After reading so many of others people's reviews on their 2004 I thought I'd give it a bash. Now this year has been very different from previous years as I was off sick for most of it so I apologise now if it isn't a happy read!
***January***
I actually slept my way into 2003 believe it or not! Me and my boyfriend had been shopping on the 31st of December and then we went and saw the Lord Of The Rings (yawn!) By the time we got back to his we were both really tired as we both work nights and our sleep pattern had been messed up. We were going to watch Only Fools And Horses (I think!) but we fell asleep around 9pm. We briefly woke up around 2am, said Happy New Year and went back to sleep!
I worked on the 1st and did so for the next three nights. All over Christmas I had been feeling funny and I put it down to working loads of overtime. I had been feeling more tired than usual and had been feeling light-headed. On the Sunday night I felt terrible. I could hardly walk I was so dizzy. After speaking to a friend at work she said it sounded like I had the same as she did a few months before. She started telling me about her ear infection and how it went after a couple of weeks. Funnily enough we shared the same GP and I stayed up in the morning and made an appointment to see him that very day. I went in with an idea what I had from my friend. Not wanting to interfere I didn't mention this and just explained how I felt and how I had been at work that night. He asked several questions (none of which I can remember) and then made me follow a pen as he moved it left to right and back again. He told me that my eyes were flickering as I was trying to focus on the pen. He then went on to explain that I had labyrinthitis, an inner ear infection. I was relieved that he knew what it was. He gave me some tablets and a sick note for a week and off I went happy that I'd soon be rid of my nausea and dizziness.
The tablets weren't making any difference at all and if possible I was feeling worse. I was spending most my time in bed as I couldn't even watch the TV it was too much for me. I went back to the doctors again and he gave me some different tablets but again they never really did anything other than act like sleeping tablets. He assured me that it would be gone in a couple of weeks time and at worse a month. I remember thinking to myself I could never cope with being off for a month. What would I do?!
I kidded myself on the 15th and went into work to see how I would do. This was a bad idea and I was so bad I could hardly stand. My boyfriend had to take me home after a couple of hours and I was grateful to see my bed!
***February***
After a month off sick already I didn't think it could get any worse. I was wrong, I woke up one night in pain with my tooth. I took several painkillers and they never even touched the pain. As soon as the dentist was open I made an appointment and went there that day. I needed a filling and I think I had an abscess. I had another lot of tablets to take.
On the 24th my boyfriend surprised me with a few days in Taunton. We didn't really get up to much but it was nice to get out of the house. I do remember we went to Haynes Motor Museum (famous for their car manuals) which was good if you like cars!
I visited the doctors twice again this month and I was told it would eventually just go. I also met my friend who came home from travelling the world. Apart from going out with my boyfriend this was the first time I had socialised since I had been off sick. Even though we just chatted in a quiet pub I had a great time and let him beat me at pool!
***March***
I had a 'home visit' from work to see how I was. They do this after you have been off work for however long to basically see if you are ill or not. I remember being really nervous about them coming over. When they arrived it wasn't all that bad. My cat Pebbles took a fancy to one of them and was climbing all over him! Lucky for me he liked cats and he found it amusing. They asked me all about my health and what the doctor had said to me. They wanted to know when I thought I'd be back at work. I didn't have a clue and it's probably just as well I didn't know!
At the end of the month I went on my mates Hen Night. She had hired a mini bus to Bristol for us all and a few people went in cars. I nearly didn't go because I got myself into a state about going out. I was so dizzy I found busy places very stressful. After confiding in my boyfriend he convinced me that I would be ok and just to take it easy. My friend was close and she knew all there was to know about how I felt and she said I would be fine. I made myself look beautiful and I felt great because of it. When I got round her house several of her other friends decided I wasn't wearing enough pink so I had to wear these bobbling willies on my head. I just wish I had a picture to show you all. We had a table booked at La Tasca (a Spanish restaurant) and it's just as well as I was hungry by the time we got there! We had a great time nattering away and stuffing our faces. I hadn't had any alcohol all year but I did have a few glasses of sangria. After about 2 hours we went on to a club. Even though I was at uni in Bristol I have completely forgotten the name of it but to any Bristolians it was on the Waterfront!
My boyfriend also took me to Legoland, which was about as much as I could cope with. I would have never thought about going there before I was dizzy but it was a good day out. We were the only people there without kids!
