I'm having a hard time getting to sleep...

I'm stopping by for a quick request. I'm scheduled to take yet another "fricken" test tomorrow. This one is called an "Exercise Pulmonary Function Stress Test.

Now I've done the treadmill stress test before.




I've also taken a pulmonary function test before.




It's just that I've never taken an "Excercise Pulmonary Function stress test."



I honestly feel that I'm being a wimp and have no reason to be nervous about this test. It's just that I'm a bit tired of doing uncomfortable tests, with results that come in with no answers. I'm worried (irrationally worried I should add) that I'm going to take yet another test, and learn that the only thing wrong with me is that I'm an old woman who is overweight and out of shape.




So, if I may be selfish, would you please pray that this test is not too difficult, I'm able to push myself hard enough so that the doctors can analyze the information and get some answers, AND that the results do not include any of the following words, "Mrs. Markin, these results show that you have turned into a lazy lump. Your biggest problems are that you are just really overweight, really out of shape and lazy."



I will also be getting my blood drawn to see if I'm still anemic.

OK, that's all for now. I really need to be trying harder to clear my head and get some sleep.

Thank you so much for checking in.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this blog
And, thanks for caring.

Annette

I said I'd try to post a bit more.....

But, this is going to be short and sweet. I went to the dentist today (6 month cleaning....soooo exciting, aren't I?) AND I went to a movie this afternoon with my dear daughter-in-law's mother, Jeane. I tell you, we really hit the jackpot when Nick married Kara! Her entire family is incredibly wonderful! Anyway, Jeane and I went to see "The Social Network" which is the movie about how "Facebook" came into being.



It was a really interesting and well made movie. I do have to admit though, there were many discussions about computers and algorithms that were way above my head!
I give this movie 8 puppy paws up!



When I got home from the movie, I fell asleep on the couch until about an hour ago. Now I need to go take care of my medicine and get to bed. I sure hope these iron pills kick in soon. Sleeping away my life is not my idea of a good time. (Sorry. I told myself I wasn't going to do any whining in this posting.)

Thanks for checking in.
Thanks for reading.
Thanks for hanging in there with me.

Annette

Excuse me while I rev up my engine..vroom...vroom..vr...

Thank you for continuing to come back to "AnnettesexcitingBlog" to see if there is anything exciting being posted, or at least to see if anything NEW has been posted.

It has been a lo-o-o-o-o-ong summer and proving to be a lo-o-o-o-ng fall. And NOW it looks like I was given incorrect information that, in turn, makes me look like a LIAR! LIAR! PANTS ON FIRE!

After my last post I had an appointment with my "GP." I soon discovered that I misunderstood the results of the procedures done in the hospital. They did find an AVM, but, it wasn't actively bleeding. The good thing is that with all of these tests, we were able to rule out really bad reasons for being anemic. But, we're left with no explanation for the anemia. The "game plan" is still the same, though. Keep taking the iron and....wait! That is the worse 4-letter word in the world! I'm so sick and tired of WAITING to find out what's going on. I know that I need to be thrilled with the fact that the doctor's were able to rule out really bad reasons for the anemia and tiredness. I have never been a patient individual. Having PH and Addison's have forced me to become a very patient woman, or I would go crazy. I've felt, ever since I was diagnosed, that knowledge is power. The more I know and understand what is happening with my body, the less afraid and more confident I become in fighting these illnesses.

OK, that's all of the whining for now. I'm going to walk down to the street and grab the mail and the newspaper. I'll be back soon, maybe even tonight, and write a bit more.

Thanks for staying with me.
Thanks for reading.
Thanks for your support.

Annette

A Quick Update

First, thanks so much for all of the posts, emails, cards, calls and prayers. I'm home and really tired. I wanted to let you know what we learned and I'll fill in more later. But, the basic info is that they discovered the source of the bleeding. I have a AVM, which is an arteriovenous malformation in my colon. I have an artery and a vein that have grown together, causing some slight bleeding or leaking.Usually it wouldn't be a big enough deal to cause anemia, but, because I'm on blood thinners, it is bleeding a bit too much. I'm going to see the doctor next week, but, the general thought is I'll just continue to take iron pills.
OK, I need to take a nap.

Thanks again for everything.
Annette

A Quick "Hello."

I'm heading into the hospital tomorrow. I'm scheduled for a colonoscopy and endoscopy on Thursday morning. The plan is to find a cause for this anemia I'm been dealing with for a couple of months now. It's crazy how we "hurry up to wait" and "hurry up to wait" again in our society, getting no further than where we were before we started that insane dance!

So, today I prepared for being on a liquid diet for tonight and tomorrow before being admitted into the hospital. I've also had one of two Lovinox shots just for today that will help thicken my blood that I try to to thin on a regular basis with blood thinners.
I thought about going on a food binge...but I kept hearing the song, "Spinning Wheels" by Blood, Sweat and Tears...."What goes up, must come down..."....only in my head, the words changed a bit..."What goes in, must come out!" So, I decided that a "food binge" wasn't such a good move (so to speak).

Going to the hospital and, especially having to spend the night, is a big mess when you have Pulmonary Hypertension and Addison's disease which both require lots of drugs, ice bags and cassette's of mixed medicine.

I would love to ask you all to send a prayer my way and some good thoughts that things go well and that we finally get some answers and I can get back some energy.

Thanks for stopping by.
Thanks for checking in.
Thanks for reading.
Thanks for listening.

Annette

Hello. I'm here...it's been a lo-o-o-o-ong summer!

