So we had an amazing vacation. When I have a moment I'll upload some very inticing pictures. And while the beginning of the week started off pretty well I gained back some of the weight I had lost. (At someone point I was tired of giving my husband more than 1/2 of the yumminess.)
The day or two before we left I noticed this little bump on the inside of my right thigh. I thought maybe it was just irritation from the gym shorts I had on. Until it started to spread. And itch like crazy. And on vacation it got worse. So I came home and had to make an appointment with a dermatologist.
I have seen two dermatologists in the past. The one office is now gone and the other guy I didn't care for. I saw them for an allergic reaction to fake nails and can no longer wear nail polish on my hands. So imagine my dissapointment when the highly recommended dermatologist didn't take my insurance plan...So I had to go searching for someone in network.
Now some might say I'm jumping the gun that my primary doctor could treat me. Yes she could treat me but I want this biopsied. If it is the Cutaneous Sarcoidosis that I suspect it is I want to know for sure. Additionally, we have a family history of skin cancer and I want to make sure that I'm watching that carefully.
I put in my search parameters - 5 miles Nada. 10 miles - 4 doctors. The guy I didn't like the guy who has no degree information listed and 2 other doctors. I call the first one because their office is listed around the corner from where I work and he's on staff at the hospital I go to. Girl #1 answers - Oh I don't know if he treats that let me transfer you. Girl#2 - yes he treats that but I don't know when he'll be in that office. Girl#3 - Umm we can see you Dec 1st but why didn't Girl#1 make the appointment?? He's there every other week otherwise you can drive an hour to come see us. Ok fine. He is a specialist I expect a wait. You know because the Botox is really important to some people and a potential autoimmune lesion should go 3 weeks without treatment.
I'm sorry thats not the response we were looking for.
So I googled the other doctor. Umm HELLOOO Gorgeous People. It appears to be a husband and wife practice and they could be in an Italian Fashion house Ad. I admit I rolled my eyes. So I call not expecting anything better. Girl#1 answers. Answers all my questions. Yes he sees these symptoms frequently. Yes we take your insurance. (Wait you aren't going to transfer me???)
How soon could I be seen?
DAILY DOUBLE!!! Doo do doo do do doo do (You know the theme song)
How is this Thursday 3:30PM?
Who is my new Dermatologist!!
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Friday, October 29, 2010
No Pain No Gain (Or Loss)
7.5 lbs lost so far. And let me tell you I'm feeling every fiber in my arm muscles today. Literally, I can't lift my elbows higher than my chest. And we won't even begin to discuss how much my ass hurts. The incline on the tredmill was 10.0. And I must make funny faces because my trainer kept laughing at me. My muscles were so tired last night it was impossible to wash my hair. Or style it this AM so its up in a clip and I don't care how I look. Well I do... but not about my hair. I'm leaving on vacation tomorrow and I don't want to be at work. Plus I'm a little queesy due to my headache despite my hour of acupuncture this am so maybe I'm also a little crabby.
I'm not sure why we booked a 9:00AM flight but maybe that will mean we'll be able to hit a park or see friends for dinner tomorrow night. Or laze by the pool because its supposed to be 85 in Florida tomorrow and it was 32 this AM in Chicago. If we had rain we could have had snow. Or take a really nice nap - in fresh sheets on an enormous bed.
But here is my dilemna - what shoes to bring. I'm not a "shoe person" like my Mom and Sister in Law are. That being said though we are bringing just our carry ons and I'm concerned I'm not going to have enough room for my shoes. I want to bring my shape ups and gym shoes but then I need flip flops and flats to match my Snow White Costume. Thats 4 pairs! Craziness. The nice thing about staying at our timeshare is we have a washer and dryer in unit so we don't have to bring 7 outfits. But I do have to bring work out clothes. The entire trip is planned around eating so in order not to backslide I have to get out of bed and hit the gym before we go to the park.
