Monday, May 7, 2012

Fitness Challenge Update #8

Another week, another post about losing weight. Although these updates have become an update about completely different things now.

We'll start with the weight. I got on the scale each day this week (because, although I know I shouldn't, I can't help it, call it OCD), and things changed drastically day by day. Tuesday morning: 253 (Woohoo!). Wednesday 254.8 (Aww). Thursday 256 (Dammit!). Friday 251.8 (Woah! Really?). Saturday 251.6 (Still?). Sunday 251.0 (Yes! This is real!). And this morning, despite eating pizza (Pizza!) for dinner on Sunday, I still weighed 251.6. That's what? Five pounds down from last week? That's really good. I didn't expect to reach this level until perhaps two weeks from now. So, I'm pretty stoked. I wanted to be able to get to 245 before the June 1st deadline of the contest, and now it's starting to seem like a possibility.

What could stand in the way of that is my overall health. I got the chest X-ray results back last week. The doctor said my heart is normal, not enlarged. So, Dilated Cardiomyopathy is not what I have after all.

They did say that I have a granuloma in my left lung, however. Granulomas, according to Wikipedia, is when there is some foreign contaminant in your body that your immune system can't eliminate, so it instead walls it off completely, quarantining it instead. People get granulomas in their lungs when they have tuberculosis fairly often, so I was ordered to get a TB test. As I suspected, due to the lack of coughing and the like, the TB test came up negative. The doctor thinks that what is actually walled off in there is something called Valley Fever, which is common to people who have spent time in Central Valley, California, where my home town of Sacramento is. It's a fungal thing, and my immune system has sealed it off. The doctor says it will always be there. Just in case, I'm supposed to get another X-ray in six months, to be sure it's not growing, because then it might be something else.

So, what the crap do I have? Who friggin' knows. The doctor I've been seeing seems to have lost sight of the end goal here, like he's been distracted by the test results. I went in to see the doctor in the first place because my legs suddenly became insufferably painful and fatigued. I was working out five days a week, and suddenly, I couldn't even work out one day a week.

We did some blood tests, and the one for C-Reactive Protein came up really high. That got us on the trail of Cardiomyopathy. Which got us on the trail of a granuloma. Now that they're all eliminated, he seems to think we're done. BUT I'M STILL IN PAIN ALL THE TIME!!! We're not done, Mr. Doctor. What's next?

Well, he says we should run the C-Reactive Protein test again in two months to see if it's come down or not. But the CRP is not why we started this whole thing!

This ordeal makes me think of my mother's experience with the medical profession. She had various health problems, and went in to see doctors enough that they thought she was some kind of kook. They ignored her, wrote her complaints of as psychosomatic bullshit, and she died of cancer that tore her insides apart when I was fourteen years old.

Needless to say, I don't want to be like my mom. I don't want to suffer my way to an early death while being ignored or mistreated by doctors. I worry about my liver. I'm getting by right now by taking two extra-strength Tylenols in the morning and two more at night. But how long can my liver keep processing that stuff without damage? And even with that, I still don't feel good enough to exercise, so I can't get more healthy.

What suggestions do those of you in the readership have for me? I'm pretty irritated, but I'm at a loss. Do I go see a different doctor? Wait the two months while taking Tylenol every day? Take my own life now to save me the trouble? I'm open for suggestions.

6 comments:

Case_Sensitive said...

I'd go to a different doctor. Doctors don't realize that we know out bodies the best, we should know when something isn't right. Don't take no for an answer, as we are our own best advocates. Good luck and keep us posted.

Leo Godin said...

I just started the Bullet Proof diet a week ago. Not much experience yet, but I feel great and I'm losing weight.

The more I research, the more it seems like various health problems are caused by problems the gut. Most are dietary. Try giving up wheat and sugar for a week. See how you feel.

You can also try intermittent fasting with Bullet Proof coffee for breakfast -- coffee, three tablespoons of grass fed butter, two tablespoons of coconut oil. (try to find low mycotoxin coffee. Single-origin, wet-pressed coffee from Central America is good.) That's all I've been having for breakfast, and I don't get hungry until well past noon. I don't even snack anymore.

Like I said, I'm new to it, but I met with my health coach at work, and he really liked the diet.

They have information on the diet and a podcast -- what I listen to in between Dunesteef episodes -- at their site.
http://www.bulletproofexec.com/

Shiny_Object said...

My advice would be to go see a different doctor, get a second opinion. Or a third, if need be. Pain is your body's way of telling you that something is wrong. And being in pain all the time is not acceptable, bottom line.

Jason said...

My boyfriend keeps running into similar problems with Drs who just don't seem to care any more. While switching Drs is a good idea, he has done tons and tons of research online and in books trying to find cases that match his symptoms, and then shows up to the office with a folder full of data. That usually helps make the Dr at least listen.

Renee said...

I'm glad your heart looks fine, but I agree about finding another Dr. Something is wrong or you wouldn't feel so bad. I hope you can find someone who will help figure out what's going on so you can feel better.

Unknown said...

I'm glad to hear that you are probably not dying, Big (at least not any faster than everyone else). I will add my voice to the chorus that says go see another Doctor. As you said, your guy has currently lost sight of what the initial problem was.