It's been a long while since I've posted any new content, and that's because I've been incredibly busy with work, church, and a wonderful girlfriend. I really wish I could take the time to post more about those, but I just wanted to take a quick moment to let everyone know that I'm finally going to see a doctor about this stomach stuff.
Last August, my doctor gave me a referral to a gastroenterologist, but I had been in a bit of a roller coaster situation with it: When it was bad, I would think "I need to call that doctor." But when it was good, I didn't even consider it.
Well, last night when I was leaving the office, I barely made it to my car before one of the "attacks" hit, and I had to make a mad dash back to the office. I was able to make it home before the next wave of it hit, but just barely.
After I had exhausted myself (in a couple different senses of the word), I found the referral that my doctor had given me and finally scheduled an appointment with the GI doctor.
I have a full blood panel coming up in a couple of weeks, which is just to mainly check on my cholesterol and such, but I opted for the full panel because I want to be able to rule out any other issues.
Beyond that, I have an appointment with the GI doctor on April 1st, at which point I hope to get a lot more answers than what I currently have, and get on the road to treatment.
If I get some time over the next few weeks, I'll post some more updates about the rest of what's going on in life. Until then, this is what you get. :P
Posted February 9, 2010 in
I Feel Sick
by Tim
As I previously mentioned, here is a video of my popping foot:
I got a call from the doctor's office today, and they said that I would have to pay $312 for the foot surgery, plus 20% of the anesthesia and facility costs issued by the hospital. This means I'm probably looking at about $600-$800 for the surgery, if not more.
I don't know what's more painful, the foot, or the violent ripping of money from my wallet.
I got a call from the doctor's office today, and they said that I would have to pay $312 for the foot surgery, plus 20% of the anesthesia and facility costs issued by the hospital. This means I'm probably looking at about $600-$800 for the surgery, if not more.
I don't know what's more painful, the foot, or the violent ripping of money from my wallet.
Posted February 8, 2010 in
I Feel Sick
by Tim
This morning at about 10:00, I got a call from the doctor's office. They wanted to know if I would be able to reschedule for 2:00 this afternoon instead of 9:00 tomorrow morning. I told them that was fine, so I left work at 1:00 to get to the hospital in time.
At about 1:45, I made it to the check-in desk and within a couple of minutes was back in the exam room. I had to wait a little bit to see the doctor, but he came in within 10 minutes to tell me what the CT scan showed.
He said that the scan really didn't show anything, but he was certain it was a bone spur and that he would like to proceed with surgically removing it. After getting a couple of general questions answered, he had me talk to the nurse about scheduling the operation. He said that they really only do it on Friday mornings, such that the patient only has to be off work for 1 day. He said that I would be on crutches for the first few days, but that I could get back to work as soon as that following Monday.
After the nurse came in, I told her that I would really need to talk with my transportation (Read: Emily) to figure out when would be the best. The nurse said that I could schedule it for as soon as this Friday, or as late as March 5th. Anything after that would be too cloudy to nail down unless we wait until closer to then.
So right now I'm waiting on the financial side of today's information to come through before I schedule. I'll probably shoot for March 5th, but possibly even March 12th since Emily is on spring break that following week anyhow.
Right now I'm waiting on Youtube to quit being in read-only mode so I can upload a video of the popping. It's kinda gross, but it puts it into perspective. I'll add a commentary to it when it's uploaded.
At about 1:45, I made it to the check-in desk and within a couple of minutes was back in the exam room. I had to wait a little bit to see the doctor, but he came in within 10 minutes to tell me what the CT scan showed.
He said that the scan really didn't show anything, but he was certain it was a bone spur and that he would like to proceed with surgically removing it. After getting a couple of general questions answered, he had me talk to the nurse about scheduling the operation. He said that they really only do it on Friday mornings, such that the patient only has to be off work for 1 day. He said that I would be on crutches for the first few days, but that I could get back to work as soon as that following Monday.
