Chapter 285 - What Goes Around Comes Around

She began the Comtan. I secretly wondered to myself why she stopped taking it years ago but I was unable to remember. Anyway, rather than attempt to compose a description of the last week I will insert suitably edited versions of email reports I sent to Polly, the PD nurse.

Sent 17 March 1832

We thought it more convenient to email a report on Her reaction to Comtan.

A script was not obtained until late on Thursday 14th so She began
taking one Comtan 200mg together with her regular meds at 1400 on Friday
15th March.

Friday 15th March
.
.
.
1400    Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50, Deralin 40, Sifrol 1, Comtan 200
1445    ON, feeling OK
1615    Sleepy
1620    Lay on bed, thought her glasses were still on her face.
1750    Woke, legs stiff, felt groggy, needed to sit, aches down backs
of legs
1800    Shaky, no sweating, BP 145/97, 63
1815    Lips tingling, feeling queezy
1825    Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50, Deralin 40
.
.
.
Saturday 16th March
.
.
.
1400    Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50, Deralin 40, Sifrol 1, Comtan 200
1430    ON, feeling OK
1745    OFF, sweating
1800    Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50, Deralin 40
.
.
.
Sunday 17th March
.
.
.

1400    Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50, Deralin 40, Sifrol 1, Comtan 200
1445    Feeling "all liquid inside", quite shaky, needed a slice of
bread and spread to eat
1515    On 'loo, feeling funny in head, not clear headed, confused
1530    Returned to TV chair, sleepy, dopey
1540    Into bed
1645    Woke, to TV chair
1715    Feels thick in head, no tremor
1800    Still ON
1810    OFF
1815    Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50, Deralin 40
.
.
.


Tomorrow, Monday 18th March, she will add a Comtan 200 at 0600.

Sent 20th March 1230

17th March (cont)
.
.
1830    Tingling of lower lip, sweating, frozen in chair
1905     ON
2130    OFF, on toilet with bowel urgency but only small stool, staying
there until
2230    Return to bed, flatulence during night

Monday 18th March

0130    Used bedroom commode 4 times up till now
0300    woke with leg pains, CR 200/50 Deralin 40, some time before
sleep (Additional Comtan introduced at this time)
0630    Woke, Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50, Deralin 40, Comtan 200,
Sifrol 1, returned to sleep
0815    Woke, took Panadeine
0900    Unable to stand due to leg pain
0910    Wheeled on commode chair to shower then return to bedroom
0930    Walked to TV chair
0940    Breakfast
0945    Still ON, using foot pedals
1000    Continue pedalling, delaying meds to 1030 since previous were
late at 0630
1030    Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50, Deralin 40, still ON but
things walking inside legs, up and down"
1345    OFF suddenly, sweating, back ache, legs not painful
1400    Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50, Deralin 40, Sifrol 1, Comtan 200
1410    Lower outer of both legs very itchy,  placed cold packs on them
(inflamed itchy legs had been a bother prior to taking Comtan)
1445    ON, cold packs removed from both legs
1825    Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50, Deralin 40, Sifrol 1,  legs
itchy so applied anti-itch cream
2200    Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50, Deralin 40, Sifrol 1
2230    Legs itchy, no anti-itch cream left, so dabbed metho onto legs
2300    Into bed, but each time on verge of sleep feeling in head of
"someone walking over my grave", shudders, wakes. Last happened about a
week ago

Tuesday 19th March

0130    Used bedroom commode 6 times up to now, the shudder feeling
happened on returning to sleep
0330     CR 200/50 Deralin 40, found more anti-itch cream for itchy legs
0700      Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50, Deralin 40, Comtan 200
(omitted Sifrol 1)
0800    Wheeled to and from shower, legs painful with cramps took 2 Panamax
1000    To Day Respite
1100    Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50, Deralin 40, Sifrol 1
1500    Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50, Deralin 40, Comtan 200
1530    Legs began to itch
1600    Return home from Respite
1630    ON
1830    Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50, Deralin 40, Sifrol 1
2300    Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50, Deralin 40, Sifrol 1

Wednesday 20th March

0130     Used bedroom commode 4 times till now
0400     Used commode, unable to sleep, ache in lower back,  read a book
(note no early hour meds)
0600    Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50, Deralin 40, Comtan 200, Sifrol 1
0730    Walked painfully to and from shower, did not need commode/shower
chair
1000    Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50, Deralin 40
1230    Legs slightly itchy during the morning


She intends to begin the 3rd Comtan 200 at 1800 on Thursday 21st.

