Monday, July 03, 2006

Allow me to introduce myself...


Hello, my name is Becky Bensman; I'm 45 and live in North Star, Ohio with a population of less than 300. Living in a small town has its good point and bad point (noticed I said point). The good point is that everyone is so incredibly nice and you can always count on a friendly smile and "How are you doing?" when walking down the street. The bad point is that the nearest stores are about 20 miles away. But then again, when you consider that the larger communities have a lot more traffic and the people don’t always have that friendly attitude, I’d rather live where I’m at; after all, it’s been my home town my entire life.

When I initially discovered that Google offered free blogs, I thought to myself (as I oftentimes do), I wonder if anyone will actually be interested in reading what I have to say; as well as seeing pictures that I’d like to show. Then I figured what the heck, maybe what I have to say might help someone in some way, or
better yet, someone else’s experiences might help me and others along the way.

And that brings me to why I entitled my blog, "Walking With God By My Side." As you can see by the following pictures, my body is not normal and I’m the first one to admit that.




The reason I have so many “curves” that shouldn’t be where they are is because I’ve had rheumatoid arthritis since July 1970 when I was nine years old. I’m also the first one to admit that I haven’t always handled things the way I wish I could have, especially during my childhood when I struggled with frustrations having cried on many occasions saying, “Why me?” I still get frustrated and frequently complain about the aches and pains of every day life that get in my way of trying to get around, but my acceptance to overcome obstacles is better than when I was younger.

If I could share one fact that I have learned with having arthritis is that I would not still be walking today if I didn't have faith that God was looking out for my best interest. He's guided me a lot throughout my life, including helping me discover that nutrition and exercise make all the difference in the world. Just like someone who is struggling with being overweight, or a worse case scenario, of someone having diabetes, a healthy foundation of nutrition and exercise are very important. When I tell family and friends this, they look at me very skeptically as if to say, “You’ve got to be kidding!” But I’ve lived it for several years now and know it’s true.

Before I explain about my change in eating habits, I’d like to start at the beginning when I initially became ill. It was right after our family returned from a summer vacation in Wisconsin and my mom found a small tick embedded in my ear. After seeing our family doctor, he diagnosed me as having rheumatic fever and treated me with antibiotics, which helped reduce the fever, but when my swollen and stiff joints did not get any better, he had my parents take me to Children’s Hospital in Columbus. It was there that a Rheumatologist diagnosed me as having juvenile rheumatoid arthritis; he got me on a physical therapy program and prescribed Cortisone pills for the pain. The Cortisone helped me feel a lot better; unfortunately they also had the adverse side effect of suppressing my appetite. After three weeks of taking the pills and gradually losing weight, the doctor had to discontinue giving me the Cortisone and within the following three months I had gone from a robust eighty-five pounds, down to a scrawny sixty-five pounds. Even though the 20 pound weight loss concerned the doctor, I had a more difficult time trying to deal with the “addiction” and “withdrawal” symptoms of not being able to take the Cortisone anymore. I still vividly remember crying and pleading with my mom to “please” give them to me again, because they made me feel so much better. Looking back, I know it was just as difficult for Mom as it was for me since she had to say “no”. By the way, it took me over a year to regain the 20 pounds, which I had lost.

From 1973 to 1978, I got gold injections from a Rheumatologist in Dayton. To tell you the truth, I don’t think the gold injections helped me and the reason I stopped taking them was because I had a bad reaction, having felt dizzy, disoriented and almost passing out.

While seeing the Rheumatologist, he recommended that I see an orthopedic surgeon, who was also in Dayton. The surgeon did the following surgeries:



Left Hand - On July 9, 1975, he scraped the dead tissue from my knuckles and wrist and put a pin in my wrist. Prior to the surgery, my fingers were completely straight and my wrist was bent in a very awkward downward position. I can now close my hand, even though it’s not a true fist, however, I cannot straighten my fingers or wrist. I use my left hand when using my computer mouse, even though I’m naturally right handed. I literally became ambidextrous out of necessity and not by choice.

Right Hand - On June 3, 1976, my knuckles and finger joints were replaced with plastic and the joints were fused. The surgeon didn’t do anything to my wrist, so when I write, I always have to bring the paper to the edge of a surface so my hand rests more comfortably. Prior to the surgery, my hand was completely clenched to the point that I could not even open it enough to clean it with a washcloth. Also, since my joints were all fused, I cannot open my hand enough to hold the computer mouse so that is why I had to use my left hand.

