Bruxism and my Nighttime Dental Guard + Japanese Magnolia Blossoms

Strange feelings... had nasty neck pain while driving down to Florida after Christmas.

Thought I'd slept wrong on my pillow but it didn't go away...

Then I felt my FIRST EVER toothache, thought that one of my upper right molars needed maybe a filling.

So I did tough it out as there were way too many things going on and I made an appointment for Tuesday afternoon on February 2.

My dentist checked the x-ray that his assistent had made, but there was no infection or anything wrong with my teeth.

BUT he discovered that my lower molars got loosened already and that I probably needed a Nighttime Dental Guard due to teeth clenching.

So I went to Walmart to get my Oral–B Nighttime Dental Guard...

Paid some $ 20.00 and after supper did start the molding procedure as shown on this video: Oral–B Nighttime Dental Guard – Instructional Video ←click it.

Of course I did not win that battle and went to sleep without wearing my Nighttime Dental Guard!

After two nights trying in vain to remove my molded dental guard from the green impression tray

—even after placing it for 10 minutes inside the freezer (as suggested) I was not able to release it.

Pieter tried the next day to wrestle it out. So finally I was able to wear it on February 2nd.

I must say that I slept like a ROSE so it must help a lot.

My pain also is gone!

Have any of you ever used such a Nighttime Dental Guard?

Never knew that those symptoms of neck pain for instance came from teeth clenching...

Info found under: Mayo Clinic Bruxism (teeth grinding)

Hah, hyperactive... that does ring a bell!

My sleep quality has greatly improved I must say and I sleep a lot deeper now and feel much more rested.

This morning around 10:00 AM with the sun shining brightly...

This is the Japanese magnolia tree that is recovering over time as a big tree fell in it and broke off a main stem.

Tornado weather can be treacherous. 

Our other Japanese magnolia tree is now free since the huge oak tree on its right got cut down.

More light, space and food!

Our vinyl picket fence marks our border. Sturdy placed by Pieter on top of concrete blocks that serve as a water barrier from water running down to our lower area near creek.

Still beautiful even with lots of petals already on the ground from days of rain and wind before these sunny days.

Nature's Poetry...

At 10:00 AM it was 17°C or 62.6°F.

Today it will be 24°C or 75°F and 7°C or 44.6°F at night.

Tomorrow looks great for biking at 26°C or 87.8°F

BUT on Saturday it will go as low as 0°C or 32°F... during the night!

This is typical Georgia—going up and down and spring starts about 7 times... 😏

Heart and Kidney Update after Hyperkalemia

 The week before Christmas was the worst one for me...

Suddenly got so weak and sick—vomiting even after three sips of water!

SO, I learned to lay low and REST and pray.

Because I still wanted to make it to Florida—where I'd booked us already in October—those 7 free nights for points.

And YES, I did make it to drive to Florida on December 26, and I only needed REST, vitamin D from swimming, walking and biking.

Eating healthy and finding my way out of this.

Well, my nephrologist had SHOCKED me on December 19, when he delivered the news that from 28% kidney function in June, now it only was 25%... and I had a heart murmur!

~

While I was sick, I called my nephrologist's office twice but no person on the line!

A nurse on a recording and she never bothered to call me back.

But I started analyzing things on my own and learned a LOT.

This by the way is me on the scale before breakfast, on my B'day and in my B'day suit—haha!

49.7 kg or 109.5 lb.

Just wanted to SEE if it was true what I felt...

Yep, only 66 cm or 26 inches.

Aha—that's WHY my 28 inch low rise jeans from Australia (Last Call by Neiman Marcus) FELL OFF MY HIPS!

Pieter solved it, by adding 3 more holes in his former belt that I used...

Guess the week before Christmas I suffered from Hyperkalemia and for that I've drastically changed my diet.

Hyperkalemia: High Potassium – Your Kidneys and Your Health ←click link for short video.

I knew that I had to limit my potassium intake but since my kidney function went down—it is even more serious to strictly adhere to that!

Hyperkalemia from any cause may produce nausea and vomiting... as published by healthfully.com

Guess that was also why it was affecting my heart, causing palpitations when running up and down the stairs and very much I felt it in Colorado at the high altitude pedestrian bridge...

Pieter said, he's having that problem already very long and that's why he alters his pace and needs frequent rests.

Weakness, dizziness, lightheadedness all have been felt.

Sure, as being advised by the Mayo Clinic—I knew already those 3 points:

Avoid products with added salt.

Choose lower potassium foods.

Limit the amount of protein you eat.

The University of Maryland Medical Center explains that as potassium increases, people are likely to notice muscle aches and cramps, fatigue, weakness, difficulty breathing, irregular heartbeat, nausea...

Mayo Clinic about Kidney Disease Symptoms.

Loss of appetite I've never had and I sure hope not any decreased mental sharpness...! 

All the REST—YES except swelling of feet and ankles.

Such lists are helpful in knowing what to avoid!

No more coffee...!

CHOCOLATES! Good grief... and even salt substitutes!

Sure milk I have not taken for quite a while, only Trader Joe's soy milk as that has the LOWEST percentage of sugar—another thing to watch being diabetes type 2.

With fruits I'm fine—still a lot left to enjoy!

But I'm feeling a LOT BETTER since I've altered my diet.

Not for losing weight but purely to SURVIVE just a little longer...

Maybe this will be helpful for others as well.

My singing with the choir goes better—as I have more breath!

AND on February 1st my housekeeper started and that is super as now I find more time for doing the laundry, the shopping, the cooking + biking!

There is hope and with lots of prayers we have made it this far and even together in a blissful relationship.

May God grant us some more time together—so grateful for everything we lived through and for the fond memories and many friends all over the world!

