Doctor, Doctor, Give Me The News......

My appointment was for 4:00 this afternoon. I finally saw the doctor at 5:00! He stuck his head in the door and peeked in before entering and asked if I was still okay. He said he always likes to check first when he is running so behind. It made me laugh. If it was any other doctor I would have been so pissed, but I really like this guy. This was my second visit with my new holistic MD. We were going to go over my lab work.

We sat and talked, and talked, and talked. He listened so carefully to everything I had to say. We talked about my health, my concerns, my new vintage shop, my hyper personality and much more. He never rushed me. He let me ask a hundred questions....and that is why I don't care if he is an hour late. I know I will have his undivided attention for as long as I need it when it is finally my turn.

It was another great visit with this amazing doctor. We discussed my supplements, my diet, what I'm doing, what I'm not doing and so much more. I have some things I need to change where my diet is concerned. I need to get off the gluten again and cut out the dairy. I need to eat more veggies....strange since I'm a vegetarian isn't it? He's right though.

My heart panel was excellent and that was good to hear. We spent a lot of time discussing my blood pressure. I've been off the meds for a few months, but my pressure isn't where it needs to be yet. We talked about things I can do to bring it down more.

I left there feeling so good about not just my health, but about everything. Can't remember ever leaving any of my former doctors and feeling that way. Thanks Doc!

Getting off Drugs....the Legal Kind

I figured this was as good a time as any.....to try getting off of my blood pressure medication. I'm walking daily. I'm eating well. I'm exercising.

A heart specialist threw me on the meds a couple of years ago when I had some fluctuating blood pressure readings and a couple of episodes of atrial fibrillation. It wasn't a huge deal...all of the tests they ran were normal....but they decided I had to be on the meds because one of the side "benefits" of the drug was it's ability to regulate heart rate. So, I very reluctantly gave in.

The heart specialist was the doctor that told me, "This is your last question," when I kept asking how he knew I would have to be on the meds for the rest of my life and his answers weren't working for me. He was rude and arrogant and I left with the prescription and never went back.

Two years later I want to know if I need to be on this stuff or not, and the only way to know that is to get off of it and see what my body does. If my pressure skyrockets or my heart is unhappy, I will go right back on.

I'm doing this under a doctor's care, so don't worry. I had to cut my dose in half for two weeks and then cut it in half again for two weeks. I have one more week of that and then I stop...and see what happens.

I really don't mind being on the meds IF I need them....but like I said...I didn't think I needed them then and I don't think I need them now. Of course, I could be wrong and if I am, I will be a good little girl and start taking them again.

I monitor my pressure daily...sometimes a number of times a day which is really ridiculous, but it is a little scary. I've had some high readings, but that is not uncommon. The problem is when your blood pressure is high for extended periods of time. Mine is not.

Have you ever felt so strongly about something that you just had to do what you felt was right...even when most everyone around you thought you were wrong? That's me right now.

I Can't Help But Laugh!

Remember my terrible appointment with my Internist when she tried to scare me into taking the drugs for my Osteopenia? You can read about it here. Well, when I saw my gyne....even though she wanted me to go on drugs for my bone loss, she respects my opinion and after telling me what she thought, she said she would of course support whatever I decided to do. She wrote me a script to have another bone scan since mine was a year old already. I was undecided as to whether I wanted to go because I really didn't do much to improve the situation, but I decided to go anyway. I wanted a starting point for the program I am now on to improve my bone health.

Well, I had the scan done on Monday. They always seem to mess up on who to send the report to since my gyne isn't affiliated with their hospital....so I called there this morning and sure enough they just sent it to the doctor on record and not to the doctor that ordered it. The doctor of record happens to be the Internist that I am not going back to after the nightmare visit. I thought oh well.

This afternoon I get a call from the nurse at the Internist's office and here is what she said, "Dr. B..... got the results of your bone scan and the numbers do qualify you for medication. She wants you to make an appointment to come in so she can get you started on something."

