Well, she is certainly trying us that is for sure! She ate part of a sock today - so not sure what that will do to her. She ended up throwing it up so I am hoping that means her body just wanted to get it out of her stomache. I hope it is not a symptom of something worse yet to come. She is on a small dose of prednisone every 2 days for about 12 days in total (it decreases to a quarter tablet in a few days) Her appetite is still there, still perky, but man I am just absolutely on edge. Not sure when I will be able to relax. Thanks for all your input and thoughts!

Thanks for the good thoughts-- I so appreciate your words. So, the plot thickens. My DS(5)was complaining that his hip/leg hurt last night. He mentioned it in the middle of the night when he wet the bed and we were getting things cleaned up. I didn't think much of it and just thought he wanted to be held/carried. By this morning he couldn't stand on it and was crying that it hurt. At first I thought it was more of not wanting to go to school. Now I think he just couldn't get up out of bed to get to the bathroom in the night, and he really was hurting. We ended up taking him to InstaCare and going through exam, blood work, xrays. Turns out he has "transient synovitis" of his hip. They are not sure of the cause, but you just treat it with ibuprofen and rest and he should be ok in 3-4 days. Poor kid! So I made it just in time for my big meeting, and DH took DS home. (DH isn't leaving for his trip till tomorrow now). My marriage is just a whole other ball of wax. We have had a tough time since our son was born. We went to counseling and it helped for a while. At this point we just kind of coexist like roommates and we just work together to keep the household running. Our relationship just sucks and I am so angry and frustrated with him so much of the time. My meeting was just...unbelievable. I cannot believe the leadership of the agency I work for. It is a state position. The past year has included an extremely poorly handled HR investigation, interviews with the attorney general's office, dear friends being suspended pending termination, then being reinstated due since there was no merit to the charges. They were "reassigned" and I now supervise them, although they have supervised/mentored me for years. It has been a complete travesty. There is endless drama and politics and maneuvering. I am just so burned out and disillusioned. However, I have so much invested in my career at this point, I just cannot bear to give in to all this crap and leave. This is one of those times of life where every area of my life seems difficult and depressing. I just keep thinking, stay strong and keep going, but I am WORN OUT. So, I really appreciate all your kindness and a place to vent it out!! My goodness I sound like such a basket case! Thanks, Jen

Shelly, I wish you well. I wonder if you are having the same thing I had done 4 years ago. After several MRI's and Xrays to diagnosis the problem I went to the Neurosurgeon who injected cortizone into my neck and also my lower back. I went three weeks in a row for the shots. I also have arthritis and bulging discs. The steroid injections worked wonders and I haven't had to return yet. I am starting to get a few twinges in the same lower back area but so far nothing like what I had experienced before. There were days when I couldn't get out of bed because of the lower back pain. I didn't have any difficulty with the injections and I opted to have local shots of Zylocaine to numb the area rather than be sedated. The only pain I felt was from the first shot of Zylocaine- and that pain only lasts for about 10 seconds and then you're numb. Then he injected more Zylocaine to numb the rest of the area. My Neurosurgeon is a genius and the needles he used are amazingly thin. Most of the others patients who were there for the shots chose the sedation. I'll be thinking of your tomorrow. Try to relax.

You are on my prayer list. DH had surgery for a slipped disc. He could not stand upright or put on his boots. He was in horrible pain. Of course he still had to go in to work (military) and couldn't take any painkiller other than Aleve. He was glad though; he wanted them to fix the cause of the pain, not make him an addict. They tried chiropractic and massage therapy for six months before they'd agree to the surgery. He said the treatments "felt good" but any relief they offered was long gone before he got out of the clinic. It was barbaric what they put him through before fixing the problem. The surgeon showed him a model of the spine, the bulging "disc," and the affected nerve and explained why had such pain. Doc went in, trimmed off the bulging part of the "disc" without cutting the nerve, sewed him up and he's been as good as new for the past 10 years. Wes said the change was so amazing he felt as though he could have gone on a hike or played basketball as soon as he woke up. He didn't, of course. As they were rolling him back to his room after recovery he was singing "Carol, Carol, Carol" "Honey, I'm home!" "It worked." Wes is not a 'singing in public, stand-up comedian. And I don't hear my name for weeks at a time. His three days of limited morphine doses was hilarious. He also said it would have been worth it to go through the surgery without anesthesia for the amazing relief. He had a 3-4" scar that is all but disappeared now. That's the only reminder of his back pain.