Showing posts with label heavy metals. Show all posts
Showing posts with label heavy metals. Show all posts

Monday, August 29, 2022

Back at it - Round 111 ALA

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 Well, after  taking a very long break from chelation (18 months), I'm back doing rounds. 

All of 2021 was one UTI after another. They actually started right after Thanksgiving of 2020, then another one in December. I think I had 6 or 7 more in 2021. 




We flew to California for a week in May 2021, which was a disaster. I've just realized a few weeks ago that a ride on a transportation cart set off a meltdown and sent me into fight or flight mode all that week and I couldn't sleep. I was having multiple meltdowns daily and wanted to come home after a few days. Had there been a non stop flight from Orange County, I would have flown home. We did take our Christmas photo for that year and we were able to visit Calvary Chapel Chino Hills. 







In July I caught the worst respiratory virus I've ever had. Our youngest daughter caught it, as well and said the same thing. It was not covid! Tested negative twice on both the rapid test and 3 antibody tests. 

At the end of August, I went to my PCP for yet another UTI and she ran labs because I was there. Big mistake, but it got the ball rolling for me to start looking into what was going on.

Hmm, how can I shorten the last 12 months? PCP tested my thyroid, only TSH and T4. Another big mistake. My TSH has been non existent for years (I had my thyroid ablated with radioactive iodine around 2006). My TSH was near zero at .010 (range .45 - 4.5). She told me to lower my Armour thyroid. I did so and my hair was falling out, depressed and crying every day and couldn't (tmi) poop. I had gone to the Emergency Room and she saw my TSH, which they ran there and said I needed to reduce my thyroid meds further. I said, I'm not doing that and gave her the reasons above and told her the TSH doesn't measure thyroid hormone in the body, it measures the message the PITUITARY is sending to the thyroid for how thyroid hormone to make. 

Thankfully, I found Stop The Thyroid Madness website and Functional MD near me that was willing to order the testing STTM recommended. You can find those recommended labs HERE. If your doctor won't order them, they have a discounted link for labs that you can have drawn at a lab near you. 

I'm going to go into some details here (not all), because many run into the same problem and their PCP or endocrinologist doesn't really understand how to treat thyroid problems properly. There, I said it. It's true. Just join a STTM Facebook group and see how many women have said the same thing!
The basic labs for thyroid are Free T3, Free T4 and Reverse T3. (not T3 and T4 - those are different from Free T3 and Free T4) Turns out my Reverse T3 was high and my Free T3 (usable) was low and I was hypothyroid. Your body is supposed to make or take(meds) T4(storage hormone) and converts it to T3, the thyroid hormone your body uses. If you have inflammation in your body (took another year to figure it out what was causing it), your body will convert T4 to T3 and instead make anti-thyroid and will show up as high Reverse T3. 

I hope I got that right!

So, I convinced my functional MD, who after hearing my whole health story- lyme, heavy metals, thyroid), to agree to prescribe T3 (liothyronine) only. Since I'm not taking any T4, I wouldn't have any storage thyroid hormone in my body, so I had to take it 3 times a day because it has a short half life. 

I started at 5 mcg 3 x a day and increased 1.25 to 2.5 mcg once a week. Most people increase 2.5 to 5 mcg every 5 - 7 days, but my adrenals were shot and the only way I could increase was 1.25 mcg a week. I used a micro scale to weigh my dose. 

I started Nov 1st and remember waking up mid November happy (and not crying) for the first time in a long time. It usually takes 12 weeks to clear Reverse T3, but mine was down to <5 (11 or below is good) in 6 weeks. 
My doctor wanted me to go back on some Armour (has T4 and T3) in January. It was awful . I was once again waking up with heart pounding and not being able to get back to sleep. Oh, did I forget to tell you that was happening back in the Fall?

I went back to T3 only. Once again, I searched and found an integrative practice who was recommended by STTM. I found RIH in Winston-Salem, which was a 2 hour drive from home. Their doctors weren't taking any new patients, but after applying I got accepted with a PA in mid April. My case is pretty complicated and all the labs I've done and 2 trips to the ER in February didn't reveal what was causing all this.

Some good news mid April, my Free T3 was optimal - so I can check my thyroid off the list.



I purchased this massage gun to relieve sore muscles:




Guys, this really is the short version and I've left a lot out!

I went to a Nephrologist in May, more labs, then another appointment via telehealth. Nothing. Come back in a year. 

