shave ice & gelato

So much has happened since the end of July.

First off, I completed my photography class. Honestly, I enjoyed the class first class I took a little more than the class I took in the summer. I definitely learned some new things, but this class was more of an artsy class and I think I enjoy learning more about the technical aspects of photography than doing artsy stuff that someone else defines.

The new school year started at the beginning of August. I started off the year with four students (all returning), which is always a great way to start off a new year. I now have six students. So far, I am enjoying my class this year although it has been a rough quarter since I ended up being out on leave for two weeks and then had to take a couple more days off after getting sick.

I completed my two months of intensive shoulder rehab and went back to see my orthopedic doctor a few days after school started. My doctor was very impressed with my arms and even used the word "BUFF" to describe them! I have never had buff arms in my entire life. Unfortunately, I was still in pain. Since there were no other options, surgery was scheduled for the end of August. I was told that because my arms/shoulders were in such good shape, the recovery time should be quicker than for most. My surgery went well. My doctor said that it was a good thing I had the surgery because my rotator cuff was beginning to fray and more damage could have been done if I had not had the surgery. I began PT soon after surgery and have been slowly getting my strength back.

It was tough catching up with everything at work when I returned. I was exhausted from both having a difficult time sleeping at night since I was experiencing most of my shoulder pain at night when I slept and because I had this cough that started when work started in August. It did get better before surgery but when I returned to work after surgery it started getting worse again. I finally went to the doctor after waking up one morning with a low-grade fever. I thought it was a chest thing and my doctor was convinced it was a sinus thing. Either way, it involved similar drugs. My doctor prescribed Avelox. My mistake was to not read the warnings first. I usually do this before taking any new prescription but was so tired after a long day and then more waiting at the pharmacy to get the prescription filled. After the second day taking this new drug, I started to get bad stomach cramps. I got out the drug information and freaked out when reading the first line: "Warning: This medication may rarely cause tendon damage (e.g. tendinitis, tendon rupture) during or after treatment."

I could not believe what I was reading! I just had shoulder surgery with the result being that my rotator cuff was beginning to fray and now I was taking a drug that could cause this to rupture??? After more research on the internet, I found it that this warning is a black box warning for this drug as well as other drugs in the fluroquinolone category. I stopped taking the drug immediately. I did not sleep the entire night, canceled my PT appointment for the following day and was afraid to exercise my shoulder all week. I called my doctor the next day, told the nurse that I had a bad reaction and said I would need a different drug because I refused to take anymore of the Avelox. I was prescribed Amoxicillin, which I wish I was just given in the first place, especially since I was not that sick.

I went back for my final PT session a week after taking the bad meds. He said that it was probably pretty rare for a tendon to rupture from taking the medication. I reminded him that I have this dent in my arm from the bad reaction to the steroid injection that was also very rare.

I went back to see my orthopedic doctor last Thursday. He was very happy with my progress. He said my shoulder looks good and was gliding much better. He said it will take 4-6 months to fully recover and the pain I still feel (which is much better than the bad pain I had pre-surgery) is normal. I mentioned the Avelox that I took. He was surprised to hear about the warnings for this drug.

I finished my PT sessions and signed up to return to the place where I worked out during the summer and developed my buff arms to continue to rehab my shoulder. Crazy me signed up for back-to-back sessions last Friday & Saturday. Yesterday was my 3rd session. I forgot just how intense the workouts are there, especially during the first few weeks. This time, they are putting the pads on both arms and it feels really weird.

The first quarter of school ended last Friday and I am now on break for a week! Perfect timing, as I really needed some time to catch my breath after getting behind and then having to catch up on everything while being out on leave. It is also nice being on vacation during my first week of intensive rehab for my shoulders. I am wiped out after each workout. It feels like I ran a marathon with my arms at the end of each session.

OH, and then there were the SOX. That became my passion this summer. I was very proud at how hard my boys fought despite 19 players going on the disabled list and more than a third of the starting line up being out for a good amount of the season due to injuries. I had a great time following the Red Sox this year. I probably watched more games than I have in years and loved every inning. We did not make the playoffs but I never gave up until the math finally told the story and we were out.

Back to my blog… I am not sure how frequently I will post, but I will try to not ignore my blog as long as I did this summer. Even though I have rarely left comments the past few months, please know that I have been enjoying keeping up with everyone’s blogs and lives.

Happy Tuesday everyone!!