Archive for "Health"
Experimenting with Drugs
Posted on April 23, 2024 by Ching under Health, Life.
Have you ever experimented with drugs? Well, that was me this weekend because I couldn’t figure out what was going on with my right knee.
Here’s what I learned… There are various over-the-counter pain meds you can take but they’re not all the same. Some pain meds are better for certain symptoms and issues.
I’ve never been a pill popper. I hate taking pills with a passion and I didn’t really start taking any pain meds for headaches or cramps until the last couple of years. In fact, when I had my thyroidectomy 12 years ago, I didn’t touch the Lortabs that I was prescribed. I took 2 Tylenol and that was it for my recovery.
Anyway, I’d been mostly taking Advil vs. Tylenol because I learned that Ibuprofen is better for treating inflammation but my knee pain was so bad on Tuesday that I had to get Hideki Fields to cover my Wednesday night class at West Y. Took a break from doing any kind of activity (no Zumba or pickleball) until Saturday morning when I had to cover Alisha Mickelson’s Saturday morning class at North Y and then I had a 3 PM at West Y that same afternoon (for the winner of the silent auction basket from the West YMCA Strong Community Campaign fundraising we did). I kept telling myself, I just need to get through the 3 PM class and then I can rest and maybe feel better tomorrow.
My knee was super sore that night and the next morning it was even worse. I could barely walk on Sunday and I scrambled to get my classes covered because there was no way I was dancing. I couldn’t even stand! We actually had to cancel the Sunday class because there was no one to sub it (everyone was at the Zumba event in Tulsa). So sorry, Andrea Burk! I put a post on FB but she didn’t see it and went only to find out class was canceled.
Here’s the experimentation comes in… My knee is sore and stiff and I can barely bend it so I was like, “Maybe I need Naproxen?” Anyway, my mom and dad who I saw in between my two commitments on Saturday gave me these blue pills (basically generic version of Aleve). They were like, “Yeah, we take these before bed and feel great in the morning.” I took one before bed on Saturday night and woke up and there was no difference – my knee actually felt worse. I’m like, “Maybe I need more?” So I took another around 8 AM and it was no help.
What I learned… Naproxen is good for joint pain caused by Arthritis so I’m guessing I do not have Arthritis because it did not work. However, I couldn’t go back to taking Advil immediately because you cannot mix Ibuprofen and Naproxen. I had to wait at least 12 hours for the Naproxen to be out of my system before I could take Advil. So Sunday night, before bed, I finally took 2 Advil. Woke up in the morning and my knee felt a little bit better. I took 2 Advil again at 8 AM and 12 PM and before bed yesterday. It seems to be helping. But I really need to know what’s wrong with my knee so I called our family physician’s office first thing yesterday morning to schedule an appointment. I wanted to get in on Monday but the first appointment they have available is today at 3:30 PM.
Advil seems to be helping but I don’t want to be completely dependent on it. And what if the 2 pills don’t work anymore. I need to figure out what’s wrong with me because I can’t live like this. Mom and dad suggested I find hobbies that don’t require physical activity. I can’t. Dancing is my life. Pickleball is my life. If I can’t dance or play pickleball I will be so depressed and then I’ll be needing other pills.
Anyway, here is a helpful chart to help you determine what to take for your pains and aches. I found it super helpful so I hope it helps you too.
Source: marshfieldclinic.org
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Dental Adventures from Brian’s Perspective
Posted on March 5, 2024 by Brian under Health, Life.
Now that you have read about my adventure from Ching’s point of view, I think you’ll want to hear it from the horse’s mouth… so to speak!
So, all of what Ching said is true. It’s my own fault that I’m in the situation that I’m in and, had I just pushed my anger down, and attempted to speak to the management at Wichita Endodontics I wouldn’t be in the situation I am currently in.