Then at a 2nd appointment to RIH, my PA asked me if I've ever heard or tried LDN (low dose naltrexone). I said I've heard and read some about it. She prescribed it and I received my compounded .5 mg LDN in the mail at the end of May. 
I started taking it May 30th and it's helped me to sleep a bit better (up 3 times a night, instead of 5-10) and it's helped resolve my IC symptoms. You can look up Interstitial Cystitis symptoms  yourself. What a blessing.
I worked up to 2mg, but began having unpleasant symptoms after about a week, where I was afraid to not be near a bathroom. I'll leave it at that. I did notice at 2mg, is that I was only getting up once or twice a night and the IC symptoms were completely gone and the neuropathy in my legs was a little better. Unfortunately, I had to go back down to 1.5 mg again. Sometimes, the side affect I was having is because of the microcrystalline cellulose filler, so I ordered a new prescription with magnesium glycinate as a filler. 





Thankfully, I think I've figured out that the problem is too much magnesium. I stopped all magnesium (I was taking magnesium malate and magnesium glycinate) and the problem stopped. I'm now at 2.0, and am anxious to move up to the full dose of 4.5 mg.  

In mid June, I had an appt with a neurologist and he ordered lots of labs (11 vials of blood!) and 3 MRIs. The 11 vials of blood revealed I was deficient in vitamin E and .... Scleroderma antibodies. Scleroderma is a rare autoimmune condition. That explains the super tight muscles and neuropathy in my legs, and my 30 plus pound weight loss since last August, muscle atrophy, fat pads atrophy on the bottom of my feet and the loss of my curves. There are some medical papers that say scleroderma can be the result of heavy metals. Let's hope chelation will help my body heal. 

If you're a long time follower of this blog, I lost weight without meaning to (the first time) back in 2015. I also listed the problem with the bottom of my feet. 

As for the MRIs which were ordered to check for MS, I went to my appointment several weeks ago and didn't make it 2 minutes before I asked to be brought out. I knew I wouldn't last long when a cage was put over my face and my neck tucked in. I wore earplugs, but I should have known that the loud noise would send me over the edge. 

I had a meltdown after they took me out. Being in a very small space, being confined by the cage over my head and the loud noise of the machine, sent me into fight or flight mode for the next several days. I couldn't sleep and I kept having flashbacks to being in the MRI machine. 

I won't be going back even in an open MRI machine with valium. I will have to be put under if the neurologist really wants to do them.

Phew! That catches you up to my trials and tribulations for 2022!!! 

The good news for 2022 not related to health? I have a new grandson! Photo taken when he met his big sister.



Where do I go from here?

I'm hoping to work up to 4.5mg of LDN 

I'm taking Perfect Aminos recommended by someone in a scleroderma group for building muscle and gaining/maintaining weight. 






I purchased a LifePro Hovert vibration place to increase circulation in my legs and help me with balance. Been using it 3 times a day for about a week and I think it helps my balance! 

I purchased a BioMax 900 infrared light panel from Platinum Therapy and I believe that's helping too. I'll do another post in a month or so on how it's helping.



...and lastly, I'm on my 3rd round (round 111) after starting back up, of Andy Cutler Chelation at 10 mg Alpha Lipoic Acid every 3 hours around the clock for 63 hours.  Round 112 was 12 mgs. Minor symptoms on round and will stay at 12 mg for 3 rounds minimum, until no symptoms are felt on or off round. 

The next dose increase will be 18mg. 

That's enough for now! Stop by my DIY blog to see what we've been doing at our mountain cottage. Click on the photo of the bookcase on the right sidebar.


Pam


symptoms:

weight 118

Dizziness/off balance

lumps/atrophy bottom of feet

thick skin/tight muscles, muscle atrophy, neuropathy on feet,  legs and part of lower trunk. 

gait hasn't improved

brain fog/dizziness late afternoon- happens rarely

sleep - is 2 points better- getting up most nights 2-3 times.

           sleeping on good nights 2- 3 hour stretches.

energy - Have a bit more energy. 

              On the few nights I only get 4-5 hours of sleep,  I don't feel awful, like a                    zombie. 

depression/crying for no reason - not lately

ringing in ears - high pitch is much less 

nails are better (this was mostly a thyroid problem)

blurry eyes for a whole day occur rarely

IC (interstitial cystitis) symptoms are much improved (thanks to LDN. 


