Very fat ankles and toes

fortuna

Just as you think things are improving a bit it all gets turned up side down RA wise I was doing quite well.

My ankles are horrendous by 3 pm really swollen right down to my toes. I already had a Drs appointment and although it was a morning app she could see the oedema. Doubled my dose of furosemide tablets to 80mg daily. Also am getting a bit out of breath so she had a listen to my chest and she heard some 'crackles' as did my Dr at the Diabetic clinic. So a chest xray next Friday and she put in 2 extra blood tests - one for Vitamin D deficiency and one for heart strain. I now know my Vitamin D levels are very low now (from the Diabetic clinic) and have an app. next Wednesday to sort that out.

On top of that I had an hour long app. with Hand therapy and since trying to do the many exercises she wants me to do an awful lot of stiffness and pain has come back. I can't face the hot water cold water treatment at the moment. And of course I'm tired all the time!

Apart from that and the fact that it's another B Bank holiday I am alive and it could be worse, a lot worse.

Thanks for reading it does help to get things off your chest and it stops me boring friends to death.
Fortuna
Ps it is 2.45am and I can't sleep wonder who else is burning the midnight oil?

DebbieT

Hi,

Yep, I'm still awake too.
My right ear started throbbing late afternoon & by around 11pm my eardrum had perforated, it really rounded my b'day off My first perforation was at the ripe old age of 3 weeks old! :shock: :roll:

You do sound like ure going thru it at the moment, sorry ((((Hugs))))

I really hope they can sort ure deficiency out asap, vit D can cause a number of problems :? It's quite common in fibromyalgia patients for some reason.

I hope ure pain, stiffness & swelling all start to settle down asap. I place my hands on my bedroom wall, it's an outside one not internal, to cool mine down ... It helps a bit but my hands aren't too bad luckily!!

I hope ure sleeping soundly now & that you have a lovely ,Bank Holiday weekend.

Take care & have some more of these (((( ))))

Xxx xxX

fortuna

Thanks for your thoughts Debbie. What a miserable way to finish a birthday. I suffered earache as a child and know how painful it can be.
Hope you are feeling a bit better today.

I eventually got to sleep about 4am. I woke at 10am with my head feeling like a boulder on my neck. Back to bed or the couch as I feel I'm carrying an extra stone!

The ankles haven't gone down this am. so will have to put them up. I have got a good book to fall asleep to, hopefully.

Lots of ((()))) to you and hope they can sort your ear problem out.
Fortuna

dreamdaisy

When resting I always sit with my feet raised on a footstool with a cushion under my knees (they no longer lie flat). When at dinner parties I will eventually swing round on my chair and drape my legs over the lap of whoever is sitting next to me - my friends are very accommodating . Swelling of the lower limbs is common in older people - my mum's skin used to be stretched drum-skin tight and became very discoloured (I think she had OA but it was never acknowledged by her or her doctor) - because fluid retention is a problem. Do you drink enough water or other fluids during the day? Oddly enough drinking more can help to ease the problem. It is uncomfortable though, I empathise and hope that the increase in meds begins to help. DD

DebbieT

Oh no, I hoped you'd sleep long & deep I hope you do get a nap in & that ure head clears!! (((Hugs)))

DD makes a good point about ure fluid intake, it is important to ensure you are drinking plenty to keep everything moving & to help ure water tablets to flush thru ure system!! Hopefully keeping ure legs raised for periods will help too

Thank you .... Now my ear has perforated there is nothing to be done. It happened quickly, which was a blessing, as the pain lessens once it's started draining. Gross but true I didn't sleep til around 5.30am so I expect I'll sleep early tonight

Take care & rest easy.
(((( ))))

Xxx xxX

bubbadog

I have to join in on the rant of the swollen ankles! My ankles seem to be swollen all the time, I like DD raise them up on my poof everyday but they don't seem to go down! Even when I go and see my G.P or Rhummy all they say is 'oh my your ankles and feet are swollen'!! I feel like saying back 'No S**t Sherlock!!' They have tried water tablets in the past and decided it's not fluid. Some days my ankles get so swollen that it feels like my skin is going to split. I hope you get some good sleep soon and your fat ankles decide to go back to normal what ever normal is!!

fortuna

Thanks DebT, DD and bubba for your thoughts. I do drink lots of water and put my feet up as often as possible and take the tablets twice a day. I don’t really see that I can do much else.

I have caught up on the sleep if one can ever catch up! Also yesterday I sat, feet up, all afternoon watching progs I have recorded. Good thing they were recorded as I kept dosing off and so could press replay.

Today I am being taken out to lunch by an old friend who has a wonderful sense of humour and always makes me laugh. she is 5 years older than me and as fit as a fiddle! and I am not at all envious. And I tell lies.

Hope you will all have a better day today
fortunax

dreamdaisy

I hope you enjoy your trip out despite her rude good health. Sometimes things just happen (and they may not be connected to arthritis) but how are we supposed to know that? :? At time we lead uneasy lives. DD

bubbadog

Enjoy your lunch, I'm sure your friend will keep you from thinking about swollen ankles and Arthritis for the afternoon!!

fortuna

She is the most wonderful tonic! I wish I could bottle her. that should perhaps be rephrased but you know what I mean! She has invited me to go to Wells near the sea for a few days in September which is something nice to look forward to.
Generally I feel quite cheerful,
Fortuna x

bubbadog

Glad you & your friend had a good time and what a lovely gesture to go away for a few days. I know myself that having something to look forward to really helps with making you feel happy and putting worry & upset to the back of your mind.

Francie7532

Fortuna,

Sorry to hear of your troubles. I too have a great friend who always makes me laugh. I believe laughter is the best medicine!! You must see more of her. I also have swollen ankles and feet, and love to walk. I wish I could put my feet over my head and let them drain, the pressure gets so taut, I feel like the skin is going to split open!! My husband calls them "Gankles" because they are gigantic ankles!

RA is a test sometimes isn't it?
Take heart, you are not alone, we can all laugh together at our foibles and coping with them.

fortuna

Hi Francie,
I would like to see more of her but she lives a nasty drive away from me.
Sorry to hear you have the same problem. Mine are OK first thing but increase as I move about. If I sit with them up all day the swelling is minimal. But as we all know that is not living!
And as for shoes I have the unenviable task of trying to find some nice summer shoes.
Wish me luck, have a good day
Fortuna

fortuna

Hi Francie,
I would like to see more of her but she lives a nasty drive away from me.
Sorry to hear you have the same problem. Mine are OK first thing but increase as I move about. If I sit with them up all day the swelling is minimal. But as we all know that is not living!
And as for shoes I have the unenviable task of trying to find some nice summer shoes.
Wish me luck, have a good day
Fortuna

trepolpen

hi fortuna , sorry about your ankles , but it goes with RA & when it gets bad it wont go down over night , alot of the problem is being able to pump the fluids back & to do that we need to walk about a lot but walking & RA dont always go

putting a TENS on your calf muscle or us a Circulation Booster will help as do putting feet up etc

as for shoes I tend to use Suede leather hush puppies

fortuna

Thanks for your advice - will look at Hush puppies,
Fortuna

Francie7532

Dear fortuna, I have found that yoga has helped me a lot. I got into a very intense version of Ashtanga yoga earlier this year to help me with my movement and it has increased range of motion, decreased pain, improved my diet (I just dont want to eat meats any more) and reduced the swelling in my ancles.

I just stay an extra 2min in the headstand every day.