After the nurse came in, I told her that I would really need to talk with my transportation (Read: Emily) to figure out when would be the best. The nurse said that I could schedule it for as soon as this Friday, or as late as March 5th. Anything after that would be too cloudy to nail down unless we wait until closer to then.
So right now I'm waiting on the financial side of today's information to come through before I schedule. I'll probably shoot for March 5th, but possibly even March 12th since Emily is on spring break that following week anyhow.
Right now I'm waiting on Youtube to quit being in read-only mode so I can upload a video of the popping. It's kinda gross, but it puts it into perspective. I'll add a commentary to it when it's uploaded.
Posted February 5, 2010 in
I Feel Sick
by Tim
I really don't remember how much I shared previously about this whole foot thing, and I don't really feel like reading over it and trying to tie it into more recent happenings. Thus, I am just going to start at the top and paint the full picture from start to present.
Sometime when I was somewhere around 16 years old, I joined a basketball team for the local group of home schoolers. I was never very athletic, but since I was tall for my age, I held the defense pretty well.
On night during a game, I had the opportunity to jump and catch a missed shot. After I caught it and began my descent to the floor, I landed wrong and rolled my ankle. I was able to pass the ball to one of my teammates, but I was hurting for the rest of the game. After a couple days of taking it easy, the sprain seemed to heal up pretty well... or so I thought.
A couple of years passed and I noticed a very distinct popping in my ankle. It never really hurt at first, but as time progressed it got painful. It was bad enough that it was affecting my sleep, and thereby impacting my day-to-day life. One day, I let it get the best of me and had a bit of an emotional breakdown. My mom saw this and decided that I needed to get my foot x-rayed, so she took me to the doctor.
The doctor there said that it looked like I had an infarction of some sort down towards my toes, but that there was no sign of anything causing the popping. He told me to just take some over-the-counter painkillers and use ice, and that seemed to take care of the pain. However, the popping never went away.
I saw other doctors for it and got a good dose of radiation from the X-rays, MRI, and bone scan. None of them came to any conclusion other than I had bone spurs up by my toes, and one said that I just had tendonitis and that it would go away after a few days (he apparently didn't understand me when I said it had been going on for a couple of years). I did receive cortisone treatments for the bone spurs, but they didn't really do any good; they actually caused me more pain for quite a while.
When the doctors said that the only thing left to do was exploratory surgery, I thanked them for their time and moved on with life.
The popping has continued since then and has had chronic pain spells along with it, but I've been able to deal. That was, until a couple of weeks ago when I decided to go for a bike ride.
This bike ride was by no means my first, not even over an extended period of time, but it did seem to be the one to drive me to seek further treatment. After a little less than 6 miles, I noticed my foot was aching, so I called it quits. For the rest of that evening I was pretty sore still and decided to hit up the ibuprofen and ice packs.
By the next day, I was unable to walk worth anything. Putting weight on that foot was pretty painful (I'd rank it an 8 or 9 on the 1-10 scale that doctors use), and the pain radiated all the way up to my knee. I continued the ice and ibuprofen, and decided that if I was still hurting on Monday I would go see a doctor.
Monday came around and I was still hurting, so I got an appointment for that afternoon with my primary care doctor. Unfortunately, I got the last appointment for the day, and by the time I got to see the doctor, she really didn't seem to care at all. Any time I would try to talk, she would interrupt me, and her attitude was less than professional. All my previous visits though were very pleasant, so I just attributed it to the end of a long Monday. She did tell me to continue with the ice and ibuprofen and just to stay off my foot for a couple of weeks as much as possible. She said that if after a week or so I was still in pain, I should go see an orthopedic specialist (for whom she gave me a referral).
A week passed and I was still hurting, so I called the specialist. I was able to get in the next day to see him, which was a bit of a relief to me.
After examining my foot, bending and twisting it every which way, he was finally able to find the motion that made it pop, and the popping was quite painful. He said that he was pretty certain it was a bone spur, scar tissue, or a torn ligament, and that to correct any of these issues would be pretty straightforward and require simple outpatient surgery. However, before committing to such, he ordered a CT scan.
