Med change & good books

- Four eggs
- 2/3 of a piece of Atkins cheesecake
- Cheeseburger patty with lettuce
- Four eggs with a sausage patty
- Pumpkin bake

Finally getting off the Percocet!  I've been on it since August of 2011, which is a long time.  I was on morphine in the hospital and I've been getting the percs from my surgeon.  He has been wanting me off it because it's not good to build a tolerance to it.  In his words, our bodies get really good at digesting it and getting rid of it and then it's nearly impossible for it to be effective at all post-surgery.  If you want to be scared straight, just think of post-op pain and absolutely nothing will help the pain you are in.  OUCH and scary as shit, right? 

I have four knee surgeries under my belt (due to my congenital deformity of my knees) and I'm certain that I will have many more.  Wednesday will be my last day on it and I've been cutting back half a pill every three days, which has been exceedingly effective for me.

I'm now taking Tramadol for my osteoathritis knee pain along with Naproxen, which is basically a Rx dosage of Aleve.  The Naproxen works on my inflammation symptoms and the Tramadol works on the pain that my brain feels.  Tramadol works like an opiate, but it isn't one.

I was avoiding taking the anti-inflammatory along with the Tramadol because of the psych drug I am on (Viibryd).  Basically, the Viibryd label says that Tramadol and any NSAID (anti-inflammation drug) can lead to intestinal bleeding when taken when you're on the Viibryd. My doctor has me taking an acid-reducer to avoid this.

Basically, I'm happy as a clam to finally be on a path to taking meds that help me and are sustainable to take long-term.  Getting off the opiates is a big, fat "no fun," but the positives outweigh the negatives.

The gf's dog business is taking off more and more.

I'm really so fortunate to have a sit-down job and the ability to work from home as well.  I did the recumbent bike for 30 mins a couple days ago (inspired by Trophy Wife Oct), but I overdid it a little bit because my knee hurt for a couple days.  My surgeon tells me that biking will help me build more muscles around the joint, which will lessen the work that the actual joint has to do.

I've been reading Cheryl Strayed's books and I think I'm on the last-of-three books that she has published.  A good book is awesome!  Also, helping the gf edit her books and she is an amazing, talented author as well.

All is well in the world!  I will try and keep my blog entries more than just what I ate (which is eggstremely boring).