My Week....

I feel quite naughty as I haven't posted as much as I normally do during this last week. By now on average I'm up to three posts. With all my new followers and roughly 20-30 page views per day I feel a bit guilty for not updating you on my week.

Well this last week has been a bit of a blur, mainly due to taking Amitriptyline 10mg during the day. Boy does that stuff really knock me out. Today is the first day that I haven't felt like I have consumed 3 or 4 pints of strong lager. The Amitriptyline has been prescribed for my nerve pain and it works quite well. Its not gone completely but its the only thing that's ever taken the edge off.

 On Monday my GP was so pleased with the results I am getting with using this medication he suggested adding in 10mg in the morning. Ive been in a warm fuzzy / sleepy state all week and totally out of it. To be honest I have barely been able to function. I am a member of quite a few forums and I have stupidly posted on a few of these boards. I was barely coherent talking so goodness knows what my typing has been like!

I have deliberately not done anything official or that needed high levels of concentration this week due to not being entirely on the same planet as everyone else. Thankfully the dopey/ dazed effect seems to be working its way out of my system. I have now been taking it for five days and my GP did warn me I could be completely floored by taking it during the day. I have spent most of the week in bed listening to Radio 4 Extra or the BBC World Service.

The results at night have been very good. I take 20mg of Amitriptyline about an hour before I want to settle down. Since taking it I have been sleeping a lot better and the quality of my sleep has also improved. I am still waking up during the night due to being thirsty or needing the loo, due to my excessive fluid intake but I am dropping off to sleep much more quickly when I get back into bed.

I didn't think the amitriptyline would work but I gave it a go anyway just so that I could say that I had tried it. I am really glad that I have. I think the dose may need to be gradually increased to get the full benefit. However for the first time in over ten years I have no burning sensation in my left calf which always seemed to start at night as soon as I got into bed. My left thigh also no longer continually aches. I still have a numb spot on my hip just where your knickers sit, but hey you can't have everything sorted straight away. Its going to be trial and error until we find the right pain medication to get everything under control and more manageable.

Due to my two falls on Monday I have had quite a bit of pain this week. The Amitriptyline is great for the neuropathic pain but it doesn't stop the joint and muscle pain. Presently I feel like I have been trampled on by a horse. I am keeping on top of my pain medication and on the whole its dropping it down to a more tolerable level. Some days its worse than others but at present I am coping.

Mood wise I have been a bit up and down. Its been a much better week than last week and the support I have been shown has truly touched me. On occasions its hard to concentrate on the good things in life and you find yourself focusing on the bad. I am trying to stop myself when I notice that happening. I distract myself with music, TV programmes or ringing / text messaging friends.

I don't have anymore to share with you in this post having been barely conscious this week! Hopefully I will be back on planet earth properly soon! Until then take care everyone.