Friday, August 07, 2015

WE THINK IT WAS/IS A PROBABLE CASE OF VERTIGO

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BOTH THURSDAY & FRIDAY WERE JUST ANOTHER COUPLE OF MIGHTY FINE DAYS IN THE COUNTRYSIDE

First number of paragraphs to-night are from my Thursday post which I had nearly competed before feeling too sick to continue Thursday night.  At the bottom of this post is my shorter Friday post which catches me up to date & the following paragraph tells you why I was too sick to post.

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CONE FLOWERS ARE ONE OF MY FAVS  …  (ECHINACEA)

Woke up Thursday morning at 4:30 a.m. with my room spinning.  No idea what had happened but I just remained very still & fell asleep again.  Room was again spinning an hour later but I was able to get up & the dizziness slowed down leaving me with a sick feeling in my stomach.  Made my way to the living room & spent the next 5 hours slumped unmovingly in my recliner not feeling well.  Figured the best thing for me to do besides just sitting in my chair was to get outside for some fresh air.  Definitely felt better than when I woke up but I just seemed to be a little 'off' for the rest of the day.  No idea what could have caused that dizziness in the night & it was about to get worse.  Below starts my Thursday post which I hadn’t competed.

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With daylight hours becoming less each day darkness will soon be upon us earlier each night.  Hoping to try my luck with some night photography I'm looking forward to those earlier dark night skies.  Years ago being outside at 10, 11, or 12 midnight was no big deal but that was then.  I'm waiting for the earlier 7 & 8 dark night skies.  Wednesday night after publishing my post Pheebs & I took a drive east of our Park to scout out a 'dark night' location just 4 short miles away.  It is a short little used country road (Stirling's Line) with no power lines or trees.  Wide open unobstructed skies.  Flat farm fields all around.  A totally perfect spot.  I had forgot about this secluded place that Kelly & I had first drove out to with the idea of testing our new TV/Internet satellite system 8 years ago.  That test turned out to be a frustrating bust but that's another story.

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EVENING SHADOWS CREEPING ACROSS A HARVESTED WHEAT FIELD

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PHEEBS CHECKS OUT THE DESERTED COUNTRY ROAD SPOT WHERE WE WILL HOPEFULLY BE HANGING OUT TRYING OUR LUCK AT SOME NIGHT PHOTOS SOON

Saw a picture of a broken wind turbine blade somewhere in the Grand Bend/Crediton area a couple days ago so for Pheebs & I our mission this morning was to find that broken wind turbine & take a few photos of it.  Beautiful cloud studded blue sky morning drive through the countryside south of Bayfield.  Followed Black Bush Line down Wind Turbine Alley & finally spotted the broken blade.  A right turn onto the Kirkton road took me to a lane leading into a corn field & the wind turbine.  Seeing an occupied car blocking that lane I took a few photos before & after passing the entrance.  Figured the person was there as security to prevent 'lookers' from driving onto the site.  No idea why the blade broke but apparently it happened sometime during Sunday & Monday's storms.  I'll bet the blade's manufacturer in Tillsonburg Ontario will be under the microscope when an investigation is launched to determine why the blade broke.

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<<< AND OF COURSE THIS IS WHAT IT IS SUPPOSED TO LOOK LIKE

Being just a few miles directly east of Grand Bend Pheebs & I figured we had better roll into the Bend for a coffee & muffin.  For a Thursday I was surprised how busy it was.  Bumper to bumper traffic on the main street is normal for summer week-ends & not so much during the week.  As Pheebs & I cruised along the drag Frank Sinatra was singing 'Summer Winds' on my Sirius Satellite radio & I thought how much times have changed for me when on that same street some 50 years ago I would have been cruising up & down the strip in my 61 VW Beetle with my German Blaupunkt radio blasting 'Satisfaction' by the Rolling Stones or 'House Of The Rising Sun' by the Animals.  Ah yes those were the days my friends, those were the days eh:))

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CONSTRUCTION ALONG ROADS IN THIS AREA IS A SURE TELL-TALE SIGN OF MORE WIND TURBINES TO COME

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OF COURSE NOT ALL ROAD TRAFFIC HAS TO DO WITH WIND TURBINES…I’M GUESSING THIS AT ‘57 CHEVY’

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AND HEY THAT LOOKS LIKE MY OLD PONTIAC FIERO UP THERE JUST EAST OF ZURICH ONTARIO…..I EVEN HAD A SUR ROOF IN MY LITTLE BEAST