Sent 25th March 0909 (yesterday)

She missed your call to her mobile early last week because it was not
switched on until I went down the street for a short while on Friday
morning and the email you sent to Her address was not seen until the
weekend, in the last few weeks her email account has been overflowing
with new mail because she has been disinterested in using her laptop.
The most reliable way to contact us is either on our home phone
023456789 or copy both of us on emails. We each have our own computers
and accounts.

By week's end She was taking

0600 Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50. Deralin 40, Comtan 200
1000 Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50. Deralin 40, Sifrol 1
1400 Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50. Deralin 40, Sifrol 1, Comtan 200
1800 Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50. Deralin 40, Comtan 200
2200 Sinemet 100/25, Sinemet CR 200/50. Deralin 40, Sifrol 1

Yesterday, Sunday 24th March, She wrote the following note about her
previous night's experiences

"Woke at 4am with pains in legs & feet numb
Took Panadeine at 4.30
Lay down again but uncomfortable
Went to the loo at 5.30
Feet tingling
Unable to bend toes
Shoulder pain (R)
Back ache
6.00 Alarm went off, took tablets"

The number of times She has used the commode  between the time of going
to bed and, say, 0200, has decreased from 4 - 6 times to 1 or none. I
have been woken much less frequently during the night to give
assistance. During the last few nights she frequently wakes and reads
and still requires several pillows under her legs and around her for
comfort. She has not mentioned experiencing the "horror" (my word)
feelings in the back of her head for some days, although she has
mentioned tingling sensations running up & down inside her legs & feet.
After a flare up for a day of the itchy welts on the outsides of both
legs early last week, the itchiness and raised temperature of her legs
has gone, although the bumps remain.

On Friday before last we were supplied with a wheeled commode/shower
chair which she uses each night as a commode and a shower chair in each
morning since, except for 3 mornings when she was able to stand without
excessive pain in the shower.
 
Although the ambient temperature has changed little in the last week,
she seems to be bothered less by bouts heavy sweating, although she
still needs a fan blowing on her from time to time.

She said yesterday that 2 hours after medications she experiences a
burst of sudden tremors and sweating.

As has always been the case, I find it difficult to understand when She
is ON or OFF, other than when she has extreme difficulty rising from a
seated position and walking.

At the moment, 0900, She still sleeps so I will have her read this later
& she may wish to make corrections or add comments.

Not long after sending that last email yesterday Polly the PD nurse rang. I answered and thought it best for the "patient" to speak to her. Such a relief to have someone interested enough to call and discuss the situation with Her.

Yesterday she needed to locate some butterfly designs she wishes to use on a quilt; unable to find them on her machine using that troublesome Buzz Explore I was asked for help; as usual, I became quite short with her. I don't know why I become irritated when she seems obtuse, unable to see her way clear to work around problems. I collected all the stitch design email attachments our daughter had sent during the past year into one folder for her to search through. She was feeling squeamish so we ate late in the evening. I was eager to resolve a genealogy problem, she to determine appropriate butterflies for a quilt so we both enthusiastically stayed up until 0100 this morning then collapsed into bed, well I know I did. I woke at 0600 this morning to find her sitting on the side of her bed taking her meds. She was restless, slightly distressed, tingles inside her legs, I think her head to, needed to sit on the firm chair, so I moved the commode out of the way. She felt hungry, so I made her two pieces of toast. Then she needed to raise her legs up onto her bed, then needed pillows beneath them. Then, although she was not cold, she needed a quilt wrapped around her shoulders while she read a Mills & Boon. I keep wondering why she stopped taking Comtan years ago; thought the explanation may be somewhere in this blog; searched it without success; searched its brief precursor and not in there either. Saw a reference to Tasmar, a Comtan equivalent. So she must have begun and stopped Comtan before she went down to the Southern City way back in 2005. All I can remember was her original Hot Air City neurologist, the Peter Ustinov look-alike, putting her on then taking her off it when it "didn't agree" with her. I wonder what was meant by that? When I returned to the bedroom to tell that I found nothing in these blogs she had returned to bed. She is still there now at 0800, although not asleep.