Pin Cushion

September 19, 2013 Savvy Spoonie Leave a comment

It’s been a hell of a week.

I went in to the doctor on Friday last for a Occipital Nerve Block, hoping that it, unlike the infusion treatment, would end the now two month long headache from hell. The normally kind and non-torturing physician’s assistant took out a huge syringe with matching needle and shot me four times in the very base of my skull. He claimed it wouldn’t hurt. He lied.

The block was inordinately painful to receive. I was swearing halfway through the first injection, blubbering through the second and by the third was sobbing quietly while trying desperately not to move my head. He felt really badly for hurting me so and got to the point where he was murmuring my name and patting my shoulder awkwardly between shots.

Sadly, the pain was for naught. The nerve block didn’t work at all. I didn’t get a single minutes relief. The headache from hell, which at this point really should be given a name and address, is still here.

On Monday I called and freaked out on the doctor’s poor receptionist. My mom suggested I not be the ‘patient’ patient anymore and instead see how responsive my doctors are if I become the ‘crazy’ demanding patient. Unfortunately for my doctors’ future interactions with me, crazy demanding worked. I had tests scheduled the following day and a new treatment scheduled for today.

Today I get to have 34 botox injections in my face, head, and neck. I am scared they will be as painful and as ineffective as a the nerve block. Today I should also get my test results back. I don’t know which to be more frightened of, a response telling me there is nothing they can find wrong with me, or a response finding the source of these headaches.

I certainly don’t want to have a brain tumor or odd swelling head disease or anything, but I also don’t want to spend the rest of my life being turned into a human pin cushion and guinea pig because no one can figure out how to cure me.

It seems deeply unfair that I would reach 38 and already know what it’s like to be really old. Sick, unable to do what I want, always conscious of how much energy I don’t have to expend. I should still be conquering the world, not trying to figure out how to survive it.

Gluten Free, Gluten Free Recipes

GF Baking Adventures: Zucchini Bread.

September 15, 2013 Savvy Spoonie Leave a comment

Fall is approaching and the urge to fill the house with the enticing smell of freshly baked goodies grows within me daily. For years now I have struggled to find GF replacements for the breads, baked goods, and fall treats I used to make. Happily, I have finally hit upon an ingredient that gives me moist and crumbly GF baked goods. Sweetened Condensed Milk.
I have used it in a variety of different recipes and the result is always the same. Crumbly, moist breads that don’t fall apart.

GF Zucchini Bread

Ingredients:

1 can Sweetened Condensed Milk 1 1/2 cups shredded zucchini

1 egg

2 1/2 cups Pamela’s Pancake Mix

1 tsp Molasses

2 tsp Cinnamon

1 tsp Ground Clove

Mix your sweetened condensed milk, egg, molasses, and zucchini until the zucchini is evenly spread throughout the batter. Add in your Pamela’s Mix 1 cup at a time, stir well between adding. Add your spices and mix for another minute or so.

For muffins:

Place in muffin tin and bake at 350 degrees until golden brown on top. (about 10-14 minutes depending on your oven.

For Bread:

Place in 8×8 casserole dish and bake at 350 degrees until golden brown. (Between 15 – 20 minutes)

Stick with a toothpick, it should return to you clean. If not, bake another minute or two and try again.

Let cool five minutes, then slice. When slicing, run the knife through once, wipe it, then slice again. This will prevent the knife from gunking up and removing large sections of the top of your bread when you cut again.

Final Step: Devour

health, Just me

Lists.

September 14, 2013 Savvy Spoonie Leave a comment

Today, despite hitting the wall yesterday, despite being unbelievably tired, I managed to accomplish rather a lot. I cleaned out my clothes and did most of the laundry. I organized and put away the pile of debris littering my living room. I baked a GF zucchini lasagna for the family and some funky cinnamon Mochi for myself. I hung out with the kiddos and played “stuffy toss”. I even managed to clean up after myself.

There is a much longer list of the myriad of things I didn’t manage to do today, but I’ve decided that list can go fuck itself.