At the end of 2019, I was informed by my dentist that I had a small infection above my left front tooth. I was told that I needed to have a specialist take care of it due to the nature of the infection and the potential for further treatment that may be needed. It was just outside of the scope of what my dentist could tackle. Back then I was not as busy at work and taking the time to deal with these things was fairly simple. I was referred to Wichita Endodontics. Back then, they were at their old office. I went to my appointment, paid my $160 (a fee that was not able to be absorbed by insurance), and got all of my x-rays and images needed to get the procedure done. I was given two different methods that would take care of the problem and given the percentage of success for each. One was a root canal method. The other was a small incision over my tooth. The incision had a greater chance of success. I chose the root canal method because it was less expensive, less invasive, and I just really didn’t like the idea of being cut open. All was decided. I explained everything to Ching (which she has forgotten) and she was all for it. We had a few things going on, so I scheduled my procedure for about 2 months later. Well, as Luck would have it, this is when Wichita finally decided to shut down — literally 4 days before my procedure. So, I get a call from the endo telling me that they are going to have to cancel for now, and they will call once everything is sorted and they are able to see patients again. I understood completely, given everything that was going on I figured that there would be something like this and I was already mentally prepared for this.
Fast forward, it’s now almost the end of 2020. I get a call from the endo — they are ready to reschedule my appointment and get the procedure done. I was thinking, this means pick up where they left off. No! The person that called stated “Oh, by the way, we will need to do the scans again and you will need to pay the fee again.” I asked if she was sure and she said, “Unfortunately, yes.” I replied with “Well, unfortunately… No!” and hung up the phone. Was this the right thing to do? Not at all. I should have requested to speak to someone, work out the details, and see if they would just do the new scans given that I already paid. I know now (in hindsight) that this could have been resolved right then and I would not be in the situation I am in.
I proceeded on with life, not thinking about the growing infection in my mouth. I was not in any pain. My life went on as normal. I was reminded every year when I saw the dentist that I needed to get this taken care of and every year I reminded him of why I didn’t want to speak to them and on more than one occasion I was advised, in a very professional way, to grow up.
Now we come to my most recent appointment. My dentist takes the x-rays, comes to me and the first thing he says, “You really need to get this taken care of.” I shrug my shoulders and the doc says, “No, we’re getting this fixed.” He gives the details to the hygienist and she takes me to the appointment desk. She hands the business card to the lady behind the desk and proceeds to tell her “Brian is having an issue making an appointment. Can you call and get something scheduled for him?” And she does just that. I don’t blame them for treating me like a child as I was acting like one — an old, grumpy child. Shortly after my appointment was made is when the fistula appeared. Since I had the appointment, I toughed it out. I was told that the fistula is a result of the infection spreading and that if I didn’t get this take care of it would only get worse, and there is a chance that it already is, and I may still need oral surgery by this time next year.
I did tell the doctor of my issue in the past and why I didn’t do this sooner. He informed me that had I just come and spoke to someone then this could have been resolved very easily and I would not be in the mess I am in now. Reconfirming that this is really all my fault! On the plus side, the doctor did make it right, even after all these years, and he really didn’t have to. I mean seriously, ultimately, it was me that made the decision to just blow the whole thing off.
Well, we move to the day of my procedure. I can say with absolute certainty that they mean what they say. It was the first root canal that I have ever had done that I didn’t feel anything. Even after the numbing wore off, I only had a slight tingle in my upper gum and tooth and that’s it. I did take an Advil that night, mainly for inflammation (it was highly suggested in the follow up paperwork) and then a Tylenol the next morning — more as a precaution than anything, I didn’t really need it, but I had to go back to work, and I didn’t want to risk feeling any pain as the day progressed.
Now I have to wait. The first thing I have to wait for is the fistula to go away. They said I had to wait about four weeks and, if it’s not gone by then, I have to let them know. They advised it may flare up before it goes away (I think that happened this weekend, at least I’m hoping that’s what happened) and, if it doesn’t go away in that four weeks, I have to call them back for another appointment and it may mean oral surgery for sure. If the fistula does go away, then I have to wait another six months. They are going to call me in 5 to schedule an appointment. This will be to see if the infection is going away, if the infection is going away on its own, then I’m in the clear (meaning – no surgery). If not, then I will have surgery by this time next year.