We are very much looking forward to this trip. Aside from our honeymoon this is the first real vacation we have taken by ourselves. I don't count blizzards as vacation - unless they are the kind in a cup. We mapped out our days and even decided to thrown in a trip to Universal Studios and Medieval Times - all bought with timeshare points! I've lived within 20 minutes of a Medieval Times for 15+ years and have never been! So have a good week and I'll be back with lots of yummy looking pictures of food and wine (and tequila).
I'm not sure why we booked a 9:00AM flight but maybe that will mean we'll be able to hit a park or see friends for dinner tomorrow night. Or laze by the pool because its supposed to be 85 in Florida tomorrow and it was 32 this AM in Chicago. If we had rain we could have had snow. Or take a really nice nap - in fresh sheets on an enormous bed.
But here is my dilemna - what shoes to bring. I'm not a "shoe person" like my Mom and Sister in Law are. That being said though we are bringing just our carry ons and I'm concerned I'm not going to have enough room for my shoes. I want to bring my shape ups and gym shoes but then I need flip flops and flats to match my Snow White Costume. Thats 4 pairs! Craziness. The nice thing about staying at our timeshare is we have a washer and dryer in unit so we don't have to bring 7 outfits. But I do have to bring work out clothes. The entire trip is planned around eating so in order not to backslide I have to get out of bed and hit the gym before we go to the park.
We are very much looking forward to this trip. Aside from our honeymoon this is the first real vacation we have taken by ourselves. I don't count blizzards as vacation - unless they are the kind in a cup. We mapped out our days and even decided to thrown in a trip to Universal Studios and Medieval Times - all bought with timeshare points! I've lived within 20 minutes of a Medieval Times for 15+ years and have never been! So have a good week and I'll be back with lots of yummy looking pictures of food and wine (and tequila).
Friday, October 22, 2010
I did good!
So apparently 80 lbs might be too lofty of a goal! And that didn't come from me. It came from the trainer. And at my 1st personal training session last night my trainer Patrick told me I did good and I'm not as out of shape as I thought I was.
WOAH! Seriously?? Yeah me. So I just thought I'd share. That and I lost 5lbs in the last 3 weeks! And I'm actually looking forward to going to the gym tonight.
WOAH! Seriously?? Yeah me. So I just thought I'd share. That and I lost 5lbs in the last 3 weeks! And I'm actually looking forward to going to the gym tonight.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Biggest Loser
So I've decided to share my goals with my blogger friends. I talked about trying to look good when you don't FEEL good and I'm hoping this latest committment to myself will halp me look AND feel good. I am loosing (catch the positive affirmation there?) 80 pounds. By The end of May when we go to Walt Disney World with my husband's family. Short term is 20 pounds by our December trip to Las Vegas. I have some halter tops in my closet I'd like to wear when we go.
So how do I plan on getting there? Well I'm using weightwatchers.com to track my points and activity. I rejoined Lifetime Fitness. I'm in not 1 but 2 Biggest Loser Contests. One at work that goes until the week before Thanksgiving and another with My husband, and his Sister and her boyfriend. This one goes until the trip and the prize is $360. At the moment I'm not that excited about the money. My drive is coming from the ability to shop in stores I've never shopped in as an adult. To go into the Disney shops and pick out any sweatshirt I want and not worry if its going to fit.
I took a picture of me from my sophmore year soccer uniform and put it as my walpaper on my cell phone. The original went up on the refridgerator. Thats the other part - I'm only buying healthy nutritious food.
I've put in my planner the fitness classes I want to take - such as Latin Fusion (seriously this kicked my butt last week we crunk'd, can-can'd, jai ho'd, and macarena'd our way through 60 minutes. I take my gym bag with me and have an extra change of clotehs in it just in case. I also got up on Sunday BEFORE friends came over to work out.
And while I would love to hire a trainor my free sessions are just going to have to do for now.
My biggest challenge is going to be going to the Disney Food and Wine Festival in 11 days. But we are going to work out in the morning and wear our shape-up to the parks. Who knows maybe I'll find some healthy food that I love that I would not have tried.
So please cheer me on. As i'm taking this part of my health back. I may not be able to will the Sarcoid into remission but I can will myself back into a size 10 jean.
