Progress, I feel good.

I feel good. I feel good that I got to get rid of 8 bottles of Imuran (Azathioprine) which I had been taking for my WG/GPA and RA. Last Monday my Rheumatologist took me off of this medication because one, the Rituximab infusion treatment I have been getting is doing its job and two I need to start taking two new medications to combat my uric acid levels which are causing me to get gout. My gout is not caused from my dietary issues because I don’t drink beer, eat a ton of red meat or even eat a lot of shell fish. My blood pressure medication that I had been taking for a number of years was the culprit. Apparently uric acid builds in the system and it takes a long time, even years for it to be removed from the body from urine. So that means I have to take medication to help my body get rid of the uric acid and to not allow me to get gout in my joints.

I took the opportunity to organize my medication box and get rid of empty bottles and see what vitamins I need. You are not supposed to store your medications in the kitchen or the bathroom because of the changing temperatures, so I store mine in my bedroom on my bookshelf.

Another reason I feel good is that I was able to take my garbage out myself, which is something I have not been able to do for a long time. I know that I will always need help with cleaning, especially the floors, but I now know that I can do small things so that I feel independent. Also, I have one chapter left in my book to write and then I am done writing it. Then it will be time for me to reread it through and then talk to the people who said they wanted to be my beta readers. Amazingly there are 10 of them. I will then be shopping around for an editor to help me edit my book and then I can research ways for me to publish my book. We shall see what happens. I am praying, because I know that my voice needs to be heard and this is the way I am to do it. It feels so good to actually accomplish one of my goals and sooner than I thought. Because I have been taking a lot of breaks to figure out what I wanted to say and how to say it without it sounding too blunt. I have an issue with being too blunt and it gets me into trouble. I wanted to share some good news with everyone. I hope all are doing well and enjoying the weekend. It is storming here this weekend, a ton of rain and wind, typical Northwest weather. I love it. It makes breathing a lot easier for me.