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Saturday, March 23, 2019

Down In The Trenches

This post is mainly written for those who are chelating.



It's Saturday and I feel crappy.

I usually wait until I feel somewhat well to write, but today I'm writing when I don't feel well.

If you're wondering...I just finished month 16 of the dump. It could end any day now or it could linger until month 24... or longer.

I just finished round 49 (still on 5 mg ala) on Wednesday night. Technically, it was 2:30 am Thursday morning, but I still think of my round ending on Wednesday night.

Rounds have been mostly good since the last post.
I've gone to a 2 hour dosing schedule during the day and every 2:40 at night.
I don't find it any more difficult than dosing every 3 hours and I'm usually up at night multiple times anyway, so I'm glad I gave it a try.

When I was doing 3 hour dosing, I just felt like I was getting some redistribution closer to hour 3 when I took another dose; I don't get that with 2 hour dosing.

I usually feel pretty good when I'm on round and the first day off, but the first two rounds this month I didn't.

Glad that's over with.

This past round I was back to feeling good. I get in the sauna every afternoon on round and the first day off round to minimize redistribution. I start feeling redistribution usually by Friday.

Redistribution, for those that don't know is when you get increased symptoms again. During a round, most people feel better and definitely upbeat.




So, here's what I'm experiencing:
Yesterday afternoon my eyes started getting blurry and later that evening watery and burning. It's Spring and pollen is starting to fall fro the trees, but I don't have seasonal allergies and I haven't been outside much. I'm sure my eyes will be back to normal by tomorrow night. This isn't the first time it's happened.

I have numbness in my feet and legs, but lately it's been moving higher up on my legs and the left leg is more numb than the right. Lately, both legs feel like I'm wearing knee high socks. On round, both legs are less numb and the right leg was barely numb at all. The numbness never leaves my feet and the left foot is not very flexible at all.
Fatigue and general overall lack of motivation is keeping me mostly in bed today.
Today, the dizziness seems to be absent, so I'm thankful for that.
I will be sooooooooo glad when that symptom is gone!

Last symptoms are the top of my head seems to be smoldering, my tinnitus is a little louder and I'm itchy.
I tend not to worry about these symptoms coming and going. The Andy Cutler Chelation group on Facebook is filled with posts asking if these symptoms are normal.
Yes, they are normal mercury toxicity symptoms.

As everyone says in the Andy Cutler Facebook group: "Onward and upward.

Saturday, January 12, 2019

Starting Off The New Year on Round 40

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Happy New Year everyone!

A lot has happened since my last post!
We have a new grandbaby who was born at the end of November!
We traveled across the country and spent Christmas with family and was able to have dinner out 3 times in a week!
I know that might not sound like a big deal, but it is!

Let me start at the beginning...
I was able to get 39 rounds of ACC chelation in before our trip to SoCal.
That last round was a little rough, as I had run out of 5mg ala (because the supplier was out), so for round 38,  I had enough 12 mg capsules to split for one round. Round 38 at 6 mg went fine.

For round 39, my husband split 12.5 mg capsules, so the dose was 6.25.
No big deal, right?
Wrong.
I had increased symptoms (ear ringing, dull headache, adrenal symptoms).
Not what I needed right before an 8 day trip.

I didn't reveal this, but my daughter and I flew out to SoCal for our oldest daughter's baby shower, and the Tuesday before we left (on Friday), my head cleared 100%. It lasted for 2 full days! That was so awesome and a much needed answer to prayer.
The whole Charlotte team of American Airlines gave me exemplary service from literally the 10 seconds after I set foot in the door, until I was assisted onto the plane. A passenger even helped us on the plane and got our bags down from the overhead compartment once the plane landed. Still, I had a little meltdown once on the plane from the stress of all the preparation that's needed to get onto an airplane.

The  American Airlines team in Charlotte set the bar so high on that trip, but I understood that wasn't going to happen every time I flew.
Still, my husband was accompanying me on the December flight, so I knew it would be ok.
 While the American Airlines Charlotte team still offered assistance, traveling so close to a holiday makes things a little more chaotic. My adrenals are definitely better because we got to our seats on the plane with no meltdown!

After a wonderful Christmas celebration with family(the last time was in 1999 before we moved), we spent the week with our daughter, helping her organizing our grandbaby's room(my sister did a lot!), moving the last of her things from another residence and organizing her apartment. One day I worked so hard that I felt like I "broke" on the way back to our hotel.  I have been sleeping better, so I was fine the next day.







