RSI Update

I have to say that I do still suffer from repetitive strain type symptoms though its not an every day occurrence. I’m still doing daily exercises, taking my supplements and resting more. I have to rigidly stick to not using the computer more than 30 hours per week, which in some way has been good for me. It certainly makes you waste less time and concentrate the mind in being more productive.

I do still suffer from numb hands, pains and weakness in the arms. Strength has improved though some to my surprise last week I was able to lift half a kettle of water with only minimal discomfort. It was a really great feeling to be able to do just that.

I think the majority of my problem appear to come from the area of the spine between the shoulder blades. I believe its related to allowing my shoulders to roll forward which over a longer period of time is putting excess tension and pain. I do think that because that area is inflamed that this might be pinching on some nerves causing the numbness. In fact I am going to have to stop typing now because of it… I’m sorry to say, there’s no such thing as being cured.. you only can hope to learn to manage it and avoid discomfort.

Waltons Restaurant

Last night we went for a meal at the Waltons Hotel, Bar and Restaurant located in the Park in Nottingham.  The lifts arrived late which meant we got to the hotel dead on the dot, meaning that there wasn’t any time to spend any money in the bar area. Hotels tend to like you to arrive earlier or to keep you waiting so that you buy drinks at the bar first; naturally such extra drinks are more expensive than most other places.

The interior of the hotel was very well done with nice wood panelling and neutrally decorated. The restaurant itself is a proper white table cloth one, dimly lit but not too dark where you cannot see the food. The light can be a problem if you intend to take any photographs with a compact camera as the batteries took forever to charge between shots.

For starters I had a Bacon and Chicken salad, followed by Lamb Shank and finally for desert a very delicious Vanilla crème brulee with raspberry sorbet. The speed that we were served was quick, though we were finding that we weren’t all receiving our food at the same time. There were a dozen of us and I think this may had caused an issue in the kitchens. The food delivery from  the waiters were fault bar a couple of items, which was soon put right.

The quality of the food was superb as was the wine which went perfectly with the meal. The Waltons is not a budget location and so expect big plates and little portions in the middle. Still after 3 courses, you are filling very full. I could had not eaten a single thing. The prices are very reasonable.

The only real negative thing I’d have to say is that I felt a little rushed because their car park closed at 11pm meaning that the drivers were constantly clock watching.  The road-ways around the hotel where you can park were full of cars and you needed a permit to park there from hotel reception.  I would recommended getting a Taxi if you want to have a non-rushed evening.

I would had liked to spent longer in the bar after the meal, but by the time we have finished eating it was 10:40pm and we were heading out of the car park at 10:50pm, just ten minutes before curfew. It would be far better if the hotel if the car parking closure time were more flexible and so I would be able to comment further on the bars.

Over all I highly recommend the Hotel and I will be certainly be returning again.

Recovery Lessons

I think one of the most difficult lessons to learn during recovery is to pace yourself. Sometimes you feel like you are getting REALLY better and almost feeling normal again, and so then you slip back into old routines and those bad habits that injured you in the first place – This happens to me quite abit!

So instead of sticking to my usual routine of using my weights every other day, I let it slip slightly and type more than I should because I feel like I am getting back to normal, the trouble is when you let the activities slip that are counter-balancing those repetitive ones then you just take a few steps backwards.

So yes I’ve taken a few steps backwards and have weak arms again because I failed to stick to my workout routine. I suppose the moral of the story is to not to get too over confident and push yourself too hard. Even if you feel better, stick to the same routines rather than returning to those old ways.

I will take 2-4 weeks to get back to the point of where I was last Thursday. I recognise the reasons why and will over come it. Its better to be positive rather than too down. Set backs can so easily make you down beat, but thats another battle you have to fight with yourself and win.

186K, Tiscali Fall Out

I had an interesting comment on my previous EFH Update post from Fiona about her experiences with my previous ISP. I find it fascinating that despite the huge customer feedback some companies appear to never learn. Tiscali who supplies the network to 186K companies have had a fall out and hundreds of 186K customers have been cut off without warning:
(Ref:  Consumer Action Group)

The rumour is that 186K has gone into administration and since they failed to settle payments with Tiscali then they had little choice but to terminate connections. 186K have already set up another company but using a BT platform and are trying to move customers over to it.

I am quite old fashioned in the respect I wouldn’t dream of selling a product to a customer that I didn’t believe it was not good. Some UK Broadband providers know though they are selling rubbish and you really can’t blame BT either for the platform as its the ISP’s that are responsible for its management. So pick your next ISP with care. Pick an ISP that admits sometimes they have faults!

I hear allot of complaints about Tiscali which ISP’s like 186K use because the wholesale price is cheaper to them. Tiscali  use their own core network rather than the platform supplied by BT;  “IP Stream” which  allows them to individually control how much resources are available down to city level. In theory in terms of management of resources it should give customers improved stability since and the fact that most ISP’s suffer from slowness on Tiscali is purely down their network.

