A small miracle would be nice....

Just a small one, teeny tiny. Things seem so compounded right now. It's a new year but financially we are so strapped. I took a leave of absence from school so I could stay home and help Damon out when needed and to get the kids to and from school. Having 1 car really makes that difficult at times. Thank God I don't have to work right now, even though the extra income would truly help. Still waiting on the VA and SS to come through for us, seems we've been waiting forever and there is no light at the end of the tunnel. I just pray that this is a good year for us, even though it's starting off a little bumpy, financially speaking.

Another day almost down, another day to look forward to.

Reynauds and RSD

So it's been awhile since I updated everyone with the comings and goings of what goes on here......so here goes...

Well we are getting closer to getting answers.....We know that Damon has RSD (Reflex Sympathetic Dystropy) also known as CRPS type I and II. His newest and BEST doctor we have seen is a Pain Management doctor and he has also diagnosed him with Reynaud's disease. It is a disease of the circulatory system where his hands and feet are cold, they get red and blue blotchy and it's very painful. I'm sure you can google this and find more info about it. There is much more than what I described but I don't feel like typing all the medical jargon.

He's been on a cycle of pain meds for several months now, this doctor is phenomenal. He switches the meds out every other month or so to avoid the addictiveness and it helps. He has him on some good sleep medicine too so that helps. Next month he is going to a neurostimulator specialist and they are going to put peripheral leads into his ankles and place them directly on the nerves affecting certain parts of his feet, then they will tunnel the leads through his calf and place the actual stimulator under his thigh muscle. This has to be done on both legs. Then they will go in and put leads into his wrists affecting his hands with the leads tunneling through his bicep muscle leading to the stimulator behind his chest muscles...This will have to be done to both sides as well, with one battery pack running both stimulators for his hands. The specialist said this approach will work better since his pain is in certain areas and he won't have the issues he has now with his current stimulator and it not working how it needs to work. They will be taking his current stimulator out and using that as the battery pack for the ones they will place in his hands....so it sounds like a lot but the doctor says this is all done as outpatient surgery! Technology is amazing!

So we keep on going, keep hoping that this will help with some of the pain. At this point, a little relief is better than no relief right?

We keep fighting the good fight, now I just wish the VA would step up and do their part, YEP still waiting.....I hope that all this time waiting will pay off in the end.

I hope this has answered some questions, google those things above and it can give you more then enough information....there is so much out there!

Hugs to everyone!

The last 15 years.....

Ok, so we were sitting outside talking about where we were over New Year's since we met and we came up with them....it wasn't too hard, but it's so funny to look back and remember where you were, what you were doing and the hopes and dreams you had for the coming year!
1995 - I had just arrived in Sasebo, Japan (had seen Damon but not met him yet)
1996 - Damon, Josh and I went to Las Vegas on a whim, we wanted to see a hotel blown up, but they ended up doing it early and we missed it. Went with our CRAZY neighbors and ended up having to drive back at like 2 a.m. because all the hotels were booked up. I had to stand outside the casinos with Josh since I wasn't old enough to get in!
1997 - 119A Wonju Circle, Camp Pendleton CA (our 2nd base housing)
1998 - Spent the holidays at Damon's mom and dads in Lodi, CA
1999 - Mom came to visit while Damon was on deployment, I think I went to bed early. Jaden was just a couple
months old. Damon came home on January 8th, 2000.
2000 - 281 Himmer St, Camp Pendleton, CA (our 3rd base housing). This is the year I met Sasha. WOW! 10 years!
2001 - 281 Himmer St, Camp Pendleton, CA
2002 - Went to the snow in the mountains and the beach the same day...We lived on Cuyamaca. This would be our last New Year's in California!
2003 - Annandale, VA. Had people over and played board games....
2004 - I think this is the year we spent the holidays in Illinois....
2005 - Washington DC, went to see the national tree with friends, ate at Hooters. Our last New Years in Virginia!
2006 - I worked at the club that night, Damon went home early cuz he wasn't feeling well, still a fun night! Our first New Year's in Florida!
2007 - I was pregnant with the twins, we went to bed early.....
2008 - Mt. Carmel, IL. All of us were home for the first time in 4 years. Played Rock Band and cards and drank with my brothers and sister! We had a blast!
2009 - UGH....little did we know that 2010 was to be a year that we'd rather forget! Damon was sick in bed, Thomas was over lighting fireworks and I watched SVU all day!
2010 - Played Rock Band and Wii with Emmy, danced and played cards, snacked and had some wine, sat out on our porch listening to fireworks and wondering what 2011 will bring us! I'm blessed that my family is together and my best friend is here with me!

2011....what will it bring?

Well we made it to 2011! We also made it to 15 years of being happily married! I felt like blogging since I just found another woman on here that is in the same situation as we are. RSD and how it affects her husband and all the changes that their lives have taken. WOW. I knew there were others out there that were in the same boat, but reading her blog made it seem like it was one I would have written. It's nice to know that we are not alone in this fight and that others are going through very similar situation and trying to make the best of it.

So what will 2011 bring? I hope nothing but happiness and good times with good people, good friends and being together. Maybe I need to change my outlook on things and start everyday with a positive thought and keep it going the rest of the year. No more pity parties, no more being angry with a situation I can't change and looking forward to each moment I've been given to enjoy time with my husband, my kids and my best friend. :) I am determined to make this a fantastic year, regardless of what speed bumps and hurdles pop up along the way....