Lightning Survivor Journal Entries 4-6 Dec 2018

Dec 4

10:00 tbi mtg (therapeutic recreation svc- Suzie , Bunny, Misty)

Played apples 2 apples

1:00p – recvd upsetting letter from mtg co. Joe trying to get me to make decision about going to Jackson with him. It’s stressing me out. 

2:11p – my brain hurts. I’m exhausted. 

2:50p – weird icy sensation inside both ears and head

6:22p- its 72 degrees inside but I’m freezing!!! Not feeling very well.

10:00p – Joe came home gave me kiss said that I feel warm and look like I don’t feel good. Told him I didn’t.

Dec 5

10:30a- not feeling well. Muscles twitching randomly thru body. Fingers throb and tingly. Legs ache.

If I turn too far to the right or left too far my sides cramp up painfully.

1:00p- Joe was sweet and stopped by store on his way home from hunting. He got sprite and ramen soup for me. He got a deer. Yeah!

7:50pm – starting to feel like I’m freezing again!!! Must have a virus or something. Not done much of anything today.  Goose bumps everywhere. I’m still in my pj pants, fuzzy socks, & a sweater – still freezing.

10:23pm – painful chilling sensation in center of chest – weird bc I’ve done nothing today. Second thought the only productive thing I’ve done was print and cut letters for bulletin board.

Decided to post to blog today. Every time I work on it my eyes get blurry and I get a headache.

I have mixed emotions looking back. I’m glad I heed advise to journal my days bc I don’t remember alot of things. I’m sad because I wish I could remember without the journal. I’m thankful for the support my family has been to me. 

Current medications/supplements:

Propranolol, Zyrtec, Calcium, Magnesium, Probiotic, Turmeric, Naproxen, Flexeril, Melatonin, Edarbyclor, Alpha Lipoc Acid, B Complex, MSM, B12 melt tabs.

11:33p- still awake-even after taking Melatonin. Center of chest throbbing. Headache. Body aches. Fingers hurts. Low back aches. Rt hip aches. Shoulders hurt. Trouble getting comfortable.

Dec 6

8:48a – rough night woke every couple hours. Dream of lost things…last lost thing was my keys. I just had them to open trunk of car, but when I was done they were no where to be found!

Joe woke me up at 5am because he couldn’t find his uniform pants. I wrote note and put it by coffee pot. He didn’t see it yet. Didn’t know it’d take an hour for them to dry. Ugh! So much for trying to be nice. I think he thanked me for trying to take care of him.

Woke to feeling like my skin was crawling with ants on top of head. Not a good feeling. Whole body stiff and hurts. Neck aches. Headache. Stuffy nose. Face hurts. Muscles in legs twitching.

5:00p asked family to help with decor at church. Joe helped me with taking bulletin board down. He also help me put up red foil for backdrop. Traced manger silhouette onto poster board and cut it out. Bulletin board finished just in time for church to start.

7:23p- I am hurting!! Center of chest throbbing pain with center tingling. Neck throbbing and tense. Eyes blurry. Brain foggy.  Chest feeling icy. Exhausted. 

10:43pm – skin itches all over almost feels like ants crawling all over me.  I hurt all over

Lightning Survivor Journal Entries 28-30 November 2018

Nov 28

7:00am- woke to slightly bloody nose. Neck is hurting. Chest hurts when I yawn. Broken sleep last night. Woke at 3am not sure why. It’s 33 degrees outside & I’m freezing.

9:53am- still have headache. Please go away!

11:25am- eyes are hurting. Loud noises hurting head. Headache getting worse. Thirsty. Feet freezing (have socks & boots on inside). 

Traumatic brain injury info

https://mayfieldclinic.com/pe-tbi.htm

12:10pm- Christmas play practice went well. Now having Christmas co-op luncheon. It’s amazing how much sound effects the brain. Wearing sunglasses inside to keep headache from becoming migraine. Sitting on sideline until crowd for food subsides. Don’t want to have meltdown.

Friend, Melina, told me she saw a video about someone getting struck by lightning wanted to know if I had that type of scarring. Told no but I do have scar on head though not sure if it’s the entrance or exit wound. Let her feel the indentation.