***April***
Still feeling the same dizzy wise so I won't bore you with all the trips to the doctors! At the beginning of the month my boyfriend wanted to take me out for the day and let me decide where and what we should do. After reading a review on here (by merv83) I thought Cosmeston Medieval Village in Wales sounded ideal. So off we went. We got to Cardiff and decided to go to Techniquest first as my boyfriend found information on it when I was showing him details of the medieval village.
I did enjoy Techniquest and it's a great place for kids. When we left to go to the medieval village we couldn't find the road getting out of Cardiff (other than the M4) so after a heated argument in the car we headed off back home!
To make up for this my boyfriend apologised and a couple of weeks passed and he said he'd take me out again. Having discussed places to go at the beginning of the month I had suggested Warwick Castle as I hadn't been in ages and read one or two reviews on here and it really tickled my fancy. When we left for the castle I was closing my eyes loads and it wasn't until we were on the M4 I was wondering where we were going. Unlike me I kept quiet and thought nothing of it. I then realised that we must be going somewhere else so I asked being all confused. My boyfriend said Windsor Castle like you suggested. I didn't have the heart to tell him that I never even mentioned Windsor let alone wanted to go there! I wouldn't recommend the castle itself (unless you like the Royals!) but Windsor was nice and I liked going round the shops even though I had no money to spend.I had my first visit to the ENT specialist which if I'm honest made me feel worse than before. I went there in hope that they would find out what the problem was and sort it all out. I first had a hearing test and they said my hearing was perfect. Then the consultant sat me down and asked me loads of questions, which made me, want to shout and scream at him. He asked me to explain how I felt and give him a run down how I felt since December. I told him I was so bad at one point I couldn't use a knife as I was scared I would go all dizzy and cut myself. After me explaining this and everything else he asked what I was like when I was driving. I couldn't believe my ears so I said pardon and he repeated his question. I laughed as I was so shocked and told him I couldn't drive and I hadn't since the very beginning of the year. I then told him that even going a few miles as a passenger made me feel sick (this may have something to do with all the roundabouts we have in Swindon!)
I ended the month in a lovely way and saw my friend get married. The evening do was great even if I was sober. Our gay friend had a laugh and even got a snog with her new hubby (yes I have a photo but I don't think he would be please if I posted it here!)
***May***
May started with my sister coming back from Canada. She had been there several months with her boyfriend and friends snowboarding and working. We used to fight a lot but when she came back we got on really well as we hadn't seen each other in such a long time.
On the 14th I went to the doctors as I was still the same and being off so long was really getting to me. I am normally a bubbly outgoing person but I had become really low and would only leave the house if I had someone with me. I couldn't even face going to the local shop on my own if I needed something. I'd rather stay in and do without until someone could go with me or get it for me.
When I told him how low I was feeling he said that getting stressed wasn't helping. So I was prescribed some anti depressants to see if that helped me. I was warned it could take a few weeks for them to get in my system though. When I got home I had a surprise phone call from the hospital. They had a cancellation and was I available for an MRI scan. Well I text my boyfriend (he was asleep as he works nights) and he got up and took me. I didn't really have time to get scared as I walked in and they were ready for me. I did start to panic a little but the nurse there was excellent and she assured me that it would be fine and told me that if I wanted help at any time then I was to push the panic button. The MRI scan itself was very noisy, other than that it was ok unless you are claustrophobic.
At the end of the month we went to Warwick Castle for the day out. I was glad we made it to the right castle this time! They have a new attraction called Alive, which is a recreation of a murder. You walk in the dark and the actors were very good at making me jump! ***June***
The beginning of the month it was my birthday. That was rather non-eventful because I was ill in bed all day. My boyfriend had planned to take me out but I wasn't up to it so he went and got us a McDonalds and we just watched TV in bed. To make up for this we went away for a few days to Portsmouth a couple of weeks later. We had a fantastic time at the Portsmouth Historical Dockyard.
I also got my results back from the MRI scan. There was nothing wrong with my brain or ears. I was glad it was nothing serious like a tumour but at the same time I was annoyed as I was back at square one.
