#1) Waffles seems to be doing a LOT better. Tomorrow is his last day of his pill regimen so we will see what happens then. Long story short, re. his health, is that the vet has never seen his problem before. His knees are in the wrong spot! Way too high up on his legs. So, while he may be okay for a period of time, it is unlikely that he will be okay forever because his knees are so misplaced. At this time, obviously, we have no money for further tests, but he is obviously not in any pain and he seems very happy and playful so his health will go on the back burner until he has a relapse or we win a million dollars.
#2) I am not really doing any better but I am cautiously optimistic due to Point #4 below.
#3) Paul is now sick too. He is, in eerie fashion, developing all of the same systems as I have/had, just two months after mine began. We even had to take him to the emergency room just like me a few weeks ago. My doctors visit and ER visit resulted in a diagnosis of palpitations, anxiety and an infection in every hole in my head. Paul's ER visit resulted in a diagnosis of palpitations and probably diabetes (pending fasting glucose test which we can't yet afford). You will notice, however, that none of these diagnoses explain any of the problems with which we presented!
#4) We have discussed this with everyone who will listen and have done research til the cows come home and we continue to believe that our home may be toxic. In the brief periods of time when I feel not too sick, I've cleaned this already clean home to spotlessness and when I emptied the giant box of garbage bags under the kitchen sink I discovered that the garbage disposal had a leak and that the bottom of the cabinet was a cesspool of black mold and disgustingness.
A maintenance guy came up here yesterday and ripped out the cabinet and put in a new one. He also threw out the old garbage disposal and set up a new one.
I also showed him a heat register in the sunroom that appeared to have mold on it...
and he replaced that.
I ALSO showed him that one of the baseboards in the sunroom was rotting away (probably mold as well)
and he is going to fix that on Monday.
After he did all that I cleaned up/threw away anything that I thought could have been touched by the mold (4 more garbage bags yesterday) and now we shall see. I asked the maintenance guy if he could get someone in here to test for mold, but I know that that is very expensive so we'll see if they'll do it for us or not. As I said above, I am cautiously optimistic now. We kind of hope to wake up one day and just feel better, but realistically, we will probably still need to get medical help. Our insurance coverage is set to start October 1...but there is a $1000 deductible. In the meantime I throw the doors and windows open whenever I can and just gulp in the fresh air.
So, we both feel pretty awful and we are worried about ourselves, but we are hopeful that the problem has been found and remedied.
*****
I have gone 15 full days without any sugar substitutes now. I have found a little relief with fruit juices mixed with Sprite and things like that but obviously I don't want to drink too much sugar either. Since Paul is likely diabetic now, he can't eat sugar so you can imagine the frustration in our house; no sugar subs for me and no sugar for him. Paul is struggling with having this diagnosis (the ER couldn't guarantee that it was diabetes as Paul had not been fasting, but they were fairly confident) as anyone would...it means life changes and that's never easy. Its also really damn scary.
Paul's job applications in other cities have yielded no fruit yet but we are continuing to try. All it takes is one bite!
We feel sometimes as though money would solve all of our problems (although that is probably a naive idea) - we could move and/or have someone check our apartment for mold and/or stay in a hotel until we know its safe, we could get all the tests and medicines we need to get better once and for all, we could get the debts paid off that render us broke every month, and we could have treats, dammit. We feel so deprived...I wish Paul could go out and buy some new movies and I could get some makeup and get a good haircut and some clothes that fit my new slightly slimmer body, we could go on dates! Real Dates! Long candlelit dinners, maybe a concert or a show. Our relationship struggles in this, our first year of marriage, because there is no rest from the constant financial and recent constant health concerns. These things should bond two people together, but anyone who has taken even first year psychology knows that they do not. Instead of becoming allies, we become enemies in our common stress and pain.
We continue to be tested but we also continue to have faith that things will get better for us...we just hope its soon.
8 comments:
Mold can be nasty. I remember when I was in Santa Barbara, there was a problem with people who had new, multi-million dollar homes that would get some black mold stuff in it and they'd have to tear half the house apart in order to clean things up, and some people got very sick from it.
If you are looking to move to another city, I know we are looking for loading/unloading people in our furniture warehouse. Not a real glamourous job, of course. Dunno what they pay, though.
Thanks, that's nice of you :) We are focusing, though, on two areas (although we are not really averse to most places); Tennessee, because we love it there and the cost of living is very low and Illinois because its a lot closer to my family and most of Paul's family lives there.
As for the job, we would prefer to go somewhere where Paul can use his Engineering degree! He has no trouble getting -work- its just getting GOOD work (pays well and uses his degree) that is the trouble.
Black mold is so dangerous. I will pray that things ease up for you in all aspects. That is so odd about Waffles, knees in the wrong places!!! Poor little guy.
How much longer until YOU will be able to get some kind of work? *another question, sorry.*
You guys have been in my thoughts a lot lately, and I hope the prayers are helping. I'm glad the maintenance guy was so helpful in getting stuff fixed up. That may be a big help to the sicknesses. And trust me, I totally hear you on the insurance/bills/debt stuff. 10 years of marriage down and we're still going through it. But it does get better, and you are determined to make it through it so you will.
In your state, the management might not have a choice as to whether or not they check it out. Mold growth may fall under the "habitability" clause that most health inspectors use, and if the Board of Health is notified, they have to look into it. Give the local branch a call and find out what the landlord/tenant law says for your state. The State can send out a tester, or you can get a DIY kit as well at Lowe's or Home Depot. Once it's verified, the landlord doesn't have much choice.
I've read that bleach just makes it worse for some types of mold, by the way.
As far as me working, it should be quite soon now. We were waiting for some legal documents to arrive from Canada and they have, so now it is just a matter (as we understand it) of heading down to the local Social Security office with all the documents, applying and then waiting to get the SSN in the mail. They don't take appointments though so we need to go on a day when Paul is off all day, should be soon though. Hopefully I have gotten correct info on what documents I need.
Regardless though, I'm way too sick these days to work, so figuring out what the heck is wrong with me is a priority.
As for mold, you're right, the girl, I should contact the Board of Health and I will if nothing happens here. I'm just SO tired and exhausted and sick that even working up the emotional nerve to call these people is a little more than I can handle. But I'll do what I have to do.
That black mold picture looks hella scary!!!!!!!! I'd make some calls soon!
What type of engineer is Paul?
Paul has a 'Bachelors of Applied Science – Electronics Engineering Technology' degree. And I believe he graduated with highest honors too. *beams with pride*
(I do like those Engineers ;)
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