Good News, Bad News

Wow!  I got some not so nice news from my doc.  But first a little background info…

On the 3rd of May I was still feeling pretty bad in the gut.  So I finally folded and went to the ER.  There they did an CT scan and gave me some meds via IV.  After a couple hours they came in and gave me the news.  It was great news.  There was no complete obstruction of the small intestine.  However, there was lots of distention throughout the entire length of the intestine.  So they gave me some more meds and told me to follow-up with my doc the next day.

At my doc appointment, he gave me the bad news.  There is definitely a partial obstruction in the works.  It is being caused by one of two things—either a nasty flare of my crohn’s disease, or adhesions.  For those who don’t know, adhesions are places where the small intestine are stuck to the abdominal wall, other portions of the small intestine, or other organs.  That is bad because in order to do its job, it must be able to move freely within the abdominal cavity. 

So the doc put me on a high dose of prednisone, my arch enemy, and told me to remain on a liquid diet until further notice.  And prednisone is my arch enemy because it is what caused my osteoporosis which has led to 18 broken bones over the last 6 years. 

So that’s it.  I am sort of in limbo.  Until the partial obstruction clears or becomes a complete obstruction, we can’t really move forward.  So if I’m a little late with my updates here, I hope you’ll forgive me.  Until next time…

Still No Good

Things are still not going swimmingly with the guts.  I finally broke down and made an appointment with my gut doc.  I go see him in 5 days.  These promise to be the longest 5 days in my life.  My guts, while they improved slightly with the prednisone, have gone back to their old ways.  My gut is distended and tender and I’m borderline miserable.  Everything sure points to a partial blockage of the small intestine, which is not a good thing at all.  As long as this problem has been going on, even if it is only a slight blockage, surgery is going to be the only answer.  Jeez, that would be a crummy way to spend 3-4 hours.  And then all that recovery time.  I’d rather avoid the whole thing.  Of course if it came down to a choice of staying like this or going through the weeks of recovery, I’ll choose the recovery.  Prayers are very welcome and even requested.  In fact I’m starting to get a little nauseous at the moment and that really is a very bad sign.  I gotta go!

Slacker

Wow!  I have been slacking big time. It’s been almost a full month since I posted anything here.  But hey, I do have an excuse.  You’ll have to decide if it’s a good excuse or not.

About 2 weeks ago things starting going all wrong with my guts.  As you know, I was in the hospital 7 months ago with a twisted/obstructed/perforated small intestine.  It was quite a painful experience.  Only a week after being released, I was back in the hospital for extreme malnutrition.  Well it all started again.

My guts got very painful and the belly very distended and things just weren’t working the way they are supposed to.  I stopped eating for 4 days due to the severe discomfort (and the fact that I felt like I was going to pop).  When I talked to my doc, his first though was of another bowel obstruction.  That was a little bit of a comfort since it was what I was thinking, too.  But rather than do anything rash like send me to the ER and slice me open like a holiday turkey, he decided to try me on a course of steroids.  Steroids, for those who don’t know, are the arch nemesis of Crohn’s disease.  Thankfully it cleared things up in just a matter of days.  So it turns out that there is not a full blockage, though there is question as to whether or not there is a partial blockage or at least one in the making.  Fortunately they don’t typically do surgery for partial blockages—they just hope for them to resolve themselves.  I have to monitor things closely for the next few weeks to make sure that nothing gets worse.  

So thank you all for those who prayed for a speedy, non-surgical resolution to this problem.  I know the prayers work.  I am walking, talking, living, breathing proof of that.  I am indebted to each and every one of you.

Just a note:  Steroids are a problem for me.  I have taken so many for so long that I have severe osteoporosis which has led to 18 broken bones in just 6 short years.  So I can’t stay on them for extended periods of time.  Not to mention the fact that my body becomes dependent on them very quickly and it makes it extremely difficult for me to stop them when the time comes.  So while they work great for short periods of time when things go haywire, I can’t do this too often or risk the chance of hurting myself worse.  Drugs suck. 