8:01pm- rt hand going numb & tingling

Lower back is throbbing

Nov 29

1:36 am – my lower back is killing me!  Decided to help with dishes. Now I’m regretting it!! Still have headache but its eased maybe. Missing my hubby. Him & buddy went hunting. 

He’s been such a trooper through all of my ordeal. I’ve been very moody at times and he’s been so gracious most of the time. 

Rt leg hurts, rt hip & thigh ache, low back throbbing, neck hurts, limited turnability in neck

8:18am – woke at 7:30. It’s chilly and hard to get motivated to get up. Neck is throbbing. Rt hip aches & rt leg hurts when I try to sit indian style. 

Bloody nose at 8:15am. Wish I could figure out what’s triggering them. 

Still have a headache.

1:00pm- had to type up biz mtg minutes for church, but had to look up verbiage bc I wasn’t computing how to word it. Took me long time. Brain started feeling squirly and eyes were blurry and tunneling. Joe said he could tell bc my eyes were starting to look glossy.

Nosebleeds after Concussion

You need to get couple of blood test done which include CRP, RF, CBC, BT, CT, INR. That should help.

https://www.practo.com/consult/nosebleed-after-concussion/t

CRP – checks for inflammation

RF – Rheumatoid factor

CBC – Complete blood count which checks overall health

BT – Bleeding time which checks how quickly your blood clots to stop bleeding

CT – cat scan??

INR – International Normalized Ratio 

Test for blood clotting time (for those using blood thinners)

Info on Traumatic Brain Injury

https://mayfieldclinic.com/pe-tbi.htm

https://www.brainline.org/article/what-impact-will-moderate-or-severe-tbi-have-persons-life

9:15pm 

I was sitting on my chair in livingroom trying to relax. All of a sudden my right thumb started burning. I looked at it and it was turning white! It’s burns like crazy & feels like it’s on fire!  I’ve tried rinsing with water. I have not done any cleaning today. I don’t know what to think.

Went over to mom’s for help. Joe at church. Rinsed with cool water. Made me drink glass of water. Still burning. Rinsed some more. Applied aloe vera. Soaked in egg white. Starting to look a little better but still burns. Rinsed in cool water. Soaked in egg white again. Rinsed again. White ash look gone. Not burning like before. Tender to touch. 

Joe came home & checked counters. They’re dry. Joe smelled bleach on some of drinking straws. Possibly my straw had some & didn’t realized it.

Applied Lavender oil to help soothe. 

11:10pm

Hands tingling, headache, neck hurts, exhausted, can’t sleep, low back throbbing 

Nov 30

5:17am woke just before 5am. Center of chest is hurting. Headache. 

6:30am decided to get up since I wasn’t sleeping. Made door draft stopper for front door. Washed load of clothez. 

10:00am- bloody nose

Journal Entries 25-27 November 2018

Nov 25

6:54am- woke the first time at 5am went to rr and back to bed. 

Woke 2nd time at 6:30am. Taking shower was such a chore. Every inch of my chest feels really swollen and throbbing. Head hurts. Thought hot shower would help. I don’t think so…now I’m out of breath and chest feels tighter. Neck aches and sharp pain shoots down back if I move too far in any direction. Might have to ask dr for steroid shot if still hurting by Friday. So tired of hurting all the time. Right now just want to drop my sword and cry for just a while. 🙁

8:00am – I’m gonna have to find $ so I can go back on the propranolol. I’m tired of having headaches twice daily. I don’t like the potential side effects are but until I can figure an alternative I’ll have to take it for now.

Trying to find remedies for yeast overgrowth & balance hormones.

10:30am- Talina tagged me in a post about lightning strike survivors. Made me cry. The article explains what I have trouble explaining.

https://m.ranker.com/list/what-is-being-hit-by-lightning-like/laura-allan?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=historypost&pgid=642850749204637&utm_campaign=what_happens_to_your_bod

This explains what I have trouble explaining to folks about my lightning strike anomaly. Reading makes me cry all over again. There are some differences in my experience than what’s in the article, but it sure does help explain some of the after effects that I experience on a daily basis. I wish doctors would study it out enough to better help those who do survive.

I do thank the Lord that His mercies allowed me to live to tell the tale and that they are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23

Questions:

How does one replenish the water that was zapped out of you?

