Review: OnePiece jumpsuits, the must-have article of clothing!

Some of you may have seen the OnePiece jumpsuits before. They are quite popular with celebrities. I learned about them myself from the celebrity gossip blog I read. When I saw them, I knew I wanted to get one, and I knew that I needed to share the information with my fellow zebras.

The OnePiece was created in Norway, and is basically the love child of a hoodie and a pair of sweatpants. Roomy, with a zipper that goes from the crotch to the top of the hood, so you can cover yourself completely if you'd like. If you're like me and live in a climate that is three parts winter to one part sweltering hot, you'll see the appeal. If you're also a zebra with joint pain, you can also understand the wonder of this garment.

I sent the company a blog sponsorship request, and told them why I have this blog, what EDS is, and what it's about. I was denied, but they offered to send me one as a gift, as the lovely digital marketing director admired my story and courage. I was touched, it was a very sweet gesture. I was given four choices, all the same design but different colours. I chose this one, and it was sent out to me soon after.

When it got here, I was so excited, I put it on right away. It was comfortable, made of lightweight 100% cotton. There were two zipper pulls, fabric, and large enough that anyone could pull them. The zipper is two-way, so you can pull one slide up, and then unzip that by pulling the second slide up after it. The jumpsuit also has two huge zippered pockets. I can fit several pill bottles, large and small, in each, which is useful if you have meds that need carting around like I do. Overall the jumpsuit is nice and cozy. You can wear it over clothing or with nothing but your skivvies underneath.

My favourite thing about the jumpsuit is that it's basically made for ease of use. Large zipper pulls, baggy, roomy pockets. It kept my achy joints warm and less achy with as cold as it's been here. Honestly, if you're looking for something comfortable to lounge around the house in, this is it! To wash, zip it up, throw it in the wash under a delicate or hand-wash cycle, then hang to dry. Or just wash according to the instructions.

I happened to get a second OnePiece jumpsuit, a Christmas gift from my family that was a pre-order and didn't get here until April 1st, but it's snowy again, so it's been useful as well! This one is from the Hands By One Direction collection. Yep, at 24, I'm a 1D fan! Anyways, a huge thanks to OnePiece for the gift, I absolutely love it and will be living in it as much as possible!

Long overdue! So, what's in store for 2013?

Hey guys!

I hope you all had an amazing holiday season! I ended up dealing with a few health hiccups over the holidays, here's an overview:
Dec. 23rd - Found a lump in my right breast. We have a huge family history of breast cancer. I panic.
Dec. 24th - Went to my GP, she said she didn't think it was cancer, but one of the symptoms other than the lump, raised a red flag. She said I could possibly have a brain tumor. Scheduling person was out of office, had to wait until the 26th to schedule an MRI and a breast ultrasound.

The ultrasound came back clean, no cancer. The MRI, on the other hand, showed a "fullness" in my pituitary. I have to see an endocrinologist, because I probably have a microadenoma. Lovely.

Fast forward to 10 days ago. I was walking down the stairs to go outside and get the mail, when Codi, my mum's Dachshund, got underfoot. I managed to miss the last two steps and land full weight on my left foot, and my ankle rolled. I felt things snap. My ankle immediately began to swell and I was in terrible pain. I called my stepdad to take me to hospital, but he was busy picking up my siblings, so I had to drive myself! At the ED, I was seen by a doc who thinks I'm a drug seeker. They only gave me Percocet and Vistaril, which barely took the edge off. After x-rays, a questionable visual exam, and medication, they discharged me with nothing more than a bag of ice.

I spent the weekend in agony, walking on my horribly mangled foot/ankle. On Monday morning I saw my GP and told her of my miserable hospital treatment, and she pulled up the records from my ED trip. Turns out I was supposed to be discharged in a splint and on crutches! I agreed to the splint, but since I'd been walking on it, I said to hell with the crutches. Over the rest of the week, the bruising began to fade, but the swelling persisted. Finally, this morning my mum called every orthopaedist she could find, to try and get someone to see me. She found one, and I went to my appointment right after she picked up my x-rays from the hospital. Turns out that the splint my GP had given me was insufficient in stabilizing my ankle. I am now stuck in a fancy Aircast until they tell me I can take it off. Joy. I will post an update soon with pictures of the evolution of my ankle, from right after the injury to whatever day I post.