Success thanks to a New Happy Place

Well I went to see my doc yesterday after a full 2 weeks of monitoring my blood pressure (bp).  It was high in the beginning of the two weeks, but when I measured the bp the 2nd week, I noticed that the numbers, while still high, were only borderline high and even then on high half of the time I took them.  Well my do was really pleased.  He let me out of there (his office) with no new drugs and no increase of drugs.  Needless to say, I’m a happy camper.

Special thanks goes to Tiffany Foster for helping me fine tune my happy thought that I focus on for 3-5 minutes before every bp check.  It really has made a difference.  My doc noticed that my pressures were better during the 2nd week and that’s about the time I talked to Tiffany and modified my happy place.  So a very big THANX to Tiffany for your help.  You’re the best!

I had another little health scare the night before the doc appointment that I choose not to go into details here about, but lets just say it was frightening.  Unfortunately (or fortunately, I guess) it had cleared itself up by the time the doc was able to see me just 15 short hours later.  I’ve no more problems with it yet.  P.S.  Here is a picture of my lovely wife.  She has lost nearly 70 lbs in a one year time and wanted to show off her new figure.  Doesn’t she look great?  She is doing weight watchers and it really has worked miracles for her.  She is now smaller than when we got married and she has plans and desires to lose another 30 lbs.  She has the discipline to pull something like this off.  If you have any questions regarding weight watchers, you can message me here through the comments section and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible.  If Melinda can do this, anyone can do it.  She has had a weight problem all her life and this is the first program she has tried that actually did what it promised.  The proof is in the pudding. 

Going to my Happy Place

My doc gave me some pointers to practice before attempting to take my blood pressure.  1st he suggested that I try to take it at the same 2 times every day.  2nd he suggested that for several minutes before taking the pressure that I take a moment to go to my happy place.  Close my eyes and imagine something that makes me happy.  So I do.  I close my eyes and picture myself driving through the open desert in the Jeep with the top down and doors off and some cool nighttime music playing on the radio.  What is nighttime music?  Well it’s music that just sounds better when listened to at night—especially in the desert with the top down on the Jeep.  So how does it work?  Unfortunately it doesn’t work.  Every single blood pressure measurement has been high for the last week.  I guess that just means that my pressure is high and needs further adjustment.  My doc threatened me with a third medication if the pressures didn’t come down.  Oh well, what’s another pill among 1,800 per month?

A Closer Look

Upon closer examination I have found that exactly half of my blood pressure measurements show that my pressure is still high.  Not as high as it was before the ER visit, but still high.  So I’m fully expecting to be told to double up on my new meds that I was given last week.  It seems to be doing a find job for the most part, it just needs a little fine tuning.  In all my measurements the pressure has never been above 150/100 and the pulse has never risen above 88.  So there’s been a lot of improvement.  No complaints from me.  The pill I have to double up on is tiny so it’s not going to be an issue.  I’d rather double up on a tiny little pill than have my heart burst…or some other equally gruesome event that I dare not dwell on.  :)

Yipee!

Hey, it’s been over a week and I haven’t had any near catastrophes to report.  My blood pressure is down and holding in the normal range.  I only experience a couple of hours of high blood pressure a day and it goes back down by itself…sort of.  Of course I’m taking 2 different blood pressure meds, but that’s the way it has to be.  Even my pulse has been in the normal range and that hasn’t been the case for years.  It’s kind of nice not feeling like my heart is about to beat its way out of my chest any second. 

I go back to my doc in about a week to see how things are going.  I’ll have to tell him that my pressure is still up for a couple of hours a day, but I don’t suspect that that will be a problem.  I also go to see my pain doc.  He’ll probably be interested in my bp and pulse.  They did a EKG about a month ago and found that my heart is at rest for too long between beats.  Apparently it’s not at a scary point yet, but it’s something that they’re keeping a close eye on.  I can’t remember exactly what it’s called or what the values are supposed to be, but mine was on the edge.  Maybe some of you medical-types out there could enlighten me. 

So that’s about it.  Keep an eye here for updates on anything exciting.  I’ll try to keep this as accurate as possible.  And thank, thank you, thank you for the positive thoughts and unending prayers for my  health and well being.  You’re great!