Surgery in LimboLand

Howdy y'all! Ready for more in the Jennie saga? (smirk)

In June 2016, I found myself in the ER because we and the EMTs suspected a heart attack and wanted to hook up a 12-lead EKG and check things out. Heart was fine. Blood tests showed elevated liver enzymes that continued to increase to outlandish levels as well as some sort of organ damage going on. So, I was admitted to the hospital. After a couple clear ultrasounds, a CT scan, and blood tests, it was determined it must have been a gallbladder attack, and I was discharged, though my liver enzyme levels were still extremely high.

For the next six, long months, I had left-side abdominal pain that was often increased by eating only a few bites of food or even drinking a little water. Doc visits. Pancreas tested fine. Stomach tested no ulcers. Endoscopy, colonoscopy, CT scans, abdominal MRI, gastroenterologist visits, etc. Polyps found (some "pre-cancerous") and removed from colon and stomach; not cause of pain. Mild, uneventful diverticulosis found, but not cause of pain. Stones in both kidneys as well as cysts on ovaries, liver and kidneys, so sent to nephrologist. Not cause of pain either, but now have new diagnosis of Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease.

From: source


Gastroenterologist, then, suggested gallbladder removal because I'd had a few more of the middle-abdomen, crushing pain episodes along with the left-side pain.

So, on 11/29/16, I had "diagnostic" laparoscopic gallbladder removal. In other words, it should cause all pain to go away and "one doesn't need a gallbladder anyway." There's some sense to the idea, for the internist said he'd learned at a seminar that "any abdominal pain within six feet of a diseased gallbladder is caused by that gallbladder." Mine was diseased for sure. In the scans, it showed microscopic stones called "sludge." So, I went for it. One can refrain from eating only so long anyway! (chuckle)

It was confirmed after the surgery to be diseased, too. The surgeon showed us still photos taken of the procedure. My gallbladder was completely buried under fatty tissue. When my eyes got wide, he said, "You're not fat. Building that up over the gallbladder was your body's way of dealing with it being so inflamed and diseased." Interesting.

Now, though, seems to be the aftermath. The surgery was under general anesthesia with an anti-nausea patch behind my ear. I had an asthma attack in the post-op room, so was given a broncho-dialator via the oxygen tube. Then, in the recovery room, I was given Vicadon for a pain-killer. Also, in recovery, I was cold, so they put me under a hot-air blanket cranked way up.

I get my worst symptoms when my body gets hot. So, it wasn't long in recovery before I started getting vertigo and double vision. Though I still felt cold, I asked to have the blanket removed. Vertigo lessened so we checked out. But, double vision remained for the next couple hours. It went away, but blurred vision remained and is still there.

I'm home now and had read that the anti-nausea patch can cause blurred vision, so removed that a couple days ago. Still blurry vision, now on 12/4/16. Plus, I'm getting achey numbness in my left arm and leg. Also, quite short of breath and fatigue with only a brief amount of activity or sometimes just sitting there doing nothing! This was my first surgery, so I'm really not knowing what to expect, especially with a body that has weird reactions. You know what I mean, I am sure.

In the past 10 months, we'd changed our lifestyle to eat lots of fresh fruits & veggies, whole grains, good oils, no dairy, no meats, absolutely no sugars (not even honey or maple syrup). We also worked up to my being able to hike 8-10 miles a day. I was doing so well with few symptoms; now this!

For future reference, I'm trying to figure out whether this would be a reaction to anesthesia or one of the other meds or simply a shock to the body or all of the above.  Since I'm in limbo of non-diagnosis for the nervous system issues, I don't have a regular neurologist. We moved to Washington, and I have a good, "I'll do some research; what do you think, doc?; would you order the test?" relationship with the GP available in our region. Therefore, it is up to me to figure this out. Any advice or ideas or thoughts from your experiences are quite welcome, if you have the time.

https://twitter.com/YogiJennie

Happy holidays to y'all!
Jennie

The Isolating Loneliness of Chronic Pain & Invisible Illness

The Isolating Loneliness of Chronic Pain & Invisible Illness: Chronic pain and invisible illness can be incredibly isolating, sometimes in obvious ways but other times, it’s far more insidious or subtle. Just as our pain and symptoms are mostly invisible, we too can feel as if we’re living behind a silent divide, isolated from life by an invisible window of pain. When pain never pauses, it can make it hard to feel connected—even to those we love. As erratic and unpredictable symptoms can alter and affect friendships and relationships, you may see your friends and family far less, or when you do, feel disconnected — lonely in a crowded room — and quite unlike how things once were, which leads to a different kind of loneliness. “Part of what makes pain “painful” is its privacy and unsharability, the feeling of aloneness,” says David Biro. “This under appreciated feature — to that outsider, that is — is especially true for pain that persists, chronic versus acute pain.”