This is the doctor that I just saw a couple of months ago. The one that pushed her drugs. The one that walked hunched over to show me what she guarantees I will look like in 10 years. The one that said no matter what I eat, no matter what supplements I take and no matter what exercises I do my bones will continue to get worse....she guaranteed it. This is the doctor that sent me out the door with a sample of Actonel an Osteoporosis drug and told me to try it and call her to fill the prescription.

I was flabbergasted! I told the nurse that I was just in recently and she gave me Actonel, which I have no intention of taking. I told her I already found another doctor and I will not be coming back. I told her that I didn't care for the way she handled things that day....that I don't like doctors using scare tactics....that she didn't listen to me or what I felt or what I wanted. She said okay and if I wanted my records...blah, blah, blah......

Okay......this is why I have so little faith in doctors. This doctor obviously did not pull my chart, had no idea who I was and really didn't care. All she did was look at the report and decided that this "patient" needed drugs. I was so disheartened yet again that I almost cried.

Then I got home and Irv and I were talking. The report wasn't a full report yet, but it did show the average of my bone scores. I am waiting for the disk with the full report so I can see where each bone is at. I just had to laugh because my average actually IMPROVED since last year. If she had pulled my record and actually looked at my previous scan, that nurse could have called and said, "Dr. B..... sees from your report that you've made some improvements in the past year. She wants to know what you have been doing so we can enter that in your file and she said to keep up the good work." Wouldn't that have been something? HAHA!

In all honesty, when I get the full report, my bad vertebra could be worse and others could be better, or it could just be that this test was done at a different facility on a different machine, that it seems to be improved, but I don't care.....the whole thing just ticked me off!

Never fear....I was only mad for a little while though and then I moved right on. I am more psyched now about my new diet, supplements and physical therapy than I was before. If my scan really did improve, even just a tad with the inconsistent exercise and walking I did......can you imagine what I might be able to do with the program I am on now? CHEE HOO!!!

Osteoporosis....Part Two

I don't even know what to say right now. I am in shock. I am elated. I am sad. I am disheartened. If you didn't read my post on Sunday, please do....otherwise you won't understand any of this. Here is the link.

I called the doctor's office yesterday morning and asked if they could fax me my bone scan results. No problem. I pulled the pages off the fax machine and the words jumped right off the paper at me. O-S-T-E-O-P-E-N-I-A......

Yep, that's right folks. I have OSTEOPENIA.....just like the nurse told me last April. I do NOT have OSTEOPOROSIS....like the doctor told me on Saturday.

When I told the doctor that the nurse in April told me I had Osteopenia....she said, "Some of your numbers are in the Osteopenia range and some of them are in the Osteoporosis range. You have Osteoporosis and you need medication for it."

She was sort of right....I have ONE number out of EIGHT that is in the Osteoporosis range. In fact, it is at the exact divide between Osteopenia and Osteoporosis. It is a -2.5 and if you know anything about spines....it is my L4 vertebra. I have one other low number and that is my L3 vertebra. I have a bad back. I have had a bad back for 30 years, so it makes sense that those two vertebra would be like that. Is it a good thing? Of course not. Those bones are very pourous and weakened. It does say that the risk of fracture is increased because of that...and I get it.

The next lowest number is a -1.7....not even close to being in the Osteoporosis range, but my bones are not as healthy as they should be. Plain and simple. Do I need to do something about it? Yes, I sure do...but I will NOT be taking drugs for it...at least not at this time.

I expect a doctor to give me their opinion, however I expect the facts first.

My diet and my exercise plan is going to be changing. I will be following all of the recommendations for people with Osteopenia to make my bones as strong as I can possibly make them. I ordered a book on it that should be arriving on Thursday and we will take it from there.

I will also be looking for a new doctor.....again.

In case you are wondering.....I won't be calling the doctor to question her. I am already moving forward. It doesn't really matter to me why she did that....maybe she is just passionate about drugs that she feels help. I will leave it at that. I just need to find a doctor that is passionate about people.

Chee Hoo! Make it an awesome day and do something nice for yourself.

Healthcare Confusion

Do you understand the Healthcare Plan that our President is proposing? I don't.

