I have finally passed about 5 kidney stones in the past week and I am not feeling nauseous anymore, THANK GOODNESS!!! This week I have felt like myself and I am glad because it has been about a month of sickness. I had a follow up appointment with the nurse practitioner on Monday and my blood pressure was back down to where it needs to be. My blood sugar was fine when I went to see Dr. Cunningham last week so I knew I had nothing to worry about when I went to see her on Monday. Yesterday afternoon I turned in the last 4 spit tests that were ordered by Dr. Quinn, so hopefully I will hear something early next week. I am so anxious to get all of this over with so I can be on the road to recovery. I am trying to get the rest of my life in order right now, everything is unorganized and a mess. Tonight I am plain warn out from working a 14 hour shift, but hopefully tomorrow I will get some rest.I know that I would not have been able to pull a 14 hours shift last week, it would have killed me.
So between being sick for over a month, holidays, birthday celebrations, and not paying attention to what I have been consuming my glucose levels have been up and down and I need to get back on track. Monday is the first of the month and I already getting myself ready to start my normal routine. I pack myself breakfast and lunch measuring out my sugars and carbohydrates and bring snacks just in case. I need to restock my medicine holder and make sure I have needles and test strips ordered. Today I have to stop by walgreens to pick up more prescriptions that have been waiting for me for 2 days. I really need to make a to do list for tonight after work because I have to open tomorrow morning. I guess my goals this week are to find out when all of my doctors appointment are coming up, call shands, get my medication and glucose levels in order.
I hate the misconceptions that people get kidney stones because they drink too much soda. I don't drink that much soda first of all, and by the way my body produces uric acid (spelling?) that give me kidney stones.
I have spent the last two weeks on and off of the couch with stomach pain, nausea, and kidney pain. Yesterday morning I had to go to a Milkshake Training Seminar at our Belleview store and I woke up at 6:45am feeling so nausea I thought I was going to die. After taking a long hot shower I left for work because as much as I wanted to call in sick I had to be there. I had a conference that was mandated by the state later that morning as well, and I could not get out of. In the middle of the meeting/training session I got sick, and I had to go to the bathroom twice. I puked about 5 times and I felt so much better. So before I could call the doctor I had to train some people at my store and then wait for the appointment. I hate going to the office (Dr. Cunningham's) because it's the same old song and dance and nothing ever changes. He gives me medicine and tells me to drink plenty of fluids and get rest!!!
After I was done with work I went to see Dr. Cunningham's, and the receptionist told me that she could let me see the nurse. I gave a specimens, and then she did the whole song and dance of what I have been feeling like. So what ended up happening is that Dr. C was in the office and wanted to see me since I came in. I had X-Ray's done and then a little chat with Dr. C.
He gave me 3 prescriptions, and then let me know that the stones are getting bigger and that seems to be why I have been having more trouble with them. He wants to see me in 3 weeks, and if they keep getting bigger than he wants to schedule surgery AGAIN!!!!!
So we shall see how things go, I'm not looking forward to having another surgery on top of the cushings surgery coming up but what can you do? I can only control so much in my life and I have to keep myself healthy.
So I was able to get some rest but I woke up at 2:30am, and I have been up doing things ever since. It's time for me to go to work now and I am feeling a little better, just tired. I only have a few things to do after work today and then I am going to come home and get some rest.
Diabetes is a challenge for me and I find myself in a battle with it everyday. This morning my sugar is high, it's at 177 and my vision is blurry in one of my eyes. I didn't take my insulin last night, I totally forgot...I need to set up my medicine alarms on my phone again.
Everyday it's measure how much carbs and sugars I am eating, what time is it can I eat or is it time to check my sugar, more medicine, oh my sugar is getting low it's time for a snack, and then the if I eat this I can't have that. It can become a pain in the butt. It can get to the point where I wish that meals don't have to be such a planned out situation and I just become tired of having o work so hard. I guess you could say I get tired of my diabetes.
