owie update

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o0o

Its time for an owie update folks!

I’ve been going to the Physio, and doing my exercizes for a few weeks now – and as promised it’s time for an update.

I’ve been managing to get around much better – and have been getting up to five hours straight of sleep, which for me is almost unheard of.
The usual is 2-3.

The Physio has been really pleased with how quickly I’ve progressed, and her enthusiasm and encouragement has been giving me a lot of confidence in myself, and in the ability of my body to get better from this – and it’s been keeping my optimism at a high – which has been great.

We’ve had the threat of a cyclone looming for the last week, and whilst it thankfully (for us) headed south and removed us from its path – in the days prior to it moving its course, we were on watch and cleanup mode – most of which we did on Saturday.

We didn’t have a lot to stow away at the Farm, but there were a pile of empty pots, and some rolls of wire, and the shipping container needed reorganising to be able to fit extra loose objects in, like wheelbarrows, tools, gates and such.

I did most of this by myself, as my Love had work appointments.
But I went slowly and carefully, and did all the jobs mindfully and with care.

Sunday morning rocked up, and getting out of bed was rather an ordeal, but after getting going, the rest of the day went ok, and I just pottered about doing Sunday-type stuff.

Monday morning getting out of bed was difficult and hurt.
I took some pain meds which got on top of it, and whilst I was uncomfortable for most of the day – I managed.

Tuesday is one of my (paid job) work days.
I was woken by pain at 3am.
Tried various positions, got up and had a walk and stretch, but after 45mins and being reduced to tears from the pain, I gave in and took some meds, and finally got to doze about an hour later, until the alarm went off just before 6.

Getting out of bed was hell.
I cried.
Going to the toilet was hell.
I cried.
I took meds as I made coffee.

By the time the meds kicked in and I got sorted for work – I arrived at work about 30mins later than usual – but thankfully my Boss is pretty relaxed and understanding about that…

I spent a lot of the day getting up and down, and wriggling about, so that nothing would ‘seize up’ too much – and midmorning I phoned the Physio, requesting if they had an appointment I could have today, instead of waiting for my 3:45pm appointment the next day.
Alas – my Physio was booked out – so I’d have to wait.

About an hour later the Physio rang back.
They had a 330 appointment if I could make it?
Yes please!

So I leave work, go to the Physio, and check in at the desk, then sit to wait.

After about 10mins, the receptionist comes over and tells me my appointment is for tomorrow.

I explain that I’d received a call to change it to 330 today.
No, says she – it’s 330 tomorrow.

Seriously…!!!!???!!!

I called you in desperation to get an earlier appointment, and you call me back later – to change my appointment by 15 minutes..??!!??

Seriously…!!!???

Yep – that’s what they did.

I left and went out to my car.
Tears welling.
Just as I was pulling out, the receptionist came out to the car.
I could come at 10:30 tomorrow if I’d like?
Yes please – I’d like!

So here I sit in the waiting room once again – hoping to lift my spirits and my pain, and get back some of that optimism…

Fingers crossed!

I’ll let you know how I go,
Sarah

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clutter

In case I haven’t mentioned it before – I am a big fan of de-cluttering.

Clutter makes me restless – even when I don’t consciously realize it – and its amazing how quickly I settle, and can make more sense of my Life, home and mind, when there isn’t a whole pile of clutter around.

Sometimes that clutter is just general untidiness about the Home, stuff lying around, mess where there shouldn’t be mess, or even a pile of dishes waiting to be washed, or laundry to be put away.

But sometimes there is clutter in my general Life – that just needs to be sorted through.
And then sometimes theres mind clutter.
And sometimes…..that clutter might even be a person or various people!

Clutter isn’t necessarily always a physical visible thing…

I’m not always good at working out that clutter of one sort or another is what is making my mood ‘prickly’, but I have learnt some tools along the way, that work for me – that helps in the battle to keep my Life less cluttered – and me less ‘prickly’! lol

Firstly – I have a folder that I have organised around all the things that need to be done around our Home on a daily / weekly / monthly / etc basis – and this greatly helps me with keeping on task and on track, and not letting the jobs we almost never think about – slip between the cracks…
(surely I can’t be the only one who never remembers that baseboards need wiping over every few months?)