Being on the freeways in Los Angeles was still a "white knuckle ride" for me, so we limited our driving time and driving distance.
We got together with friends at a restaurant on Thursday. In the past, going out to a restaurant hasn't been enjoyable, it's merely been a test of surviving to the end.


Wings at Simmzy's Venice Beach


On Saturday, we met my brother in law and sister in law for dinner. The room wasn't loud when we arrived at the restaurant, but it was loud when we left. I call it success that I was still able to follow the conversation and enjoy the experience.

We went out again Sunday night with my family, but this time, it was not as easy to follow or engage in conversation. Still, much better that it has been.

We returned home on New Year's Eve.

It had been a busy week and I knew that it was going to take me a couple of weeks to recover.
I don't think it's related to my trip, but on Sunday (6 days after returning home), I woke up to my blood pressure spiking at 210/107. I waited 30 minutes and when my bp was still high I woke my husband up and we tried some things to lower it (hibiscus and putting my feet in hot water). My chest has been hurting in the area of my heart (near the sternum) for several weeks, so it was a bit disconcerting. My blood pressure lowered a bit, but then began going higher. With the chest pains, I felt I should get it checked out, so we went to the ER. Labs were good, with the exception of low potassium. The doctor had no explanation for either the blood pressure spike or the chest pains.
I'm continuing to monitor my blood pressure at home.

I skipped doing a round that week.

I just finished round 40 yesterday. The round was uneventful; hopefully the next few days off round will be, as well.


Here are 7 things that might help you when traveling by plane:

1. Purchase a good carry on that fits under the seat to keep needed supplements and food while you fly.

I purchased this one because it was large enough to fit my laptop inside. There's plenty of room inside and in the outside section and pockets. The only other feature I wish it had is spinner wheels.
 

I used 2 of these packing cubes inside my carry on bag to keep my things separate and organized.

2. Pack healthy snacks and bring the supplements you'll need while you're in the air.

3. When you get to the airport, request wheelchair assistance to and from the gate. (there isn't a charge for this, but it brings some cash to tip your assistant)

4. Make sure you book a seat that's convenient for you. When we traveled in December, we paid extra for the aisle and middle seats so that my husband could help me up when I needed to use the restroom.

5. Carry a cane if you need one. I carry a cane, which helps me, but also alerts others that I may need help or may take a little extra time.

6. Be sure to board first when the gate attendant calls for people who need extra time and help to board. 

7. When you get off the plane, if one isn't already there, ask for wheelchair assistance to the baggage claim. Sometimes, it's a very long walk!

There are a few other things we did while staying in the hotel, such as stopping off at Trader Joe's to pick up fruit, muffins, milk and Fiji water, so we could have breakfast in our room without having to get dressed to go out to eat or wait for room service. I brought my favorite organic tea, infuser and RTIC tumbler with me so I could make tea first thing in the morning. (there was a Keurig and a mini fridge in the room).


Hope your 2019 is off to a good start.
Have a Happy New Year!

Pam










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Sunday, October 21, 2018

My First 30 Rounds





First off, I want to say that what I'm about to write is not so you'll feel sorry for me. I'm writing this to help other people who may be going through chelation, and need some hope.

I also want to say....

No, I am not going crazy. 
Logically, since I'm removing mercury, 
I'm becoming uncrazy. 

Some things I describe here are symptoms of  mercury toxicity. You've heard the term "Mad as a Hatter", haven't you? Look that up sometime. (I'm not referring to the Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland)  Then, think about everyone who has amalgam fillings or who received a large amount of thimerosal filled vaccines up until 2004 and some of the craziness going on in the world and the tremendous amount of people on antidepressants today for anxiety or depression.
Ok, rant (and rabbit hole) over....






My last post was 7 months ago in March. I find it very depressing to write how about how I'm feeling when I'm miserable...

I mean, who wants to read that?

Plus, people read it and comment so nicely and I don't want people feeling sorry for me - or thinking that I'm some crazy person, who's a hypochondriac who always has some new, unexplained symptom. If you are mercury toxic, you know what I'm talking about. 

Here's where I am now...
I've completed 31 rounds of ACC. (Andy Cutler Chelation Protocol). More on how I'm doing later...let's talk about the last 12 months. 

