Thursday, January 31, 2008

Weathering Pain

For all those who are say, under 40, you may find this post doesn't apply . . . yet. Since I'm slamming into the 60's door pretty soon, just so you know ahead of time, weather changes can create new aches and pains never before experienced. For several weeks (months) now we seem to have been experiencing an army of fronts marching across our area--along with the rest of the country. First its warm--in the 80 degree area, then it crashes to sub-freezing temps for a day or two. Next, it rockets back to the balmy 70's just before dropping two to three inches of rain. But is it over yet? Oh, no! It slumps back down to the just-above-freezing temperatures again for a day or two. My poor aching bones! And muscles! Go figure! I've known about the joint aches off and on for maybe fifteen, twenty years--nothing bad mind you. But now!? It's muscles, too? How'd that happen? What is going on, I ask you?
When my Grandma Z was about my age, she complained that riding in a car half-way across the country was just too painful for her because her legs would ache so much. I was 21, so I simply could not relate. Wellllllllllll . . . those days are gone, and hello, Grandma, here I am! Borrowing a quote from Pioneer Woman's Blog a few days ago (and she borrowed from Hee Haw--the TV show of some years back) "gloom, despair, and agony on me . . ."
With a new front making its way into our neck of the woods, my body had new tinglings, and twitchings, and agonies never experienced before this morning as my husband expected me to "rise and shine forth" and iron a shirt for him before he left for work! It was all I could do to muster the strength! I moaned and groaned, I thought, sufficiently. But he came back upstairs to see if I were coming a few minutes later as I catalogued all the new painful areas from my waist down, and I promise there were some new ones, never before experienced.
My rational side tried valiantly to encourage me with thoughts like, You know it'll feel better if you just suck it up and get the heck out of bed! Well who wants to be rational when the bed is so nice and comfy and warm and you're tired and freshly aware of waking up to pains you definitely did not have when you went to bed the night before? NOT ME! Come on, now! You know that getting up and moving around is the best cure for all that pain you're feeling. It'll be better soon as you get up!
Well, that little voice from my rational side lied. It was worse. There were pains in my lower back, pains in my sacroiliac, my hips and my left knee. If that wasn't bad enough, when I finished ironing my sweetheart's shirt--I do this most every morning (and have been for nearly 38 years now, because I love him dearly)--I discovered new pains! My muscles and/or nerves from somewhere around my pelvic joints to my left knee were screaming! When I tried to rub away the pain behind my knee, I found it didn't help! It aggravated it! So much for rational voices in our heads!
But, strangely enough, uhmmmmmmmm . . . I am feeling better now, and it is only two hours later--after getting out of bed. And I've actually survived the ordeal. The pain. The trauma. The feeling like my grandma did nearly 40 years ago. For now. At least. Yet, acording to the weather folks, we're in for some kind of a doozy of storm weather possibilities today! If we lived further north and were in the path of all the sleet, freezing rain mess, I'd for sure crawl back into bed and pull the covers over my head! Can't wait for what tomorrow may bring. Maybe I'll just iron a couple of shirts later today. Yeah! Then I'll take a pass at getting up at 6:30 am tomorrow. Hmmmmmm. Sounds like a plan to me! (IF the power doesn't go out, anyway.)
Just as an aside: In all fairness to him, so you don't think ill of him, my dear husband has suffered back pain and joint pain and miserable arthritis about as long as I've known him. Since all that pain . . . yes, with nerves, and muscles and more . . . is so familiar to him he kind of rolls his eyes when I complain about my minor stuff. I'm coming to better appreciate all he suffers--while still valiantly earning a living for us! He's a keeper!

1 comment:

BB said...

I can relate and I am only JUST 40! Thanks to a major knee injury and three (unsucessful) knee reconstructions! Ah well... at least its summer here - although branding starts next week and that can be tough on joints too!
Bush Babe