My Crazy Life

Physical Therapy

My lower back hurts on and off all the time. I thought it was going to start a spasm that would cause me tremendous pain so I called my doctor.

Today I began Physical Therapy. It appears I am out of alignment. I thought my right side was longer than my left, but it’s not the case. This misalignment is from where my pain stems.

My therapist started to realign my joints today. And… this is a big one, I got Needles.

Dry needling is a treatment performed by skilled, trained physical therapists, certified in the procedure. A thin monofilament needle penetrates the skin and treats underlying muscular trigger points for the management of neuromusculoskeletal pain and movement impairments.

The relief was immediate after this simple procedure. It’s not like acupuncture where the needles are left in for a bit. These are put in and then taken back out. It almost felt like pressure being released in my sorest spot.

I will do this 3x/week for 6 weeks. I’ll be getting exercises too. Movement is lubricant. So keep on moving.

Sunday Adventure

Sunday Funday

We went to Floyd Lamb Park or Tule Springs if you’ve been here forever. We were supposed to go hiking at the Lake Mead Rail Road Tunnels, but we changed our plans.

This park brings back so many happy memories of Girl Scout Camping trips. Here are a few photos from our adventure.

The power of positive thinking worked. I closed both my move and exercise rings while at the park. I just need to change my attitude from I don’t feel like it to I will do my best. I am not the one who decided not to hike the 6 mile trail. This was a prettier hike though.

The beautiful day was worth getting out to enjoy. It was a little nippy, but for once I didn’t mind. When people got too close I pulled my mask on, otherwise I enjoyed the fresh air. The park wasn’t busy at all.

Love, Peace and Light! Rita

Are You Happy?

Such a simple question. Not always a simple answer. I am happy for the most part. Sometimes I have to get out of my own way.

This morning for instance I awakened in pain. That could destroy my happiness and my plans to go hiking. I had to get out of my way. I have decided to go hiking. What’s the worst thing that could happen? We don’t complete the entire trail. Yes, I could end up in more pain, but movement is lubricant. Right? Like the tin man… He only had problems when he stopped moving. “Move it or lose it” is my new motto. My arm and shoulder has full range again. Well, the rest of me needs to step in line too.

So, I am being mindful of my negative thoughts. This is helpful in many areas, especially in being happy. I just need to replace negative thoughts with positive ones. Instead of I can’t hike, because my lower back is throbbing. I am going to hike and hopefully it will help the spasms in the long run. By the way, I did discuss this with my doctor. I begin PT to start strengthening my back on Tuesday. He said to keep walking.

So are you happy? I am.

Love, Peace and Light! Rita

Still Anxious

I hate what Covid has done to me. It’s taken away my spontaneity. I can’t plan things either, because anxiety is guaranteed to kick in.

Anxiety will keep me up all night. I may not even be aware of the reason for my insomnia at the time. It’s still there crippling me.

My husband thinks it’s as simple as not telling me about plans, but that doesn’t stop the anxiety. I may get a tad more sleep the night before, but I won’t if something is foisted upon me.

Anxiety is an emotion characterized by an unpleasant state of inner turmoil, often accompanied by nervous behavior such as pacing back and forth, somatic complaints, and rumination. It includes subjectively unpleasant feelings of dread over anticipated events. It’s completely irrational and totally out of my control.

At the moment there is a real reason for the anxiety. There is a pandemic. I have avoided getting Covid-19 this far, we are getting so close to getting to the end game, I am not willing to push things.

I feel pressured to let my guard down. I am not ready. Maybe when I get vaccinated. I am tired of my own company. This is why I feel pressured. On one hand I want to get out amongst others on the other I want to wait.

Since it’s beginning to get warmer I am starting to walk and that will help. When I went to mass on Valentine’s Day, I didn’t speak to anyone. That was quite unlike me.

Love, Peace and Light! Rita

Signs of Spring

Spring comes early in Vegas. I really love the fact that the cold weather season is shorter here than when I lived in Ohio.

Today on our morning walk I saw several signs of spring that I wanted to share with you.

What’s the weather like where your at? Our weather has been varied, we’ve had snow, 70’s, wind and rain, but these flowers make me hopeful.

