Team UpdatesI apologize for being absent on this blog as much recently - most of my time lately is consumed with helping people through my business, Disabled Advantage, working with Austin, and managing my CRPS. I had quite the rollercoaster with my CRPS last year, between losing Robbie, and then last fall, I lost my medical care. The doctor I was with no longer wanted to be responsible for managing my CRPS (and the medications that help me function), so I was without a doctor managing my condition and without necessary medication for about 8 months. That was rough. I kept working, as best as I could, but my whole routine got blasted away. Austin worked extra hard, but without medication that helps me recover from and push through flares, it was like starting every day in a severe pain and energy debt, continuing to draw on energy that simply wasn't there, driving my pain levels higher and higher. I'm back with a good doctor now, and trying to regain my footing, but it's hard. Every time we get knocked down with CRPS, it's like rebuilding a mountain to get back to where we were and it's still never the same as before. For a little bit, I tried chiropractic care, and discovered that my shoulder bones have been out of alignment for 13 years since the first accident...yay... But, I had adapted to my collarbone being out of alignment, and my scapula being forward, so when chiropractic work began to fix them both, my CRPS did not react well. Additionally, I learned a very important lesson - I should not let people adjust joints on me, like my wrist and elbow, which they did do multiple times. In addition to CRPS, I have 3 X chromosomes, and this causes me to have loose ligaments, tendons, muscles, and connective tissue. Similar to EDS but not as dramatic in how it presents. My Triple X Syndrome means that when a joint is adjusted, I simply do not have the ligament strength and stability to withstand an adjustment the same way a healthy person does. Unfortunately, these multiple adjustments ruined my right arm for the time being. I lost years worth of strength training, grip work, range of motion work, and general arm stamina in just 4 sessions. So I'm working to re build all of that. It's exceptionally rough - the pain is higher, the number of reps I can move my arm in a day before severe tremors kick in is much much smaller, and sometimes the arm just goes dead all of a sudden. It's awesome. (sarcasm) I have been getting out more to train with new friends in town, who also have service dogs, and that's been a bright spot for me, and a good challenge for all of the dogs. Austin has had a hard time with all of the ups and downs of my condition management changing, too. On the up side, more task work, but also, less task work. A lot of Austin's tasks are based on helping me be active and maintain stamina for activity, but all of the changes impacting me over the last year has made it 3x as hard for me to be active the way I had grown accustomed to, and so that's had an impact on him too. He has gotten WAY better at being bored and chilling in Place beside me. He is excellent in his bracing, counter balance, forward assistance, and noticing when I'm not doing so well and shepherding me around until I stop for a break. He showed us he can learn to find exits and specific vehicles, which is supremely helpful for when I get confused or overwhelmed by the pain. We haven't been doing as much laundry, and cart training was supposed to start in March - it's starting now. The real part anyway. He's been learning the maneuvers since March, but only recently did I add weight for him to begin to pull until we can get the cart resized for him. Austin did have his first adventure to the zoo, and my first adventure in a wheelchair, which I should definitely write about soon, because it was both a great visit and horrible pain wise. We learned being in a wheelchair is a really bad plan for me, which, was surprising - we knew it would be difficult, but it actually triggered one of the worst full body flares I've ever experienced. Today my tremors are bad. In both arms. Difficult for me, but awesome for Austin who has already gotten to help clean up a mess of pens I dropped on the floor on accident. UpcomingThank YouTogether, we're working our way to a new normal, slowly and bit by bit. I hope to find the time to post here more often, but if I am unable, please go to my blog on Disabled Advantage's website for training tips, public access updates, information on service dogs, and current event updates.
If you are in need of training assistance for a service dog or pet dog, you can schedule a session with me on my booking page. Thank you for your continued support in reading this blog and learning about CRPS service dogs!
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My Name is Sally...I have a condition called Complex Regional Pain Syndrome. This blog is about my journey training Robbie, a dog who helped me regain independence, confidence, and achieve the impossible in the face of my disability. It continues on with the training of Austin, Robbie's successor. Check Out... - "More than a Dog" was published on a site called The Mighty Categories
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