So how do I plan on getting there? Well I'm using weightwatchers.com to track my points and activity. I rejoined Lifetime Fitness. I'm in not 1 but 2 Biggest Loser Contests. One at work that goes until the week before Thanksgiving and another with My husband, and his Sister and her boyfriend. This one goes until the trip and the prize is $360. At the moment I'm not that excited about the money. My drive is coming from the ability to shop in stores I've never shopped in as an adult. To go into the Disney shops and pick out any sweatshirt I want and not worry if its going to fit.
I took a picture of me from my sophmore year soccer uniform and put it as my walpaper on my cell phone. The original went up on the refridgerator. Thats the other part - I'm only buying healthy nutritious food.
I've put in my planner the fitness classes I want to take - such as Latin Fusion (seriously this kicked my butt last week we crunk'd, can-can'd, jai ho'd, and macarena'd our way through 60 minutes. I take my gym bag with me and have an extra change of clotehs in it just in case. I also got up on Sunday BEFORE friends came over to work out.
And while I would love to hire a trainor my free sessions are just going to have to do for now.
My biggest challenge is going to be going to the Disney Food and Wine Festival in 11 days. But we are going to work out in the morning and wear our shape-up to the parks. Who knows maybe I'll find some healthy food that I love that I would not have tried.
So please cheer me on. As i'm taking this part of my health back. I may not be able to will the Sarcoid into remission but I can will myself back into a size 10 jean.
Cheerful Outfit
Yesterday I had this awesome encounter with a patient of ours. He needed help with some insurance claims which means I'm the person who would help him. I walked in the treatment room and he STOOD to great me. His wife said "Oh! You're the person I spoke with on the phone. So nice to meet you." This patient had a partial nephrectomy for kidney cancer. Turns out his son took out a cancer policy for this "just in case". Thats such a cheerful outfit! You've been so helpful. We appreciate all that you do! I was glowing by the time I was finished. I went off to lunch on a cloud! And it got me thinking - Am I that kind of patient. Am I complimentary enough to people who do their job correctly? Do I remember them and tell them so. Do they leave feeling euphoria after interacting with me? Or do I wallow in chronic illness and need to take a lesson from the cancer people who seem to always have the best outlook? I had a guy tell me "This should be fun.'" in a very sincere voice after I collected $2000 from him for Prostate Cancer surgery. I know this morning I had a nice chat about tequila with my acupuncture doctor. And his staff is always sweet and compliments my wardrobe. But I see them every week. When I was first diagnosed with Neurosarcoid I read the book "Model Patient" by Karen Duffy. It was a great point of view for me to read but certainly not everyone will get her humor. She talks about trying to look nice and be nice and really OWN your illness. Good advice.
So I always try to LOOK good when I don't feel good. Sometimes this is easier said than done. Especially, since I often can't wear make-up (which makes me feel pretty) due to my dry eye issue. (Which hopefully will be fixed tomorrow as we are trying new eye plugs.) But I try to look as put together as I can. How about you?
So I always try to LOOK good when I don't feel good. Sometimes this is easier said than done. Especially, since I often can't wear make-up (which makes me feel pretty) due to my dry eye issue. (Which hopefully will be fixed tomorrow as we are trying new eye plugs.) But I try to look as put together as I can. How about you?
Monday, September 20, 2010
The Nerve!
I had a Neurologist appointment with Dr. G today to get the results of last week's MRI. (Which went pretty well - no tears and only a fleeting panic when the table moved back.) And she said I'm stable! Which in medical terminology means no change from last time. Which means I didn't get worse!! YEAH
But it also means I didn't get better...BOOO! There are two nerves actively inflammed my trigeminal nerve and an abduces nerve that I didn't catch the full name of (and since the receptionist lady wasn't going out of her way to help - BIG SURPRISE - I elected to have the MRI mailed to me.) but is next to the trigeminal nerve. And she seemed fairly surprised to learn I elected to start the Methotrexate since that "takes pregnancy off the table" (for now).