I have to say that several lessons have been learned from this adventure.
- Stay on top of your brushing, make sure that you brush at least twice a day, at a minimum. I personally have also started to use medicated mouth wash as well, mainly because I still suck at flossing. But my oral hygiene has improved due to this.
- If something needs to be done, don’t wait. Do it, get it done. You have no idea how bad things can get if you put it off. There are just some things that your body will not fix on its own.
- Don’t let your emotions govern how you take care of yourself. Had I just spoke to someone and worked it out, I wouldn’t be in this situation. I could potentially lose several of my teeth because I let my emotions get the better of me. Unfortunately, this is a family trait.
- Finally, all things can be resolved through communication. I should have known this, my wife an I practice this. We believe that communication is key, not only in a relationship, but in life in general. If you’re having an issue, work it out like adults and have a discussion. Had I just spoke to someone other than the attendant that called me, I could have gotten all of this resolved and not be in the situation I’m in.
In the end, I’m grateful for my wife Ching. She is always there for me. She takes care of me when I need it and tells me how bad I’ve screwed up when I need to hear it. I don’t know where I’d be without her. Probably toothless.
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Brian’s Dental Adventures
Posted on March 4, 2024 by Ching under Health, Life.
I asked Brian to write about his experience as a warning to everyone out there not taking care of teeth but he’s not going to write about it so I’m going to do my best to tell this story from my perspective. I’m probably going to mess up parts of it but that’s what you get from hearing about what happened second hand(ish).
Last year Brian told me he needed to get some dental work done. He had this tooth that was bothering him and it had caused an infection of some sort. I urged him to get it done at the end of the year because, at my last dental appointment, our dentist’s office told me we had “unused benefits” for the year. In my brain, I’m thinking “We better spend it!” However, I didn’t need anything further done beyond the fillings which I actually got done last year because, for the first time ever in several years, I had cavities. Well, Brian always drags his feet to do things so he didn’t get the treatment needed before the year ended.
Fast forward to the beginning of the year, when the infection was finally causing him significant pain and discomfort and finally needed to be dealt with… Even then, though, he probably still wouldn’t have scheduled an appointment with the endodontist. Yes, a specialist had to deal with this situation because the problem had gotten so bad that it was far beyond what our regular dentist is capable of handling. Anyway, at the end of his last dental appointment, they actually called the endodontist office and scheduled his appointment for him because they didn’t trust that he would do it. I had no idea that this problem actually went as far back as before the pandemic (more on that in minute) but, considering how long he had been putting this off, I wouldn’t trust him to deal with it either.
Here are some pics that I took at the endodontist’s office when we were there for this procedure a couple of weeks ago. I have almost 30 days of vacation time (and no pickleball tournaments to travel to) this year so I have a crap ton of time to burn. I decided to use one of my three personal days offs (I think most people just get one PTO bucket but our work gives us three “personal” days in addition to our vacation time and we can use those “personal” days however we wish) to “take care” of him. I was mostly just there for moral support. He didn’t really need much caring for but I’m glad I got to keep him company. I always appreciate the days we get to spend together.
I had never been to the old Wichita Endodontics office but Brian was there a few years ago (when he should have dealt with this problem and didn’t) and he says the new office is much nicer. The waiting area is comfortable and decorated beautifully. Their furniture and decor reminds me of the decor at the Belmont — like 60s modern. Anyway, I also appreciate that there is free public WiFi in the lobby.
I went with Brian because he wasn’t sure if they would knock him out for the procedure and he would be too groggy to drive home. He wasn’t knocked out so he was totally fine but I think he was grateful to have me there. Besides being there for support, and in case he needed a driver, part of me was hoping they would let me livestream the whole thing – lol. No such luck. They wouldn’t let me back there with him so I was glad I planned ahead and brought my book to read. Shift is book two of the Silo series. I can tell you more about it in another post rather than hijacking this one.