Every day I hear some new horror story about what's going to happen if it passes. No one will be able to get in to see specialists. The government will practically decide if you live or die. Assisted suicide will be discussed with the elderly...and on and on and on.

Now I believe very little of what I read in the paper or hear on the news and none of what I read on the Internet, but the fact that I don't understand what it's all about does bother me.

I wish I could find a reliable, unbiased source that really "gets it" and could condense it down to about three pages for me to read, so I could "get it" and then decide it I am in favor of it or not.

I know that our system is a terrible mess and it does need an overhaul, but I don't know if what is proposed is the answer.

Do you get it?

Hi Ho Hi Ho It's To The Doctor I Go

Went to my Internist for my annual check up on Monday. I've only been to this Doctor three times. I don't get sick very often and certainly not sick enough to go to the doctor. I started going to this one when I got tired of arguing with my doctor of 25 years over things like tetanus shots, flu shots and medication. This doctor at least listens to me, does not get combative and much to my amusement, actually agrees with me occasionally.

When she told me I was due for my tetanus booster, I told her I would pass. She asked why and I told her. I think it's unnecessary. She said that the health department is having them add pertussis to the tetanus because of the whooping cough that is going around. Are you kidding me??? Stop this insanity! A few kids get whooping cough therefore every person should get inoculated for it?? Stop flooding our bodies with stuff and let it do what it was meant to do.

The doctor actually laughed which was a good sign. She said when she was in Germany years ago...where they don't immunize for every little illness, kids got whooping cough. She said they would get a bad cough, be sick, get treated if necessary and get well. So is there really a need to "prevent" illnesses that aren't life threatening. I'm not sure.

Our bodies are amazing machines, capable of healing themselves in many cases if given the chance. If we prevent every non-life threatening illness, what happens when we really need our body to fight off something? Will it remember how?

Now before anyone starts yelling at me....I am very grateful that we have some of the drugs we have. They save lives. I do believe there is a time and place for drugs, and I've blogged about this before so I won't so off on it again today.

Anyway, my doctor visit was good. I went over the results of some blood work I had done at my chiropractor's office. I am almost deficient in the very important Vitamin D, so wants me to take a supplement for that. I also asked her how she feels about fish oils. I am a vegetarian and I don't eat fish, so I worry about whether I get enough in my diet. She recommended taking flax seed oil instead of fish oil. She said she is seeing more and more people with high levels of mercury in their systems because of the fish they eat and the fish oil they take as a supplement. She said that since supplements aren't regulated, companies can say that their brand doesn't contain mercury, but you have no way of knowing if it does.

The other thing we discussed was the blood pressure medication she has me on. I want off, but I still don't have my blood pressure under control. If I eat a lot of salt over a period of time, my blood pressure goes up. It's really strange because my daughter's does the same thing. So right now it's higher than it should be thanks to the cheese and pizzas and chips I've been consuming since the holidays arrived. If the meds are supposed to control it though...how come they aren't? Or if I wasn't on them would it be sky high?

Once I get it down to normal and it stays there for a good 6 months, I will ask to go off of it and see what happens. I don't think I need it...the doctors all disagree. The other thing is that the medication I am on helps the heart, and mine gave me a bit of a scare about 18 months ago when it went into a-fib (atrial fibrillation) three times in 6 months. That is where your heart feels like it is flopping around in your chest. It isn't the issue where it races or skips a beat....it's different than that. I had tons of tests and my heart is fine, but this medication....she says.....is what is keeping that from happening. Hmmmmm....how do we know that if I never go off of the meds???

I argued long and hard against the medication and in the end I finally gave in. I had them put me on a very old medication because I do not want to be on anything new. They don't test drugs long enough or well enough in my opinion and I prefer to not be a human guinea pig.

She also wants me to go for another bone density test since I haven't had one for a while. I just hope it's okay because I am not taking Boniva or that other drug and I'm especially not having the new super duper annual IV to help my bones!

