Rest in Peace Tom

 TR: Kristen Kaufman, Bob and Tom Miller

BR: Melissa and Katie Miller, Shawn Kaufman

This photo was taken in 1983 of my two children and my sister's 4 children. It's so hard to believe that my sister's oldest son Tom has passed away. All of these kids grew up to become beautiful, wonderful and successful kids. Your children aren't suppose to go before the parents. That's what makes it so hard. 

 
"If the people we love are stolen from us, the way to have them live on, is to never stop loving them. Buildings burn, people die but real love is forever." Rest in Peace Tom

Bell's Palsy.

 Bell's Palsy.


If it's not one thing it's another. Getting old really sucks. 

  Last Saturday the right side of my face stopped working. I can't blink or close my right eye. I have it taped shut right now so it won't dry out.. It's funny looking when I looked at my forehead. The right side doesn't have wrinkles and the left side does. Then there is my face which droops on the right side. The right side of my mouth doesn't work either so I have a hard time talking.and eating. 

All of this started yesterday while I was having lunch at the Grand Victoria Casino. I thought I was having a stroke or something. I waited until I was ready for bed that night but my right eye didn't close. I got worried so I got in the car and went to the emergency room. They told me I have Bell's Palsy. The doctor said that it is a virus. She gave me some steroids to take for 5 days. "You should not have waited so long when you first got the symptoms. It could have been a stroke," the doctor told me. She said that it should go back to normal in 2 weeks. I sure as hell hope so.

  It's the right side of my face that does not work. I was trying to Smile. Went to the Doctor today and more pills.😔 The doctor said that I should be able to close my eyelid in about 2 weeks. I have it taped shut right now so it won't dry out.

 

Day 5 - No Change at all. Shit !!!

Day 7 – My right side of my face is still paralyzed. It sags. I can’t move my forehead, or lift my eyebrow. The worst part is that my right eye doesn’t blink. So I have to keep putting eye drops in it and tape it shut so it won’t dry out or I will lose my eye. I tried wiggling my nose back and forth. It will move to the left but not to the right. The right side of my mouth wouldn’t move so it is hard to talk and to keep food in it when I eat. I have a pain in the back of my right ear where the facial nerves come through. I just finished taking 5 days of Prednisone 40 mg per day. I am still taking my anti-viral pills. 

When this suddenly came on last Saturday I also came down with a sinus infection which left my nose running and sneezing. They gave me antibiotics for that. Thankfully that has gone away. 

 The emergency room doctor said that I should be able to start blinking again in 2weeks. I sure hope she is right. It is awful with only one eye. I am going to keep this post up to date as things progress so others who come down with it will know what to expect. 

Day 8 -  I went to the VA Hospital today (Saturday) and had an MRI of my Cervical Spine and the nerve that runs from my neck to the back of my ear that is paralyzing the right side of my face. I will have to wait a couple of days for the results.

Lost my sense of taste. 

 Day 12 - I talked with my VA doctor this evening and she is going to send me to a neurologist, an Eye Doctor and a speech Pathologist. I don’t have the dates yet. They will call me and let me know when. 

Day 17 – No Change Yet. Except I got my sense of taste back

  I already had my VA appointment with the Eye doctor yesterday and my speech pathologist is next Monday but my VA Neurologist appointment isn’t for another 3 months from now. WTF. I thought President Trump got the VA to speed things up with seeing doctor appointments? The Neurologist is the one Doctor I really want to see.

Day 33 – No change. My right side of my face is still paralyzed. The VA eye doctor is treating me with eye drops and eye paste so my eye won’t dry out. I went to the VA today to get it checked up. They told me I have to keep it taped closed. I still can’t blink.
Last week I got an MRI of my brain to rule out anything else that might be happening.
I am seeing a VA Eye doctor (2x’s), my general practitioner on the outside and at the VA, a Speech Pathologist at the VA (2x’s), had an MRI of the brain on the outside and have been referred to an outside Neurologist. No one can tell me how long this will last. Usually 3 to 6 months is all they can say.
I just want this to go away.

  Day 40: An update on how things are going with my Bell's Palsy

 Day 80: An update on how things are going with my Bell's Palsy

 

May The Dice Be With You

St Patrick Day Dice by 5BillDice on Sketchfab

May The Dice Be With You 

Hallmark Christmas Movies

During the Christmas Holidays I think I watched every Hallmark Christmas movie they had. Those movies grew on me. I spent the Christmas Holidays all by myself, so watching the Hallmark movies gave me something to do and they made me feel good. I think every one of them got me emotional. I thought of the early days when I had my parents and all my relatives were around.

  
 I did set up my train set and decorated it with lights and garland all around it. It was fun playing with it on Christmas morning. I think I’ll leave it up for a while.