Here are some pictures of Brian’s mouth x-rays from his pre-op appointment. So back in 2019-2020 time frame, the infection was only the size of a pea (left). He didn’t do anything for several years so it grew to the size of a ping pong ball and eventually a fistula formed. Don’t look that up. It’s gross.
I didn’t even know about the problem back then or, if he mentioned it to me, I had forgotten about it. The first time I’d caught wind of this issue was last year and, even then, I encouraged him to take care of it immediately. You’re probably wondering what happened in 2020 and why he didn’t take care of it then. I wondered the same. Well, the pandemic happened.
Here’s the story that Brian told me: The dentist discovered the problem in 2019 and referred him to Wichita Endodontics. He went for his pre-op, got x-rays done, and paid whatever amount it was he needed to pay for all of that pre-work. Then everything was shut down because of the pandemic so the operation that was scheduled and set to go got canceled. Months later when everything reopened and people figured out a way to continue with life in the midst of a raging pandemic, he contacted them to try and get the procedure done. However, they wanted to do all the pre-op stuff again. Fair, because it had been months and the situation in his mouth may have changed (things could have shifted and so forth) and so they wanted to do all new x-rays and stuff. Brian felt that it wasn’t his fault that they canceled his operation and was pissed off at this whole situation so he was like, fuck that — I guess I’m not going through with the operation. He was thinking he was punishing them by not giving them any more money but in reality he was really just punishing himself by not dealing with this infection thing. Anyway, rather than talking to them about the whole thing and telling them exactly why he is angry, he pretty much was like, “Okay. Never mind. Thank you.”
Dr. Hoffman at Wichita Endodontics was great to work with. Brian told me that after he told the doctor what happened, the doctor told him he should have said something to them instead of just suffering in silence all these years because they would have made it right. I mean, they actually did make it right. They gave Brian credit for what he originally paid for because the original operation never happened. Anyway, here are some more x-rays of Brian’s teeth:
They had to do a double root canal, which was the first step to clearing up that infection. Brian has a follow up appointment this week to see if the infection has drained itself and has pretty much healed. If things look good then he won’t have to go through oral surgery. If the root canals didn’t solve the problem then he has another operation to look forward to because this time they’ll have to do actual surgery remove the infection.
Let’s hope and pray that the infection is gone because all of this dental stuff has not been fun for Brian. Kudos to Wichita Endodontics and Dr. Hoffman for being awesome. May we not have to see you all again. LOL.
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Quick Health Update
Posted on January 26, 2024 by Ching under Health.
Every now and then I get a random text from a friend asking me if I got my results back or if the doctors have figured out what’s going on with me, etc. I forget who I have shared my health problems with and who I haven’t so I guess it’s time for a general update. This is for anyone who has been aware of my struggles and wants to know the recent developments.
My problems really started a couple of years ago. Since I started menstruating, I have been blessed with a very predictable and consistent monthly cycle. I have zero cramping. I bleed heavy for a couple of days (heaviest on the second day) but, by day four, my period is over. It is as regular as the sun rises in the morning and sets in the evening. And, up until a couple of years ago, pretty painless.
Over the last couple of years, I started getting headaches and menstrual cramps. The period cramps are excruciating and terrible to the point I just want to crawl into a ball and die. My periods have become quite irregular also. They’re not coming on schedule. Sometimes I’m skipping months. I have spotting in between periods and sometimes I bleed for several days. It is completely abnormal.
The unpredictable bleeding is very inconvenient (and quite embarrassing at times) but I was thinking maybe this is what happens when you hit menopause? I was enduring it all but the cramps were getting worse and, having had to play in pickleball tournaments while suffering through the agony of period cramps, I started to wonder if this is at all normal. Not having period cramps for most of my life, it definitely did not feel normal to me. It finally bothered me enough to consult my doctor at my last well-woman exam, which resulted in a succession of tests including lab work, a sonogram, and even an MRI.
