Good Morning ........

[Nickijk73]

Happy Sunday everyone. I ache just about EVERYWHERE this morning after my jaunt out with the mutt yesterday,but I still feel 100 times better for it - here’s to many more lovely,sunny days like that again soon 😊

[popsmith1874]

I agree it makes a big difference when the suns shining, a bit off heat to go with it would help as well ☀️

[Nickijk73 in reply to popsmith1874]

Yep,a bit of heat would be nice - although,with the amount of meds rattling around in me yesterday,and the fact that it was prob the first walk of any sort I’d managed for some time,there was a fair bit of ‘heat’ under my coat as it was yesterday .... I think any actual sun might’ve just finished me off completely 🤣 🤣

[SnooW]

I had a fab 3 mile walk across the fields with my dog yesterday too, in the sun, but yes, paid for it last night with pain waking me throughout the night. Think I overdid it as there were two steep hills, and the ground was hard going being so boggy (think one step forward, slide back 2 steps!) but it did the soul good, even if not the body! And my dog loved it, which is what it's all about!

[Nickijk73 in reply to SnooW]

That sounds exactly like my walk yesterday - except because minnie is sooo tiny(she’s only about 8inches at the shoulders😝) it must’ve felt like a marathon for her -still,she was running around like a loon all the same,only stopping for treats,and for me to pick leaves and twigs off of her 🤣 although she pretty much slept like a log all afternoon and night,I too ended up with a migraine and waking up at odd hours needing more muscle relaxants.... but as you said,it still made me feel a million dollars just to get some fresh air on my face ...... that’s the thing I miss most.... early morning walks in the lovely crisp fields and woods😔 still,my support worker didn’t realise we had so many fields and woods so close by me,so next time she’ll be bringing her dog too,who isn’t much bigger than Minnie,so should make for a really pleasant afternoon(s)

Hope your pain eases off quickly x

[SnooW in reply to Nickijk73]

Ha yes, bet it was hard work for her but good that it tired her out. Mine's a cocker spaniel and she NEVER gets tired! I got her before RA struck, and had built up to 4 miles with her but it's gone down to 2-3 miles now as I just seem to run out of energy - I have scoliosis too so lower back and right leg always pain a lot on walks too which doesn't help. But this time of year it is so good to be out there. How lovely that your support worker has similar sized dog and you can walk together. I hope you enjoy many happy walks this spring and summer!

[Nickijk73 in reply to SnooW]

I used to take my parents lab out twice a day when I was recovering from my back ops(degenerative disc disease,so I’ve had a fusion with screws etc,a revision of that a few months later where they had to replace a few bits,and then decompression surgery to stop the nerve getting irritated because it used to cause my legs to ‘just go’ from under me at times) and we used to go for about 5 mile walks all over the fields and woods,and I absolutely loved it - I’ve grown up with large dogs,so it’s like a comfort thing for me,and kept me fit too,but the last time I took Brandy out she pulled me on the ice and it took me 6 months for my back to recover, that’s why, when I wanted to get a dog ,I knew I had to bite the bullet and opt for a dog that couldn’t do any kind of damage to me if it ever pulled again - it did take a lot of getting my head around getting a dog smaller than my cats(they’re 7.8kg(Maine coon x’s) and she’s only 2.6kg,fully grown) but I knew it would be the best incentive to get me out,yet not cause any damage if she got excited! Quite often my parents will take Minnie for the day,and that means going out with them and their 3 dogs(a lab,a springer spaniel and a shipoo) and she keeps up with them all the way,absolutely loving it(the joy of only living one street away😝) so it gives me a break and she still gets to socialise too 😊

[rosie1928 in reply to Nickijk73]

That's what I love about walking.... all the fragrant smells in the gardens. We walk around a bird park and there is always something new to see. x Rosie

[SnooW]

That all sounds great. Dogs definitely are good for the morale and for keeping you fit. I don't think I would have coped so well with my RA if I hadn't had been reasonably fit from dog walking. Love that the cats are bigger than your dog. I have opposite type from you, slinky Siamese with smooth coats. But even they weigh more than your little dog! Both my niece and nephew have labs (old now) and I know how strong they are. I'd never handle one! I love spaniels, had a springer in the past, but got a cocker now - bit smaller. Not sure if I'll have another dog in the future....

Sounds like you've been through the mill with your back problems I hope things are more comfortable for you now.

