MartyT Posted August 23, 2013 Report Share Posted August 23, 2013 Dear, dear Anne, I am so relieved to learn this very good news. Thank you so much for letting us know. Now you can relax, too, and focus on getting rid of that infection! ♥ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kayc Posted August 23, 2013 Report Share Posted August 23, 2013 I guess it's all in perspective...Anne's news that she has an ear infection is positive news, while mine that I have one is not. I came down with one last night, just as I'm starting my vacation...I'm in a lot of pain and have three dogs and two cats to take care of, so to drive 100+ miles to see a doctor is not going to be very easy. Esp. since these dogs are high maintenance and am not sure what I'm going to do with them while I'm gone. This was not in the agenda! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MartyT Posted August 23, 2013 Report Share Posted August 23, 2013 Kay, I'm so sorry that your ears are infected now! We'll all shift our healing attention onto you now! If you can't get to your doctor soon, can you at least have him/her telephone a prescription for a broad-spectrum antibiotic to your local pharmacy? At least drink lots and lots of water, to flush those bugs out of your system! ♥ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kayc Posted August 25, 2013 Report Share Posted August 25, 2013 I went to the doctor yesterday, got three more Rxs, that makes 13 this week! I am now doctor/Rx poor, but got help for my ear. It still hurts, but it's better than it was. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MartyT Posted August 25, 2013 Report Share Posted August 25, 2013 Good, Kay ~ now just get better! ♥ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
feralfae Posted August 25, 2013 Report Share Posted August 25, 2013 Dear Kay, I hope your ear is enough better that you can enjoy the rest of your weekend, even if you are on vacation. Has someone checked your basket of RXs to make sure there are no contraindications amongst them, please? That is a lot of scripts, for anyone. Inquiring minds want to know... *<twinkles>* fae Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kayc Posted August 25, 2013 Report Share Posted August 25, 2013 Yes, I'm well aware of my medicines and their interactions, I have all of the paperwork on all of them, the same doctor prescribed them, the same pharmacy dispensed them, I'm taking them at the right times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enna Posted August 28, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 28, 2013 Sometimes we just have to stop and take a deep breath and be thankful for our health. Today was a busy doctor day for me and hopefully I will not have to focus (on my health) so much now that I have a clearer picture. It's a little long but by writing it down I can take in deeper breaths of acceptance and carry on with my new life. I share this with you because months ago I did not think I could do this and some of you are interested and it is all a part of my journey. Heart Health report: my heart failure numbers have remained the same for the last three blood workups. This is good. My cardiac doctor will be taking me off some of the medications I’m on for H/B pressure since the readings have been within acceptable range! Heart rate is still high but stable. He said that I should continue to do what I’m doing and he’ll see me in three months. I can’t get away from the five-week blood tests because of all the meds I’m on right now. That is manageable for me. I’ll continue to take the ACE Inhibitors that improves my heart function and the Beta Blockers that reduce my heart’s workload! My EF – ejection fraction, has been above 45% and that is good because I don’t want cardiac inflammation or any other cardiac condition that may arise if the EF goes below 35%! It’s ALL GREEK to me, too. Our goal is to keep me out of a hospital! I will have more tests at the three-month visit. We are all taking in too much sodium. I am restricted to 2000 mg of sodium or less a day (the average for an American is around 6000 mg daily) and I have to limit my fluid intake to 48 to 56 oz of any liquids. It is a challenge but doable. I can eat fresh or frozen vegetables, fish and meat (prepared healthy), any fresh fruits, chocolate, and slow churn ice cream (better than none) or sherbet. Notice, I can eat chocolate. I will not think about any surgical heart failure options for me at this time! I am against having devices implanted into my body and they may not work for my heart condition anyway. A decision I’ll make when the time comes. My renal failure or kidney failure is remaining in the safe range. No dialysis unless I move into Stage 4! I am at high Stage 3 now. This is happening because of my heart failure. My creatinine levels are high because the proper amount of blood is not getting to the kidneys. We are watching. Our bodies are wonderful machines when they are working! Now for my respiratory failure results… again this is occurring because of my heart failure. The dx is Type 1 respiratory failure due to low oxygen levels (not good) but low carbon dioxide (that’s good). I have some damage to tissue in my L/lung but not enough to slap an oxygen tank on me yet! The nodules in the L/lung are stable and do not seem to be causing any problems (tests in six months – no biopsies). When and if needed I can use oxygen. There are a few meds he wants to try me on but I don’t know what they are yet. He mentioned breathing therapy when the time comes. Bottom line is to stay away from any lung infections! My goal also is to stay away from pulmonary edema that can happen with heart failure. So, that is the continued story of my health – more than you wanted to know. I have been a healthy person most of my life! I do not blame myself for this heart failure. I can say that caring for my Jim for almost five years as he suffered from Alzheimer’s disease could have played a part. He is not here now but I am and I have to care for myself as best I can. I am repeatedly being reminded that self-care is not selfish. One of these days that just might register!!! Now I go back to why I’m on this forum in the first place and that is to grieve with the rest of you and stay very close to our fire as we all try to make sense out of life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HAP Posted August 28, 2013 Report Share Posted August 28, 2013 Dear Anne, This is all very good and positive news. Both my father and father-in-law are dealing with heart and kidney issues. My FIL has been on dialysis fro 5-6 years. My father should be but they managed to restart one of his kidneys since he apparently is one of a small handful of people dialysis does nothing for. That makes no sense to me--but then nothing about my family's biology makes much sense to anyone--including us. Bunch of bloody space aliens... I have also seen breathing therapy done. It is pretty simple and straight-forward. And they now make an oxygen concentrator you can wear over your shoulder so you don't have to deal with the heavy tanks if you end up needing supplemental oxygen. I am sitting here thinking how strange it is I know so much about all this stuff. Between my father, Jane's father, my mother, Jane's mother, and Jane I sometimes feel like I've been to medical school, though the truth is I know just enough to be dangerous--or to be reassuring when I need to be. Maybe if Jane's cancer were not so rare or if I felt like it would get the attention it needs without me I would have gone to nursing school so I could do something other than hold people's hands in times of trouble. But I am so pleased for you this morning, Anne. This is very good news--for all of us. Peace, Harry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
feralfae Posted August 28, 2013 Report Share Posted August 28, 2013 Dearest Anne, Thank you for sharing the report with us all. Stability is good. I am truly pleased to hear that your body is at least settling down and responding well to the treatments. My FIL, Dad, had to give up all salt, and he also took up slow, relaxed ambling around the entire complex where they lived, which seemed to help. He was diagnosed at 90, and lived 8 more years doing quite well until the last month. He and Estelle traveled, went to art shows, and he, at 92, delivered the commencement address for University of Tampa, his last big public appearance. I am with Harry: many of us have had to learn just enough about medicine to be dangerous, I think! And, yes, perhaps also reassuring sometimes. But, you are doing well enough to only need a three-month check-up, and that is very good. The every six weeks schedule is a bit limiting, but you can plan your field soccer games and trips to outer space around those times. I am so very pleased that you can have chocolate, just get the kind with no added salt. If you are back in the pool, you might want to consider ear plugs. Ask your doctor, of course. Well, it is a day to meet with some Catholic Peace Workers whom I love, as they prepare for their next mission, I think in Syria. I'll know more tonight. I send you much love, and if I get some free time today, I am going to answer your email, and thank you for it, by the way. *<twinkles>* fae Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kayc Posted August 28, 2013 Report Share Posted August 28, 2013 That is very good news, Anne! That it is manageable and you are doing it, is the very best news! And any time they take you off of some of your meds or lower some, feels like a success! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Queeniemary Posted August 28, 2013 Report Share Posted August 28, 2013 Anne, thank you for sharing your report, and it does sound very good, what little I can understand about it! The best part is that things seem to be under control (does not matter if I understand the language) and I am so very happy for you that it is under control. That is due to your good medical team, but mostly because you are doing your part. Self-care is not selfish, you must take care of you, and we are very happy that you are doing so. Mary (Queenmary) in Arkansas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MartyT Posted August 28, 2013 Report Share Posted August 28, 2013 Agreed! ♥ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enna Posted August 29, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 29, 2013 Thank you for all your kind words. Healing begins with sharing. One day you finally knew.