Slugger Tyler! e First I want to say that I had several pictures I wanted to put on here today and I have tried over and over and was only able to get one of them to stick and stay on the blog. I will try again tomorrow. I think it must be their system at times. I do the same thing each time and sometimes the pictures will go onto the blog and other times I try again...reboot the computer and try and it just won't work.

This was the day I went to the psychologist ordered (and paid for) by the disability agency. I didn't know what to expect but the lady that talked to me was so sweet and respectful to both Wayne and I. She was totally different from the medical doctor we saw.

There were 3 parts to the exam. First was a medical history. She wanted to know everything wrong and what tests and/or medications I was taking. That took a while and it was hard to remember everything I've had done because I try to forget about it and live my life.

The 2nd part was telling her about my life now and my life before the pain was chronic. I think that Wayne and I have accepted everything but we both cried a couple times while talking about all the changes in our lives because of my health. I guess we both just bury it somewhere so it doesn't rear its ugly head too often. I don't know if I'll ever fully accept it.

The 3rd part was to test my mental abilities. She asked me to repeat sequences of numbers after her up to 6 numbers and then to do the same thing only repeat them to her backwards. She had me do some addition and subtraction, etc. And she asked me who the president was before Bill Clinton...she said a lot of people can't remember. Also wanted me to tell her the date, day and season. The only place I had trouble was repeating the numbers backwards when she got up to 6 numbers but I still got them all right except for one. I don't think I had to get them all right to have normal mental function.

After that appointment we decided to drive to the pain clinic and see if we could talk to someone about my feet and ankles swelling. After talking to the nurse for quite a while I think I figured out the culprit. Since the pump has been implanted my pain sensations have changed. I cannot stand or walk for more than 5 minutes and sometimes not that long. So, my activity level has decreased. I think it's from not moving around enough. I walked more today than normal and the swelling went down considerably before I got home. The nurse has been working for the doctor there for a long time and she said she has never seen edema from the morphine. She encouraged me to have a kidney function test done too but I still think it's from the lack of activity but I'm between a rock and a hard place on that one because of my back. It all gets frustrating at times.

I did ask her if she could tell me where Dr. Grove is stationed. She said he got the call out of the blue to go to Kuwait. He had no idea he was going to be deployed to serve. Then they called and told him if he could leave right away he could go to Germany instead of Kuwait. He agreed to that and that's where he'll be for 4 months. The nurse I saw seemed more stressed than I've ever seen her. She was nice to us but a little gruff around the edges and she's always been so pleasant. She said they've all taken on a heavier load with Dr. Grove gone.

So, that's my day and it's easier to put it here on the blog than to tell it several times. I hope everyone else that reads this had a decent day today!