Knee Arthroscopy - In June of 1977, my surgeon did the simple procedure to examine them more closely.

By November of 1977, I was having a very difficult time standing, much less walking. Since getting on the school bus and going to school was no longer possible, I was tutored my remaining junior year.

By the following summer, my health had declined even more since I could only stand for about 15 seconds, which was just long enough for my mom to help me pivot to the bed, toilet, or a lift chair.

Both Knees - On June 14, 1978, both my knees were replaced with plastic joints. After the surgery, casts were put on both legs and left on for two days, which I later learned probably caused more problems since my knees never did bend adequately. The surgeon was also concerned that my knees were not straight enough when I walked so he had an orthopedic company make me braces that extended all the way up to my thighs. As far as I was concerned, walking so stiff-legged with the braces was not only unnatural, but also very cumbersome.

Right Hip - On August 17, 1978, I had my right hip replaced with a steel balled joint. I was also going to have my left hip done, but my blood pressure dropped suddenly. Prior to the surgery, the surgeon told my mom that while I was out cold from the anesthesia, he was going to bend my knees and prove that I was stubborn and not trying hard enough to bend them. After the surgery, Mom asked him what happened with the knees and he admitted that he could not budge them. Years later when I learned about the continuous passive motion machine, I felt that it wasn't my fault that the knees did not bend as they should have, because my surgeon had used casts on my legs instead.

Since my knees never did bend adequately, I still cannot sit down or stand up by myself from a “normal” seated position. I can, however, fend for myself when sitting or standing from my office “dentist” chair, raised bedside commode and raised bed. I also have a lift chair in the living room, which I only use a few times a year when company comes over and I'm especially glad that I have a lift seat in the car which had helped me immeasurably when a friend or family takes me places.

Even though I obtained relief from the pain after having my knees and right hip replaced, I still had a lot of pain with my ankles and feet. When my senior year in high school rolled around, I had no other choice but to get tutored again. Fortunately I was able to graduate in 1979, but I never furthered my education by going to college, because I felt too hindered by the pain and immobility caused by the arthritis.

By May of 1979, I had been confined to a wheelchair for a year and a half, still only being able to stand up for about 15 seconds as my mom would help me stand and pivot from the wheelchair to my bed, the toilet and a lift chair. I had no clue at the time that my lack of proper nutrition had worsened my condition, because I ate a lot of junk food. That May my parents went to a wedding where they met Pat Kremer, who told Mom that she also had arthritis and a chiropractor in New Carlisle, Dr. E.R. Shore, had helped her a lot. I remember my first appointment in which Dr. Shore said that in order to feel better, I would have to eliminate the following: sugar, salt, white bleached flour, pork and foods containing preservatives. Whoa, I could not believe that I would have to give up everything that I loved to eat. To make a long story short, I followed the regimen and within about three months, I was able to gradually regain the ability to walk with crutches. It's 27 years later and Dr. Shore's healthy regimen is still the foundation for the way I eat today.

Thank goodness for computers, because from my first Commodore 64 in 1979 to my third Mac/Apple computer since 1989, I have gotten so much satisfaction from using them. I still remember prior to having the Commodore 64, that I used an electric typewriter and before that I had a manual one. Times have definitely changed and I am so glad that technology and people, who are interested in the vast field, have made life a lot better for those of us who enjoy using computers.

And then came the internet which really opened up an entire new world to me and to a whole lot of other people. I don't know who gets the credit for "inventing" the internet, but it has enriched my life ten-fold. I still remember when I was in high school and in my early twenties, my only enjoyment besides playing computer games like Frogger, was watching four soap operas a day. I'm serious, I watched four! I look back at those years and still remember how engrossed I was with the characters and story lines to the point that my life didn't matter anymore. But now the internet has completely widened my field of vision allowing me to do all kinds of research and learning about new things all the time. Having email has also enabled me to stay in touch with friends and relatives, which is also a blessing all in itself. I know we're not supposed to love things, so I'll just say that I really, really like my computer and how it's improved and changed my life for the better.