Good morning, everyone. How's everyone doing this cold morning? Yes, it's cold here (32°)... I know that's not as cold as other places contend with, but it's cold for here. Our crops, including ornamental plants, etc can't withstand freezing temps, so we hope they survive.
It's been a busy week, mostly with calligraphy things - Monday was our monthly meeting, with a great project for the after-meeting program and yesterday we had a wonderful class. I was the tech host and wasn't too happy with my work on that, but I'm a firm believer in learning from mistakes and believe me, I made some!! I have a laundry list of things to do differently next time!!
On Wednesday, I had a very comprehensive hearing test. I've had (what I consider) severe tinnitus (ringing) in my ears since I was a child. I've been told that nothing can be done about it, but I ran across an article about a device that help. There's a hearing clinic about 40 miles us that sells the device, so I made an appointment to check it out. They did several tests, including tests to find out the cause of my tinnitus and how severe it is. They called it mild to moderate vs what I consider severe but then I've listened to it all my life!!
Anyway, they didn't recommend the machine to lessen the tinnitus because I also have hearing loss, at the frequencies of my tinnutus. They recommended hearing aids that would help me hear those frequencies and would also help mask the tinnitus. Although I won't be able to hear the silence, I'm craving, I'm going to try them and hope they work. For the cost, they'd better work!!
In addition to everything else, I'm still walking with my neighbor every day we're both available and it's not too cold, raining or whatever!! I'm also still on the increased dose of thyroid medication and the new medication for my neuropathy. I just did blood work, which came back pretty good, except that my PTH (parathyroid hormone) is still higher than normal. I see my doctor tomorrow and am hoping he will order an ultrasound to see if one of my parathyroids has a tumor. The parathyroids (most of us have 4 of them) reside behind the thyroid gland but are totally unrelated. The parathyroids control the movement of calcium into and out of the blood. Calcium is not only important for bones - it also helps control electrical impulses in our body - helps with heart rhythm, nerves, blood clotting, etc.
Anyway, through it all, I've dropped 3 pounds since last week. Last week, I was having some swelling issues and was up from the week before, so I'm good with having lost 3 pounds. It means I got rid of the swelling, plus lost another pound. My goal has always been to lose a pound/week, so right now, I'm managing that. Of course, I wouldn't be able to do that without the medication changes I mentioned.
I'm considering October 12 as my starting point, because that's when I saw my doctor, was at my very highest (ever) weight, made the med changes and started walking shortly after. Since then, I'm down a total of 11 pounds. I still have a long way to go, so I hope I can keep up the momentum.
So that's where I am. What about you? How was your week and were you able to meet/exceed your goal(s)? I look forward to hearing about it.
~~Wishing everyone a wonderful, successful week~~