Hooray!

I'm not quite sure why I felt so jubilant leaving the doctor's office Wednesday. It was the follow-up appointment with her after, well, everything we'd talked about at my first appointment since getting insurance in April. We went over the hysterectomy, the allergy shots, my knees, the diabetes progress. The labs were back, I'm taking a new med, and there was lots to discuss.

We started with the fact she's leaving family practice to go into geriantology (sp?). Hey, maybe someday I'll be old enough to get her back again. Anyway, she discussed her coworkers until I was comfortable making a preliminary choice for her replacement as my primary physician.

We discussed labs and how often I need to repeat the tests, assuming the numbers are within normal ranges. I'm thinking I'm likely to lose my insurance again next year, due to the state budget changes, so I'm planning ahead on what to do before year's end and how to most economically schedule upcoming care. There will be labs again before year's end plus an appointment with my new doc. Allergy shots will continue, so I'm cramming in what I can on the fastest schedule possible for this year. Surgery is done, no follow-ups needed there. The knees will be ignored until Medicare kicks in. I got my flu shot and, after checking to make sure it's covered by the insurance, a shingles shot. (Not only did Daddy have to suffer from it, but Mom's sister got it as well, so I'm prone to it on both sides of the family.) Not having to face that myself was part of the relief I felt after that visit.

Remember I said there would be questions on the new medication? I was mostly referring in that comment to needing to inform my doc I was diabetic before taking a medication ordered because I am diabetic. I asked, she answered, and somehow after a lengthy explanation, I've decided I know nothing more than I did before. Perhaps just poor choice of wording on the label. Anyway, it's not actually a precautionary note.

What was a precautionary note was the bit about muscle aches. It happens in about 1 in 10,000 people. She said I'd be able to tell for sure if that's what was going on: if you take the kind of muscle aches you get from influenza, add getting hit by a truck to it for the intensity level. What it means is that your kidneys are failing, a protein is not getting metabolized, and you should immediately stop taking the statin drug, and have somebody take you to the hospital.

You won't be able to drive yourself.

One possible way to prevent it happening is to take something called Co Q 10. Co for co-enzyme. It helps metabolize that protein. Available OTC in the vitamin section. Oh, and for those pains in the feet? Not likely - though remotely possible - related to the diabetes. More likely a neuropathy, like Mom had. Take magnesium. Also available OTC, same place. So now there are two more pills lined up for their morning dispensing to swallow with that morning cuppa.

Speaking of the labs, the A1C is down to 5.6. Normal! For at least the last three months, the diet is working to keep the blood sugar levels down. Obviously I test the drops of blood to get readings at particular points in time, but this gives an overall. Overall it's good. Normal. Normal is good. Not an excuse to let up, however, no matter how tempting the box of Goldfish is that Paul left sitting out for the last few days. No, better to go buy my own box and take measured amounts with me to work for snacks, instead of the Cheerios I've been taking ever since last April. Yummy, but losing their edge. Switch to Goldfish for a bit.

Not exactly a lab value, but my blood pressure reading was 112/70. Last week at the allergist it was 113/69. That's going well.

Of course, likely that most important reason for the great feeling as I left the doctor's office was the first piece of information gathered. No, not the fact that I've lost 2" of height somewhere recently. That first thing they do, making you step on the scale. I've finally broken the 40 lb. barrier! Uh, that's as in 40 lbs lost. Just in case you haven't been paying attention. In fact, it's 41 or 42, depending on exactly where in the hundredths of a pound it registered at the very first time. I wasn't paying attention further than the first three digits back then. So not only did I break that mystical barrier, the one that's been resisting me for a couple months, but I did it after adding ice cream back into the diet.

Yeee Hahhhh! I can keep eating ice cream!!!!!! In fact, it's time for some right now...