Also, my hubby bought me flowers for Valentine’s Day.

Happy Valentine’s Day to you all!

Love, Peace and Light! Rita

Saturday Fun Day

Ralph and I had an adventure on Saturday. It was a beautiful day to get out to look for bald eagles. Our trip took us to Stewart Point near Lake Mead and Valley of Fire.

I enjoyed the day. I couldn’t do all the hiking over the rocks I wanted, because my balance was off. Maybe next time I will be able to. I don’t give up that easily.

Today I am paying for overdoing things yesterday. That’s okay, because I had fun. I know that when I do things there will be a cost.

Love, Peace and Light! Rita

Investing in Me

Today we are heading to Lake Mead area to look for Bald Eagles. I don’t know if we’ll see any, but it’s the adventure that I need, that we both need.

I think I mentioned that I have committed to increasing my steps during the month of February. I have been walking with Ralph daily, well except that one day I thought my head was going to explode. Thankfully it didn’t and I managed to get my steps in in the house. Sometimes my head can’t handle the light.

I am excited for this adventure. Ralph and I used to take adventures all the time. I am not sure why we stopped. I stopped everything… could be depression. That little buggard sneaks up and you don’t realize it at all. It would explain the moodiness, the insomnia and the lack of caring about little things.

I have other things in motion to invest in myself too. I will speak more on that in a future blog. I shelled out a bunch of money toward this, so hopefully you will see the results this year.

Now I need to begin yoga again or maybe Tai Chi since that won’t involve me pushing on my shoulder. Yes, though I have full range of motion in my shoulder, I still have pain and I think all the planks, downward dogs, etc could be detrimental to it.

Love, Peace and Light! Rita

Finding Happiness

In my discussion group we talked about finding happiness in the little things. Happiness is an accumulation of things.

You can’t wait to see how the day goes to tell if you’re going to be happy. You need to make a decision to be happy when you wake up.

I’m not saying that things might not interfere, they probably will, but starting out happy is a good place to begin. Then you can take joy in each small thing to add to your happiness.

For me it begins with my morning walk with my husband and dogs. (I am back to walking after months of inactivity.)

I love having a cup of tea. It’s so relaxing. This makes me happy.

When I write I am happy that I am creating a new world.

My dog lying on me first thing to give me a hug and puppy kisses makes me happy.

My husband stealing my space in bed makes me happy. (Don’t tell him.)

All these little things add up to make me happy. I just need to remember to appreciate them. If I do that they will carry me through the bad days. Even when my head is in a bad place I can change it by remembering this.

Love, Peace and Light! Rita

Leaving an Imprint

I belong to a discussion group that started last year around Sarah Von Breathnach’s Simple Abundance. While we are still following the guidelines of her book, we are supplementing with other readings and things. Today is about leaving a positive imprint on others.

We talked about trying to put good vibes into the universe and stop adding to the noise. It has been difficult lately with the political miasma, but try to remember that we all want the same basic things.

I have tried to stop posting on politics and started posting positive quotes. I am posting my personal challenges. My daily step goal and my #100daymaskchallenge. I am back to playing silly Facebook games. I am trying to keep things light.

I scroll on by when people post things I disagree with. It’s healthier for me to not get into arguments that I thought were discussions. Instead I just look up things on my own to check facts rather than posting on someone else’s wall.

As I was saying I am trying to put positivity into the world rather than negativity. It’s not always easy as I am by nature a negative person. I have tried hard to change and it still slips in especially when I am stressed or in a depression.

I am trying to strike a balance and make the world a better place to live in. Let’s make the world a little healthier.

Love, Peace and Light! Rita

Creating

I am a writer. Mostly I write because I have to get the stories out to stop the characters from screaming at me. Occasionally I do some crafty things. I paint, sew, etc.

Do you have something that brings you joy? My husband enjoys cooking and I gladly turn that duty over to him. He likes to create different concoctions. Lately we’ve be getting EveryPlate, it makes it easier because the ingredients and recipes are delivered.

I have a friend who crochets and another who knits. I have always admired people who made things. This past year has been a good time to reconnect to our hobbies or callings.

Why not do things that bring you joy?

Love, Peace and Light! Rita