Today's been a long day for sure. I woke up about six this morning and got some things done around the house, so that I wouldn't have to do anything when I got home from my procedure and I could just get some rest. I've been sleeping like shit these past couple of nights, so I'm definitely looking forward to getting some much needed sleep tonight. I've been focusing on self-care and putting together a structured routine, so that when I return to work, I can keep doing what I'm doing in order to improve both my mental and physical health. I've also have taken up a interest in psychology lately - more specifically, the human psyche. So, I've been doing some self-guided research into several different areas of that topic and referring to the work of past, highly respected psychologist such as Carl Yung and Sigmund Freud. It's definitely a complex, loaded topic for sure. I've been primarily focused in the different parts of the brain (how they work, more from a mental than a physical aspect), the parts of the human psyche (ID, Ego and Super-ego), consciousness, pre-consciousness, sub-consciousness and unconsciousness. Unfortunately, when it comes to the mental, most of it is very subjective including the life-long workings of Yung and Freud - a lot can be left to open to interpretation there. I often struggle with the subjective because I desire objectiveness - what is concrete which could be said to be a human flaw. We can only scientifically back what we can see and prove. Obviously, things like scans can show defects in the brain that lead to diagnosis such as cancer, Alzheimer's, Dementia and other forms of brain damage but there is much left to be desired in terms of scientific facts when it comes to general mental health disorders and we go more based off symptoms than what we can actually see - which in turn can be extremely tricky in nature due to the fact that a lot of symptoms one can experience that cross over into several different realms of disorders and that is why most people often get misdiagnosed. When I find myself in a more appropriate, comfortable place, I will write more on my thoughts of this topic.
Moving forward, the procedure went well. I did experience moderate discomfort with it as to be expected really. The process of the ablation is slightly different than the diagnostic procedures. It follows more or less the same technique but it definitely more intense. The needles injected are slightly bigger in diameter due to needing to place probes inside of the for the purpose to transmitting the RFA currents to the surrounding medial nerves that send signals to the pain receptors. I asked prior them them beginning, what I would experience in terms of what I would actually feel. The doctor asked if I've ever been stung by a bee. I haven't. He said, "Well, you're about to experience six bee-stings but I'll talk you through the entire process." Yeah, that didn't feel too good and neither did the adjustment of the needles. He started on the right side and then went to the left side. The "bee-stings" he referred to was the numbing agent - they numb you pretty darn good if I do say so myself. Then they test the probes which feels similar to that of a tens unit and after that, they run the RFA which kills the nerves for the better part of 7-12 months. I didn't feel that part at all and didn't even realize that we were finished before I knew it. I didn't even realize when he had taken all of the needles out! I do have to repeat this procedure about once a year as nerves do regenerate over time. There is some moderate soreness that will be expected over the next few days as the numbness wears off. He said, no heat - only ice if needed. I still take my pain meds but am hoping as I heal from this procedure, that I can ween off of them and get to the point that I no longer need them. I also hope to incorporate exercise into my self-care routine very soon. I'm down another pound for a total of twenty-one pounds which is more than I've been able to accomplish in a long time - it's been trying for sure having issues with my stomach.
Here are some of the things I've been eating lately.
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