I don’t know what happened with this post, I thought I posted it a couple of days ago.

I just realized it was never published!

A little anti-climatic after my last post…but just imagine you read this one first.  : )

1 – WEGO Health Award Winners

Be sure to check out the WEGO Health Award Winners!  You can find the winners with links on WEGO Health on Facebook or on the WEGO Health Blog Post.  Keep watching these sites for more information about the 2012 Health Awards.  This was WEGO Health’s first Health Activist Awards and they would like your input to help make them even better, you can take a quick poll here http://4159395.polldaddy.com/s/tell-us-what-you-thought-of-2011-health-activist-awards.  I am thrilled that I was chosen as a finalist for the TMI Health Activist Award.  There were many nominations for each category, I hope you took the time to nominate your favorite blogs.  Everyone who is a Health Activist should be proud of what they accomplish.  You make a difference!

2 – Monday, January 30th…a day at Duke.

On Monday I had 3 appointments at Duke Medical Center. 12:15 pm Clinic 1D have blood tests.  Since this is a mini-post I will not go into detail about how odd the technician was, and how very painful the procedure was, needless to say, it wasn’t the best experience.  (who takes blood from a person’s hand?  Without even looking for a vein elsewhere?  And fishes around under the skin for the vein?)  Yes, not a goo experience.

1:30pm Lennox Baker Center (located about 2 or 3 miles from the clinics) for Brain MRI with Contrast.  The first person we encountered there was very confusing to me.  I kept getting confused as to what I was supposed to do next, I told him I couldn’t hear, but he just seemed to get frustrated with me…glad I had Stuart with me to help (but he got a bit confused too, so it wasn’t just the hearing issue).  I got an IV for the contrast dye, I have a huge black bruise from this, but it didn’t hurt nearly as bad as the blood test I had earlier.  The MRI itself was pretty easy, much easier now that I can’t hear the extremely loud noises that it makes.  (I also took a Valium before going, so it was much less stressful!)  When the technician took me back to Stuart, he just held the door to the waiting room and left.  Stuart wasn’t there.  I didn’t have my hearing aid.  I asked the people in the waiting room if they had seen another man, and asked them just to shake their heads because I can’t hear.  Everyone said NO…yes, I began to panic a little.  I’ve never been put in that type of situation before.  I couldn’t hear what anyone was saying, and I had no on there who knew me who could help me.  I went back to where we checked in, and Stuart was in that waiting room.  They told him that’s where they would bring me back to.  It was only a bit of a panic for a moment, but once again I’m reminded of how much I must depend on my husband.

Lunch – 2:45 – 3:10 Chipotle – There was really only one faster type place we could stop on the way back to the clinics for my next appointment.  We stopped at Chipotle.  I used to love this place, and I thought I was being very cautious when I ordered.  I had the grilled chicken tacos (no onions or gluten!)  Then I got some guacamole…I love their guacamole.  I didn’t realize until I’d eaten about 2 tablespoons of it that it has red onion in it.  My stomach bloated to such an extreme my loose top was very tight around my tummy, I really looked like I was pregnant!  I had the worst heart burn.  I was not a happy girl…but lunch tasted really good!

3:30 Duke Clinics – Dr. Kaylie’s office – As expected, my MRI was clear.  No brain tumor, a little fluid still around the surgery site, but that was to be expected, it will dissipate over time.  The greatest adventure we had at his office was with the Blood Pressure machine.  First they couldn’t get it to read my BP, then the BP cuff actually blew off!  She fixed it up, and then she took my BP again…it was 175/113!  They told me I couldn’t leave.  The nurse started asking me questions, was I light headed, did I have a headache….I mentioned I had heart burn, she started to look worried and asked if I had pain in my jaw.  I thought…oh great they think I’m having a heart attack!  I explained I had heartburn because I’d just accidentally eaten onions.   She decided to try a different machine, again, after numerous tries it wouldn’t take my BP.  We decided to rest for a bit and try again.  Third machine, finally read my BP 145/92 – yes still a bit high, but after what I’d just been through it was understandable, and Dr. Kaylie said I was OK to leave.  Whew!  I hope my blood pressure is normal next time I go to the doctor, I don’t want to go through that again.

3- New Glasses

After my appointments at Duke we went and picked up my new glasses.  I was so excited, looking forward to seeing clearer, the frames that would fit better with my hearing aid, the lighter material, and the new look.  I put them on and looked in the mirror and didn’t really like the look.  I’ll get used to it.  (I think most of it has to do with my face being so much rounder.  I’m just not fond of that look!)  In the office I thought I could see fine.  On the ride home I realized I couldn’t read the street signs.  Then yesterday while at class I realized I was having a very hard time going from distance seeing to seeing close up.  Oh great!  My optometrist and I discussed what I do and how I need to see.  She told me that the glasses I have now are single vision lenses., not bifocals.  So I decided to get two pair of glasses, one that is just single vision, and one that are called “computer progressives”.  They will help my vision seeing the computer and reading up close.   After examining the glasses I have now, I realized that they are in fact bifocals.  I’m not sure I would have added the extra expense of the second pair if I’d know this.  I’m usually very frugal about how much money I spend on glasses, but I was so unhappy with the last pair we decided to get the “perfect pair”.  Now for the beginning of trying to get these glasses fixed.  *sigh*

So there we go, 3 short versions of things I wanted to say….unfortunately, I still have much I want to post about.  Receiving the Candle Lighter Award and passing it on…a link to a post about being positive featuring me, and my day yesterday….so much I want to share, you may get tired of hearing from me.