IP Stream in itself does generate more complaints to ISP’s because it requires more hands on management from the ISP rather than just leaving it. So, if you ISP says stuff like its BT’s fault, its their IP Stream network then it might be instead they just don’t know how to manage it properly.

I would change ISP’s if their didn’t know how to managed their own product. If I am paying a company for their product, I would had thought the very least you should be able to expect is for them to actually know about their own product?

As for 186K, I have moved on though for historical reasons its sometimes interesting to report the latest going on’s, especially something juicey like this. The Battle between Tiscali and 186K is beginning. I wonder who will be the victor, certainly not any of the customers. I’m so glad I got away from these companies when I did. Phew!

186K does have multiple companies and brand names associated with it, though I don’t have the motivation to research all this again. If you want to find out more I would contact companies house and do a search, plus also use credit agency data which you can pay for access to. All this information is available to the enterprising researcher or writer. Good Luck.

Mud in Ilkeston

Today the weather was good enough to go for a little walk out in Ilkeston in Derbyshire. It was cold out and was wrapped up in a scarf, hat and gloves as well as the usual walking gear. I sweat far less now I’m thinner and fitter than I would had done with this amount warm clothing on.

As per usual we parked next to the canal and up the footpath. The Canal itself was covered with this red algae and the local youths/idiots have been throwing bottles, cans and other items into the canal which stick out like a sore thumb. I wonder what would happen if grown-ups took the same attitude and emptied the contents of their bins into the teenagers bedroom. Would they go running to mummy? Or would they notice since people who drop litter probably live like pigs already.

I did take my instant camera with me, but I think it might be faulty since its started to report battery failures even a few hours after they were replaced. I took a few initial shots, in poor or washed lighting condition and then the red battery warning was flashing. Its very odd as as of tonight I have not changed the batteries and its connected to the pc, uploading the picture above.

The ground was really soft under foot and in places muddy as hell. We passed many walkers though despite it being a bitterly cold and wet day. There was the usual bunch of horse riders on an afternoon amble, dog walkers, cyclists and the odd group of proper walkers. You know the sort, the people that carry maps with them and a compass! I’m not a proper walker, I just like to walk sometimes just because its a nice thing to do of an afternoon and it gets me away from the dreaded computer.

The footing next to the canal was passable, but the trouble started when we decided to take a new path to the left in hope it would cut off the muddy path up ahead. The new path was extremely muddy indeed and only looped back to the path we were actually trying to avoid. It was really slippery not too dis-similar to being on ice. I did need a hand over a particularly section as it was very wet and the trees over hanging the pathway really did not help with a guy carrying a little backpack.

I always carry a mobile phone and camera with me, some weather gear after once upon a time I was caught in the mother of all storms and torrential rain.  I still only go light because its not like I’m on safari and I’ve got lions to worry about. Still, at very least take a mobile phone for emergencies. Like slipping over in the mud and breaking some bones for example! lol

My trousers and boots are in terrible condition and once they dry sometime next week I will be brushing them for hours. There’s no point washing my walking trousers every week as they just get muddy again. Though, looking at them now, the mud may be the sunk in mud rather than the surface stuff, which means I’ll spend a couple of hours scrubbing them and then deciding to put them into the laundry any how.  I’m not even going to begin to describe the condition of my boots. Just appalling..

The walk started from ilkeston to Cossall in Nottinghamshire and then back again, just a very scenic muddy as hell way.  The ground conditions made it a tough walk, challenging balance wise and you had to think about foot placement or slide over on your backside.  Nice!

I got home safe and suitable exhausted, which is good. Walking really helps my arms as a swing them and I get significant pain relief afterwards. Obviously it doesn’t work if you walk with your hands in your pockets. Something I used to do but not any more.

RSI Started, when?

I had a comment on a post the other day asking me how long I’ve had RSI. That made me think as since I’ve never had it formally confirmed because I my GP is more interested in trying out visualisation exercises rather than referring me to the most usful place;  Rheumatology would be a start! I got to give him credit he did refer me to carpel tunnel surgeon despite it not being carpel tunnel and then that surgeon referred me to a physiotherapist who couldn’t refer me to Rheumatology but she recommended it in her report, which the GP duly ignored.

The reason I decided I no longer want to take any further advise from doctors is that I wasn’t getting any where and then my GP prescribed a concoction of drugs that caused an internal bleed and it led to a cancer scare. I had a blood test around that time and it set off a few alarms in terms of a high white cell count. It doesn’t have to mean cancer I since learnt, its often an indicator of bleeding, infection or inflammation. So, why did the crappy GP scare me half to death by sending me to a cancer clinic? Is it because he’s a moron? Yes it is!

