Living with Scleroderma

I’m heading into one of those periods when I have at least one and often two or more medical appointments each week for several weeks. Last week I met with our PCP to evaluate my sore back. Turns out it’s not a pulled muscle; it’s sciatica. Ugh. Treatment remains the same—lidocaine patches, OTC pain meds, heat or cold as needed, gentle stretching, no heavy lifting, rest, rest, rest. I’m slowly improving, able to sit and write at my computer again and drive longer distances, take walks. Sleeping soundly. All that is good, but I wish it would just go away.

My resilience was put to the test the next day, when I had to get up very early to drive in rush hour traffic to Boston for a 9:00 a.m. echocardiogram to assess my pulmonary hypertension, followed by a later morning appointment with my cardiologist. I did okay on the long drive, knowing from experience that I could lie down and doze during the echo, depending on how the tech handled the ultrasonic probe. Fortunately, he had an excellent, light touch, and I was able to rest for most of the half-hour procedure.

I found a cafe not far from the clinic and roused myself some more with an excellent breakfast. Then, after getting my sense of direction mixed up and walking a few blocks the wrong way (more tired than I thought), I realized my mistake and walked back to the clinic with 10 minutes to spare for my next appointment.

I was led to an exam room right on time for an ECG. But my cardiologist was backed up, so I was sent back to the waiting room for a while. Maybe a half-hour later, I was ushered into an exam room again, only to sit and wait for another half hour or so. This is when my iPhone is a necessary companion. I kill a lot of time in waiting rooms doing The New York Times crossword and other puzzles.

At last my wonderful cardiologist arrived, apologizing for the delay. Turns out there was a crunch of patients who showed up all at the same time. In any case, we reviewed my echo preliminary results, which were stable. Always reassuring. Pulmonary pressures were good. He noted, as he has previously, that I have some fluid around my heart, a bit more than is normal, which he attributed to some stiffening of the heart muscle due to scleroderma, which apparently impedes normal fluid absorption. Nothing to worry about, but important to track. He ordered some blood work to rule out any inflamation. We compared notes on sciatica. He’s lived with numbness in his left leg for years.

Then it was down to the lab for a blood draw. I had some other tests for my new GI specialist from a previous appointment that I could not complete at the time, so I took care of all that. The phlebotomist’s name was also Evelyn, so we bonded and chatted about our different nicknames (she goes by Eva and I, by Evie). I informed her that I have small, rolling veins, which can be an issue for getting stuck easily, and she used a butterfly needle, a good thing, because there were six vials to draw.

That accomplished, I drove home, which only took an hour, given no traffic midday, then stopped at the pharmacy to pick up a refill. By the time I got home, seven hours had elapsed since I’d left. I plugged in my heating pad and took a much needed nap, which enabled me to get some work done at my computer later that afternoon.

I’m always grateful for all of the excellent medical care. I’m also grateful when I can have some days off from all those appointments. Sleep is essential. Pacing is everything.

Evelyn Herwitz blogs weekly about living fully with chronic disease, the inside of baseballs, turtles and frogs, J.S. Bach, the meaning of life and whatever else she happens to be thinking about at livingwithscleroderma.com. Please view Privacy Policy here.

Image: Jackman Chiu