First there’s the fibroids, which I have known I’ve had for a long time but have never bothered me. Brian thinks the fibroids flaring up are probably causing my cramps. Anyway, what’s special about my fibroids is that they’re not in my uterus lining but rather outside in the muscle. I don’t even know if I’m explaining it right. Speaking of my uterus, it also has a very weird texture apparently.
One of the solutions we talked about was an ablation but, because of where my fibroids are, you can’t really scrape them out. Also, the texture of my uterus is just that way it is so even if you scrape the lining eventually it’ll be back to the way it is again. A more permanent fix would be to get a hysterectomy. But I’m thinking, I should be menopausal. If my cycles are going to eventually come to an end, is it really even worth it to go through surgery. Also, I am very anti-surgery and would rather not have anything removed that doesn’t have to be removed. Honestly, if the doctor hadn’t been so stern with me years ago I probably wouldn’t even have gone through my thyroidectomy.
We agreed maybe I should get on birth control pills to help regulate my monthly cycle. They’ll be more predictable and the pills could help alleviate the period cramps as well. So I am now on Lo Loestrin and, with the exception of the time in November (while we were at Nationals) when my period lasted two weeks and I suffered from menstrual cramps almost the entire time, it’s actually working. Brian really wanted me to pull the plug on the birth control pills because he was concerned about the side effects and didn’t really think it would work. And then, having suffered through two weeks of hell, he was thinking that maybe the pills were actually making things worse for me. However, I was only a couple of months into the treatment and so I was thinking maybe my body was still trying to make sense of everything and trying to establish balance. I decided to keep going and my period in December was almost like it was before I started having problems – short (about four days) and painless. It’s been pretty good since then. I haven’t had menstrual cramps since November so I think it’s working.
So my cramping problems are pretty much resolved but now we’re looking into some other things. Because, as with anything, when you start investigating stuff you end up finding some other potentially related or unrelated issues. After my well-woman exam when I shared all the problems and symptoms I’ve been suffering the past couple of years, they looked into my labs and it showed that my prolactin was elevated. I had to provide a blood sample again a couple of weeks later just to make sure it wasn’t a false reading. Anyway, it was still high so then that’s where the MRI came in. Apparently, sometimes your prolactin can be high if there’s a tumor in your pituitary. We did the MRI to make sure I didn’t have some sort of tumor that we didn’t know about. MRI results came back good. No tumor but no answers as to why my prolactin is high either so then they decided to refer me to an Endocrinologist, who was supposed to call me to schedule an appointment.
When I had my follow up appointment at Center for Women’s Health late last year, the doctor asked if I had seen the Endocrinologist yet. I told her they haven’t called me. She’s like, “That’s strange. I need to look into this because they should have seen you by now.” Come to find out, the Endocrinologist’s office had been trying to reach me but they had an incorrect phone number down so they never could get a hold of me. It was really a blessing in disguise because, in the meantime, I asked Brian to see if Dr. Dany Zayour was still in town. He is the doctor who helped me with my thyroid issues. As luck would have it, he’s still practicing. He’s just not with Ascension Via Christi anymore. We ended up not going with the Endocrinologist I was referred to but we ended up scheduling with Dr. Zayour instead. Even though it’s been ten years, I felt more comfortable seeing someone who knows my history.
While all of this is going on, Brian and I went in for our annual checkup and screening with our general doctor, Dr. Scott Hane, last month. A couple of years after my thyroidectory, once my medication was stable, I didn’t have to see my specialist Dr. Zayour anymore so he turned over monitoring my thyroid hormone levels to my general doctor. Dr. Hane looks at my labs at our annual checkups and decides if my Synthroid dosage needs to be increased or decreased. At my checkup last month, Dr. Hane and I both agreed I probably need to increase from 112 to 125 (because I’ve gained a bit of weight in the past year) but, after I told him I was seeing an Endocrinologist again, he decided that we should wait and see what the Endocrinologist says. They are, after all, the expert on these things.