It's something that I have to deal with everyday and I win the battle more than I loose against it. I just have to make sure I have my head on straight and my game face on. When life feels a mess and it just gets out of control at work or outside of work that is when it seems the hardest for me to manage my diabetes. I understand how hard it can be to always take medicine and not want to at times. Pricking my finger, taking medicine, giving myself shots, just gets old and annoying.
So instead of thinking of how hard it can be or how much of a pain in the ass it really is I try to take a different approach. First of all if I don't take care of myself I am going to die, and if that doesn't give me a reality check of what I have to do...."Life is scary, get use to it there are no magical fixes. It's all up to you. So get up off your keister, get out, and go start doing' the work. Nothing in this world that's worth having comes easy." Bob Kelso- Scrubs
So I'll grab some breakfast and take my medicine and measure out everything like I always do. With any luck I will be able to win the battle today. Of course half the battle with be getting my sugar down to a normal level because it is very high.
So Tuesday I saw blood in my urine and for me that is one of the first signs of getting a kidney stone. No UTI this time, which is a blessing- I hate them and they hate me!!!! I have been feeling sore and my back has been hurting so I knew what was going on. I don't even go to see my urologist anymore- he will take films, tell me I have a stone, give me pain medicine, and tell me to drink plenty of fluids, oh and to call him if I start to feel an infection come on. I don't like taking the medicine, it makes me feel bad. I get really nauseous most of the time, my stomach cramps, my sides hurt, and so does my bladder. Most of the time I feel like I have to pee, however when I go to the bathroom I can't pee. Hot baths, heating pads, and hot showers make me feel better...they suppress the pain.
Wednesday I woke up feeling horrible and I could tell that it was not going to be a good day for my body. I slept in until around 12 or 1 in the afternoon and then I laid on the couch until I had to get a shower and get ready for work. On the way to work I tried to get mentally focused since I was hurting so bad, but by 8 or 9 at night I was in tears and so damn tired of being sick I couldn't take it anymore. I had a sinus infection, my kidneys were killing me, I had puked up my dinner, and my stomach was cramping. I was able to get someone to cover my 11-3 the next day so I would be able to come in at 5 instead of working a 12 hour shift. The rest was well needed. I slept in until 3 in the afternoon on Thursday but I was still having trouble keeping food in my stomach so I used my nausea medicine. My mom gave me some nausea medicine and some pain medicine. I didn't want to go see my urologist Dr. Cunningham- he really needs to work on his bedside manner. He is a pompous ass and he has no solutions to why I keep getting all of these kidney stones even though he has me on medication. Now I know that it is a part of this Cushings Disease/ Syndrome.
Thursday night I was just so exhausted physically and my stomach killed me most of the day but I took medicine and drank plenty of fluids. Friday I was feeling better but by the time I got home I was warn out. Saturday was much better, we were busy at work, I had some extra work I barely got done, I didn't have to take any medicine for the pain or my stomach...and I felt a little more rested.
So it's 2 in the morning on Sunday now and I am about to turn in and get some rest, it's hard to explain to my co-workers and my family how one minute I can feel great and the next I can feel so horrifically sick.
I wish I would pass this kidney stone I know physically and mentally I would be able to feel so much better. As much relief as I have now that I know why I have all these symptoms I am so ready to have this surgery and get started on my journey to recovery. The more I learn about all of this the more I understand and see that it is going to take a long time to get my body back in good shape and health. Monday I will be able to turn in my 4 spit test and I will hopefully hear from Dr. Quinn's and Dr. Ropper's office at Shands. This is just a part of my life that I have to learn from and overcome. I can do anything I put my mind to, after all life could be much harder. So God bless to everyone and goodnight.