11:41 rt foot itches like crazy!

6:15pm – my entire back is throbbing!! 

Both hands and wrists so swollen that my loose bracelet iz making indentations in my skin. 

Nov 26 – no entries

Nov 27

220a Found tiny bugs on floor by bed. Made me paranoid for a while. Can’t sleep

7:00am Took me long time to fall asle. didnt sleep long. Woke when Joe got in bed from working overnight. He was freezing! Couldn’t fall back to sleep.

Arms & hands were numb and tingly. Slight headache. 

9:40am phone interview stressed me out. Lady seemed to be in hurry and didn’t want to give me time to write things down or ask questions to understand what’s going on. Have major headache now and don’t feel too healthy. Indigestion. Center of chest hurts. 

11:00am started washing Dezirae’s linens, but had to wait for her to help exchange them between units. Had Jordon pull her bed away from wall so she could vacuum floor under bed. We put D.E. down. She’s been getting marks on her torso that kind of look like strawberry freckles. They don’t really look like bug bites. Precationary measures don’t hurt either. 

4:30pm – have to take Jordon to basketball practice & play practice. I think I’ll take Dezirae with me to thrift store before we pick up items Joe asked me to get at grocery store. My favorite store is the bargain thrift store where it’s buy it by the lb! 

Found some goodies. Went looking for materials to make door draft stoppers for our house instead of using our clean blankets. Found a dog bed I’m gonna upcycle. Dezirae found a Therapedic electric blanket throw. It’s every soft.  Found a few other things too (material to use for homemade presents, binders, clip board, stainless steel mixing bowl, etc). Spent $15. I think we did pretty good!

7:01pm – Headache all day. Toes feel frozen periodically thru day. Center of chest hurts and feels icy periodically.

8:30 – took shower. That was a chore. Seems lately that most things seems to make me get out of breath. Chest is bothering me.

9:00p – decided to work on blog. Need to add couple more posts.  I found yet another book I started journaling about my lightning strike in. Good thing I’m working on putting it all in one place. It’s too confusing to keep up with all.   

Looking back at even a month after strike – I don’t even remember half of it all. My mind thoughts were sporadic a best. It’s amazing to make sense of it.

10:53p – just discovered I forgot to take meds last night.

Feet are freezing. Thankful for heating pads to warm them up. Neck hurts. Entire back aches. Fingers aches. Center of chest throbbing with sdporadic sharp stabbing pain on left side. Headache (just took migraine pill since others aren’t helping any – oh wait I don’t recall taking any rx pills today. Actually been scatter brained. Started to work on designing postcard invite for church christmas program and ended up finding a website that had christmas programs for free to download. Got 9 or 10 I think plus christmas color pages and activities. Probably saved over $300 for church. Yipee! I love saving every penny I can. 

We wouldn’t have been able to survive this long without God helping me learn to live frugally. I’m enjoying the Proverbs 31 Bible study I’m doing with Dezirae right now. It’s pretty interesting. 

Eyes are hurting. I have brightness all way down & night owl activated on my phone and phone is still too bright. Wish my headache would go away.

Probably should take a Melatonin and pain rx so i can get some shut eye tonight. Fingers aren’t working right…keeping hitting wrong button and habe to use spell correct. Ugh! 

We have busy morning tomorrow. Oh wait I better set my alarm before I forget again dont wantvto wake up late. Need to change battery in key fob. one day I’ll get to it.

11:15 oh, bother. Indigestion has creaped in. Thankful for papaya enzymes.  

1250a Joe & Dezirae went hunting. Got a small doe. Yeah! Meat for house.

Ache all over today. Random muscle twitching. Random muscle cramping in calves and thighs. Itchy skin.  Hands numb and tingly when I awoke.  Feet freezing ice cold for several hours this afternoon. Had to use heating pad couple times today. 

Journal Entries 16-18 Nov 2018

Nov 16

Well today didn’t exactly go as planned.

I intended on canning pumpkin to make pies, cakes, etc for the holidays & beyond.
Around 8:30am, I started cutting up the pumpkin, but after cutting off top and 3 chunks I started hurting horribly. Had to ask my daughter to help cut rest of pumpkin up in chunks.

