100 miles on the wrong side

So I recently moved to a new organization. Change in places of work can be quite stressful sometimes. Fortunately for me, I was working so hard past few months that it didn't seem to matter much. My new organization seems to be nice. Looks like a good work - life balance which I was really hoping for.

My last doc visit and blood tests were a disaster. My CPK was around 2370 ! My initial response was of panic. My CPK levels have never been this high. Not even when I was bed ridden or using a wheel chair. I was very skeptical and was expecting the worse. But after the initial shock wore off. I took it in my stride and continued work, life as normal. It feels bit weird when friends at work / outings discuss about their problems. As a DM patient, you need to go through all of that and plus these health woes. Also if you had this disease for a really long time, you tend to forget / ignore health issues sometimes for other "worldly" problems!

I had noticed the fatigue had started affecting me, especially early mornings and late night. Fortunately I feel its been a while now. Almost a month and without much trouble. So feeling a lot relieved now. Change in meds was expected, but didn't affect my daily activities as such. But working and managing people around can be quite taxing along with coping with DM. Sometimes it feels like I am driving a car very fast on the wrong side of the road! Catching up with music really helps though.

My eyesight seems to be affected somehow. I have always felt uneasy with bright light and quality of vision since my relapse last year. But just haven't found time to visit my ophthalmologist whose clinic is just outside city limits. I might consult a new doc later next week.

Last week I had a small road trip with my pals. I tried out para sailing on the beach. It was real fun. It really feels liberating when you are out in the sea having a glimpse of the vast scenery hundreds of feet above water. 

Para sailing

 I really required that break last weekend. Since last couple of months, I had been so busy with work and other commitments that just couldn't find time for myself. Planning for a short overseas trip sometime next year hopefully!

Right now I sometimes get the feeling to just relax for couple of days at a stretch until all the fatigue goes away! Need to alter my lifestyle to catch up on that "resting time".

Ciao n Peace.

Upside Down

So had a wonderful start to the month. I got a great opportunity to work with a company located close to my home. It is rated highly by the "Great place to work" institute. So I was really thrilled. They have asked me to join their team by October end. Couldn't ask for more..Really!

But last week, things literally turned on their head. On Friday after waking up, I had the worst feeling as my head was spinning like a top. No I wasn't drunk! The doctors have diagnosed it as "vertigo" and have put me on meds. I was so shaken up by this episode that am really starting to think if the "long" hours at work led to this new development. Even worse is the fact that I can't take a day off. Even on weekends! It's been a month I have been working non stop and I feel like its been a harrowing affair. 

The meds are pretty strong and feel drowsy. So as of now working from my home. But my boss is insisting I come to office. As of now, there is no way I can travel even a bit. My body has become very sensitive to noise. Even running commentary on tv/radio is driving me nuts! Sudden movements are a big cause for concern as it derails the vision completely.

Hoping for some sane moments for the remainder of the week! Hope I can last next couple weeks without getting too bogged down by all this. Hoping for the best for the battle ahead!

Ciao n Peace.

Edge Cases

It's been raining heavily in Mumbai past couple of days. I have been lucky to avoid most of the harrowing times that other office goers go through since I have been stuck at office most of the time past 3 weeks. Its been crazy since I spend most of the time at office and even after reaching home have to check on work sometimes.

Just waiting for the current project to be done with. I just hope I can last next 2 weeks. Since they are going to be very critical at work and also for my health. Health wise I am almost at the point of losing it all. The fatigue and weakness that I was experiencing yesterday was phenomenal but I am still "hanging in there" like always. A days rest today really helped to catch up on my sleep. I was sleeping till almost 2:30 PM today ! So much for enjoying weekends ! Had a good time with friends at night today. So getting ready for the monday morning blues ! Unfortunately there is no time to waste so have to catch up work pretty quickly tomorrow. No time for friendly banter or water cooler "talks" with other ppl for now.

Hope DM reads this post and stays away for a while!

Ciao n Peace.
 

Just another day in the park

It's been a while since I posted. It's also been a while since I had a rest day ! Last couple of months have been very hectic for me. I am involved  in a project where my involvement is neck deep and there is no way I can back out now for another couple of weeks. 

Health wise I was doing pretty bad as I was facing with fatigue issues all summer. After a night's rest, I would wake up feeling very weak in the morning. This has been going on for a while now. My doc changed my meds and somehow it still persisted. I feel taking time off work pressure could somehow ease it a bit.

Lately I have been thinking of starting my own consulting or doing some freelance work rather than working in an organization. But somehow the roles & responsibilities and work environment at offices is infectious and can't do without it! So for now sticking with my job for another couple of months.

Right now I could do with a break for couple of days, maybe go out on a vacation. But its rainy days out here. Traveling becomes too messy and visibility during driving affects my vision and don't want to put too much strain on myself for now. So might wait for monsoon to finish off and then maybe a long overdue road trip would be just right.

Been pretty busy on weekends as my niece would be around. Or would spend time with friends on movies & outings. Also had to work on couple of weekends , so that pretty much messed up my timelines.

But a car drive with open windows during a drizzle with my favorite music playing on helps to deal with all the stress ! So far so good for now.

Ciao n Peace.

Work Update

So it has been almost 3 months now, since I rejoined work. Things are looking pretty good. At least I have regained my confidence that I can work coupled with rest on weekends. Yes, it leaves me with hardly any time for other commitments. But that is something I always should have prioritized earlier as well.

So in this short time, I have already worked on 2 projects and helped a ton of people. Just can't believe what was supposed to be a temporary thing to help me get started, has helped me immensely in my professional life.

Working with DM is not an easy task like say climbing stairs :P But really helps with the satisfaction at the end of the day, of having accomplished something important. My work profile is such that it always ends up with lot of stress, long working hours, more communication with people compared to others in the team. But this time around, I was up for it and tried to keep stress levels low and that helped me some what to get into the "groove".

Health wise, I have been able to recover quite well. Usually after work, I feel a lot of fatigue. But ample amount of rest, music, playing guitar, yoga / meditation has helped me some what. I have observed bit of muscle wasting and scared of it, but doctors aren't too worried about it. I might have to do some physio therapy or exercises on my own. Since my current work place is pretty far from the main road and since some times the elevators don't work here! Yes I some times climb almost 3 floors ! So I have started driving down to work. It's just a 15-20 mins drive and get to park very close to the office. But that doesn't help with the exercises bit. Since taking a walk after reaching home is kind of a power drain. But climbing three floors is almost like punching in the stomach ! Leaves you breathless for a while. Need a good bit of chocolate bar & coffee to bring me back to my senses !

Enjoyed my birthday last week and had a great time with friends at a barbeque place near by. The food was awesome and now worried about putting on weight ! Since been to the same place twice last week :) Planning for a road trip some time in coming weeks. Only if I am up to it. Two of my very good friends haven't been to any road trips since Dec, 2011 after which I had the relapse. We had been to a beach resort then for snorkeling / scuba diving & visiting old forts and watching dolphins in the sea ! Hope to plan something as exciting in coming days.

Ciao n Peace.

Tough times

So its been almost two months since I rejoined work. Initially I was able to cope with the work timings and had a nice routine going on for me. But since last couple of weeks I am back at it again. Started feeling tired like, all the time. I was really worried I wouldn't be able to handle work any more. But somehow managing to scrape through. Work has been very hectic for me. I had to work on weekends couple of times. 

Its tough getting back on the job. I had already refused few projects due to work location and was running on thin ice so had to comply with my current project demands. Hopefully the worst is behind me. I feel better when I have taken rest or had enough sleep (9-10 hours). But sometimes it becomes difficult with all the chores and office work. But hanging in there. Not much to say really other than work,rest and work again !

Ciao n Peace.

Day of the Rising Sun

Yoohoo , I am back. Today I was at my peaceful best. In terms of mood. I swear everything was so calm, I could literally meditate standing in the middle of a busy road ! For starters, my health returned something back to normalcy, that is just DM stuff to deal with. I felt very fresh and felt really energetic.

Ended up the day taking a long walk, also exercised a bit after coming home. I NEVER exercise after work. Although feeling bit rundown now ! But worth every effort. Great day today. Have a little sniffle so popped some "more" pills. Looking forward for tomorrow.

Ciao n Peace.