Here's some history...
I had amalgams for nearly 5 decades. Nearly 50 years. That's a long time for fillings that are 50% mercury to do a lot of damage.  I also just found out I have the MTHFR (yep, that's how it's spelled) genetic mutation where your body detoxes 50% less than others. I also used a chelator (alpha lipoic acid) in a lyme protocol with amalgam fillings still in my mouth. Ala used improperly can move mercury to your brain, which is what I believe happened to me.
I knew from the Andy Cutler support group on Facebook that my journey wasn't going to be a short one.
I knew at the end of September 2017, that I would go thru a period called the "dump" where you have INCREASED symptoms. 
It was expected to start 2 to 4 months post amalgam removal.
It was expected to last a year or more.
I had a "hoping to goal" of making a little progress by September 2018.
I had a "hoping to goal" of the dump ending at the end of November 2018.


Decisions, then the dreaded dump...
Because we had an important wedding to go to in October(last year),  I  set my final amalgam removal to be at the end of September, so that I wouldn't enter the dump until after the wedding. I'm glad I waited an additional month to do my final amalgam removal. It was perfect timing because I continually felt better after removal.

My brother passed away the end of October and we flew out to California for his funeral the first week of November. I was still feeling pretty good (all  things considered) post amalgam removal. 


flowers from the bridal shower

At the end of November the dump hit.
Muscle tightness and dizziness became more pronounced over the next month, but I was still able to have some "better" days where I could get things done.

ACC says to wait 3 months to start chelating with  Alpha Lipoic Acid, but I was afraid to start in December. I had my supply of ALA, but wasn't until the third week of January, when I basically stuck in bed and wasn't having any good days, that I did my first round.

My hair test back in the Fall of 2017 didn't show any mercury and didn't meet any of the ACC counting rules. Mercury toxicity causes mineral derangement that shows up on hair tests. Mine showed nothing. The only way for me to know if I had mercury toxicity was to do a trial round of ALA and to see if I had any reaction on round or the 3 days off round. 

I started at 12.5 mg ALA and took it every 3 hours for 63 hours. I reacted. My ear ringing was louder and I didn't feel well on round. The symptoms weren't that much worse than before the trial round, so I continued at the same dose.

I made some gains the first 8 rounds or so.


You can find the link to the Andy Cutler Chelation group on Facebook HERE.

Lessons learned:
On one round I forgot a dose and had to abort the round. Off round, I had increased symptoms. On another round, I didn't realize I had forgotten a dose until I took the next dose. Instead of aborting the round, I continued to finish the round and I will never do that again. The redistribution symptoms were awful.
The biggest mistake I made was doing a round while up at our mountain house for a week. I extended my round so I wouldn't have the redistribution symptoms on the drive home. I also didn't have access to a sauna during the round. (big mistake). The whole next week was miserable. I will never do a round when I don't have access to a sauna. I also tried raising my dose once I felt good on and off round , but I felt pretty awful when I did, so I went back down to 12.5 mg

In March, I had a 2nd muscle spasm episode. This time I was ready. My neighbor had let me borrow a wheeled walker and I had a prescription for 800 mg of Ibuprofen. I only take painkillers when I ABSOLUTELY have to. My doctor also signed for a temporary handicap placard. Our daughter was graduating in May and we borrowed a wheelchair, but we ended up not needing the placard that day because we found a parking spot right in front of the building.

I was glad I had the handicap placard over the coming months because my muscle tightness and dizziness got worse.

Those in ACC say that the peak of the dump many times is between 6 and 9 months. June went by, then July, then August; still increasing symptoms and no progress at all.. It seemed like it was going to go on forever. Oh, and I had another muscle spasm episode in July.

During that time(but not all of it- can't remember how long), I was crying all the time; for NO reason. My serious, logical self could not control it.  Those of you who have never been poisoned by mercury won't understand that. It's pretty common in the ACC group to have adrenal problems...and crying, for absolutely no reason. I am not normally a cryer. Yes, in the past, I've cried, but not all the time and only for a good reason.
This crying was without a sad or happy thought; just all of a sudden.