The CT scan was this morning at 7:20AM (which meant I had to be awake at 5:00AM and out the door at 5:30 to be to the hospital no later than 6:30). After fumbling around with finding the right parking garage (it looks much different in the dark than it does in the daylight), I made my way up to the 10th floor of the hospital to the radiology department. After checking in, receiving my armband, and waiting for another 20 minutes to be called back by a technician, I was on the table with my feet in the middle of a tubular-looking machine, not dissimilar to that of an MRI. Another 10 or 15 minutes elapsed while the table moved me about in the machine and the images were taken, and I was on my way to the office.
Now I'm waiting until Tuesday to meet with the specialist again to go over the results of the CT scan (and get copies of the images, which I plan on sharing). While I am eagerly awaiting a diagnosis and treatment plan, I am not looking forward to surgery of any sort. I have never had any surgical procedures since my infancy, so I really don't know how to feel about them, other than scared. The other thing that freaks me out is the whole bit that the specialist said about "chiseling" the bone spur off my foot. [insert shudder here] It just sounds painful, especially given the fact that I have broken bone spurs off my fingers before, and even though I've broken bones including vertebrae, I have yet to experience a pain like breaking that bone spur off.
Luckily though, my lovely girlfriend, Emily, has said she would be able to take care of me the day of any surgery, and I know several others who would be able to help in some form, so there is some comfort in the midst of the turmoil.
I appreciate all the prayers and support that I have received to date. I'll try my best to keep everyone up to date on the situation as it progresses.
Sometime when I was somewhere around 16 years old, I joined a basketball team for the local group of home schoolers. I was never very athletic, but since I was tall for my age, I held the defense pretty well.
On night during a game, I had the opportunity to jump and catch a missed shot. After I caught it and began my descent to the floor, I landed wrong and rolled my ankle. I was able to pass the ball to one of my teammates, but I was hurting for the rest of the game. After a couple days of taking it easy, the sprain seemed to heal up pretty well... or so I thought.
A couple of years passed and I noticed a very distinct popping in my ankle. It never really hurt at first, but as time progressed it got painful. It was bad enough that it was affecting my sleep, and thereby impacting my day-to-day life. One day, I let it get the best of me and had a bit of an emotional breakdown. My mom saw this and decided that I needed to get my foot x-rayed, so she took me to the doctor.
The doctor there said that it looked like I had an infarction of some sort down towards my toes, but that there was no sign of anything causing the popping. He told me to just take some over-the-counter painkillers and use ice, and that seemed to take care of the pain. However, the popping never went away.
I saw other doctors for it and got a good dose of radiation from the X-rays, MRI, and bone scan. None of them came to any conclusion other than I had bone spurs up by my toes, and one said that I just had tendonitis and that it would go away after a few days (he apparently didn't understand me when I said it had been going on for a couple of years). I did receive cortisone treatments for the bone spurs, but they didn't really do any good; they actually caused me more pain for quite a while.
When the doctors said that the only thing left to do was exploratory surgery, I thanked them for their time and moved on with life.
The popping has continued since then and has had chronic pain spells along with it, but I've been able to deal. That was, until a couple of weeks ago when I decided to go for a bike ride.
This bike ride was by no means my first, not even over an extended period of time, but it did seem to be the one to drive me to seek further treatment. After a little less than 6 miles, I noticed my foot was aching, so I called it quits. For the rest of that evening I was pretty sore still and decided to hit up the ibuprofen and ice packs.
By the next day, I was unable to walk worth anything. Putting weight on that foot was pretty painful (I'd rank it an 8 or 9 on the 1-10 scale that doctors use), and the pain radiated all the way up to my knee. I continued the ice and ibuprofen, and decided that if I was still hurting on Monday I would go see a doctor.
Monday came around and I was still hurting, so I got an appointment for that afternoon with my primary care doctor. Unfortunately, I got the last appointment for the day, and by the time I got to see the doctor, she really didn't seem to care at all. Any time I would try to talk, she would interrupt me, and her attitude was less than professional. All my previous visits though were very pleasant, so I just attributed it to the end of a long Monday. She did tell me to continue with the ice and ibuprofen and just to stay off my foot for a couple of weeks as much as possible. She said that if after a week or so I was still in pain, I should go see an orthopedic specialist (for whom she gave me a referral).