Prepped jars, lids, water, & supplies. Got pumkins cubes in jars and pressure canner wouldn’t seal & leaking water. Ugh!

Ended up calling my mom for advise. We ended up changing out every possible part. All the while praying for help.

It’s 11:55 pm. I still haven’t figured out the problem. I’m beyond pain, exhausted, ready for bed. Hopefully, I’ll get a decent amount of sleep.

Did I mention that both kids are sick too? Thankfully, one is on the mends while the other is just coming down with it.

Thankful tomorrow is another day & the Lord’s mercies are new every morning.

Finally got it to seal after turning lid around, but rocker still won’t jiggle.  I’m perplexed, beyond hurting, exhausted, over it all. Decided to give up for night. Lid on canner got stuck and wouldn’t come off!!  Ugh!! After following internet suggestions to no avail, I ended up unscrewing one handle to get lid off.  My entire body is throbbing!!! Center of chest hurts like the dickens. Been using pain rub all day & taking more pain rx than normal. Stomach muscles hurt deeply. Back throbbing. Stuffy nose. Toes clod (cold).


Nov 17 – no entry

Nov 18

1202a Took me all day to make sweet potatoe pie & pumpkin dump cake for tomorrow. Bulletin almost finished. Waiting on proof. Have to finish printing in morning. Lord we have needs please supply. Legs are throbbing. Stomach innards aching off and on all day. Hands ache. Rash on left hand worse. Feet cold. Using heating pad to warm them up. Extremely tired. Skin dry & itchy. Female itch bothersome.

1120a Having neck issues. Hurts to turn too far either way. Bones pop easily. Constant pain at base of neck. Swollen lymph node on sides of neck. Dry skin. Headache. T rouble focusing especially on faster tempo song. Stomach inards hurt. 

251p Multitasking  is nearly impossible. Can’t hsrdly (hardly) see straight. 

3:00 feel like I’m gonna crash. Need to lay down for a while.

6:24 that was long nap. Woke with headache & cold.

11:10p chest hurts with sporadic icy sensation. Feet cold. Pain at base of neck worse. exhausted. Fingers tingly. 

Journal Entries 12-15 Nov 2018

Nov 12

7:00am- woke to notification sound on phone forgot to put it on silent. Ugh! Muscles in legs fluttering. Upper chest throbbing. Put phone on silent.

8:30am- woke again muscles in legs still randomly fluttering. Upper chest and back throbbing. Neck hurts. Headache. Hands & fingers ache. Stuffy nose. I haven’t even gotten up and I’m already tired. Eyes watery.

10:30pm- kind of lazy today…upper chest & back still hurting. Any movement using upper body makes it hurt worse. Used heating pad several times to ease pain. Headache twice today. Rainy most of day.

Nov 13 

6 a.m.  fell asleep around 2 a.m.  woke at 6 a.m. an hour for the alarm.  stomach hurting  couldn’t go back to sleep 

12noon fell asleep on the chair while waiting for Jordon to cook lunch.  1 p.m.  no  energy  today  feel like being a bum 

10 p.m. started  not  feeling  good  all of a sudden stupid voice to text isn’t working it’s irritating me  I just want to go to sleep have a headache.  head hurts. Necks hurts… still  can  only move it so far without causing neck muscle pain. Low back throbbing. Feet hurt. Random periodic stinging needle pain in back and front upper chest. Stuffy nose. Eyes watery. Indigestion. Post nasal drip. Rt hip hurts. Hands swollen and achy. Very tired. If only I could get inflammation gone. Red dry patch on left hand and parts of face.  Not retaining what I read for long. Memory issues. Feel like I’m forgetting something but can’t remember what it is.  Lord we need you to provide our needs. I am but dust you are the Potter. Please mold me and use me for Your will alone. I know I cannot fix my brokenness. Please give me a song. Amen.

