT ... for nearly a month, my "good" knee has been grieving me.  I think that I hurt it ... got snowed in for a week & didn't get in to the doctor for an x-ray right away.  Now, I have an appointment with a specialist (the same one who had done my knee replacement on the other knee) for April 9.
     With the warmer weather, the snow mostly gone, & the maple syrup season here, I've been more active.     THIS BOTHERS MY KNEE MORE & MORE.  I didn't do very much today ... spent a lot of time lying on the sofa or in the lounge chair.  I feel badly about neglecting the maple trees ... not so sure if I should just quit it & lie down until April 9?

My MSM HAS ARRIVED!

NEED YOUR SCREEN CLEANED?

 

7:06 PM 2/9/2007

     TOMORROW IS A "BIG DAY" ...  I am taking some

craft things of mine & my son's to a gun show.
     I was at this gun show two years ago ... did not go last

year.
     I have a table rented; not too optimistic of selling much

... but, am printing out lots of brochures, price lists, &

business cards to have on hand.  I've found out that this

one-on-one advertising is the most effective.
   But ... I've also found out that my back will not let me

even do much of this crafting without making me absolutely

miserable.
    MISERABLE ... this is how I anticipate being by the

time that I actually get everything set up & ready for the

9 am opening at the show.
    I have put some of the larger things into the car,

including a folding chair.  I'll really need that; I am thinking

of taking my crutches, too.
    I still have to pack the items ... much of which is not

even all ready.  I'm using several suitcases to haul stuff. 

I'll probably have at least a dozen trips to make from the

car to the building ... not sure how close that I can get. 

I'M NOT LOOKING FORWARD TO IT!
    Hopefully, I can recuperate during the day.  It is a two

day thingie.

 

 

4:08 AM 2/11/2007

    I'M WONDERING HOW I'LL BE ABLE TO PUT IN

ANOTHER DAY THERE AT THE GUN SHOW... My back

was so bad, just sitting there in the afternoon that I just

took some aspirins, tried to do some stretching excercises

to loosen up ... even went to see if they were selling some

beer (they weren't)
     It was all I could do to get the cats & dogs & geese &

deer taken care of.  The items that I brought home to

work on ... that was just wishful thinking.  The case is still

sitting down by the door.
     I made some soup, had some more aspirins, a stiff gin

drink ... headed for the sofa.  It took until 3:30 to get

loosened up enough to even get up to go to the bathroom. 

My back was just so sore that I spent a long time in various

positions trying to ease it.  I only came upstairs to the

computer to check my e-mail.  IT'S BACK TO BED FOR ME

NOW!  I was going to check the photos I'd taken at the

show, make some signs .... even make a journal entry in my

main journal (way overdue) ... do something important on

the CRAFTING web pages since I have the url on my

advertising cards & brochures.  As I made the laborious

climb up the stairs, I was thinking if I should bring my

crutches tomorrow.  

   I really needed to do the web site, needed to do the

crafting, didn't get the mail or make phone calls ... the

dishes from two days ago will just have to wait some more. 

Practically speaking ... I don't think I will do anything when

I get back from another day at the show ... even if I'm

just sitting.  I really need to stop at the grocery on the

way home??

 

9:01 PM 2/11/2007

     WHAT A DIFFERENCE A DAY MAKES ...  my back

feels OKAY today!  Go figure!  After being so miserable

yesterday & thru the night ... and oversleeping when I went

back to sleep ... I didn't expect the dramatic difference. 

I did not have to re-load all the containers of my sale

items; I had left most everything right on my table.  The

one suitcase & small bag I'd brought home to work on things

... well ... I might just as well have left them there, too

... my back was too sore to even consider dealing with that.

 

5:53 AM 2/13/2007

    The MSM that I ordered arrived, & I have been trying

to remember to take them regularly.  I used to take 3000

mg a day before my knee replacement operation.  The

capsules I have are 1000 mg strength; I've been taking at

least two a day for several days.  It takes a while for

them to get back into my system.  It would be really great

if they work as well on my back as they did for my knee. 

MSM, I am quite sure, is not covered by my prescription

drug plan.  The cost is a big reason that I hadn't been

taking them for a long while.

 

6:58 AM 2/13/2007

     I might as well stay up now ... I had mostly done some

on the computer for a "Change-of-Position" excercise to

ease my back  ... made some coffee, put the dogs out

(briefly), made some instant oatmeal.  I mostly slept thru

the night ... feel as tho I've pretty well reccuperated from

the week-end.

    NOW, I HAVE TO PUT IN SOME OVERTIME GETTING

THE FAMILY HISTORY ALBUM  DONE & MAILED OUT  

FOR AN IMPORTANT FAMILY REUNION IN TEXAS THIS

WEEKEND.  I just wasn't up to it ... had planned upon

beginning Sunday evening!