Still at 12.5 mg, I reached out to the ACC group and listed where I was at and what supplements I had tried to alleviate my symptoms. Here's my post:

Can anyone help me or give me some insight? I had 5 amalgams removed last year safely (XXX the dentist in the group, just rechecked my x-rays), and had amalgams, probably for 48- 50 years. I'm in month 9 of my dump(12 months post amalgam removal) and finished round 23 at 12.5 mg ALA onlly on Aug 8th (took last week off) and am feeling pretty bad.(brain fog, tight muscles , numbness poor sleep, balance issues and fatigue) . My muscles are super tight all the time and seem to be getting worse. Most of my tight muscles start at the hip and as they have been tightening, the numbness has been moving up from my toes, to my calves, to my hips and now the middle torso progressively. I had a muscle spasm a month ago that required drugs to take the edge off pain. I'm still partially using a walker. It's difficult to walk with my leg muscles being so tight and feeling stiff. Yesterday, out of the blue, I developed a lot of black floaters in my left eye that are very noticeable . I've had a lot of white floaters for many years, but never black ones. Of course, I take the core 4, with extra mag,  8 -10 adrenal cortex a day, hc cream, adaptogens and a bunch of other supplements.  I don't eat many thiols, but don't go out of my way to make sure my food aren't high thiol, and I haven't done a thiol exclusion test. I start round 24 tomorrow, but I'm at a loss for what else to do to feel better, other than chelate and wait for my dump to be over. Thanks in advance.

Now, the group can't give medical advice, but it was suggested that I lower my dose. 24 rounds in and I have to LOWER my dose for a few rounds to see if that would help. That was depressing because in ACC, the goal is to get your dose to 3 mg per kilogram of body weight. Everything I had read in the group was true for me, 

so, I lowered my dose to 5 mg. of ALA. 

In September, I had a few days where my muscles didn't seem to be so tight. My chiropractor agreed. I had/have only been getting a K-laser treatment on my hip and neck twice a month, since my muscles have been too tight to adjust me.

Right around the time Hurricane Florence came through, I had 2 weeks of feeling really bad. At least with the lower dose I wasn't crying all the time for no reason, but what was the point of getting out of bed? Unless you've experienced this, ya'll don't realize how much energy it takes to keep yourself upright when you're dizzy and off balance all the time. 

I started feeling better the first week of October. When I say better, I don't mean I feel well- I just felt a little better than bad. I went to the grocery store the other day because felt pretty good that morning. I felt pretty good in my head; sitting down. Unfortunately, my body didn't get the message. Fortunately, I parked in a close parking spot and brought my cane.  By the time I had walked the whole store getting my groceries, I was feeling ill and had to sit on a bench near the pharmacy. It was all I could do to pay for my groceries and get to my car. Sitting down in my car and driving is usually no problem because I'm only dizzy standing up, but I rested before I left just to make sure. My (large) neighborhood is right next to the store and my house is about a mile away. I think I'll continue to have my husband do the grocery shopping for awhile.  
I am still having what I call "meltdowns", after riding in a car, going to a noisy restaurant and eating dinner or going to an appointment or doing any number of things that my body perceives as stress. I try to warn my husband that I'm about to cry beforehand, so he doesn't think he did something wrong. 
I will be glad when that symptom is gone for good. 

Where I am now...
I am finishing round 32 today. I usually start a round on Monday and finish on Wednesday, then take 4 days off, but I want to get one more round in before going to our daughter's baby shower in SoCal in November. I want as much mercury out of my head by then, so I'm only doing the minimum 72 hours between rounds.



Well, that's where I am. I can feed myself, do a couple of loads of laundry a day, vacuum one room at a time before needing a rest or walk out to get the mail and  pull a couple of weeds. I can drive myself to the chiropractor 20 minutes away twice a month. I take a cane when I go out to help stabilize me and to help others to see me. I still use my walker at home to help give me some support when I'm tired. That's pretty much it.

For now.
Looking forward to digging in the dirt again and going to dinner and enjoying it, instead of wondering if I'm going to survive getting through it without a meltdown.

Thanks for listening

Pam
UPDATE:My head suddenly cleared the Tuesday night (Oct 30th) after I finished my 33rd round. Traveling was difficult, but I was able to enjoy our daughter's baby shower on November 4th. 

Current Symptoms:
dizziness when standing/walking
muscle tightness/spasticity
super hot or freezing feet
numb feet and ankles
spider-like sensations in legs
brain fog (when I do too much or after a round)
waking up at night several times
urgency
ringing in the ears
meltdowns
gait problems
blurry eyes at times
eyes not processing what I'm seeing (when in public)
nail problems
random fibro pain
stabbing pains that last for hours or a day
legs so tight, it hurts to straighten them