Wednesday, July 7, 2010

My Annoying Dislocatedness

It's been a while since I have written in this blog. Since last time I posted, I've rediscovered the fun of sewing cross stitches! (There are some more pictures of the sea shell ones I did last week here).  This week, I am sewing a mouse!


Anyways, I have also had some health annoyances this week (other than ME/CFS for a change!) Since I was 11 years old, I have had this ligament problem throughout my entire body where my ligaments are too long/loose to hold my bones properly. Roughly every 2-3 months (sometimes more often), I dislocate bones. So far I have clicked out knees, fingers, wrists, toes, a shoulder, and hand bones. It's not usually that bad, coz my joints are so loose they can... er...relocate easily. But it hurts and swells and I go all shaky afterwards.


Occasionally, though, the dislocation causes more than just some soft tissue damage (the worst time, I ended up with the bone in my knee fracturing down the middle :s I was on crutches for around eight weeks; other times the joints just won't stop swelling and I need anti-inflammatory tablets to make them go normal-sized again; and once my thumb just went so stiff after it clicked out that I couldn't move it properly for weeks!) My worst fear when I was younger (and still a bit now) was a bone going out and me not being able to put it back in again. Now, I am kinda scared of getting arthritis from all the dislocations as well!


Once my wrist went out when I was hanging onto a railing. It was facing the wrong way and I couldn't let go of the railing with my hand. My fingers were just clenched tight, and wouldn't let go! It seemed like it took ages for me to force the arm bones to line back up with the hand, but it probably was les than a minute. As soon as it was back in place, I could move my fingers again and let go of the railing. It was scary! Lol! A few times I couldn't get my knee back in straight away, but I've learnt that forcing my leg straight is the key. I've also learnt that the longer a bone is out, the more it hurts after it goes back in, and the longer it takes to get better (apart from the fact that it is absolutely unbearable to have ur bone in the wrong place relative to your other bones! That feeling is pretty indescribable).


Anyways, the night before last,  I went out for dinner and ended up at the stage where I was so tired with ME/CFS that I couldn't sit up anymore. I really wanted to stay and try to look all normal - so I was kinda leaning oddly and holding my head up with my hand. Then I dislocated a bone in my hand - it just kinda collapsed and went click! Luckily it went straight back in again. Then my teeth mysteriously started chattering, lol - I guess probably from shock or something. Anyway, my hand was pretty sore, and I couldn't sit up anymore, so I ended up going out to the car park and sleeping on the back seat of the car. The temperature was below zero degrees celcius- it was cold! Lol - all the windows were fogged up by the time I woke up.


Then, yesterday at lunchtime, I dislocated my left knee. It was being evil all night and was stabbing me with pain. I couldn't sleep, which is especially bad when you have ME/CFS to begin with. I've noticed that since I got ME/CFS, I am a lot more likely to dislocate bones when I am really tired than I am when I am having a "good day" - Just to add icing to the cake on bad days! lol!


Over the years, on the numerous times I have had to go to doctors, physios, the hospital, x-ray pplz and a knee surgeon, I have been told that I have "a ligament disorder". However, I have never actually been officially diagnosed with anything specific. I have decided that next time I go to my doctor (which is later this month) I am so not leaving her office until she tells me why I am like this. No one else keeps clicking their bones out! It's just not normal :S and it hurts! lol. I want to know why I am the way I am.


~Adrielle =)


P.S.
I updated my website a few days ago, and added some more pictures to my DeviantART gallery too!