L o i s
my website: Crystal Falls, MI
my blog: Upper Peninsula, MI and beyond

Tags: back pain, MSM, gun, Upper Peninsula

KEEP'IN ON isn't so easy

12:07 PM 2/3/2007
     NOW ... my back feels great; I did a lot of moaning & groaning thru

the night ... finally got up before daylight, never did really get back to

sleep.  At the time, there was just no comfortable position ... no relief

from aspirins.  Now, it is mostly just very tight & sore as tho I'd been

working hard...
   Today ... I am going to keep my promise to myself & order some MSM

... that might be easier & quicker than traveling to some place where it

might be cheap.

10:24 PM 2/3/2007
     Taking a break ... I'm getting company tomorrow.  My son is driving

up to pick up some of his "product" ... his horse-shoe craft items that I

was supposed to be photographing, assembling, & marketing.  Part of my

not working on it is that my basement area had gotten so silted in with

"stuff" from when my neighbor moved & gave me truckloads of so much.
     So, I just took four aspirins & a acetaminaphin ... going to sit down. 

BUT, I MUST AT LEAST ORGANIZE THOSE CRAFT ITEMS & DO SOME

WORK ON THEM BEFORE HE GETS HERE.  I'LL HAVE TO WORK OFF &

ON THRU THE NITE.  THAT WON'T BE MUCH DIFFERENT FROM THE

SLEEPLESSNESS I WENT THRU LAST NITE FROM THE  BACK PAIN!

10:11 AM 2/5/2007
     I did get caught up on some sleep last nite ... really needed it ...

kinda overdid some house-cleaning over the week-end.  Is that why my

back was just unbearable this morning for so long?

2:44 PM 2/5/2007

     Okay, so my back has started to feel pretty good ... but, now, I feel

tired out ... very unambitious.  Could some of this be tension over the

tractor repair bill, not being ready for the craft show this weekend?

10:19 PM 2/5/2007
     My back hurt in all different areas today ... I can hardly wait til

next week for my injections.  This time ... I'm Gunta go in for the second

set of injections in my mid-back!   I really to want to lie down ... I am

trying to make up for lost time on my crafting projects.

    11:23 PM 2/6/2007

     Just recuperating from a strenuous day of sitting on a stool ... doing

craft projects ... I guess that's not the way out of my financial woes,

either.
     I didn't even do any vacuuming or dishes washin today, either ...

tried to break up my sitting on the stool with other projects ... GUESS

THAT DIDN'T WORK ANYWAYS.
     At the end of the afternoon, I had to retreat to the sofa ... did

some napping ... having taken many aspirins, etc ... did not even eat my

supper.  My back was so miserable, couldn't do anything except lie down.
    Almost midnite, my stomach was so upset from not having my supper. 

I re-heated it, ate some ... had some more pain pills & some gin to

hopefully loosen my back.
    BUMMER: I got an e-mail from my sister reminding me that I have all

the family black & white historical pictures to re-do the album ... MY

MOM NEEDS THESE SOON WHEN HER BABY SISTER DRIVES DOWN

TO VISIT HER.

HERE'S A COPY OF THE E-MAIL THAT I JUST SENT TO TEXAS TO

MY SISTER (& my Mom).

    I AM JUST BESIDE MYSELF TRYING TO GET THINGS DONE ... NO

MATTER WHAT I DO ... SOMETHING ELSE SHOULD HAVE BEEN DONE

FIRST ...   I am bummed out that Alan made a quick trip up here last

week-end to retrieve most of his horseshoe creations that I was supposed

to be marketing ... I finally got MOST of my insulation project done ...

with this sub-zero weather here, I wish I had that DONE.  I've been

working on the pictures & album ... thinking that I MUST get it down

there before Dorothy gets there ...
 
FIRST & FOREMOST ... I rented a "booth" at a gun show up here to

exhibit & try to sell my deer-antler dream webs for THIS WEEKEND (&

some of Alan's stuff).  JUST AS SOON AS THAT IS DONE (next

Monday) I will concentrate on getting the album done! 
    It is just so discouraging ... my back was killing me today ... how much

of a strain should be on my back ... sitting on a stool at the counter,

doing dream-webs ! I was in AGONY ... took many aspirin, etc.  ...

napped on the sofa ... finally dragged myself up (it's midnight) to re-heat

my supper & am now eating it because my stomach was getting queesy

from being empty ... my back is a bit better ... but, still feels as tho I

had been in a fight.
 
  6:56 AM 2/7/2007
     When my back got so sore yesterday ... it was my upper back, thru

the shoulder blade area.  Thru the nite, then, it became my lower back

that hurt the worst.  Even stretching exercises don't help loosen it.  My

stomach gets upset with too much aspirin ... I did add some Tylanol.
     I did nap off & on on the sofa ... after mid-nite, when I just had to

finally eat some supper, I did eventually get to bed.  I slept off & on. 

