Needle Hands

Thanksgiving has come and gone, the Christmas Tree is up, and the house is decorated inside and out with thousands of white lights. I'm starting to get in the holiday spirit.

I have been bitched at for not posting anything to the blog lately... I've been busy with all of the holiday preparations: decorating, get-togethers, and needles being stuck in my hands.

On Monday I was diagnosed with a hand condition commonly referred to as "Trigger Finger". The first treatment is cortizone (steroid) injections into the affected joints. Lucky me, I got the Trigger Finger in both hands at the same time.

Early this morning I went in and met with Dr. Kim, an orthopedic hand doctor/surgeon. After discussing the pain and symptoms with him, he agreed with the initial doctor's diagnosis and proceeded to tell me about the injection procedure: the injections would hurt, my hands would be numb for a few hours, and I may feel relief from the condition in a few days. If this does not work, I must have surgery.

So, he marked two spots with an "X" on the inside of each hand - where my middle fingers meet the palm - and then cleaned them with an iodyne solution. He then proceeded to hold each hand down (while I looked away an clinched the other) and inserted the needle past the flesh and into the joint area. At first it was a sharp prick but then the pain felt deeper; it shot right up my arm. It was almost electric. Then the same was repeated on the other hand.

Two bandaids and I was done. My middle fingers were fat (fatter than usual I should say) and somewhat swollen. The numbness then set in and continued until about an hour ago. I was very lethargic today and took a nap when I got home after the procedure.

So that was my excitement for the week. I'm praying this will work as I really don't care to have surgery on both my hands. As of this moment I don't really notice much of a difference in the joints.

I went to the mall tonight to find some slacks and a shirt for the Holiday party at EMP Saturday night. I love the shirt I got - it's very cool. I'm not sure if I'll wear a jacket or not. I will probably just wear my overcoat and then no jacket at all. I also went to Yankee Candles and got a "Christmas Wreath" candle for Jamie next door (he loves the smell of Christmas trees and this is one of the best!) and a "Christmas Eve" candle for myself. It smells like a mix of bayberry, cranberry, christmas cookies... I can't really describe it. I really like it though!