In that moment I wished we were friends. I wished she would tell me honestly what she was thinking. I wished I could say, Hey! Lets go grab a margarita and you tell me what you would tell your sister to do in my shoes." And to some that might be a strange thought but I took the time to do what a lot of people don't. Find doctors that I actually like. They are down to earth. Friendly. They don't rush me through their office. And I absolutely trust them - because after all it is my life we are dealing with.
She checked in on my pain and asked about the steroids. Checked my reflexes told me my boots were super cute and sent me on my way with a script for another MRI in 6 months.
But it also means I didn't get better...BOOO! There are two nerves actively inflammed my trigeminal nerve and an abduces nerve that I didn't catch the full name of (and since the receptionist lady wasn't going out of her way to help - BIG SURPRISE - I elected to have the MRI mailed to me.) but is next to the trigeminal nerve. And she seemed fairly surprised to learn I elected to start the Methotrexate since that "takes pregnancy off the table" (for now).
In that moment I wished we were friends. I wished she would tell me honestly what she was thinking. I wished I could say, Hey! Lets go grab a margarita and you tell me what you would tell your sister to do in my shoes." And to some that might be a strange thought but I took the time to do what a lot of people don't. Find doctors that I actually like. They are down to earth. Friendly. They don't rush me through their office. And I absolutely trust them - because after all it is my life we are dealing with.
She checked in on my pain and asked about the steroids. Checked my reflexes told me my boots were super cute and sent me on my way with a script for another MRI in 6 months.
Friday, September 10, 2010
Happy Birthday to ME!!
So today is my 29th Birthday. Holidays and Birthdays are now somewhat of a mile marker for me on this journey. I remember very clearly my 20th birthday as the next day I woke up to towers falling on TV. I had no idea how much change could go on in my life in 9 years. I didn't know that Septemeber 10th would be the last day BEFORE a day so horrific we just call call it by numbers. Or that my brother would end up going to war. Or that I would marry the man I was dating at the time.
I spent my 21st Birthday having a beer with my Grandpa and a shot with my Grandma. My 22nd Birthday my bestfriend put my house key in the ignition of my new car and 23 was just after I finished dealing with my first go round with Pulmonary Sarcoid. My 24th Birthday was shortly after I got back from Climbing a Mountain. My 25th Birthday was a surprise bridal shower thrown by my future in-laws so that day was spent with family. I have no recollection of my 26th birthday (and sadly not because we had a big party) - I just don't remember. My 27th Birthday we had dinner at Claim jumpers and I couldn't have my Giant Eclair because I had surgery the next day.
That leaves last year and 28 and I can say I really felt it sucked. Mainly because I felt everything sucked. So I'm really happy to report that today I had PERFECT weather - blue sky chilly but not cold and lots of really amazing wishes from friends and family. I feel very special today. So thank you to everyone who had a hand in that.
So here is my Birthday Wish and since no candle is involved I can share it with you - that I feel as blessed everyday. And that I continue to be prepared and capable of handling everything that comes my way this last year of my 20s.
I spent my 21st Birthday having a beer with my Grandpa and a shot with my Grandma. My 22nd Birthday my bestfriend put my house key in the ignition of my new car and 23 was just after I finished dealing with my first go round with Pulmonary Sarcoid. My 24th Birthday was shortly after I got back from Climbing a Mountain. My 25th Birthday was a surprise bridal shower thrown by my future in-laws so that day was spent with family. I have no recollection of my 26th birthday (and sadly not because we had a big party) - I just don't remember. My 27th Birthday we had dinner at Claim jumpers and I couldn't have my Giant Eclair because I had surgery the next day.
That leaves last year and 28 and I can say I really felt it sucked. Mainly because I felt everything sucked. So I'm really happy to report that today I had PERFECT weather - blue sky chilly but not cold and lots of really amazing wishes from friends and family. I feel very special today. So thank you to everyone who had a hand in that.
So here is my Birthday Wish and since no candle is involved I can share it with you - that I feel as blessed everyday. And that I continue to be prepared and capable of handling everything that comes my way this last year of my 20s.
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