***July***
Being lucky as I am my boyfriend decided that he would take me away again. One thing I hadn't mentioned previously is that he pays for everything as I haven't had money coming in for ages. With me still being off sick and no light at the end of the tunnel still he thought he'd treat me again. So off we went to Weymouth this time. I had never been before as when the weather was hot I had usually gone to Bournemouth so this was nice for a change. We had plenty to do when we got down there. We went on a speedboat, which was fantastic. We got a little bit wet but that was half the fun. We went round Brewers Quay, which is an assortment of little shops. Its worth noting that it was here we got some delicious liquorice fudge that was gone within minutes of buying it! We went around Timewalk (next to Brewers Quay) which takes you back in time to how Weymouth was years ago.
I also started having acupuncture. My Mum told me that my Aunt had suggested it as nothing else had been working. I dismissed it as being silly and I never had the money for it anyway. So after a little convincing she took me into town to a Chinese herbal shop that did acupuncture and I started receiving acupuncture and cupping. I couldn't notice any huge noticeable difference but I did leave feeling very relaxed!
***August***
I was surprised when I got a phone call from the hospital again.
This time it was for physiotherapy. When the ENT consultant told me he was referring me to them I wondered what the heck they could do for me. I mean I was dizzy what could they possibly do? I went along and met Michelle and she started off by asking me all these things that she filled it a questionnaire. Some of them seemed pointless but she said that it would be handy to look back at a later date. We sat and talked mostly in our first session. She told me that I seemed to have an anxiety problem as I would avoid busy places like a plague and never go out on my own. Just talking to her helped me and I left feeling positive and the happiest I had in a long time. I actually felt that after all this time I was getting somewhere. She made me do these balance exercises and I didn't realise that my balance was so poor. I went home with 'homework' I had to practise various exercises and also start keeping a dizzy diary so she could see what triggered me off and how we could work on my balance and dizziness.I also had another appointment with the ENT consultant. He told me that I was in capable hands with Michelle and he didn't want to interfere. I also got him to write down things that would help Michelle (as she requested) to help her. It was only now I learnt that he had diagnosed me with Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) and he hadn't bothered to tell my GP or me. I was still being signed off as having labyrinthitis and the next time I saw him I told him this and it was news to him. This made me angry as he had diagnosed me with it well over a month ago and nothing had been done.
I also learnt from a trip to the opticians that my eye muscles weren't working together as they should. I only discovered this through my annual contact lense health check. When I told the optician about my vertigo he said it could have either been a cause or result of my dizziness and he couldn't say as it was too long after I had started being dizzy. So he told me the only way to make the eye muscles was to have a prism added to my glasses. I was disappointed as I normally wear my contacts and he said this wasn't helping.
I managed to go bowling with a friend and I actually bet him despite the fact I could hardly walk in a straight line. We had a great laugh and the went to bingo afterwards (something I hadn't done all year). I had trouble keeping up as the numbers on the page seemed to be moving about but the longer I was there the better I became.
As a result of not moving my head much I had developed a stiff neck so I started to go swimming which helped it. Swimming, acupuncture and physio all worked together and slowly it got better.
***September***
With the help of physio I started to control my vertigo. All those months I didn't move my head to avoid making me feel rough I learnt it was the wrong thing to do. To get rid of it you are supposed to make yourself dizzy so the brain is aware there is a problem and can fix it. So I started becoming more active and doing as much as I could do.
Even if it meant I unloaded the dishwasher. I started to drive again (only in daylight!) so I was happy to become mobile again. I now drove myself into town every week for acupuncture (previously my Mum took me).
When I went to see my doctor again he was really pleased with my progress. He suggested that I start to go back to work gradually, only doing a couple of hours to start with. I couldn't believe I had to go back. Although I wanted to go back I was still dizzy and sleeping those. I never thought I'd be able to handle work especially because it's a physical job. I got home and I freaked out. I only had a week and I had to go back. I would have to go into work and discuss it with the relevant person. Part of me was hoping that they wouldn't let me back because of health and safety reasons!
The dreaded 13th came and off to work I went. I couldn't drive at night so my boyfriend took me in and then took me home as well. I was dreading it. I felt so nervous although I had no reason to be. There were still loads of people there I knew and my boyfriend works there too so I had him to look out for me as well. Management had completely changed but I thought that could be a good thing. At least they wouldn't be able to compare me to how I was before and expect me to do as much work as I did then. My first night I was with two women I knew well so I was ok. The work was too heavy and I went home aching. I had 2 days off after that and I spent most my time in bed sleeping and recovering from my 2 hours work! The next night I was at work I was given lighter work and put with someone else who I got on well with. She really understood how I felt as her Mum had vertigo so she knew how I felt. (I later discovered that this persons daughter is on Ciao - you know who you are!)
