Hello and welcome to my journey to try to get a bit healthier. Although this will be a lifetime journey, I chose to give myself 90 days to find the path and get used to it. In this blog, I will write about my progress and setbacks and challenges. Warning: I will complain... a lot! So, if you don't want to read someone whining about their aches and pains and stomach issues and how they want a donut, don't read! I keep things mainly to myself in other venues (facebook, work) but here, I'm going to let it all hang out. I don't mind some advice (a recipe you've liked, someone who has the same issues that has found something that works well) and I appreciate support... but I don't want lectures (especially when I have setbacks).
Okay, so just a teensy bit about me. I'm 43. I'm overweight (officially, I need to lose 33 lbs to be considered in healthy range... ideally, that would be closer to 40 lbs. For my 90 days, 10 lbs will make me ecstatic). I have a variety of health issues, which I will go over below. I take a ton of meds. I'd like to be able to get off some of my meds and improve my health status at least a little bit. I don't think, however, that I can improve to the point that I will be able to get off more than 1 or 2 of them and that I can "cure" any of my illnesses, but if I can increase my energy and be able to get more done and know that I'm trying... well, I'll be happy.
So, what do I have? Here's my laundry list of the significant things:
- Diabetes -- at the moment, insulin-dependent: 4 shots a day (3 fast acting & 1 long release)
- Dercum's Disease (DD) -- rare disease characterized by multiple painful fatty tumors.... also comes with a host of issues. More info can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dercum's_disease
- Gastroparesis (GP) -- stomach paralysis which causes delayed gastric emptying... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gastroparesis
- Idiopathic Hypersomnia/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome -- depending on which doc you ask. LOL. I go with the Sleep Center, which diagnosed the IH. They felt it was narcolepsy, but I was one REM shy of the diagnosis. I also have mild sleep apnea. The IH/narco causes sleepiness during the day and will make me wake up to hallucinations -- hypnopompic -- at night if I don't take a sleeping pill http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypersomnia
- Fibromyalgia (FM) -- to be honest, I'm not sure about this one. I think maybe it is just the pain from my Dercum's. But, I've been diagnosed. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fibromyalgia
- Chronic Kidney Stones -- Have passed over 50 since I was 19. Currently have two small ones (1-2mm each) in each kidney
- New Diagnosis: Bile Gastritis -- I've been researching and this can be a chronic illness if I'm not careful http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/bile-reflux/DS00651
- High Blood pressure (treated with meds), high tryglycerides, fatty liver
- Raynaud's Disease (makes me very sensitive to cold & you'll see me with ear muffsif the temp dips below 60 degrees!) http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/raynauds-disease/DS00433
- Depression, anxiety, OCD (I have several ways this is manifested which I attempt to keep hidden from most. I will just talk about it in general terms, like "My OCD was a bit better today...")
- Migraines -- nearly always on my left side. I rate them from a level 1-3, with 1 being throbbing and just annoying and 3 being nauseous and light sensitive and can't do anything
- I also went into early peri-menopause a few years ago... most of the symptoms have passed, but I still get them from time to time.
- Irritable Bowel -- probably caused by the other issues I have (DD, GP)
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