Anyway, I am digressing again.  There were times I had the symptoms of mild repetitive strain when I didn’t know what it was. If I include those times, Its roughly 10-12 years from when it started and to date, though it may be more.

In the early days I didn’t ever talk about the pain and was in denial for much of the time. People saw people with ‘RSI’ as if they were making it up or they were lazy. My own employer at the time wasn’t very supportive at all and the constant pain was very much affecting me mentally.

Around the same time a special member of  family died of  CJD which is a nasty and very distressing disease. I went to a her funeral and a couple of weeks later her husband died (often happens for couples).  I had to take holiday from work because my employer didn’t believe that I was going to a second funeral. I thought later, perhaps they would had liked to see the bodies as proof?  They were a despicable employer and with a completely inhuman attitude towards HR. I will never forgive them for their heartless behaviour in a time of distress for us all.

I think development of RSI at the time was partly due to stress, lack of sleep and over work obviously.  I left this employer about a year afterwards and I was glad to rid of them. Upon leaving, stress went down but by then the physical damage was already done.

Since my GP at the time thought it was nothing but sore arms related to computer work then I ignored it and carried on. All the time greater damage was being done. Eventually after years of abuse, it got so bad that I could only type for 10 minutes without feeling pain. Not long after that I think I started to take an interest in the subject myself.

Firstly, I must admit I took a very evidence based approach which frankly was a bit of a waste of time as really the things that tend to work are things that may not be totally proven to science and yet they still give some benefits. I think you need an open mind when trying to find a solution, rather than automatically closing yourself to new possibilities. And for that I want to apologise to Sarah for thinking initially you were a bit crazy with those ideas that were quite alien to me. You opened my mind to different non-clinical possibilities and so I thank you for that.

I do not diss new idea’s now, I take the best of them and incorporate them into my recovery. Sometimes they don’t work, which is fine and sometimes they do! Its important to just keep trying.. and never give up.

Glucosamine Sulphate

Its been a while since I have posted here and to be frank I set the blog to automatically allow sensible comments as I’ve just not wanted to keep dwelling so much on my condition. Blogging I think was an important function in my recovery or at least it helped me at the realisation stage. I do think I did come to a point where I felt I  said everything I needed to. Sometimes dwelling on something too long as an negative emotional affect and I needed time to get past this.

I am getting better and actually un-installed voice recognition totally from my PC and packed away the expensive headset. I have been working hard on the posture issues, strengthening my back muscles. I eat a far better, banana based diet and I take a few supplements too.

For breakfast I take a 1000mg of codliver oil, plus 2000mg of Glucosamine Sulphate. With my evening meal then I take a single “Gloco Samax Extra” which contains a further 650mg of Glucosamine Sulphate and Chondroitin Sulphate with MSM, Rosehip and Omega 3.

I take it in such a high dosage because it has  anti-inflammatory properties – its a side effect of the supplement and I’m merely using it to my advantage. Its mild but I do believe it is working rather better than any prescription medication ever did. well not without potentially giving me cancer and shredding my insides so much that I end up bleeding internally.  This is why I completely ignore doctors advise now and surprisingly by completely ignoring them I am improving!

I do believe a part of any recovery from anything is mind set. You don’t actually want to be thinking about your condition so much, but likewise its not something you can ever forget about. People who say such things like “everyone has problems.. we just get on with it” are in fact just morons who don’t understand about real pain.

I don’t think recovery means going back to the way you were before, I think it means just being able to get back to a point where you can get on with life and making small unconscious allowances. For example, I type differently, more slowly and take lots of breaks. I will never be super fast typist again and they won’t ever appear on my CV again. My typing will pretty much be like every other average joes. I don’t think that is a bad thing at all. If I typed like “joe” then I wouldn’t have had an RSI like condition at all! lol

I want to wish everyone a happy new years and I will try to post more next year when I have something interesting to say!

Comford Canal, Derbyshire

We started out just after 2 p.m. into Derbyshire. On coming to the village of the strangely named “Whatstandwell”, we took a sharp right turn off the main road and parked near to the Derwent hotel in a small lay-by. There were several cars already present parked in a rather awkward position making it difficult to safety Park without ramming anybody or ending up in the canal. I wish people would have a little bit of common-sense and decency to leave their cars so that other people can park as easily as they did.

Whatstandwell is where Helen McArthur was born the famous sailor that has done many amazing feats of endurance that have won her many friends and a lot of respect from the sailing world. Her parents actually still live in the village, so I’m told.

We walked along the comfort canal, which is a very pretty walk in the autumn colours. The tow-path was covered with leaves of Brown’s and oranges, making it difficult to see the edge off the path and the dog muck which usually is very evident in these types of walks normally.