For the past hour or two, I've just been rolling around in bed ... so, I'm

going downstairs for a bit.  I usually never get back to sleep then.  I am

feeling so tired, tho.

   6:32 AM 2/9/2007
    OKAY ... so, I finally admitted that there is no way that I could

commit myself to a paying job ... I'm starting to wonder if making craft

items is a viable avenue.  No matter what sort of configuration of "chair"

I used ... even with alternating my activities/positions ... would keep me

from developing a traumatic bout of back pain (how hard can SITTING

be??).  I've been trying to do the crafting while sitting in a lounge chair. 

That has mixed results ... but, at least it is not as bad as doing the

sitting-in-a-chair thing.
    I'm going to call a halt to this rambling & post it.  That is why I lost

the urge to keep it up ... it is just whining ... but, I am trying to

document what works, what causes problems, & what I should or shouldn't

do.

L o i s
my website: Crystal Falls, MI
my blog: Upper Peninsula, MI and beyond

Gunta: MSM

9:20 AM 2/1/2007

   I've been doing some on-line reading on MSM ... & looking for some bargains on ordering some.
   My daughter-in-law, who had been in a bad car accident & is suffering many bodily problems ... started me on taking MSM.  We both agreed that it really helps & could notice (painfully) if we slacked off on taking it.
     SOooooo ... SOME TIME AGO,  I HAD MADE THE DECISION THAT MSM IS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT IS NO LONGER IN MY BUDGET (my medical card wouldn't cover a prescription for it).
      BUT, NOW ... I have been scolding myself to somehow afford at least a small dosage.  When my SOCIAL SECURITY  check comes in ... I WILL get some MSM.

 

     The most marvelous treatment (aside from the internal muscular relaxant: GIN) ... has been my Lumbar  (& thoractic) facets.  At first, I wasn't too impressed; I could not make a statement one way or the other on their effectiveness.  NOW ... I am really noticing just how I depend upon them for relief.  This is because there never is a direct cause/effect pattern ... & I never know exactly what is causing my present condition ... & there is usually such a time lag that it is difficult to draw any conclusions.

 

HERE ARE SOME LINKS THAT I WILL ADD LATER TO MY SIDEBAR:

 

Click here: Osteoarthritis: Treatment - MayoClinic.com

 

Click here: MSM for detoxification

 

Click here: Clusty Search » "lumbar facets"

 

Click here: Lumbar Facet Joint Injection

 

 

Tags: MSM, back pain

NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION

4:01 AM 12/21/2006
     Christmas is coming on too fast ... I have been pushing myself

past my limits to get things done.
     Mom will have left my home in less than a week ... there's so

much that I had wanted to get done with her ...
      I really did it yesterday.  I was just thinking that, yes, my

injections really have taken effect ... but, I did too much.
      Before 5 pm, I had sought refuge in my lounge chair & heating

pad & several drinks & much pain pills.  I wish that I hadn't run out

of gin.
     My lower back is kinking, catching.  My lower ribs are cramping

... everything hurts terribly.
     And, this day will be another marathon.  I must, must assemble

my bookwork for Social Services & drive over to Iron River before 9

am to get my medical card & food stamps renewed for the next year

... that's the deadline!

7:26 AM 1/28/2007

                         
     OKAY ... I just decided: I'll make a New Year's resolution to

keep up this Backlog ... (get rid of the back log of entries?).
     At the time of my last injections in December ... they  hurt so

horribly that I will seriously consider the intravenous pain killer at

the time of the next ones in mid-February!  The local numbing shots

have made the "facets" bearable ... BUT, NOT THE LAST TIME.  I

asked the doctor if he thought that I'd had an infection or

something that kept the pain killer from working well ... He did say

that there was a high level of inflamation in my back that day.
     I feel as tho I'm seriously overdue for the lumbar facets; my

appointment is several weeks away.  This time, I AM going to go back

 in for the "t'weener" facets in my mid-back ... are those the

thoractic facets?
     Whatever ... I am really miserable.  When I try to do simple

tasks, it doesn't take long to have my back feel terrible.  This is so

discouraging.  That makes me realize that, unlike all my hard-working

life, there is no way that I could take ANY sort of a job to try to

earn a little money to get my finances out of the red.
   One good thing: for the last month or more, the new pain area at

the base of my neck has been going away.  BUT ... maybe that is

the familiar, old situation that "whatever hurts the worst is the one

that I feel" ... eliminate that & a new pain area comes into focus.  I

noticed that for sure when I was in the hospital IMMEDIATELY

after my knee replacement surgery ... IMMEDIATELY is when my old

back problems hit me severely!