steadyaku47

Tuesday 23 February 2016

cakap cakap....gout, hernia, high cholesterol,moderate kidney disease and the need for further investigation of cardiovascular risks factors...my cup runneth over!


The further you are away from home, the more your heart aches for it and no matter what your age, there will always be times when you want to have your parents by your side. This afternoon was one of those days. 

The pain from what I thought was my Hernia in my groin area and Gout in my right toe was confirmed today by the doctor from the results of the blood test and scans I had a week ago. 

And that was not the only thing not right with me. 

My cholesterol was abnormally high and  more worrying for me was what the doctor said about my kidney....she said there was something not right with it....renal failure was mentioned in the same breath as "over time".....not too comforting. Central to my future well being was what I eat...my body is my temple....and mention was made of no meat, no seafood, no fat...and at least 1.5 to 2 litres of water a day. Medication will be provided to manage the state of my kidney and gout - all of them to "manage" not cure or prevent what was happening to me.

The hernia needs more work...she tells me that my bile and intestines were protruding from the muscle wall of my stomach and there was that possibility that they would get entangled with each other and then there will be the need for invasive action...an operation...not to mention the intense pain that  I will be subjected to until that operation and my recovery from it all will be over. She will arrange treatment to start by a specialist at St Vincent asap.

I told her about the dizziness spells that I have been having and the dull pain down my right shoulder that centers around my armpit. She asked if that was accompanied by shortness of breath...I said no...she mention possible problems with my heart and she insisted on an ECG to provide her with the necessary data to make an informed decision.

Now, while all this was going on, my heart was thudding along at a 100 miles an hour...but outwardly I kept as calm and as composed as I could....steady aja! 

She then asked me to stand and went through some physical exercises with me to measure my ability to respond to her commands and suggestions...I went through them with no problems ...except that when she asked me to sit down I would have toppled over had she not caught me on time and then guided me to my seat.
I was told that I needed a brain scan and a kidney scan.....to be done soon...very very soon. We parted with her suggestion that she wants to meet with me as soon as the Kidney and brain scan and the ECG was done. 

The ride home alone was done with so many images, thoughts and questions running through my head. They came not in one mad rush...but one by one...each addresses by me mentally...answered to my own satisfaction...before the next question came into my mind....and so no and so on and so on....until I realized that I was already pulling into my parking spot at the apartment block I lived in.

It is now early evening and I have had time to ponder a little, the significance of what the doctor had told me earlier during the day...and of course when news of these nature are presented to you it has the effect of making you focus your thoughts on what are the important things in one's life and what are not.

My first promise to myself was to renew my commitment to care for my wife and I will write about that and more...much more maybe later tonight. It is 6.42 PM now and I must take the second of my daily shower and think about dinner for my wife....that alone will take my mind of what ails me.       

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