AT THE WATER’S EDGE:

The story of the Sed Rate Saga continues.  I wish I could say this was the ending, because it would be a happy one.  I went to my rheumatologist’s office last week Monday and he gave me a lab order to get some more blood work done.  The last time we had checked my Sed Rate (or, ESR) — a measure of inflammation in the body — it had come back as a 27.  This was a big improvement from winter, but it was still slightly elevated.  My doctor had stated at one point that he considers anything over 25 to be high.  But, according to the formula I found on Wikipedia, my “normal” works out to be <=18.5.  And, according to my own history, I should be somewhere in the teens, if not lower, when I'm feeling my best.

I play the guessing game when I go in for blood work now, trying to guess what my ESR will come back as. This time, I guessed low 20s, based on the fact that I am feeling better than I have in over a year and I don’t really have any nagging symptoms right now besides the fact that my wrists are still weak and have a limited range of motion.  I called the doctor’s office yesterday and they gave me my latest reading….11!!!


Wow.  I wasn’t expecting it to be that low, but, then again, I am feeling well!  It does make me wonder if my wrist issues are now due to permanent joint damage versus inflammation, though.  But, they don’t hurt.  Plus, my rings can come off my fingers now (and go on!  Yesterday, I was able to wear a pretty ring that my brother gave me, which I hadn’t worn in a long time!). And my feet, knees, elbows and the rest of the usual suspects have been quiet lately.  Hooray for progress!


Here’s how my ESR chart looks now: