Thursday 7 February 2013

Long flights, great support & doing something stupid…

Wow! Was it really August when I last wrote anything… That time sure has flown by, so here is my next instalment of my AS journey.

I previously mentioned that I was going to start trying a few anti-inflammatory ingredients to see how it goes. Well I can definitely say I’ve changed a lot of my eating habits from it. My red meat intake has reduced a lot and I tend to find myself eating more vegetarian, salad and fish meals which previously were a rare occurrence.

I’ve found some good recipes which I’ve tweaked slightly and have listed a few below

· Vegetarian chilli
· Turkey burgers wrapped in lettuce leaves with roasted vegetables
· Lentil pie (following the same recipe as a Shepherd's Pie, without the lamb)
· Ricotta, spinach and mushroom gnocchi
· Vegetarian paella
· Spicy Squash & Sweet potato soup

Should anyone be interested in any of these recipes let me know as I’ll happily share how they are done

A few of these recipes do include a few ingredients from the nightshade family which usually do not work well with people with inflammatory diseases, however I’ve found if they are cooked well the potential pain they can sometimes cause reduces if not noticed at all (however this may not be the case for everyone).

Towards the end of last year I attempted my first long flight since being diagnosed with AS and yes I ached once the flight had finished however I was in no more discomfort than from standing up for a long time. Equally making myself stand, stretch and doing the flight DVT exercises whilst sitting down did help.

I did however need to have long hot shower(s) to ease the ache across my shoulders more than usual. It was good to have a break out in Dubai at the end of November especially as the UK weather was cooling and heading to a warmer place was definitely a good plan (even if it seemed I took the torrential rain out with me…)

I had a fun time out in Dubai especially as I also managed to see an old friend for a few days who very kindly offered me my accommodation whilst out there, I will return in the winter months and hopefully next time it won’t rain…

Something really great happened back in August where I started seeing someone who is very supportive towards my condition and has been a great compliment to my life; she definitely has helped me more than she knows. We definitely work well together I find myself smiling again because of time spent together with her.

My challenges have gone on the back burner at present however they will be resuming very soon. The hill walking in the Peak District was great and definitely worth doing again, a fantastic mixture of great walks and the views were breath taking.

Recently I thought I was doing OK with my condition and decided to reduce the Anti-inflammatory medication I was taking (even down to a few weeks without any!) and started to notice a slight deterioration in my health where I saw myself starting to get back into old habits with bad posture and fatigue.

I’ve gone back on my medication and I’m stretching on a daily basis again, also ensuring I’m going along to the gym and hydro session run by my local National Ankylosing Spondylitis Society (NASS) branch as with other commitments I missed 6 week's worth of sessions. I’m already noticing an improvement myself which is great. However I’ve realised that was such a silly thing to do in the first place.

It takes time to train the body and not much time to let it deteriorate. I found this out randomly when I went to the dentist and could not rest my head back on the seat. Like most people it looks like I need to see something before trying to correct it.

2013 has started well and I feel confident I’m back on track again. However I’m fully aware the smallest of things can de-rail this and will look to try and ensure whatever happens I deal with and I’m sure various people including my special someone will help me.

There are days when I don’t want to stretch due to some pain discomfort however I still try, I know some of you really do struggle to be able to do this however even the smallest stretch does help. I find myself stretching in some strange places, usual whilst queuing for something (being the UK there are plenty of opportunities to do this…)

In April I have my next appointment with my Rheumatologist and I’ve decided to take a more hands on approach with him and make my appointment feel worthwhile, wish me luck…

I know this is not a huge instalment this time however sometimes loads of words are not needed.

Speak soon everyone

Matt