A week passed and I was still hurting, so I called the specialist. I was able to get in the next day to see him, which was a bit of a relief to me.
After examining my foot, bending and twisting it every which way, he was finally able to find the motion that made it pop, and the popping was quite painful. He said that he was pretty certain it was a bone spur, scar tissue, or a torn ligament, and that to correct any of these issues would be pretty straightforward and require simple outpatient surgery. However, before committing to such, he ordered a CT scan.
The CT scan was this morning at 7:20AM (which meant I had to be awake at 5:00AM and out the door at 5:30 to be to the hospital no later than 6:30). After fumbling around with finding the right parking garage (it looks much different in the dark than it does in the daylight), I made my way up to the 10th floor of the hospital to the radiology department. After checking in, receiving my armband, and waiting for another 20 minutes to be called back by a technician, I was on the table with my feet in the middle of a tubular-looking machine, not dissimilar to that of an MRI. Another 10 or 15 minutes elapsed while the table moved me about in the machine and the images were taken, and I was on my way to the office.
Now I'm waiting until Tuesday to meet with the specialist again to go over the results of the CT scan (and get copies of the images, which I plan on sharing). While I am eagerly awaiting a diagnosis and treatment plan, I am not looking forward to surgery of any sort. I have never had any surgical procedures since my infancy, so I really don't know how to feel about them, other than scared. The other thing that freaks me out is the whole bit that the specialist said about "chiseling" the bone spur off my foot. [insert shudder here] It just sounds painful, especially given the fact that I have broken bone spurs off my fingers before, and even though I've broken bones including vertebrae, I have yet to experience a pain like breaking that bone spur off.
Luckily though, my lovely girlfriend, Emily, has said she would be able to take care of me the day of any surgery, and I know several others who would be able to help in some form, so there is some comfort in the midst of the turmoil.
I appreciate all the prayers and support that I have received to date. I'll try my best to keep everyone up to date on the situation as it progresses.
Posted February 2, 2010 in
I Feel Sick
by Tim
I'm really tired so this is going to be short and to the point.
I hurt my foot playing basketball when I was about 16. It gave me problems after that and I went to see a doctor when I was 17, but they didn't find anything. I let it slide.
I went for a bike ride a couple of weeks ago and I've been in so much pain since that my sleep schedule has suffered. Over the last couple of days, I've only had 6 hours of sleep.
I went to see a specialist today, and he believes it to be a bone spur causing me pain. I am going for a CT scan on Friday, and I'll go back to see the specialist next week to discuss the CT scan and further treatment. He said that it'll probably be outpatient surgery and that they'll chip the bone spur off. He said it would only be a couple of days that I would be unable to walk, and that recovery would be 6 to 8 weeks.
If I'm not as freakin' exhausted as I am now, I'll share more after I see the doctor again. For now, I'm going to try to (not) sleep.
I hurt my foot playing basketball when I was about 16. It gave me problems after that and I went to see a doctor when I was 17, but they didn't find anything. I let it slide.
I went for a bike ride a couple of weeks ago and I've been in so much pain since that my sleep schedule has suffered. Over the last couple of days, I've only had 6 hours of sleep.
I went to see a specialist today, and he believes it to be a bone spur causing me pain. I am going for a CT scan on Friday, and I'll go back to see the specialist next week to discuss the CT scan and further treatment. He said that it'll probably be outpatient surgery and that they'll chip the bone spur off. He said it would only be a couple of days that I would be unable to walk, and that recovery would be 6 to 8 weeks.
If I'm not as freakin' exhausted as I am now, I'll share more after I see the doctor again. For now, I'm going to try to (not) sleep.
Posted December 10, 2009 in
I Feel Sick
by Tim
Earlier this year when I went to the doctor for my blood pressure, she noticed that I was shaking a fair amount. At the time, we both attributed it to the blood pressure being high, and we moved on.