Today I went to the doctor so I could get rid of this horrific sinus infection that I have had for over a week. My blood pressure was high and her concern turned to that. It was 160/97 which is high, even for me which usually stays at 135/80. She wants to see me in two weeks and she said that she would like to put me on another medicine if it doesn't go down. The only thing is that Dr. Young and Dr. Quinn are both my Endocrinologist and I would prefer them to place me on another or different kind of medicine. The nurse practitioner was really nice and concerned, but I feel more comfortable talking with my doctors who know more about me than someone I have seen once. I had to go and see her today because Dr. Young was busy and could not fit me in today.
Sometimes I really feel like my health is against me. I have a kidney stone right now. I had blood in my urine yesterday and today and that is always how it starts for me. I hate them and I have been having them for 5 years, I am taking oral medicine but they just keep on coming back for me and my urologist can't seem to understand why. He is pretty much a big bag of dumb because he just says it's something that I have to live with. (what a stupid fuck if you ask me!!!)
So while I was in the doctor's office Shands called me today and left me a message. I had to wait for Brandy to get back from lunch and then she told me that Dr. Roper was in the OR and she would have to call me back tomorrow. I mean hells bells people- I really would like to schedule this surgery and get the recovery process on it's way.
It's all a matter of time, and this is not going to be easy or quick.
Upper body obesity, heavy rounded face (moon face), increased fat around the neck (buffalo hump), bruise easily, burn (sun burn) easily, purple and pink stretch marks (abdomen, thighs, breast, and arms), backaches, excess hair growth, irregular menstrual cycles, severe fatigue, mood swings, weak muscles, high blood pressure, high blood glucose (lead me to my early diabetes), increased thirst and urination, irritability, anxiety, depression, kidney stones, migraine's, and sleep apnea.
Interesting Facts about Cushings:
*Affects 10-15 people per million
*Affects women 5 times more than Men
(csrf.net for more deatials)
I spent most of last night looking and learning more about this syndrome/disease I have. I just keep on thinking when did all of this start with me, and how am I going to be able to recover from it?!? I was asked by my doctor (one of them) on my last visit when he thinks that all of my symptoms started. I really want to say that they became most visible when I was first diagnosed with kidney stones in 2005. That's 4-5 years ago, and the more I learn about all of this disease the more I think I have had this tumor on my pituitary glad since I was in my teens. I guess that I will start off with a time line, it will organize my thoughts and help me place some things together!
June 2005- Kidney Stones
August 2005 - Lithotripsy for Kidney Stones
*I was placed on Allipurinol, but I still keep getting stones. My urologist Dr. Cunningham cannot understand why I keep getting them, he just throws pain pills at me and tells me that they are something that I am going to have to live with.
May 2008- Diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes
September 2008- Had a change of Doctors and I am placed with a specialist named Dr. Lisa Young (love her)
January 2009- First tested for Cortisol levels, results were normal
August 2009- Tested once again for Cortisol Levels, they came up abnormal this time (150)
September 2009-
(10)Test are coming back abnormally and I have Cushing disease. I have too many related symptoms that cannot be ignored.
(22) Had my first serious doctor appointment about what having this disease really means. Blood test to see if the cortisol is coming adrenal or pituitary.
November 2009-
*My MRI_That was just the worst thing EVER- It took 1 hour in the box.
*Finally referral to Shands, for a Endocrinologist with Dr. Quinn
*Love Dr. Quinn, she is awesome, but it's time for more test. Spit test, 3 and time to get more records from Dr. Young's Office/ they can't seem to send any of my records correctly.
December 2009-
I have been referred to Dr. Roper @ Shands!!!! This is the doctor appointment that sticks out so well in my mind. We went over the surgery procedures and did a lot of talking, and the next time we will see him will be to set up a surgery date.
More urine and blood tests to get done, and then hopefully I will be able to get a date.
January 2010-
(6)Waiting on Spit test, I have to go have more done....more!!!!!!
I keep on educating myself and hopefully I will be able to send out another email to my friends and family about what is going on with me. I am ready to get a date setup for this surgery. I want to be able to get the road to recovery started, the sooner the better.