I would like to thank so many of you who have written, called and emailed to let me know you're out there and that I'm not here alone. I even received $$ from a friend (thank you Mary Jane!) so I could go out and get a magical Blizzard!! Of course, Rod's comment when he saw the kind card and cool cash was something like, "Annette, maybe you should start talking about how much a new Corvette would help you and that you might actually be CURED if you had a new Corvette!" That Rod is such a funny guy.....ha...ha...ha......

It's just been tough month since I wrote last month. The "car incident" is just a memory. But the high-velocity back-dive into the dresser is still causing some problems. Being on blood thinners seems to have slowed the healing a bit. But, the fist-size blood clot is almost completely dissolved.

Unfortunately the tiredness has not improved, it's actually gotten worse. Another appointment with my endocrine doctor provided some answers and some more "crap" to deal with. (Sorry...I've really developed a bad attitude) The increase in my thyroid medication has not increased those low levels. Plus, I'm severely anemic with significant iron loss. Those results lead the doctors to suspect bleeding from somewhere in my body, most likely my colon or my stomach. So, in two weeks I "get" to go into the hospital for a couple of days and have a colonoscopy and an endoscopy (The GI doctor whimsically calls it a "Tops and Bottoms!" Ha, ha, ha, ha....) Because I'm "so complicated" I need to be in the hospital for a couple of days, because I'm on a blood thinner I have to give myself some special shots for several days prior to the procedure....etc., etc., etc., whine, whine, whine...)

In the meantime, we've increased the thyroid medicine, added iron pills and, oh, I almost forgot, I've also added a new medication to take care of a case of thrush (a yeast infection in my mouth) I'm so proud to be able to share that little tidbit with all of you.

So, all of this whining and moaning and groaning is why I've stayed away from this blog for a month. First, I've really been tired and just didn't want to try to figure out what to write. But, mostly, I didn't want to come here with "doom and gloom." I'm hoping now that I've written it all down I can try to write some much more fun postings.

OK, I'm tired. I think I hear the couch and the TV remote calling my name.

Thank you so much for checking in.
Thanks for letting me vent.
Thanks for reading.

Annette

A (not so) funny thing happened on the way to a funeral and other problems and incidents since the beginning of July...

It has been a tough summer. I don't wont to boor you with a laundry list of aches, pains and problems, but I also don't want you to think I've been a lazy old woman, lounging on he couch eating bon-bons and having Asa and Haver peel grapes for me. So, I'm going to just try to do a quick little list to bring you up to speed.

I starting doing some significant "butt-dragging" after Memorial Day. We spent most of June assuming it was the progression of the PH since I have been fighting this beast for 6 years now. But, in July we contacted my endocrine doctor to see if she had any insight. She came to the conclusion that much of the tiredness and body aches could be related to the Addison's disease (that, quite frankly, I'd forgotten about...even though I take supplemental steroids and thyroid every day). She suggested I try a round of increasing my steroids and see if that helps. About a week later I was actually starting to see some improvement when a (not so) funny thing happened on our way to a funeral. Nick, Kara and I drove down to Lincoln to attend a very good family friend's funeral. I was sitting in the back seat and was too stupid to buckle my seat belt. Nick did not see this drainage ditch/speed bump and we hit it going at a pretty good clip. I flew off the seat, hit my head on the ceiling and jammed my back on the landing. I went into complete back spasm with a pain level of about a 15 on the 1-10 scale. Luckily I had a doctor and a med student in the car with me. It was obvious that it was just muscle spasms so we went to a Walgreens and got some muscle relaxers, a heating pad and headed back to Omaha. If I needed to go to the hospital I was going to go my MY hospital where all of my doctor's practice.

After about a week of heating pads, ice packs and lots of drugs I was starting to feel better. Then...

Haver came up to "give me some love" which means he rubs his face and his body against my legs, very similar to what a cat does. The difference though between a cat doing this and Haver doing this is that Haver weighs 135 pounds! Consequently, as I was trying to get away from him without hurting my back again, he nailed the back out of my knee causing some kind of painful damage that resulted in immediate swelling. After a couple of days of icing the knee, it was starting to feel better. Then...

A week ago Monday, I was returning to bed after a midnight bathroom break when I lost my balance (God only knows WHY) and fell backward into my dresser gouging my back and my backside with a couple of the drawer knobs. I am still not able to sit down like a "normal" person and the backside wound is still oozing, but, the back wound is almost completely healed.

So, how has your summer been?

I so greatly, greatly appreciate so many of you coming back to this blog to see if there was anything happening. I also really, really appreciate all of the people who sent emails and left messages on this site. I would really like to give out cash prizes to all of you who tried to claim "your prize!"

I have been doing lots of sleeping over the last several months. Sometimes I think it's because I'm really tired and then there are those times that I just wish if I sleep long enough I'll wake up all healed and happy and there will be rainbows and flowers all around!...Did I tell you I've been taking lots of drugs???

So, I need to get switched, drugged and into bed. My dear sweet beloved husband has been a rock through this whole mess this summer and has been mixing my medicine almost every night. I'm a very lucky woman.

Well, thanks for checking in.
Thanks for hanging in there with me.
Thanks for reading.

I think I'll leave you with the wise words of Jeane, Kara's mom. After this latest disaster, she told me, "Annette, I have two words for you...BUBBLE WRAP!" She's like the Dalai Lama or something.

Fat Dog Drinking


Not as Fat Dog Drinking



Annette