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A quick trip down around the beach area, back up the main drag & we motored ourselves out of the Bend heading north.  A leg stretcher stop at an old favorite beach hang-out spot overlooking Lake Huron from atop a clay cliff.  A few photos & we headed inland making our way slowly back to Bayfield.  Another couple dozen barn pics along the way with a another leg stretching stop east of Zurich where the Cone Flower pics were taken.  Did I mention what a beautiful day it was.  Somewhere along the line we finally found our way home about 2:30 in the afternoon.  Always nice to head out for a drive & always nice to arrive back home again too:))

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CRUISING GRAND BEND’S MAIN DRAG HEADING FOR THE BEACH

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A SWING BY THE OLD PIER

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A FEW FISHER FOLKS & A MESS OF MASTS AT THE GRAND BEND MARINA

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NORTH OF GRAND BEND FIRST LOOKING SOUTH THEN NORTH

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PHEEBS KEEPS HER DISTANCE FROM THE WATER

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Just after supper Thursday night I bent over to pull out a weed in our back yard & my whole world took off spinning again & I lost my balance.  Made it back into the house but I was feeling sick after that.  Just finished writing the above paragraph & turned around in my chair leaning forward & down to rub the Pheebs tummy when it happened again.  Big mistake as my world took off spinning again.  Waves of nausea & I could not finish my post.  Wrote my ‘Short Post’ & headed for my recliner feeling extremely sick for the next 4 hours until taking a sleeping pill & falling asleep.  I stayed in my recliner the entire night because I was fearful of going to bed, rolling over, & having that terrible dizzy nauseas feeling come over me again.  Today (Friday) I have been careful not to bend over or make any sudden movements like getting up or sitting down too fast.  Still feel queasy but keeping my head & upper body straight seems to have helped.  Again not wanting to just sit in my chair all day feeling sick I loaded up the Pheebs & we headed over to the Hullett Marsh to do some fresh air walking & I think that helped.  I am feeling a bit better tonight but as a precaution I plan to sleep in my recliner again.  At least in my recliner I won’t be flat out with my head on the same lever as my feet & I won’t be rolling from side to side all night like I usually do.  If the dizziness persists into next week I will have no choice but to give my Nurse Practitioner a call’.  Checking my symptoms on the internet Thursday Kelly says it sounds like I have case of Vertigo. (a sense that you, or your environment, is moving or spinning, even though there is no movement)  Kelly went to Goderich this morning to pick up a few things including some Gravol which seems to be helping with my queasiness.  I thank everyone for expressing their concerns.

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‘OFF ROADING’ RURAL SOUTHERN ONTARIO STYLE

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FIELDS OF BEANS STRETCH TO THE HORIZON

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FIELDS OF CORN FOR AS FAR AS ONE CAN SEE

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Ok, so here’s how things went today. (Friday)  As mentioned, Pheebs & I went for a drive over to the Hullett Marsh to do some walking.  Also cruised half a dozen or so country roads taking photos along the way & just enjoyed another fine day in rural South-western Ontario’s Huron County.  I was careful not to bend over & made it through the day without any dizziness.  Sitting here tonight working on my post I am optimistic I will have a better night & an even better tomorrow.

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CAME ACROSS THIS FIELD OF SOMETHING LOOKING LIKE CABBAGES BUT DON’T THINK THAT’S WHAT THEY ARE

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After reading my Wednesday night post about the old ICQ programs TAPPA-TAPPA-TAPPA sound on the keys I think some Fairies must have come in the night & sprinkled a generous helping of magic typewriter dust on my keyboard.  When I sat down at our desk top computer late Thursday morning & began typing I was surprised to hear TAPPA-TAPPA-TAPPA.  Say, you don't suppose Kelly might have had something to do with that do ya......nawwwww, had to be Fairies.  And when Kelly asked me Thursday morning where the burgundy paint was she had used on her sewing machine project was I did kinda figure she had something in mind.  Yep sure enough when I returned home I noticed she had been busy on our wood shed with a paint brush.  Groovy:))

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GROANER'S CORNER:((  The police officer got out of his car and the kid, that was stopped for speeding, rolled down his window.  "I've been waiting for you all day," the officer said.
The kid replied, "Well, I got here as fast as I could."

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When asked by a young patrol officer, "Do you know you were speeding?" this 83-year-old woman talked herself out of a ticket by stating, "Yes, but I had to get there before I forgot where I was going!"

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A woman out driving with her husband was speeding along at about 60 MPH in a 50 MPH zone. A motorcycle cop appeared alongside and pulled her over. Deciding to give her a break, the cop said, "I'm going to put you down for fifty-five." The woman turned to her husband. "See! I told you this dress makes me look old."

18 comments:

  1. My initial thought was low blood sugar but it was more than that as I read further. Let's hope is does not happen again. Kelly is a genius and a creative one at that.

