Medical Update January 2007
Journal of Recovery
Here is my journal of recent recovery and medical information on my recovery. Photos and images are linked without a thumbnail since they are so graphic. They are listed at the bottom of the Medical Updates Page. They are not for the weak stomach.
Saturday January 13, 2007 So, right after the 1st, I stopped taking all the meds. I am monitoring my Blood Sugar levels and Blood Pressure levels and tracking just as I did on the meds. I have also started taking Cayenne pepper drinks and supplements as well as Hawthorn Berry supplements, both of which are known to help the heart and blood pressure systems. I have also started being a little more lenient with my diet, having kept track of what I eat, but not limiting it to 45 carbs a meal. Here are the results so far... my fasting sugar level average is slightly higher than with the meds but only by a few numbers. My other levels are staying close to the same for before meal averages, however; I have checked a few after meal levels and they are a little higher but still under the limit the doctor wanted me to be with the meds. Bottom line, I may actually be considered "Pre-Diabetic" but I am not finished with my own testing. I have a theory that goes along with something I read about how the pancreas and liver work to process sugar and insulin. They respond to what is taken in, I think maybe all those years of my normal eating with some sugar intake and then a sudden stop of sugar intake and reduced carb intake may have caused my system to slow down on the response. So, I am going to test with some sugar intake next week and see how the response is. The reason for this, every time I've consumed something "should" raise my sugar levels, the reading after is lower.
Now as for the blood pressure, my software (LifeForm.com) will show me averages per week as well as daily if needed. Since the hospital, my BP has increased weekly in the averages to 163/90. When I started tracking the BP the first part of November, my weekly average was 151/87. Now, this is my first weekly average after the meds and with the new approach (and consumption of cayenne pepper) and my weekly average was 156/86 with the lower numbers coming later in the week (I had several readings around 138/85.. my normal was always in this range). I return to the doctor Monday and know she will chew me out for not taking the meds, that is a doctor's job... right? But I will have my print outs and after all, she can't make me. I do think I may have to keep an eye on both sugar and BP levels but feel both of them will eventually return to a normal (for me) state. I may have to deal with some light meds for the sugar levels, but I am not totally convinced yet.
I also found an interesting web site from a Dr. Ben Kim. He has a lot of articles and one was about blood pressure and how most doctors treat the blood pressure and not the cause of the high blood pressure. That the body does what it has to and if the pressure is high, there is a reason and something causing it. Several of his articles made sense to me. I will be reading more from him!
As for the wound... Last Thursday when I got home from the office, I felt something cold and wet on my back side and found my shirt soaking with blood. I removed the bandage and it was really bleeding rapidly... I took a shower to clean it and it stopped. The next morning, as I was getting ready for the office, it was bleeding through again. I put another bandage over it and it seemed to be ok for a while. Saturday morning it was bleeding again so I called the surgeon and met him at his office. He said the veins growing back were under a thin layer of skin which is now covering the wound. It looked like the pads were sticking just enough that my movement was pulling the skin away from the vein causing it to bleed. Put Vaseline on the wound so the pads don't stick. It's healing very nicely and quickly and it won't be long before a thin bandage to keep the clothing from getting stained will be all that is needed.
All in all, things are going pretty well.. I feel a lot better since I'm not taking the meds... more energy, more exercise. My body temp is almost back to normal, with the exception of my hands and sometimes my right index finger being cold. I've always been hot so this was not normal for me... no explanations from the doctor on why. My digestive system is still not back to normal but getting closer... Once I am back on my regular routine and feeling close to normal, I will see how the readings are and can get an accurate accounting on my levels. That's all for now!
January 20, 2007 I went to the doctor earlier this week for a check in on the diabetes and high BP. The weekly averages are down but for some reason, when I get to the doctor's office and do the BP reading there, it is way high... in fact this time it was 210/109.. I had checked it before I left and it was 139/80. I know BP levels fluctuate, but that seems to be excessive. I started a new drink mix that includes honey and apple cider vinegar. The levels have dropped even more... I am taking my monitor to check it against the ones in the stores and at the doctors. She told me I had the diabetes under control without the meds and not to worry about taking them for that, but that I should be taking some for the BP and gave me a new prescription to try. I will update how it works in a week or so. New pic of the wound, healing nicely.. I see the surgeon again Tuesday I think it is.