Here’s a picture of me and Dr. Zayour when I met with him last week. He looks almost the same as when we first met over 12 years ago. He was a new physician at Via Christi back then. Now he has tons more experience and several awards and accolades to add to his CV. LOL.
Part of me hesitates going through with all of these doctors visits and tests (all of which I have to pay for) because the birth control pills have pretty much resolved the main issue that I needed help with anyway. I am no longer suffering from my debilitating cramps and my menstrual cycle is under control. My high prolactin is a concern but it’s not really hurting me. I don’t think it’s causing me adverse symptoms as far as I can tell. I think my doctor at Center for Women’s Health (and also my general doctor) recommended that I continue down this path to cover their bases. Their obligation is to inform me of what they found and refer me to a specialist and then, if I don’t take their advice and something happens to me, then it’s on me and not on them. I think it’s just everyone trying to cover their butts so no one gets sued. Honestly. Because I feel totally fine right now.
I love all my doctors but sometimes I feel like I’m just paying for all these tests and it’s just busy work. It would be nice to know why my prolactin is high but is it keeping me up at night? Not really. I feel healthy. I feel good. And, other than the fact that I’m actually starting to feel my age, I have zero complaints. And, I am extremely grateful for it.
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We Are Officially THAT Age
Posted on February 28, 2023 by Ching under Health, Life.
I’d been suffering from some health issues this past year and so we decided it was probably time for a colonoscopy. Because Brian is the best husband ever, he decided to go through the procedure first so I would know what to expect. We scheduled our colonoscopies two weeks apart. Brian went first and these are pictures from his colonoscopy.
Brian got some sexy yellow socks.
Anyway, Brian wasn’t so concerned about the prep (which most people say is the worst part). He was more concerned about going under because of potential side effects from the anesthesia. But he really didn’t have anything to worry about. His procedure went smoothly from start to finish. Even his prep, which is a nightmare for most people, was a breeze. His colonoscopy came out completely clean and the doctor gave him a pass for 10 years.
Fast forward two weeks later when it was my turn. I wasn’t worried about the procedure because I knew that they would knock me out and I wouldn’t feel a thing but I was quite worried about the prep. The stuff they had you drink tasted disgusting. And, as someone who enjoys eating, I was not looking forward to not being able to eat for several hours.
They gave me fun blue socks and everyone was super nice. They even gave me multiple blankets to help keep me warm. It’s very cold at the surgery center and even coldest in the surgery room.
Unlike Brian, whose procedure was scheduled very first thing in the morning (lucky duck – his check in time was 7:30 AM), my check in time was 9:30 AM, so I was starving as you can imagine. To top it off, they were running a bit late so I think it was almost 11:00 AM by the time they got me in surgery.
Even though I was hungry, I somehow managed to not be hangry, because when we received the final report from the surgeon (I also had Dr. Sanchez, same doc who did Brian’s procedure) he made a point to describe me as a “pleasant 45 year old woman” – LOL. They had a pretty good playlist going in the surgery room which I think helped with my mood. Of course, I was out for the whole thing so I guess you really can’t be unpleasant when you’re unconscious so I suppose I was pleasant enough while I was awake.
So my procedure went smoothly but they did find some things. Some polyps had to be removed and they banded a couple of internal hemorrhoids which had me sidelined for a week. The doc said no workout or strenuous activity so as not to bust my bands before their work was done.
I felt fine overall but did follow instructions and didn’t play pickleball for at least one week. I had my procedure on a Friday and did have to teach my Aqua Zumba class on Wednesday night because I couldn’t find a sub but that didn’t bother me too much either. By the following Sunday I was playing again so I really only missed 10 days at best.
Although the polyps they removed were benign, they were pre-cancerous so the doctor recommends that I go in for another colonoscopy in five years time. That will be something fun to look forward to in 2028. LOL.
Anyway, this is the most recent development for both me and Brian on the health front. Until next time, GNG.
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