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  2. Love cruising the main drag in Grand bend, so many memories from almost 50 years ago too. The parties, bikinis, wild women, music, etc... oh where did the time go?
    Glad you feeling better now.

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  3. Possibly you have an inner ear problem...They can give you meds for that...You are not alone..this happens to lots of people..just keep an eye on it.

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  4. If your nurse practitioner happens to have a "dizzy cap" she could cure you quickly without medication. Happened to my sister in law in Alberta. Never came back,either.

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  5. I suffer from Vertigo myself, have done for well over 20 years. It comes and goes, but it is terrible, can't do anything, any movement and I think I'm going to either/or fall over and puke. Doctors have told me there is nothing that can be done, but lately I've been reading about a beta histamine to take called SERC. I have taken it and it does help. So keep that in mind if you get another attack.

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  6. Kelly is a genius when it comes to choosing colors. Yes those were the days ... listening to the Stones, SteppinWolf, the Animals in the '60s ... I still listen to them but I don't have the VWs anymore. hope you feel better. I am finding out these past few weeks just how nice it is where someone doesn't have any health issues.

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  7. Al, I feel for you. I've had BPPV (benign paroxysmal positional vertigo) for many years. It's so disorienting!

    Here's a blog I wrote about one episode: http://travelbug-susan.blogspot.com/2012/07/two-days-gone-fri-july-13.html

    BPPV is caused by crystals in the inner ear dislodging and then floating free, which makes you feel like the world is spinning and that causes nausea.

    Here are some websites that will give you more information on it:
    http://www.merckmanuals.com/home/ear-nose-and-throat-disorders/inner-ear-disorders/benign-paroxysmal-positional-vertigo-benign-positional-vertigo

    and

    http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/vertigo/basics/definition/con-20028216

    On the Epley Maneuver:
    http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/liberatory-maneuvers-for-vertigo-epley-maneuver

    Hope these help you understand it better!

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  8. Please be careful with the spells of vertigo. I'd be a little wary of driving very far.

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  9. Sounds exactly like the vertigo my wife gets occasionally. No fun. Just be careful for a day or two.

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  10. I'll put my two cents in are you on any medication and have you changed any recently check your blood pressure and your pulse rate if nothing else at least eliminate that portion of it
    And to think you didn't spend a dime on booze the other night But you woke up
    with a good hangover the next morning
    If it's any consolation I wouldn't go square dancing next couple of days
    At least not the part where it says spin your partner
    Joy your day

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  11. This is the device I was talking about: http://www.dizzyfix.com/

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  12. I've got no words of wisdom on the Vertigo, but just wanted to chime in and wish you speedy healing. Sounds pretty darn terrifying, do I hope this is the only time you'll have to go through it.
    Nina

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  13. Al, the Epley Maneuver posted above absolutely works. I had an attack of Vertigo a few years ago, Googled for a solution, and tried it. It worked instantly! I had to have my husband read the instructions aloud as I did them so I wouldn't forget anything. Kelly can do the same for you. Hope it works for you too and that you're feeling 100% again soon. Take care.

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  14. Your description of the Inner Ear Imbalance is definitely Vertigo. Once you have it for whatever reason it becomes easier to get.
    In 95 I had a minor Concussion that left me feeling like a drunk non-stop for ten weeks. Fast forward to 2011 for no reason it hit me out of the blue but they now have medication that helps to stop it. I've had on and off bouts since then and keep a Supply of the meds on hand
    If you drive the movement of your hands on the steering wheel calm the movement in your brain. If you are a passenger in a vehicle you will get violently sick. Your nurse practitioner will be able to prescribe those meds for you.
    Be Safe and Enjoy!

    It's about time.

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  15. Love the wheat fields, that gold is beautiful. Crazy to see that broken turbine blade....it looks like it just folded over. Pheebs on the hillside by the water is a great shot! I agree with trying the Epley. I had a single episode when I woke up one morning, it was awful. Dr sent me to physical therapy to learn the method and although I've not had to use it again, knowing I have something quick available if it returns makes me feel better.

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  16. I'll chime in with a positive vote for the Epley. I got vertigo from being around some fumes from new IKEA furniture (I was sleeping along side of the the new bed pieces until I could get them put together). A co-worker told me about it, and I only had to do it a couple of times over a few days and I've not had another issue. Mom had vertigo around the same time (2000 miles away...) and she did the Epley and it helped her as well.

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  17. You should rule out stroke and not wait until next week...

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  18. I know nothing about vertigo. The huge leaf plant may be Brussels sprouts but I'm not sure of that either.

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