It’s a little after 7 a.m. I’m waiting my turn in the bathroom (daughter is prepping for work, son-in-law-to-be is heading out with her on his way to a physical therapy appointment. When they’re done, I’ll dress in my workout clothes and head to the gym for my 45 minutes of strength-and-cardio training.

I’m a little apprehensive this morning. My right pointer-finger is full of a nauseous ache; the other fingers are twingy and sensitive, as usual. And of course, all of the resistance machines involved in my workout require my hands – some actively, others as braces.

So how will I do? I’m enjoying these workouts. They’re vital for any number of reasons – toning flabby muscles, working and strengthening my body and heart, burning calories, lowering cholesterol and blood sugar levels without additional drugs. As I get stronger, I’m counting on the fact that strengthening my muscles will be beneficial as I deal with rheuma flares. I’ve doubted, a little, the fact that the rheuma is active and “severe” again (as my rheumatologist describes it) because until recently, it’s been mostly in my hands and mostly twingy.

But I don’t doubt anymore. Each day, each week re-introduces a heightened level of pain. Bathroom is free. Can’t put it off any longer. I’ll check in later.

Update: Well, that wasn’t so bad. Sure, that particular finger is shouting at me right now and my hands are sore, as usual, but I can deal with this. Today, the rheuma didn’t stop me from moving anything — which pleases me to no end. Really. The icing on the cake is that I worked all my muscles, got sweaty and kept my heart rate up and steady for a little over a half-hour. And the icing on the icing? I had fun.

Wonders never cease.