As for why I was MIA for almost 8 months: 
Basically, I was used by a money grubbing idiot to scam an insurance company.
I got into a car accident in July of 2010. Some woman tried to beat a red light, I happened to be making a left turn, cars collided. About a year and a half later, someone shows up at our door and serves my mum and I a summons. The woman who hit me was suing us for $75,000. Because of this, I had to make my Facebook private, keep my Twitter posts vague, and shut down my blog. It sucked, I wanted to vent about this horrible woman and what she was doing to me and my family, but I had to keep quiet. She claimed she was disabled now, was owed emotional damages and back pay, etc. When we asked for her medical records, it showed she had a TON of pre-existing conditions. She had ignored the doctor's suggestion of PT and went to a chiropractor instead. She was on hardcore narcotics, like Fentanyl and Suboxone PRIOR to the accident! I was livid, she was making up lies! My theory is that she saw the new car (a gift for graduating high school from my parents) and that I was young (22 at the time of the accident) and saw easy money.

In November, the woman agreed to settle. She got $12,500. The law failed me. As for her inability to work and permanent disability? She now works in a coffee shop, which requires standing all day, and she attended/worked the 2012 Renaissance Festival. Basically, she flat out lied...And they paid her for it. Honestly, I'm just glad it's over. I want to forget.

New things in store for Falling Apart At The Seams this year:

• Product reviews! I'm going to try to find companies with useful products for those of us with limitations.
•  Giveaways! I'll be trying to get companies to donate products for me to give away. All will be geared towards disability, comfort, and assistance items.

So, in the famous words of Porky Pig; "Th-Th-Th- That's All Folks!"

-Jess

I Plan To Explain My Absence Soon, But Right Now I Need Your Help

I found out today that my beloved Chihuahua, whom I adopted last year as Oscar was dying, has serious medical issues of her own. She has bilateral luxating patellas, or, her kneecaps slide in and out of place because the grooves they rest in are too shallow. This is causing her extreme pain. I definitely know how she feels, and I know some of you do, too. She's going to need surgery on both knees, totaling somewhere around $3000. I don't have that kind of money, and I don't want to put her through years of pain while my family tries to save up for it. So if you could help by donating, or at the very least sharing this campaign with everyone you can think of, that would be awesome, and I would be beyond grateful.
Thanks,
-Jess
 

Chasing Ghosts

I have spent the past three days chasing ghosts.
On Tuesday I went in to the doctor, because the pain in my feet was getting really bad, and the bruising and swelling was freaking me out. The original options for diagnosis were: swelling related to my old surgery sites or vascular insufficiency. The doc took xrays just in case.

Later that day I get an alarmed call from the doc saying the radiologist found stress fractures in my feet. Their scheduler was out of office for the day, so I had to wait until Wednesday to call back and schedule an MRI.

I had the MRI yesterday, and today the results came in. Turns out the original radiologist confused my old surgical sites for fractures on the films. MRI cleared that up and also pointed out the reason for the pain/bruising/swelling. Turns out I have a really severe case of tendinitis/tendinosis.

Just my luck.

Help Me Afford A Wheelchair!

I found out that insurance will not cover a wheelchair for me, just because I won't be using it 24/7! I can move around my house, with some difficulty, and walk short distances, but I can't stand for long periods of time or walk longer than a block or two. So I started a fundraiser. Please, please, PLEASE share this with as many people as you can. Post it on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, wherever. I need this to reach as many people as possible, so I can make my goal. Any leftover money after I purchase the wheelchair will go to medical bills and assisted devices.



Thanks guys!

Long Time No See.

Let's just say my new year has been... rough.

Both of my dogs had procedures under anesthesia on Jan. 25th.
On Valentine's Day, I had to make the heartbreaking decision to put Oscar to sleep.
I have been to Mayo multiple times, and my body has just not been my friend.

That's not everything, but I don't feel like diving too deep right now.

I will be posting again soon, I promise!

Employed?

I may have just acquired the most bizarre, yet amazing job ever. Will be going tomorrow to register as a business, just so I can get access to certain things for now. Probably going to have to put my product review blog idea on the back burner and start a second blog about my work.

It's nothing you'll ever expect.

Be prepared.