Later in the year, when I went in for my initial consult about my back, the other doctor I saw noticed I was shaking. I didn't notice it, but she thought it was from the pain I was in with my back, so we didn't really labor over it any.
Well, my back has been pretty much better (though not 100%) for a couple of months, I've experimented with removing caffeine from my diet, and there has really been no improvement for the tremors.
I have mentioned it to my doctor again since then, and she hasn't really put any focus on it other than an "oh". I'm really starting to get tired of it though, because it's starting to affect my day to day living. For example, I haven't been able to type very well today because I keep hitting extra keys, hitting intended keys multiple times, or missing the keys all together.
Also, I've noticed that my legs are really weak and I have a bit of a "bobbing" in my head when I'm at rest. It's really starting to frustrate me to the point that I'm taking it out on others, which I really hate to do and by no means intend.
I have an appointment for blood work and a follow up next week, so I'm going to talk with the doctor about it then. I really don't want to find out that it's something serious like Parkinson's, Peripheral Neuropathy, or Multiple Sclerosis, but I need to find out what it is and get it taken care of.
In other news, I'm looking to trade my body for one in better shape. If you have any leads, please let me know.
Later in the year, when I went in for my initial consult about my back, the other doctor I saw noticed I was shaking. I didn't notice it, but she thought it was from the pain I was in with my back, so we didn't really labor over it any.
Well, my back has been pretty much better (though not 100%) for a couple of months, I've experimented with removing caffeine from my diet, and there has really been no improvement for the tremors.
I have mentioned it to my doctor again since then, and she hasn't really put any focus on it other than an "oh". I'm really starting to get tired of it though, because it's starting to affect my day to day living. For example, I haven't been able to type very well today because I keep hitting extra keys, hitting intended keys multiple times, or missing the keys all together.
Also, I've noticed that my legs are really weak and I have a bit of a "bobbing" in my head when I'm at rest. It's really starting to frustrate me to the point that I'm taking it out on others, which I really hate to do and by no means intend.
I have an appointment for blood work and a follow up next week, so I'm going to talk with the doctor about it then. I really don't want to find out that it's something serious like Parkinson's, Peripheral Neuropathy, or Multiple Sclerosis, but I need to find out what it is and get it taken care of.
In other news, I'm looking to trade my body for one in better shape. If you have any leads, please let me know.
Posted August 20, 2009 in
I Feel Sick
by Tim
Just a quick entry to keep everyone in the know.
I picked up the lab report from my brain MRI today. Here's what it said:
I'm still feeling the numbness in my legs, a bit of it in my hands and arms, the shaking in my arms and hands, and the back pain and tenderness, but the doctors have said it's not because of my back or anything in my head.
While this is good news, I'm still frustrated that nothing has come of it. I guess I need to talk with my doctor again and ask if it's nothing nervous-system-related, what the heck is it?
I picked up the lab report from my brain MRI today. Here's what it said:
Findings: There is no evidence of acute infarct, intracranial hemorrhage, mass-effect, midline shift, hydrocephalus or extra-axial collection. There is no diffusion restriction. There is no abnormal parenchymal or meningeal enhancement. The orbits are normal. The paranasal sinuses and mastoid air cells are well-aerated.
Impression: Unremarkable brain MRI.
I'm still feeling the numbness in my legs, a bit of it in my hands and arms, the shaking in my arms and hands, and the back pain and tenderness, but the doctors have said it's not because of my back or anything in my head.
While this is good news, I'm still frustrated that nothing has come of it. I guess I need to talk with my doctor again and ask if it's nothing nervous-system-related, what the heck is it?
Posted August 17, 2009 in
I Feel Sick
by Tim
I just got back from a follow-up with my primary care doctor a bit ago. She said that since the neurosurgeon said my symptoms weren't being caused by the ruptured disc that we needed to look further, to the central nervous system. Thus, she has issued a prescription for an MRI of my brain, which I need to schedule sometime later this week.
This stuff is getting very scary very quickly.
This stuff is getting very scary very quickly.
