Spring is in the air

Really, it is. Look at the calendar. It’s springtime. OK, so I had a fire going in the woodstove this afternoon, wore a hat and gloves to work yesterday and haven’t yet removed the down comforter from our bed, but it's spring in New England just the same. Though we’ve had rain and downpours the past few days and parts of our yard are like a swamp, we know how lucky we are to have escaped any damage from the storms. And I discovered that Cooper loves water be it rain or in the shower. He enjoys getting wet which means we must get wet also. The joys of pet ownership…

I want to thank all of you for your help with locating more Kaopectate caplets. Thanks to all of you I got about 30 days worth. We still haven’t found a replacement, but we are working on that. I have cleared out all the internet pharmacies and shops (and ebay auctions), the Brooks Drug warehouse and every Brooks in MA and RI. During a recent trip to PA I was able to locate two more boxes in an Eckerd. I feel like an addict – every time I see a drugstore I have to pull in and take a look. So thanks again I really appreciate your time, effort and suggestions. And if you find any more, I’ll take it.

I’ve been lax with updating lately and I know that causes some of you to worry. I apologize. My excuse is mostly laziness, with a little indifference and frustration mixed in. I don’t have anything new to report, but I do have some old stuff to update. Basically what has happened is that over the past month my diarrhea has gotten worse. And by worse I mean back to almost 20 times a day. It’s now officially affecting my quality of life. I am able to continue working, but that’s about all. Every decision I make is based on eating and access to a bathroom. It’s gotten old. Travel in any form is out of the question. This does nothing to improve my mood.

Acupuncture and the lovely dirt tea that I’ve been drinking have not helped either. My acupuncturist shakes her head each time I come in and tell her that things have not improved. She really is trying all that she has, but I know she is delving into new territory and the usual stuff just won’t work for me.

Since my usual crew of doctors and specialists have no idea what to do with me and my last experience with a gastroenterologist did not work out, I’ve been hesitant to look for anyone new. But I made a deal with Pat, so we’ve started the process all over again. After talking to a family friend, we decided that perhaps the best thing we could do would be start all over again. I’ve been against trying any new doctor, insisting on keeping all my medical care at Mt. Auburn so that the doctors could access all my records, but that doesn’t seem to be helping. And it’s getting to be a drag spending 2 hours commuting for a 20 minute appointment.

We are looking for a new gastroenterologist, preferably out here in the sticks; though we’ll go wherever we need to if someone thinks they can help me. Then we will start from scratch – let them do all the non-invasive and simple initial tests (blood work, stool samples, physical exam) to rule out the basics. I am going to avoid self-diagnosing and try whatever they ask of me. Anyone who knows me, knows this is not something I say easily. The only thing I will negotiate is when/if they suggest a colonoscopy. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Before I refuse any tests I need to find a gastro and put myself completely in his (or her) hands. (Unless he also fixates on IV feeding and doesn’t make any other suggestions to me. I also realize now that Dr. R never ordered any tests, blood work or otherwise on me. He just simply kept telling me I had to gain weight in order to slow things down – guess I proved him wrong since I did gain the weight, but didn’t slow the system down).

So that’s where things stand for now. I’ve got a CT scan and appointment with Dr. Lange next week, so I’ll update after that.

Posted by jean at April 18, 2007 08:06 PM