Quick Update

Things are super busy around here!  I mean busy, busy, busy!!  So I will keep this brief.  I still have TONS of energy!  I am 90% done with my spring cleaning.  All I have left to do is clean around the dog's area, move the couch to the other side of the room, and clean where the couch was.  Our couch is a sectional and one side was used as a free-for-all dumping ground....coats, books, etc.  That is all cleared out.  Hubby decided to throw his coat over it the other day and I though I was going to have a fit!  :)  He saw the look of death in my eyes and promptly hung up his coat.....too funny!  But for the last 8-9 months of being ill, I have let everything slide.  My house was one big clutter box!  It is SOOOOO nice to have it back to being a HOME!  Oh the things that make me happy now!  :)

OK, skin wise, I am still doing well.  My legs remain being pests.  They do not hurt at all, nor do they itch much.  But when they do I break open my skin.  No further oozing other than those 2 days I talked about in my previous post.  But the areas heal slowly and I keep breaking open new skin here and there.  I also have a few areas on my arms that do the same.  They don't hurt, no swelling is noted (legs are not tight, but they do seem slightly larger than normal so I may be a little swollen there), and I continue with no oozing or redness.  I am just slightly pink here and there and dry all over.  Some days my skin feels parched.  Very little shedding going.....just a bit of flakiness when I scratch my legs.  I have not needed anything to soften my skin to move....the dryness is not painful nor does it really need any moisturizer.  I am just allowing my body to heal as naturally as possible now. 

I shower ever other day....no more baths.  I get high anxiety when the bag of dead sea salt catches my eye.  I know the salt bath would be good for my legs, but I can't bring myself to do it.  Too many painful memories.  Showers dry me out more if I use too hot water or stay in too long.  My skin does not burn when getting out (a first in many, many years). 

I go many many hours without thinking of my skin now.  I itch every other hour or so....no frenzies, just a dry, irritating itch here and there.  Once a day I find myself picking at my legs....a horrible habit I know I must break. 

One thing I noticed is that my nails stopped growing....haven't clipped them in about 3 weeks, and they remain super short.  I don't bite them or pick them and have never had a problem growing them to a decent length.  I think my body is just going through phases here.  Surface healing has been really slow and it coincides with the slow nail growth....maybe my  body is focusing on deeper healing at this point?  Who knows. 

What I do know is I am 18 days into this break.  No real big flares....just that 2 day blip.  I am just a few days shy of 1 month being on the supplements.  If they are working, I would expect to see bigger improvements by the end of November.  I still feel there has been some deep healing as evidenced by the thick layer of scaly skin on my hands and wrists becoming a very thin layer now, and having no more pain or burning.  This could all be coincidence or it may be the supplements.  I am still preparing myself mentally for another flare.  Even though I know I will probably flare again, I also know that I will lose it if I do....regardless of the supplements or not....I think after feeling so good these past weeks, it will be a huge hit to my psyche if I flare....I think everyone feels something similar.  So no matter how much I prepare....I will still suffer a letdown mentally.  But right now I am enjoying this great ride and am taking it one day at a time. 

I have made some preparations for going back to work....hubby worked with the person who does the schedule and made sure I did no more than two, 12 hour shifts in a row.  I work mostly in the beginning of the week so if I have a bad day, hubby can work for me and I can work one of his shifts later in the week.  I bought 5 new t-shirt like turtlenecks.  They are super soft and thin....so I can wear them under a scrub top without getting too hot.  I noticed that even though my face and neck have been clear for over a month, my neck every so often feels irritated and having a turtleneck on makes it feel better for some reason.  It doesn't hurt or burn....can't really describe it....just irritated.  My face feels amazing and doesn't feel irritated at all.  Maybe my neck is just sensitive after all it has been through this year.  After all I did wear an ice pack around it nearly 24/7 for 7-8 months!!!  Maybe I did some damage to the surface tissue?  Again who knows....

Anyway, this was longer than expected.  Off to make pierogis!  :)