The Inspirational Iron Nun

Still Walking

"He who limps is still walking." -- Stanisław Jerzy Lec

She has such a positive attitude. What a delight! Go here, to see the Positive Living with MS page.

We seem to be "doing everything right." We are eating a healthy, plant-based, no-sweeteners/no-processed food diet. Aerobic exercise, hikes, and moving after every meal is a lifestyle for us now. We get plenty of vitamin-D-filled sunshine on our hikes. For both of us, the bathroom scale is displaying prettier numbers now! (grin) Blood pressures are perfect, as are our pulses. Blood tests show stats that healthy folk in their 20s and 30s get.

Yet, when my body gets hot or just simply decides to throw a curve ball, my legs get weak (though more muscle-bound from the exercise). My toes start dragging. The vertigo returns and threatens to rock the boat hard unless I get to a cool place pronto! So, the video above is meaningful, and I'm thankful she made it. People can do everything as they should and get healthier, but that doesn't reverse nor prevent certain monkey-wrenches in the system!

Right now, I want to write more on the peripheral neuropathy hubby has been experiencing. His feet have been the most bothersome. In fact, that's how we found out his blood sugar levels were too high. The obnoxiousness of the twanging, burning, and stabbing nerves was interrupting his sleep. He was getting more and more tired as he was battling the downright maddening neuropathy. So, we went to the doc. He ran some blood tests, and that's when we discovered hubby was in the diabetes danger zone.

Review of previous post: We are not the types to settle on conventional methods like getting on insulin and just wait for "inevitable progression." So, we immediately made some diet changes while doing research. Eventually, we discovered that diabetes can be reversed. Some organizations still say it is progressive and cannot be reversed.They often say you must take medicine for the rest of your life. Yet, there are many cases that disprove both claims, including hubby's. Between watching videos with a discerning mind, testing how foods affect hubby's blood levels, and applying the knowledge from books like "Goodbye Diabetes" by Dr. Wes Youngberg and online articles, the diabetes is, indeed, reversing! We're thrilled about that! 

WITH UPDATES INCLUDED FEB. 2017

Hubby's Hgb A1c went from 13 in Dec. 2015 to 6.8 in April 2016 [Nov. 2016 A1C = 5.4], and the main lifestyle changes took place during March and April. His (and my) triglycerides and cholesterol were at very unhealthy levels for the past several years. We see the April [and November] blood tests reveal that is no longer the case! He's well within the normal range on everything but the blood glucose and A1C levels. [Feb. 2017 update: Now, everything is well within the normal range. Woohoo!] 

Back to the neuropathy: The doc had a free sample of Lyrica and gave that to hubby to try. It did help; not totally, but it toned it down to a tolerable level. We filled the prescription once [after considerable sticker-shock] so he could have some relief while we did some research. We kept paying for it out of pocket while waiting for insurance to slowly decide whether or not they'd reimburse us. They didn't. Instead, they wanted him to try three different (cheaper) meds before they'd reconsider paying for the Lyrica. The first one he tried was amitriptyline. That did nothing, so doc doubled the dose. Ugh! It seemed to make the pain worse! 

Meanwhile, while trying the prescription drugs, we were diligently trying other things we could come up with at home. So, when hubby took his last dose of the amitriptyline on May 26th, we were already eating foods that reduce inflammation (more circulation to the nerves facilitates healing). He was exercising but also raising his feet and resting his legs when needed. He was taking active alpha-lipoic acid (200mg three times a day; hour before eating or 2 hrs after). He's taking sublingual B12 and vitamin D3 (with a chlorophyll pill to help the body absorb the D). Our little group of Christian friends and I were praying. He was already losing weight, and his blood sugar is in the normal range FAR more than it is in the danger zone. The neuropathy was better, but not gone. But, there's something else that has helped him enough he isn't interested in the pain meds anymore. That's what I want to mention here because it might help others. 

When the pain or burning gets bad, we rub a homemade ointment into his feet (and, sometimes, calves) that really seems to help. Here's how it is made. Grab some virgin coconut oil. Stir in several drops of these three essential oils: geranium, cinnamon bark, and peppermint. For a long while, we just used the peppermint only. It often helped, but it was sometimes short-lived relief. This latest concoction helps immediately, and the effects last much longer.