Nov 14

Only got 4 hours of sleep last night.  Trying not to stress out over lack of income. Joe not getting 40hrs yet. Can’t pay bills this way.  Bible study went well with friend. She had car trouble today…think it’s dead battery. At least she made it to co-op. Chapter 3 is about worry & trusting Lord. Proverbs 3:5-6 

Nov 15

Scatter brained today. Started several things without completing them to start with. Dezirae giggled bc I kept saying “Oh my, I forgot I was doing…” (homemade chicken noodle soup, wash clothes, wash hair, pack things for church, can’t remember the other things). While She was doing school at kitchen table, she began reminding me what I was doing.  Chest feels tight and achy today. Entire back aches.  Pack computer, sewing items to work on Christmas gifts, decided what to have for supper & pack items to make it at church, Joe’s clothes, get ready for church, leave by 3pm to pick Joe up for work. I loathe driving on interstate even more so since my trauma. It cause great anxiety. Lots of traffic!! Boxed in by trucks!!  By time we arrived at church I was broke out in hives from neck up. It was hot and itchy too. Husband says that I’m scared of things a lot more since lightning strike.

10:00p- saw on news tonight lots of people hearx to loud “boom” noise this afternoon. Speculations of sonic boom. Low back throbbing, upper back aches, hands achy, feet ache & freezing, neck hurts especially if I bow it too low or turn too far sends shooting pain down back, sensitive to bright lights & loud noises, messing out sayings & using wrong words in sentences (used a boat term where it didn’t apply for traffic), tired but wide awake

838p Chest feels heavy and heart beating hard. Feel like I’m out of breath. Headsche. Hands swollen and tingly. Tired.  Necks hurts. Turned neck & it popped loudly. Ouchy! Headache now worse.

Journal Entries 4-7 Nov 2018

Nov 4

6:56am  Joe woke me up gently this morning thankfully because I was in the middle of a bad dream. It was weird.  I told Joe about it he said he thinks my brain is trying to heal itself cuz it’s going through events in my life I’m trying to figure things out

Symptoms:   left arm had shooting pain from shoulder to fingertips,  lower back hurts,  bags crampy and achy,  slight headache

9:38 muscles twitching and spams in left arm near elbow. Its bad emough its jerking my arm

11:43am- spams in left arm near elbow continue and are bothersome. Red spot on left hand bright red and inflamed

11:59 rt ear ringing

Nov 5 – no entry

Nov 6 – no entry

Nov 7

6:30am Rough night. Woke several times. Head aches. Eyes watery. Leg muscles spazing.  Stuffy nose. Feet tingly. Hands ache and tingly. Skin itchy.

11:49am – 3rd-5th Choir kids practicing for upcoming Christmas program. Singing little bit with them. Starting to hurt in upper chest and back region. Had to spot (stop). 

2:00pm – son lost his phone. Spent an hour stressing & praying that we’d find it. Found it in grandma’s car where it slipped down crack.

3:00pm- thundering and raining outside. Pain levels increasing. Body tensing every time the thunder roars. I can feel it rumbling in my bones. Son tries to reassure me that everything’s going to be okay. Headache is gwtting worse. Try peppermint under tongue first. 

4:00pm – Took tension headache & 250 mg magnesium.

5:00p- ate dinner. Headache starting to ease. Rest of body hurts horribly. It’s thundering & lightning with periodic rain. Joe’s drving is scaring me tonight, but I’m already tense from storm.  Prayer is absence of fear. Lord, please help me not to fear. 

Prescription for Worry & Fear

“The reasons our problems often seem overwhelming is [that] we allow the things of time to loom larger in our gaze than the things of eternity. The tiniest of coins, when held close to the eyes, can blot out the sun.” -Selwyn Hughes

Philippians 4:6-7
Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

God’s prescription for worry & fear is to be thankful in all things. Sometimes that’s a hard pill to swallow.

Worry tends to cloud our minds. Fear tends to immobilize us. Both make our problems seem like a mountain, not the molehill they are. Both have no room for God.

Thankfulness is an important key to have in our lives. For when we are thankful for what God has done in and through our lives, it gives us the power to change not only our attitude but also our perspective.

Prayer is also another important key. When we allow the cares of this world to occupy our minds, we cause static in the communication lines making it difficult to hear when God is trying to speak to us.
Prayer is our lifeline to God.

Take time to talk to the Lord in prayer. Thank Him for all He has done past, present, and future.
When we choose to pray, we decide to have a thankful heart regardless of our circumstances, this allows God to guard our hearts and minds. Prayer & thanksgiving not only magnifies Christ but also delivers us from fear (Psalm 34:3-4).

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