Related link:

{Cashmere Words of Wisdom & Update} | previous post shortly after Mom died from Chronic Kidney Disease—she had almost 7 years of dialysis...

Our Biking over 2022

 An overview of our biking in 2022

A very sunny Sunday in November, 2022

It was 21°C or 69.8°F

This was earlier in November. Sunny but chilly...

Wearing gloves and our skull cap under the helmet to protect the ears from the wind as we can go at a rather high speed on those E-bikes when going down hill.

On December 4, was my final E-bike ride for the year!

Pieter more often did run some errands and has biked far more frequently.

Pieter's E-bike rides over 2022:

1,550.5 km or 963 miles

A total of 93 rides... one for each year in age!

My E-bike rides over 2022 was 891.4 km or 554 miles

A total of 34 rides...

A bit more for both of us with the July bike rides at Jenny Lake in Wyoming and also recently in December Biking Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress Resort ←(click link for Relive video) in Orlando, Florida .

And also a few short walks.

Planning to roll my bike again in 2023—did so far twice this month and Pieter five times.

Related link:

Biking around Jenny Lake and Dining at Jenny Lake Lodge Dining Room | previous post by me with Relive video

Our Stay at Hyatt Regency Sarasota Florida

 Once again we were at our favorite Hyatt Regency in Sarasota, Florida.

Hyatt Regency Sarasota ←click link

We once more had to fight heavy traffic, coming from the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress Resort in Orlando. See previous post...

But here we are!

At 15:50 I stepped out on our balcony and made this photo from the Sarasota Bay and to the right you see the Van Wezel performing arts building.

First time EVER that we were at the very front and center of the Hyatt Regency.

Next day on December 30, we went for a walk through the Sarasota Bay area.

This is the front of the hotel and our balcony is hidden behind the 2nd palm tree from center.

We were on the 6th floor (out of 10) in room 614.

Behind the glass sections are glassed in seating areas—no balcony and not open.

We had that in February of 2022.

In February there was a huge fence around here—due to construction. Now there were beach chairs for a beautiful view of the John Ringling Causeway Bridge towards Saint Armands Circle on Lido Key.

Since February also this playground got finished.

The Ibis Playground...

We continued our sunny walk along the Bay towards the Van Wezel performing arts building...

Me standing at the Bay waters with a rather dramatic sky.

It sure was a lovely day with highest 27°C or 80.6°F

Peering over the menu at the Currents Restaurant on our first day we discussed with friendly waiter George several dinner options.

He arranged with the Chef for taking out pork chops for us and having them prepared in a healthy way—for me at least, for the next evening.

On the menu it was ALE BRINED PORK CHOP with cauliflower puree | rainbow chard | black cherry demi

The only thing wrong was that they served mine with mashed potatoes instead of cauliflower puree and I'm not allowed to eat potatoes in any form due to their high potassium levels for my kidneys...

But the pork chop sure was good not being ALE BRINED and so was the black cherry demi—very special taste!

Our New Year's Eve walk.

Pieter standing here at the place where you can slide with your kayak into the water...

Just in jeans and his Burberry shirt—so mild and no more wind.

Love this area called the Mangrove Bayou Walkway

There are many live oaks on the parking lot of the Van Wezel performing arts building and also very tame squirrels!

Once again I had to take a WeFie in the gold reflecting glass door of the Van Wezel building...

Van Wezel with a dramatic sky resulting in dense fog the next morning on New Year's day.

We ended the year 2022 with a bowl of GULF COAST SEAFOOD CHOWDER...

That was delicious with some bread on the side.

On New Year's Day, we once more went for a walk and fed the tame squirrels some nuts.

We also had a great swim in the afternoon.
Only on our first afternoon we did lie at the pool, just to relax... 

It is said to be heated to 86°F or 30°C but it felt rather cool when getting into the water but with the sun above us, it was great!

Our Hyatt Regency room 614 had the BEST shower/tub we've ever experienced.

Having both had back aches, it was a great massage and warming.

We walked after that...

Doves were sitting on the electrical wiring above us.

Zoomed in on both doves...

They started roosting for the evening, just like the water fowl that we again observed in the Mangrove.

You can see pictures in the links below from previous posts.

This time we did NOT visit any friends like we did during previous stays.

Also for not disrupting their family plans during the holidays and we both enjoyed a truly relaxed stay of four nights here. No driving involved but reading, cross stitching (trying to finish a project started in 2007... and on New Year's Eve we watched the darling movie of The Bear (1988) ←click it) that I'd found on a blog. We had this on video but gifted it to Mom & Dad to play on their Multi system VCR (gifted by us as well as a gifted Multi system TV). Mom LOVED it so much and so did my young nieces and nephews.

Pieter and I watched this fond movie once more.

It is filmed in British Columbia, Canada and such beautiful nature!

What a blissful 4 free nights on Pieter's accumulated Hyatt points these were!

Booked already on October 20...

On Monday, January 2 of 2023 our wonderful Hyatt stay ended as we had to check out.

Driving once again through very heavy traffic jam.

This entire trip was like that—coming and going.

By 6:30 PM we arrived home in the dark and our kitties were oh so happy!!!

Related links:

From Lakeland, to Sarasota via Sunshine Skyway Bridge in Florida | previous post by me

Nature Trail Walk at The Bay Park in Sarasota, Florida | previous post by me

Lunch with a Dear Writer Friend in Osprey, Florida | previous post by me

{Award Nights at Hyatt Regency in Sarasota, Florida} | previous post by me

{Sarasota, Florida - Hyatt Regency} | previous post by me

{Sarasota Bay, Florida - Great Egret} | previous post by me

{Sarasota Bay, Florida - Anhinga} | previous post by me