Again, even when you do everything right, your body can have other plans. In empathy for hubby, I changed my lifestyle, too. It has improved both of our healths tremendously. No, there's no cure for some things that go wrong with our bodies. I learned yesterday (when walking around in the afternoon heat) that some issues just don't go away, even when you are doing everything you are supposed to be doing. Yet, I do think my body has a better fighting stance now because I'm healthier, in general. So, it is still worth the sweat and effort, even if there's not a cure. 

Source

"I would go to the deeps a hundred times to cheer a downcast spirit. It is good for me to have been afflicted, that I might know how to speak a word in season to one that is weary." - Charles Spurgeon

Stepping It Up

Reading this article about Clay Walker reminds me that I need to write an update here. [By the way, I learned of the article via Active MSers.]  Mr. Walker basically says that exercise and stretching has helped him keep moving through multiple sclerosis.

I know I've said it before. I'll say it again. I think exercise and stretching has helped me, too. In fact, in January, we stepped up the exercise level and "went vegan."

The motivation? Well, it was for hubby. He visited the doc for peripheral neuropathy symptoms and got multiple blood tests that found the nerve damage is due to a high blood sugar level. We figure it's been spiking for several years without our knowing it until the neuropathy showed up. 

So, reading several books about reversing diabetes (which is possible), we decided to get more exercise as well as change our diet. 

One of the most helpful books we read was, "Goodbye Diabetes" by Dr. Wes Youngberg. Here's a presentation he did about diabetes, cancer, auto-immune diseases, etc. and their relationship with blood sugar and insulin, in case you're interested.



DIET

We were already vegetarians, but we've now eliminated dairy, eggs, and sugars (sugar, molasses, maple syrup, brown rice syrup, honey, all artificial sweeteners, maltodextrin, anything in the ingredient list that has "-ose" on the end, etc). We eliminated between-meal snacks and also fast once in a while. We balance our meals so the biggest meal is breakfast, the medium-sized meal is dinner, and the lightest is supper. We've increased our raw fruits and vegetables intake while trying not to consume anything with a glycemic load over 10. * That's a challenge when trying to get grains, but corn and oatmeal are fine. I read that vinegar helps the body stabilize blood sugar levels, so I'm cooking with vinegar far more than I did. 

EXERCISE

Before January, we were in the habit of going on a daily walk of 1-2 miles, but we decided that wasn't enough. We were fairly sedentary beyond that. So, we got a gym membership where we do weight training and cardio machines. We take longer, more strenuous hikes. We invested in a hybrid stationary bike/elliptical for use at home. Because it prevents blood sugar spikes, we do some light exercise (household chores with movement do count) and stretching for 20-30 minutes after every meal. We work at home, so this is possible to make happen on our schedules.

HOW IT'S GOING

Honestly, it was a challenge at first. But, we're learning to adapt. It is worth it. We've both lost weight already, and his blood sugar levels are dropping drastically. His blood pressure has gone down, too. The surprise for me is that I have been feeling better in many respects! 

I had been getting frequent heartburn and upset stomach. I read that this can be caused, ironically, by too little acid in the stomach. Plus, taking antacids makes the problem worse. The articles suggested drinking vinegar. So, increasing our vinegar intake has helped us both for different reasons. 

My energy levels have greatly increased. Yay! That's a huge help in withstanding the increased exercise load. 

I've worked up to it gradually, but I'm pretty proud of myself that I accomplished 4 miles on the elliptical yesterday! My legs went numb to the knees, as usual, but they recover faster now than they have in the past. I still have to make sure that I drink cool water and rest a bit when my torso starts heating up too much. Otherwise, here comes the vertigo, blurry and wonky vision, and shakiness. But, I don't quit until I reach my goal. Once I'm cooler, I start up again.

I still get very stiff, so stretching is mandatory. My balance is terrible right now, so I'm going to see if I can work on that a bit with some yoga. Time will tell on that one. Meanwhile, I'm proud of us, and I'm thrilled we're gaining health. 

Oh, PS: My favorite machine at the gym is the abs coaster! Because Montel Williams suggested it on Rachael Ray's show, I decided to give it a try. I actually think it is fun. Tough after enough reps, but still more enjoyable than the other devices in the "torture chamber." (grin)(wink)






* [You can learn what the glycemic load is for any particular food by typing the name of it into the search bar at the top of this page. Also, you can learn what foods have the most or least of whatever nutrient or characteristic you choose.]