It also helps me to not get overwhelmed, because even when I slip up – which I inevitably do a few times a year – I know that within a few hours of getting back into my system of routine, our Home will be visibly nicer, and I will be infinitely calmer!

Next: Whilst I always keep track of any appointments etc that either of us have, via our shared calendar on my phone; I also have a week-to-a-view desk diary, that mostly stays right next to wherever my laptop is parked, so that I see it and can see and refer to it regularly.

This is not only an easy-to-see visual reminder of what my week looks like, but its also a record of the week-that-was.
I also use it to keep track of what meals we’ve had throughout the week; and to document which bills been paid, including how, and how much.

Nooooo – I’m not a control freak, and I’m definitely not a neat-freak – I just know myself well enough to know that a bit of order in my day, flows out into other parts of Life – and helps me accomplish what I’d like to get done…

What sort of things do you do to keep on track?
And is my style of organisation something you’re interested in hearing more about?

Talk to me – in the space below – and let me know!! :))

Until next time, look after YOU!
And remember – sharing is caring!
Sarah


This is a part of my organizational system with my week-to-a-view diary, our shared digital calendar (which I also have on my phone), my book of extra ‘stuff’ that I want to get done, or remember, and that I use to meal-plan for the week etc; and a couple of example pages out of the folder that I use to keep me on track with what needs doing around the house.
(I didn’t include any of the pages that has the detailed room cleaning, like the baseboards lol)


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sunday morn

Sunday morning is usually a bit of a special day in our home, because it’s the one day of the week that my Love and I get to have breakfast together.

Alas, today my Love has had to go to the next town, as the boss has agreed to help pick up something we bought months ago, but we havent had a trailer big enough to bring it home.
And he has a big trailer, and today he’s available!
I’m not going, as I’m staying at home to keep an eye on our Pup, who has a bad case of the ‘wanders’ at the moment – as we’d rather not lock him up by himself quite yet…

So, I’m a bit sad that we aren’t having breakfast together today – but I’m sticking with our ritual anyways, and have sent my Love a photo – just to say ‘we miss you‘.

Home-made bread, toasted, with lashings of butter and jam – and a glass of fresh orange juice to wash it down.
I’m still grateful for the small pleasures – even if my Love isn’t here to share them today…
Sarah

Yummy home-made bread (toasted) for breakfast.

 

pain in the…

I’ve been off work most of this week, having only managed one day, before my back and hip decided that they were going to cause me a living merry hell and make sitting at a desk – or doing much of anything useful really – an extremely painful process.

So midway through the afternoon on Tuesday I finally gave in and left work, heading straight to the Doctors, wanting to get some help.
Another two prescriptions and a referral later, I limped my sorry self off home, and promptly made an appointment for the next day, for the referred Physiotherapist.

Now…I went to a physio after my last hip&back flare-up back in January, but was thoroughly underwhelmed by the treatment given; which equated to about 20mins of a ‘tens’ machine on my back, whilst I did some prescribed knee-to-chest stretches, whilst lying flat on my back on a hard skinny table, and he consulted with another client, in a different room.

I left there feeling less than encouraged, with instructions to do 2 certain exercises for the next couple weeks, and see how I went.
I really felt like the care-factor was hovering around zero!

BUT – just on the off-chance that he did have a clue as to what he was talking about, I spent the next four or five weeks doing said exercises.
I can’t in all honesty though, say that I noticed any discernible difference in my healing or core-strength, than I had at other times, when my back and hips had been bad, and I had just let nature take its course.

And whilst over time my pain lessened, it didn’t fully go away, and I felt within myself that something wasn’t right, and that it had left me ‘damaged’ – and then it blew up big-time this week!

This time around, I went to a different Physio.
I’d heard a few people talking about this particular business, and all of them have been glowing reports – so I bit the bullet, made the appointment, and at the allotted time on Wednesday morning, I fronted up for my appointment.

The Physiotherapist that I was allocated was named Emma…She looked about 12… 😐

Well, says I to myself – I went to a bloke who was older than me, and it was a definite disaster – so going to a girl who looked young enough to be my grandchild (not really, but you know how it can feel like that sometimes…!) couldn’t be any worse, and with a bit of luck, her knowledge base would be fresh and current, and she’d still be in the first flushes of passion in her career, and be really good.

Well, I gotta say, and very happily so – that Emma blew me out of the water!!

