I dreamed I was trying to crack my left low back because my right side hurt so much. I dreamed it wasn’t working. I dreamed I stuck my right leg in the revolving corner cabinet in the kitchen where my pots and pans are stored, and it felt better, except that two of my cats were in the cabinet and they started clawing my foot.

I woke to find my right leg stuck out into the far right corner of the bed, and Buzz was batting at my foot with his claws. And that my low back and side hurt like hell.

It was about 4:30 am.

I got up, put on my bathrobe, and took 4 Advil. Googled how to get back missing items in my system tray and took care of that (the Ostuni Workaround did the trick), then played Solitaire on the computer for 90 minutes, and the Advil still wasn’t doing it, even with the help of caffeine.

Went downstairs and warmed up some banana bread for breakfast. And now it’s about 2 1/2 hours since I took the Advil, and even though I did get my back to pop after I got up, my side still hurts. I need to go to my chiropractor.

Anyway, I’ve been awake for 3 hours and have to go back to bed. Most likely my day is shot.

Dammit, spine. Behave yourself!

This isn't my leg, but it's a good rendering of what my leg looked like.

Two days ago I woke up with serious pain in my right ankle. When I looked at my leg, it was red halfway up the shin – and very hot to touch. The ankle pain, below the big bones on either side, was very sharp with movement.

I was scared. The first thing I thought of was that the rash could be caused by Lamictal, which I’ve been taking for some years. I know even though that in almost all cases, people who get a rash from Lamictal have been taking it just 2-8 weeks, but there have been isolated instances where rash occurs after longer use. And those rashes are no joke – they can be disfiguring, crippling or even life-threatening.

If you’re taking Lamictal and a rash appears, prompt treatment is essential. I went to the local Emergency Room. Continue reading →