Asymmetry, Digestive Disorder, and Rock & Roll

A lot has happened since I last wrote in May. First I am going to share a smorgasbord of experiences that could have spawned individual posts if I had been keeping up with my writing and then... well I haven't thought that far in advance yet.

This past April I was struggling to hold bridge pose in my yoga class when I suddenly realized that half of my rib cage appeared to be missing.
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In early June I wore dresses to work every day for a week and received many compliments. I neglected to mention that the reason I wore the dresses was because I was bloated and couldn't button my pants since I hadn't had a bowel movement in about 4 weeks.
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Have you ever injured your coccyx? Right about now you are probably wondering how a girl with Lyme disease, who spends a lot of her time resting and not doing much physical activity that would put her coccyx in danger, ended up with an injured coccyx. You may also be wondering what the heck a coccyx is.
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At the end of June I took a break from DC and work and went to Cape Cod to visit my family. Please take a look to the left and feast your eyes upon the mega pill organizer that I purchased that wasn't even large enough to house all of the antibiotics and supplements I had to bring with me to ensure I kept up with my treatment for 12 days. Please don't let your jealousy consume you.
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This past Sunday I was on my feet all day enjoying all there is to enjoy at the Mayhem Festival (heavy metal music event). I went to work on Monday and that night I went to see a Soundgarden and Nine Inch Nails show and got home at 1 am Tuesday morning. Later that same morning I was sending a message to a friend of mine letting her know I was really sore but surprisingly not tired at all when I realized I was drooling all over my arm and my keyboard while sitting in front of my computer in my office.
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Before I go any further here is a diagram and description of bridge pose if you are not familiar with yoga.

Back to the rib cage...

There I was toward the end of my yoga class struggling to hold bridge pose (with zero flexibility in my lower back due to inflammation this pose is my enemy) when I realized the left side of my rib cage was jutting out really far and the right side of my rib cage looked like it was missing. I was alarmed yet strangely calm about the whole thing. And then I started laughing as I pictured Chris Rock asking for one rib in "I'm Gonna Git You Sucka". My mind works in mysterious ways.

Earlier that same week, I kept getting compliments on the asymmetrical neckline of the shirt I was wearing at work. I was perplexed, mainly because it was a scoop neck shirt, and not asymmetrical at all. One of my shoulders was much higher than the other, which caused my shirt to play visual tricks on people. My shoulder, combined with the rib cage led me to make an appointment with my Active Release Technique (ART) doctor. ART is a combination of myofascial tissue manipulation and chiropractic care. My thoracic spine was very inflamed and had twisted, taking my rib cage with it. Since April the inflammation has gone down a bit, but my rib cage is still listing to the left. The inflammation in my neck and shoulders is also an issue, which leaves my upper body in a state of constant crookedness. Luckily I get temporary relief and symmetry each time I get adjusted.

In addition to the limited flexibility and soreness in my lower back, I have been dealing with an injured coccyx for the past few months, which at times makes it unpleasant to sit. I had no idea what a coccyx was until I hurt mine, here is a description just in case you are not familiar with this body part either. Since I can't remember the last time I fell and landed on my butt, and haven't recently birthed a child, I most likely injured it doing yoga. Apparently certain yoga poses can knock it out of position. My coccyx is still slightly out of place due to the ebb and flow of inflammation I experience, but it certainly feels better than it did when I first noticed the issue.

Around the time that my newly injured coccyx was causing me a lot of pain and discomfort, I realized that I was having trouble going to the bathroom. At first I didn't think anything of it... I could go into a lot of detail here but I am going to keep the poop talk to a minimum. Long story short, I was so uncomfortable that not having to put extra pressure on that area was okay with me. Butt after a couple of weeks (pun intended) feeling majorly backed up and bloated was adding to my overall misery. Around three weeks into my being backed up I had to start wearing dresses to work because I couldn't button my pants. At the beginning of week 4 while at an appointment with my Lyme doctor he gave me some supplements that got everything moving again. RELIEF! Now for all of my dear friends who told me I didn't look bloated at all during this harrowing situation, I would like to share the following fact. On July 22nd I had an appointment with my doctor, and he asked me if I was maintaining my weight as I was stepping on to the scale and I said "I don't think I have lost any weight since my last appointment". He looked at the number on the scale and sighed and said "Julie, you are 7 pounds less than you were a few months ago". As it turns out, the last time I had been there was toward the end of the 4 week stretch when I was constipated and bloated and couldn't button my pants.

On June 23rd my parents celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary. On June 27th my sister, her boyfriend and I headed to Cape Cod to surprise them and take them out to dinner. And then on June 29th we surprised them again with a party at their house. In addition to having a lot of fun hanging out with family and friends, a few other great things happened during this trip. I didn't get vertigo from flying (first time I can say that since the Lyme treatment began), I went walking every day on the beach and while I was very sore and achy, I didn't have to take naps in the afternoon, and I was told that compared to last July I am like a totally different person (in a good way). I've got my fingers crossed that by next July when I go to visit my parents in Cape Cod I will not be lugging the mega pill organizer with me, that damn thing took up a lot of room in my suitcase, room that an extra pair of shoes could have comfortably occupied.

Shortly after the drooling episode at work this past Tuesday morning, I sat at my desk in a state of confusion trying to figure out why my breasts were suddenly feeling very tender. I kept thinking to myself, it's not that time of the month (girls you know what I am talking about) so why is this an issue? And then my mind wondered back to Sunday at Mayhem Festival and the pieces of the puzzle fell into place. Here is a mention from last year about what Mayhem Festival is in case you are not familiar with the event. Ice T and his band Body Count played at Mayhem this year, and Laikisha (my concert going partner in crime) and I positioned ourselves very close to the stage as evidenced by the picture of Ice T to the right. Being this close to the stage always involves getting jostled around by folks in the mosh pit while making sure body surfers don't land on your head. I got a good arm and pectoral workout "bench pressing" a variety of different sized people throughout the show, since they were literally dropping from the sky the whole time. As Tuesday wore on my chest and neck pain got worse and I became incredibly exhausted. My eyes were stinging and all they wanted to do was close while I struggled to stay awake and get work done. But it was all worth it. I had a blast and the fact I was able to go out two nights in a row and enjoy myself like that is some sort of milestone in my Lyme treatment. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

I am now in my 33rd month of treatment. Physically I have a lot of issues that I am still trying to work through. Energy wise I am doing the best I have been doing since my Lyme journey began, and the same can be said for my mental state. I recently had a disagreement with my doctor regarding the direction of my treatment, and I have an appointment with a different Lyme doctor towards the end of August. While I am between doctors I am going to continue to over do it and enjoy my summer while sticking to my current Lyme protocol, because I know I am in for a bit of a rough road ahead with the new direction I want to go in. I shall discuss this all in more detail next time. I lost motivation to write for awhile because I felt like I was stuck in a Lyme rut, but things are changing and I am feeling optimistic.