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Queeniemary Posted August 29, 2013 Report Share Posted August 29, 2013 Anne, thank you for sharing that, it is beautiful and so true. We must listen to that inner voice, and take care of ourselves, before we can be of real use to anyone else. At least that is the message I got from the poem. We all have our moments of thinking that our children, our families, our friends cannot survive without our input, or help, but that is just not true. EACH person is responsible for themselves. Yes we are there for others, but we do our best for others, after we take care of our own selves. Maybe that is too simple, but I think it is true. We have to listen to that inner voice. Mary (Queeniemary) in Arkansas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
feralfae Posted August 29, 2013 Report Share Posted August 29, 2013 Dear Anne, What a beautiful image and what perfect words. I think we all reach that place, and I sometimes wonder, recently, if that is what is going on with me: I seem to be making decisions to go on with life, as I slowly begin to find myself again. I had little or no self-confidence for a long time after Doug left, feeling such a failure, and while that attitude never arose from Doug, it certainly arose elsewhere. And just plain losing my husband has knocked me completely out of my normal life, and in taht I am trying to find the positive these days, anything to help me to build a new life and Path. Thank you for the special image and words to compel this awareness. Much Love, *<twinkles>* fae Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
feralfae Posted August 29, 2013 Report Share Posted August 29, 2013 HRH Mary, I think you have nailed it, thank you. If we are not well, we cannot do much for anyone else at all. *<twinkles>* fae Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kayc Posted August 30, 2013 Report Share Posted August 30, 2013 This is a lesson I learned in my first marriage and what made me decide to risk my very life in order to have peace (my first husband was extremely abusive and toxic). He had a little boy that I raised the first three years of his life and loved with all my heart, but I came to the realization if I didn't first save myself, I would be of no use to anyone else, and I left, barely escaping with my life. While I didn't get to finish raising that child, we did resume contact as he got older and are still in touch all these 40 years later. And he's turned out great. Had I stayed in that toxic situation, I not only might have been dead, but I wouldn't be able to help Bo or anyone else. The same is true when we find our life in a major upheaval of any kind, be it grief, other loss, or medical catastrophe. We must take care of ourselves. That includes feeding ourselves healthily, be it good food, exercise, meditations, and surrounding ourselves with positive influence. Sometimes that means limiting our time with negative people, even if they be family. We know what we can handle and should be careful to allow no more than that. Just as Mary needs to guard her time with her brother, so do I with my mother. It's important to recognize and grant ourselves those limitations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MartyT Posted August 30, 2013 Report Share Posted August 30, 2013 Well said, dear Kay. Amen. ♥ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enna Posted August 31, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 31, 2013 Memories - first song I learned to play on the guitar in college - Oh, I really was studying! It just came to me tonight listening to the silence. I loved these guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kayc Posted August 31, 2013 Report Share Posted August 31, 2013 One of my favorites, too, Anne! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HAP Posted August 31, 2013 Report Share Posted August 31, 2013 Dear friends, Beautifully put, Kay. Anne, I was mistaken for Art Garfunkel a few months ago. I still don't understand how--but there you are. Peace, Harry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enna Posted September 4, 2013 Author Report Share Posted September 4, 2013 Harry you made me smile! Something I believe: Here's an afternoon task...spend a few quiet moments just Being Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wifflesnook Posted September 4, 2013 Report Share Posted September 4, 2013 Instead of my usual meditation I listened to The Sound of Silence and thought of the thousands (millions?) of people who have done so too. Thanks Anne, and for the quote above. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lilacsandladybugs Posted September 4, 2013 Report Share Posted September 4, 2013 Ah yes, After enough nights alone, darkness becomes your friend. Not long after it was your worst enemy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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