Posted August 11, 2009 in
I Feel Sick
by Tim
Well, I finally got to see the specialist today. I knew I would be waiting for a bit, since I got there at 3:30 and my appointment wasn't until 4:15, but when 5:15 came and I still hadn't seen the doctor yet, I began to get skeptical.
When the doctor came in to the room, he asked me about the symptoms I have had and about the degree of the pain. When I gave him the dirt, he did all the same range of motion exercises the primary care doctor did a few weeks ago. After all that, he told me that after looking at the MRI images (he referred to them as X-rays), he did see a bulging/ruptured disc in the T11/12 area, but that none of the symptoms aside from the pain were related.
So now I'm wondering what's causing the numbness, digestive issues, and shaking, but I know from the educated professional that it's not related to my back. But you're probably thinking, "What's the treatment plan?" Basically, there is none. That's right, nothing can or will be done for the back pain. But why? Quite simple, actually: The ruptured disc is in a very tricky area of the spine that would lead to near-certain disability or further complication if surgery were performed. Not only that, but the rupture is not to blame for any of the other issues I'm having, so it would be pointless to do anything about it in that case.
The doctor said that the pain will be a chronic issue throughout the rest of my life, but to just rely on basic treatments for it (ice, heat, over-the-counter painkillers) and take it easy when it does flare up. He said that I will most certainly "throw out" my back from seemingly normal tasks, but that when I do I should just fall back to those basic treatments and kick back to light duty until I recover. Chiropractic care was not ruled out, but I'm going to opt for that only sparingly.
Also, I have been cleared to return to the gym, but only if I stay away from the free weights and anything that will put excessive pressure on my lower back. I am also to work on back extension exercises to strengthen the supporting muscles. Otherwise, it's time for me to get back to normal.
When the doctor came in to the room, he asked me about the symptoms I have had and about the degree of the pain. When I gave him the dirt, he did all the same range of motion exercises the primary care doctor did a few weeks ago. After all that, he told me that after looking at the MRI images (he referred to them as X-rays), he did see a bulging/ruptured disc in the T11/12 area, but that none of the symptoms aside from the pain were related.
So now I'm wondering what's causing the numbness, digestive issues, and shaking, but I know from the educated professional that it's not related to my back. But you're probably thinking, "What's the treatment plan?" Basically, there is none. That's right, nothing can or will be done for the back pain. But why? Quite simple, actually: The ruptured disc is in a very tricky area of the spine that would lead to near-certain disability or further complication if surgery were performed. Not only that, but the rupture is not to blame for any of the other issues I'm having, so it would be pointless to do anything about it in that case.
The doctor said that the pain will be a chronic issue throughout the rest of my life, but to just rely on basic treatments for it (ice, heat, over-the-counter painkillers) and take it easy when it does flare up. He said that I will most certainly "throw out" my back from seemingly normal tasks, but that when I do I should just fall back to those basic treatments and kick back to light duty until I recover. Chiropractic care was not ruled out, but I'm going to opt for that only sparingly.
Also, I have been cleared to return to the gym, but only if I stay away from the free weights and anything that will put excessive pressure on my lower back. I am also to work on back extension exercises to strengthen the supporting muscles. Otherwise, it's time for me to get back to normal.
Posted August 10, 2009 in
I Feel Sick
by Tim
Yeah, I fail pretty hard.
I had planned to call the doctor's office this morning to see if they needed me to obtain an alternate form of the MRI results. When I did, I looked at the appointment card to see what time my appointment was on Thursday. Much to my surprise the appointment is actually tomorrow, Tuesday, at 4:15.
Maybe I should have looked at the card sooner, eh? Good thing I did look at it though, because I would have let it slip by without any thought.
I had planned to call the doctor's office this morning to see if they needed me to obtain an alternate form of the MRI results. When I did, I looked at the appointment card to see what time my appointment was on Thursday. Much to my surprise the appointment is actually tomorrow, Tuesday, at 4:15.
Maybe I should have looked at the card sooner, eh? Good thing I did look at it though, because I would have let it slip by without any thought.