She was incredibly knowledgeable, in ways that none of the previous Doctors or Therapists had been about bodily mechanisms.
She listened to my history; took a full examination of not only how I walked, what ranges of movement I had – both active and passive, but also a manual physical assessment examination was carried out.

She then taught me how and why the chronic pain was an ongoing issue, showed me just what was happening inside my body each time there was a flare-up, and explained in great depth about what “we” needed to get started on, on our way to getting it under control, and possibly even remedied.

She spent time massaging those areas of muscle that had atrophied, to get them to loosen.
She showed me a different way of ‘consciously’ walking – as the flare-up in January had left me with quite a limp, along with some noted muscle damage.
She showed me a better way of lying to sleep, so as not to aggravate the condition.
And she showed me three seperate exercises to do a few times a day, each day, at home – to help strengthen the muscles, tendons and nerves that all needed help.

We parted with an agreement that we would meet up each week for the next three weeks at least, so we could see if there was suitable improvement; to add extra treatments like acupuncture (which I’m a big fan of!) , and to reassess if we needed to change up the plan at all, or if we found that xyz wasn’t quite working.

I left the Practice feeling like I finally have someone who is “on my side”, with getting this issue sorted.
I feel like I am part of a team that is working on this, and I feel like this girl gives-a-damn about me, my pain, and my recovery.

For the first time in a long time, I’m feeling optimistic about there being a time in the future, when everything that I do, isn’t in some way impinged upon or limited by either pain, or range of movement.

Yes, I’m getting older, and we all age differently – but I can’t help but feel a certain amount of envy when I see people in their 60s, 70s and 80s who appear so much more agile and able than I am.

It’s also actually quite embarrassing when one can’t do ‘stuff’ that the average person my age would be ‘expected’ to be able to do…
😳😒

I’m only a few days post-visit, and I’m not about to tell you that a miracle has happened or that I’m healed and bouncing about like a 20 year old again.
I’m still having considerable pain for the first few hours of the day, but my 10 or 11, I can get about without much if any of a limp at all, and without having to hold on to the furniture or walls for support.
That alone is a huge relief.

I’m pretty sure my large dog was getting fed up of being my mobile walking stick, but unfortunately for him, and fortunately for me, his back and shoulders are just the right height for me to hold on to, to move around!
Over the last few months, he has been an amazing help to me, especially in being able to get up the front stairs of the house in town, of which there are about 20.
I can hang on to him, and he pulls me up the stairs.
I bet he wishes I were a more successful dieter!! lol

Ive been doing my prescribed exercises; though one of them I have been doing to a lesser extent, due to the pain that it induces, which according to the printouts Emma gave me: it should be uncomfortable, but not painful.
Its been interesting to monitor myself with how I walk, sit and sleep – and to correct each of those in the ways she has taught me.
Our built-in ways of doing sub-conscious things like these, can be difficult to retrain, and take quite a bit of conscious effort!

So – even though its only early days, and only time will tell how this will evolve – I am definitely feeling quietly optimistic…
I’ll be sure to let you know how its all going, after a few weeks of being in treatment!

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Until next time, look after YOU!
And remember – sharing is caring!
Sarah

 

OUCH!

 

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op shoppin’

One of the things that I’m getting back into the swing of doing, is going to ‘op shops’.

For the uninitiated – these are shops where you can buy pre-loved goods.
These can be anything from building materials, to clothing, to kitchen ware, to electronics, to furniture – pretty much anything you can think of really….!

At the moment, I have a vision of a particular table in my head, so on my way to the grocery store today, I popped in to our local furniture store to see – just out of curiosity – how much this little ‘vision’ of mine would set me back.

WOW!
$599 – and that included 4 chairs. To me, that’s a lot…and as I’m still working at my paid job, that’s almost a fortnights wage for me!! 😐
Lucky I’m not one of those people who feels they have to have brand new!!

I’d also decided to peek in at the price, because one of my favourite Op Shops is only two doors up the street, and I’d planned to visit there for the first time in over a month.

And this morning I scored!!

Nooooo – they didn’t have my “vision table” lol – but they did have some other stuff I’ve been wanting to get a hold of…

I walked out with what I consider to be an excellent haul, and all for under $20.
Gotta be happy with that…!

