More of the Same

I haven't posted anything in a week because there hasn't really been anything new to report. The past week has been largely more of the same. Overall I'm doing better and I feel that I am still progressing but I've still had a fair amount of chronic pain for which I am still taking a Vicodin about once every 4 hours.

The problem at hand seems to be in getting my bowels to a state of normalcy. I've pretty definitively linked my bowel issues to this sciatic pain that has primarily setup shop around my right knee just above in the femur and just below in the shin. Oddly, my knee itself doesn't hurt. Laying down/sleeping is still the primary way it all seems to come together so I am still waking up in the night with the pain as well as waking to the pain in the morning. What has changed is that it doesn't really go away all day. The meds keep it under control, but I have to take them regularly to keep it that way.

The issue is that I seem to be in a constant state of constipation these days making several hurried yet unproductive trips to the bathroom throughout the day. Once I finally do make a trip that is productive, it is then followed by a bout of diarrhea over a couple of hours which then turns back to constipation. The doc has me upping the laxatives to try and deal with it, but it's been difficult to find the right balance. Fortunately my appetite seems to be fine but I haven't been choosing the best diet either and that's something that I need to work on which will probably help.

One thing that is odd is that my whole schedule seems to have shifted somewhat. For a long time, I was getting groggy between 2 and 5 and the afternoon, so much so that I would often have to lay down and take a nap, even if it was just for 30 minutes. That period now seems to have shifted to the 5-7 hour and is usually followed by whatever bowel issue I'm having that day. This results in my not really getting to bed, and to sleep, until around 1 or 2 o'clock in the morning which leaves me really groggy when I get up in the morning. It seems like I've been spending a lot of not-so quality time in the bathroom after my wife goes to bed as every time I get up and walk out, I'm faced with a sudden urge to return. I hate to admit this, but I have, on several occasions, fallen asleep while sitting on the toilet. Here's to hoping this phase of my journey ends sooner that later.