Author Archives: Frances

To The Doctor

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As OH managed to get up our track and escape to town yesterday, I decided to make an appointment with our GP to talk about my dreadful sciatica.  Things are no better and I am getting very depressed with it.

Of course the Jimny (our 4×4) had a flat battery out of nowhere having gone to town the day before.  IT HAD ONE JOB!  (I could’ve seriously undone the handbrake by a cliff today and watched it roll off).

So OH kindly took his van up to the road (not the best in snow/ice) spending a good 45 minutes digging it out every time it got stuck on our track – now slush and ice.  I walked up and off we went.  The actual road was fine.

The GP was kind.  She could see and understand my predicament and we talked about a plan of action with regard to a regular painkiller regimen rather than me trying to stay off them, which is what everyone always advises.

Home, and I went to bed and slept all afternoon feeling a bit happier that a) it is now thawing, b) I have a painkiller dr-approved plan and c) the grass is beginning to appear and we can hopefully feed everyone less, though they are all hanging around expecting waitress service still.

I haven’t the heart to tell them they broke the waitress!

Not Great

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Currently, I equate my life with the game, Snakes and Ladders.

Today I fell down a long snake and am back to square 1 with leg and back pain, etc.  I am very miserable, especially as yesterday it felt like I had turned a corner and things were going to get back to normal.

There is nothing I can do about it. Just keep on resting and doing gentle exercise – only getting up to help do the horses. OH and Floss are being marvellous.  I could not do any of this without them.

Of course, no horse or pony of mine is helpful, though today Kolka managed to swallow her pride or ego and let the little ones share a haynet.

Vitamin was being forced to share her’s (though I don’t know if she can actually eat it, but she was trying) with Gussie, who thinks all this food around is great.

Iacs, at the back, has been standing by himself a lot and that worries me.  He does eat, though.

Floss kindly gave him his own separate haynet which I limped over and specifically showed him, but he ran away saying Haakon had looked at him funny and he would rather starve.

Ditto Fivla but she had just finished a massive bucket of food so she was probably just digesting after eating herself to a standstill.

Newt has a death wish and just goes around secretly sniffing equine ladies’ derrières.  Big mistake.

So that’s me. Not great. The animals are all outside which I tell myself is actually much better for them. They have food, water, shelter and rugs.  Please be outside horses!

I’m Still Standing

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Well, surprise, surprise, I’m now pretty much back on my feet again and I am not sure quite how but maybe it was a mixture of pills, potions, ointments, unguents and exercise.

Last night, before bed, I whizzed up a smoothie of banana, turmeric powder, milk, fresh ginger, honey and black pepper.  I knocked it back – it wasn’t too bad, I’ve tasted worse – and went to bed. I slept the sleep of the dead.  Lovely.

This morning, I thought I would get in there first on the pain front and took some painkillers before the sciatica set in to see if that would keep everything at bay.  And it did, which was a huge relief.

Here’s something I didn’t think I would see – Haakon sharing with anyone, even Newt.

Haakon doesn’t share and has been going around like the chief dinosaur in Jurassic Park 1-V1 hating everyone, even Iacs, which is sad.

On a roll, so to speak with my back, I drove the Suzuki up our track, through some major dug out snowdrifts (well done OH) and onto the road.

As the road was not great, we then decided to leave the car up there for the time being.

It is living with our neighbour’s now.

We walked home and I managed it fine.

(neighbour’s garden fence)

Since then, I have been out a few times gently exercising, walking with two poles trying to get my back working again.  There have been a few twinges but nothing like the previous days and Floss and OH are all helping hugely with the lugging side of things.  That has made a major difference.  And the water is back on in the shed so we are all happy about that.

Exercises

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A spectacular sunrise this morning. It even made the muck heap look good.

And while that was going on in the sky above, everyone equine was totally oblivious and happily munching their breakfast having survived their first night outside in the snow.

Meanwhile, my back is terrible. I have intense pain/sciatica going down the front of my left thigh and I am finding life very rough.

So I looked up my symptoms and started to do exercises every 30 minutes that would help while lying in bed.  Walking is difficult and sitting impossible now.

Obviously, I had help.

And Pepper was not helpful.  Her legs are spikey and heavy.

I have phoned up the Pain Clinic where my name is always on stand-by and I have joined the list to be seen for spinal epidural steroid injections soonest. I can’t go on like this and am very worried.

On a good point, though, I might have found the photo to be made into Daisy’s next Christmas puzzle! 1000 pieces of varying shades of white.  She’ll love it.

More Snow Pictures

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My back is still giving me problems so, while I have Flossie here, I am making the most of it and lying in bed all day getting up only to feed the animals.

As Floss was going out to lug water (apparently it is called the “Farmer’s Carry” in the gym), I gave her my phone and asked her to take some photos of her surroundings and anyone else she happened upon.  I stayed lying on my bed.

The horses and ponies have had two fields to dig for grass in.  This is the stream which is completely covered over – something I have never seen before.

The drifts are pretty good too.

Everyone is pleased to be outside.

 

Except for Fivla and Vitamin who have taken up residence in their container.  I did show Haakon, Iacs and Kolka the containers.  Haakon thought I was actually mad expecting anyone to go inside.  Iacs and Kolka went in and came straight out.  Still, they know where they are if they want shelter.

Anyway, tonight we have left everyone outside having had two suppers, along with copious haynets hanging everywhere and fresh water.  The wind has died down and those that need have rugs.  Floss and I decided everyone needed to stop seeing us as their servants and start being horses and ponies again.