I got:
– a mid sized wok with lid
– a roasting pan with rack and lid
– an ‘Alladin’ hot food storer
– a yoghurt maker
– 3 books: ‘Blueprint for a Green Planet‘, Family Circles ‘Jams, Pickles and Chutneys‘, and a book on bread-making with a bread machine, called ‘Hot Bread‘.
– a brand new leather wallet with rfid protection,
– aaaand, I even managed to get 3 chokos, which I am hoping that I can get to sprout, after my precious choko vine came to an unintentional demise.

How’s that for a haul eh..!!??!! Second hand does not mean second best!
😁

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Until next time, look after YOU!
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Sarah

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dehydrating virgin

Today I had my very first go at dehydrating – pretty exciting stuff I tell ya!!

Ok, so it might not be what gets your average Joe or Jill excited, but I can think of endless possibilities with being able to successfully dehydrate stuff.

One of those is not running out of stuff so often – because you think you have some of whatever-it-is-you-need, in the depths of the freezer someplace…but one of the biggies I can see, will be storage.

We are a family who are very big fans of one-pot-meals, especially when things get busy.
Those one-pot-meals often contain a lot of varieties of vegies, as its a really easy way to ensure we’re getting something nutritious into us.
We are also a Family who will soon be moving into a 63 square metre space – which will have very limited storage.

Part of that limited storage, is not having endless freezer space, and one of the things that takes up a truck-load of room in our freezer, is vegies.
Whether store-bought; or vegies that have been home-grown and then frozen during a glut – they take up a lot of valuable freezer space!

So we’re saving space where we can – and this is just one of those places – food storage.

I gotta tell ya – this is waaaay cool!

2kg of mixed vegies, and about 400g of mushroom, all shrunk down to 4 jars.
And I could have easily done it in two, but as shelf storage in the kitchen isn’t an issue quite yet, I decided on one jar of each for storage, and one jar of each for current use.

I think I’m going to be doing quite a bit of this dehydrating lark, as its a wonderful way to stockpile food goodness 🙂

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Until next time, look after YOU!
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Sarah

Sitting in the dehydrator, ready to be processed.
All nice and dryyyyy
2kg of mixed vegies.
2kg of mixed vegies, and about 400g of mushrooms – all shrunk down to THIS!
Pretty cool huh!?!?!!

 

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those that inspire

A month or so ago, a girlfriend and I had a coffee-date at one of the lovely local cafes.

We work together, but don’t socialise much at work, because we both just tend to get busy, plus we work in different parts of the office – so when either of us has a break, we both tend to just zone out for that time period, and pretend we’re anywhere else, rather than spending it with others, being social in the staff room.

It had been almost a year since we last caught up outside of work, and we had a rather in-depth discussion about how we were both in exactly the same ‘place’ as we’d angsted about being in, a year earlier…
Still in the same jobs, still being miserable, and still talking about leaving.

But this time, unbeknownst to each other, we’d each been formulating a plan…

Neither of us had the details down pat, but we’d each decided that by the end of the year, we would not still be dreading that walk through those sliding glass doors each week.
We would not still be being consistently treated like crap, when we routinely went above and beyond…

My friend had a more time-specific plan than I – she planned for August 1 to be her end date.
My end date was planned to occur once our house in town had sold.

Last week was a particularly stressful and horrid week at work.
At the start of this week, my friend privately talked to me at work, apologised, and quietly told me that she was submitting her resignation on Wednesday morning…she just couldn’t hold out any longer…

I was overjoyed!!

There was certainly no need for her apology – although I deeply appreciated the sentiment behind it.
She and I “get” each other, and we have each others back.
We understand just what working in that particular pressure-cooker environment, with that particular mix of staff, is like – in a way that few others can.

So – here we are at Wednesday – and today she did it!!
She handed in her resignation.

I am so happy for her, and proud for her that she has taken this step.
She already walks with more of a lightness to her step – and despite it being another shitty day at work, I can see the ‘light’ returning to her eyes.

Yes, I am a little sad that in a few short weeks, she will no longer be there for me to roll my eyes at 100 times a day when something goes sideways, and I’ll miss not having someone there who has my back, and ‘understands’ – but I honestly could not be happier for her – that she has take the leap.

I can only hope that when that glorious day arrives for me, I can hold my head high and muster up just a tenth of the dignity and grace that my friend showed today…

She’s one brave, strong, inspirational Lady that one – and I just hope we don’t lose touch.
Sarah

 

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