So, here is what I need to do. I need to get my rear outside and start walking again. I seem to have fallen off the wagon with the frigid weather we've been having. I need to be more consistent with my pilates and yoga, or at least do some exercises of some kind every day. I need to continue to avoid the foods I am not supposed to be eating on my food sensitivity diet...I'm doing good except for the darn wheat and potato...I love pizza and I love fries and I enjoy having them once a week.

I need to stock up on the supplements I should be taking and maybe, just maybe I won't have to see the doctor for another year!!

There Is No Quick Fix

I listen to my body, and I have known for quite a while that it isn't functioning the way it should be. Even though I knew I wasn't going to like the outcome, I went and had the ALCAT Food Sensitivity blood test done to see what it is that I am eating or exposing myself to that is making me feel just plain old crappy.

I'm sure there are people that question the accuracy of this kind of medical test....I myself question the accuracy of most medical tests. When I have tests done, I listen to what the doctor has to say when they give me my results, and then I always do what I feel is best for me...and it isn't always what the doctor says. I use test results as guidelines, just as I am going to do with the results of the ALCAT test.

The results of the test really surprised me. I expected to be sensitive to wheat and chocolate like I have been for years, and then I thought maybe dairy and corn. Those are fairly common culprits. What I found out was that I have a severe intolerance to asparagus, avocado, brussel sprouts, celery, cucumber and sweet potato. I can live without the celery and cucumber, but I'm a vegetarian, and I love the rest of those foods. The list of things I have a moderate intolerance to was long, but on that list was banana, spinach, brewer's yeast and white potato. That is a big problem. First of all, I eat a banana 5 days a week for the potassium. I eat spinach in my salads because it is so good for you, and I like potatoes and french fries and chips.

The other thing the test told me is that I have a moderate reaction to Candida Albicans which can cause all kinds of issues that I would rather not have. In order to avoid that, I need to avoid things like fructose, cane sugar, baker's yeast, honey, beet sugar and mushrooms. I also have a slight reaction to Gliadin, which is related to gluten and they recommend I limit barley, wheat, oat and rye.

I react severely to sorbic acid and yellow #5, and to one type of common mold and to nickel sulfate.

Through my regular blood test, I found out that my cholesterol and all of that stuff is good, however I am low in folate, which you get from spinach, broccoli, avocado, bread and bananas...among other things. I also have insufficient Vitamin D.

I can honestly tell you that when I eat certain things, I really don't feel well. I don't get sick to my stomach...I just don't feel "right". It's hard to explain, but if you are really in tune with your body, you know.

So, what do I do now? First off, I already got back on my multi vitamins that I had stopped taking about 4 months ago, and some omegas. I need to find a way to supplement my folate and Vitamin D, but I think I will wait until I go for my annual checkup in January and ask the Internist what she suggests for that.

What I have decided to do about the food sensitivities is to take the next two weeks to go over the results and decide what things I will immediately stop eating and develop a food plan for myself using the foods I can eat. I do not want to start right now for 2 reasons, first I don't have any idea what I am going to be eating yet, and I am not giving up my Christmas cookies. It would be unreasonable to try to start now. I would setting myself up to fail.

The foods I have a severe intolerance to I need to avoid for 6 months. The things that were moderate....3 to 6 months. It is also important to rotate the things you eat and not eat the same things all of the time.

Do you know how many things have yeast in them? Any idea how much stuff has sweeteners in them? Those are going to be difficult for me, and I hate giving up any vegetables, but it is what it is. I will do my best to come up with something that works for me. It suggests that vegetarians add meat to their diet if possible for a few months....I can't do that.

The change in my diet will be drastic, and I know that I am not going to be a happy little camper for a while as I adjust...but I also know that I don't want to keep feeling like I feel now, so I will do it.

My husband and son were teasing me last night about all of my food sensitivities. I thought....you two will be sorry when I start my new food plan, because I will be the crabbiest SOB on the face of the earth for a while. I would suggest you be nice to me or the wrath of Kath will be upon you!

I will let you know when I start, and I will let you know from time to time how I am doing. I did it before and I can do it again.....I think. Wish me luck....and now where are those Christmas cookies?