Derbyshire, especially around Comford is a popular place and there was as a result quite a few people there. It was mainly people just like us out for a walk and the obligatory dog walkers too. The wildlife was pretty thin on the ground as normally when you see lots of people and dogs you don’t see much wildlife. There was some ducks like Mallard’s and Coots, but these can be normally found peace in any public park in any city in the UK. I did know have an audience with an endangered small mammal which popped out to greet me; the water vole. It’s a very shy creature and small which makes it really difficult to take a picture of. It’s really fast too, digital cameras are really slow on the other hand!

As we followed the canal at some points you could see the river Derwent through the trees within a few metres. I love the sound of flowing water and to what you how it goes over rocks; there is so much drama involved and yet I find it so relaxing.

We came to a small hamlet called “Lea Bridge” and had to sit down. They were so many people here, all walking because he was a nice day rather than sitting at home doing very little. Families were out sitting at picnic tables enjoying themselves, dog walkers play with their charges and couples walked hand-in-hand in the sunlight. You notice a lot when you’re sitting still and really take your time to look around you. Near Lea Bridge there was this abandoned Locke keepers cottage (see above) which was fast becoming part of the woodland. Nature always reclaims land from humans!

Time is getting on, so we walked back along the canal along the leafy tow-path on the edge of some woodland. There are so many wonderful views in such a small area in Derbyshire. I enjoyed my walk though I was extremely tired and I suspect I will be sleeping very shortly.

Is Food related to RSI?

I think a really important aspect of my repetitive strain injury has been the daily issues I have been getting from my spine. The pain appears to be mostly the upper part of the spine, but at times I am getting problems in the lower part which is more notice-able as its different. The lower back pain affects me more whilst washing my hair in the mornings or showering where I have to bend a little.  No I can’t move the shower head up as then it makes the water drop to high and it goes all over the place.

Since I have been getting all this back pain I have been trying to diet in the hope that this would help to take some of the pressure off my poor back. My diet is pretty good any way, though I do have a bit of a sweet tooth. I eventually stumbled on an interesting diet called “The Banana diet” which was a little ebook I got for less than a fiver. Since I love banana’s any how, I thought it would be worth a punt.

I’ve already seen some improvements after a month and I feel different in some sense; maybe that’s just a placebo I don’t know. But, yesterday for example despite waking up with the usual pain for the first time in along time I was able to bounce up at 6:45am and I proceeded to do a load of yard work and felt really good. By the end of the day I had no pain, other than the usual tiredness.

My question to myself has been that maybe I should had been doing this years ago. Perhaps I have been thinking about tackling repetitive strain totally from the wrong angle. Perhaps treating a cause further down the chain so to speak (diet and food) would decrease my stress and therefore aid my bodily repair. Its pretty well known some foods contain chemicals that alter mood and so it makes sense to me If what we eat calms us then this only can be good for our stressed bodies.

The diet though is a bit bizarre in its construction which always appeals to me (being strange) and has worked for me. I’m usually quite scientific when it comes to dieting, but this time I deliberately didn’t over analyse it. You know for once I just thought, I’m not going to waste time over analysing something and just try it for myself.

Back Work – Weights

I have been working allot on my posture lately and I think I am starting to see some results. I still get many symptoms associated with carpel tunnel, even though it isn’t that but there was been some improvement in the terms I am able to type a bit and use voice recognition allot less.

Today I purchased a set of fairly light dumbells from argos for £14.99 after two friends suggested that I would try now rebuilding some of the muscles. I used to do a bit of gym work prior to getting RSI several years ago and my average training weight was 50kg. The total weight of this new set was only 19.7kg and I really struggled to carry them the very short distance between the store and the car. I managed eventually having rested several times on bollards and the floor. Lifting it out of the car again was terrible, it was like it was clued to the inside of the boot. Still I managed it in the end, after sweating like a pig and throwing about some cursives.

On trying the weights, I discovered that the 3kg dumbells were about right for any muscles except my shoulder blades. Those exercises that were using the muscles around the shoulder blade then I HAD to drop to an embarrising 1.5kg weight to do my normal set of 30. When I used to go to the gym, I did a dam sight more sets than 1, but together I only could manage just the one. Still, I felt proud myself even getting this far and I was sweating allot. I felt happy that my hands were no more numb than when they started, though the only exception being my left hand was shaking and felt a bit weak.

A couple of good friends suggested that I should try using weights again. One of the friends spends his days dispensing advise to the public and so I guess he should know what hes talking about. I used to see him the gym I attended in my 20’s and we loosely stay in touch as a consequence. A week or so after another friend was telling me that her back issues improved after working with weights – but at a far more advanced level than I am.  So, I thought why not lets just try it, as long as I take it easy I don’t have that much to lose. Yes, true I could make it ten times worse, but its a chance I had decided to take. I will post updates here so you guys don’t have to cripple yourself if it doesn’t work. LOL