***October***
After a few weeks back at work I must admit I was feeling better so making myself dizzy must be working. I was hard and I had to have a bath every time I got home from work no matter what time it was (thank god for radox!). I continued having acupuncture and going swimming, which helped my aching muscles. I had my last physio appointment as well. Michelle had left to go back to Australia and my last session was with someone else. I was told that I was doing great and I was put on their review list and they would contact me in the near future to see how I am doing (I'm still waiting!) I was a little disappointed that they ended as they helped me so much but she explained that now I was back at work there was no need for the exercises.
I did seem to be progressing well and I was now doing 4-6 hours a shift. Although I was still dizzy I started to cope with it more and start to lead an almost normal life again. I managed to go shopping with my boyfriend several times which I hadn't really done all year!
***November***
November wasn't really hugely different from October. I managed to work the same kind of hours and get out a few times socially. The highlight of the month was seeing Lenny Henry at the theatre.
If you ever get the chance then go!
***December***
I went back to see my doctor as I hadn't improved that much the last few weeks. He said that I need to slowly come off the anti depressants as they could be hindering my progress.
I went to Torquay just before Christmas with my boyfriend. We did this in 2003 and decided we liked it there that we would go back again. We never got a chance to visit any of the tourist attractions last year so we made up for it this time. We visited Bygones (Victorian shops), Kents Cavern (caves) and Babbacombe Model Village. We had a great time and even managed to go to Plymouth to finish off our Christmas shopping.
The rest of December I was busy at work trying to do as many hours as I could physically manage. Christmas day was lovely and I got loads of great presents including my first ever digital camera. For once I managed to not eat loads over Christmas. I had piled too many pounds on over the year where I was inactive so I tried my best to resist!
***Useless Facts***
16 trips to the doctor
3 visits to the ENT consultant
1 MRI scan
9 physiotherapy sessions
20 acupuncture sessions
***Ciao***
11/01 - I got my green dot
22/01 - I got my blue dot
7/02 - I got my purple dot
5/03 - I got my red dot
12/03 - I got a diamond!
19/05 - I got my orange dot
I only wrote 26 reviews!
***Theatre***
Lenny Henry - So Much Things To Say
***Cinema***
Runaway Jury, Scary Movie 3, School Of Rock, Cheaper By The Dozen, Along Came Polly, Dawn Of The Dead, Shaun Of The Dead, Starsky & Hutch, Butterfly Effect, Taking Lives, Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban, Day After Tomorrow, Walking Tall, Open Water, Saw, Bad Santa, Anacondas, The Grudge, The Incredibles and Christmas With The Kranks.
***Books***
Susan Hill -Various Haunts of Men
Peter Robinson - Caedmon's Song, The Hanging Valley, A Necessary End, The Summer That Never Was, In A Dry Season
Alice Sebold - The Lovely Bones
Henning Mankell - Sidetracked, The Dogs of Riga, Faceless Killers, The Fifth Woman
Michael Connelly - The Poet, Chasing the Dime, The Lost Light.
Martina Cole - Two Women, Faceless, The Know
Ann Rule - Everything She Ever Wanted, The Stranger Beside Me
Mark Billingham - Lazy Bones, Sleepyhead, Scaredy Cat
Jonathan Kellerman - A Cold Heart
Ian Rankin - Black & Blue, Knots & Crosses
Minette Walters - Disordered Minds
Karin Slaughter - Blindsighted, A Faint Cold Fear
Donna Leon - Fatal Remedies
Nicci French - Land of the Living
J.K. Rowling - Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire
Jonathan Nasaw -The Girls He Adored
Stephen King -Christine
The last bit of this review was inspired by purplelynne so I hope she doesn't mind me pinching it. If you haven't already read her review then what are you waiting for!
** purplelynne has told me she nicked those bits from KarenUK so make sure you read hers too! **
In conclusion I have had a pretty bad year. My boyfriend, parents, cats and ciao kept me going though! However, compared to all the people who have been effected but the Asian Tsunami I have had it easy. For those who haven't already donated and want to here is the link:
http://www.dec.org.uk
My dizzy 2004 
hang in there, you're not alone!