[Nickijk73 in reply to SnooW]

Thanks SnooW

Yep,I’d recovered very well from my back,and i had managed to get back to the gym almost full time again,which for me is running 3/4 times a week for about 40 minutes,some weights,and aqua almost every day,as it was the only things I’d found over the years that kept me fit and my back strong - infact the surgeon even had a little comment about having to ‘hack through’ my back muscles during the last op because I’d built them up to be so strong he couldn’t just slice through them like he’d expected to 😝 it was definitely the dog walking twice a day that kept me fit whilst recovering too - most people I know that have only had one back op moan and whinge about how much pain they’re in,and couldn’t figure out why I wasn’t..... but it was the fact I’d been physically fit before every op that pulled me through..... again,the medical team laughed when I just walked into the theatre and hopped onto the bed before the ops because normally they wheeled people down and slid them from one bed to another?😝 I was back at work(part time) within 4 wks of my 2nd op,and that included driving almost 60 mikes each way to the office,and hiking up the Brecon Beacons whilst I still had stitches in after the decompression surgery .... it was a birthday gift from my parents for my 40th,so it had been booked before the op was planned - and I felt absolutely fine too - infact my lorry driving partner(at the time) had more difficulty getting around than me because he was so unfit 😂 the only problems I have with my back now are the ones caused by the fact I can’t get to the gym because of my PsA,so it has a knock on effect that way - I’m waiting for a course of hydrotherapy so that I can try and get some level of activity back and hopefully start me back on the Rd to activity properly 😊

[SnooW in reply to Nickijk73]

Wow, well after all that, I certainly wish you luck and hope the PsA doesn't hold you back too much in the future. I'm going for a lie down after reading that!

[Nickijk73 in reply to SnooW]

Thank you x

[rosie1928]

Good on you Nicki. Keep up the exercise. Its great to have a dog to encourage you isnt it. He looks like a sweetie.

My son has been encouraging me to walk and I have noticed that I can stand for longer periods as my back muscles are strengthening from the walking. I use a walker for balance but go at at lightning speed. Well .... that is for me......

My muscles are sore this morning.... my glutenous maximus (buttocks or bottom!) 45 minutes last night.

x Rosie

[Nickijk73 in reply to rosie1928]

Hi Rosie

Yep,i definitely paid the price for that walk - today’s been the first time since where I can actually lift my legs to walk without feeling like I’m not carrying weights attached to them..... the joy of walking for miles in deep,boggy type mud 😝 still,I was determined to do it otherwise I’m never going to build any sort of cv fitness back up,or core strength,which as you pointed out,is how we manage to tolerate standing without falling over nowadays 😂 I bought Minnie purely as my incentive for getting me back out of the house - after struggling for so long to try and find the right drug regime that worked for me,I’d basically got myself stuck in a bit of a depressive rut,and as I’ve always been fit,and even when I couldn’t manage the gym,I used to take my parents lab out just so I could get my exercise fix in,I really missed being able to go for lovely walks - I live in a pretty rural area which is surrounded by conservation areas,woodlands and farmland,and there’s nothing better than being out,all wrapped up but still feeling the crisp air on your face - and I really missed that 😞 there are plenty of hikers around the area,but it wouldn’t have felt right for me to not have a loopy dog bounding along with me 🤣 it’s taken a bit longer to get to this stage,as we all know the best laid plans always go awry when you’ve got an RD,but when I can,I do,and it’s better now that my new support worker loves her walks too - so it means I have the added confidence of knowing if I get into difficulty I’m not on my own when out,and that helps spur me on too - fingers crossed that this is the start of the light at the end of my tunnel - I know it’s going to be a slow Rd,but as long as I keep going forwards,then I’ll be happy 😊

Hope your pain’s subsided a bit today too - I know every time I went to sit down I must’ve been pulling all sorts of faces from wincing with the pain,so I definitely know how you felt 😜

Right,I can barely see straight again at the moment..... pills are kicking in.... yay.... that’s hopefully two hrs Undisturbed sleep?!😂

Night

Nicki x

[rosie1928]

Isnt it great that it is never too late too get our fitness back. I do hope you persevere and it will help stave off depression. The same for me. I spend so much time on the couch its a worry. Your dog sounds so funny. I had a loopy dog once and I couldnt stop laughing when I took him out. His name was Dippy and yes he was dippy.

I tried the gym too but it is so closed in and it wasnt nice to be the only fat one there! I felt i was giving the gym a bad name. LOL!

We have moved to this town of Bunbury six months ago and our lives have changed becasue there are parks and trees everywhere.

Life is too short isnt it? We have the make the best of it.

keep encouraging yourself and others. Onwards and upwards.

x Rosie