Don,

am wearing a girdle/binder for support, and while I can
drive again, I'm still using the girdle/binder when lifting

Take it very easy...even after getting rid of the girdle. Am glad to
hear it went well without all the drama & such.

I hate to see the overnight hospital bill...but with no family member
to stay with me, and all our friends working with families, it's nearly impossible to get someone to stay with us overnight...even if we could
get a driver to and from the facility. With being on a fixed income, I
likely can get that written off.

My brother is in worse physical shape than I am, having nearly been
killed in a freak motorcycle wreck not 3 months after my wife died of
a heart attack over 13 years ago, not 3 months after I lost my Dad to pancreatic cancer. We have no other family in the local area (we are
the last of our line, as it were)...the other relatives are out of
state, and there's no way they can come here to take care of us, or
vice versa.

I am taking it easy...I surely don't want to undo the surgery.

Even had to take a colon test a couple of months ago. At 58...they said
I was normal. Hearing that...I cried for joy. The reason...have had the "truck driver's syndrome" since my early 20's & didn't want anything causing more pain than what I feel through the years.

I've had several colonoscopies over the years...some have had nothing,
and others had benign polyps...but no cancer. I doubt any family has
escaped that scourge. I lost an uncle to colon cancer...my Dad and his
sister to pancreatic cancer...and my grandmother to lung cancer.

While the prep work for the colonoscopy is a PITA (especially with hemorrhoids), unlike most other cancers...colon cancer is one of the
most preventable. But, it is the second greatest killer of men and
women, right behind (no pun intended) heart disease and breast cancer.

It's too bad we can't use the gas afterwards in our vehicles.
Otherwise, I'd get a pallet of Bush's Baked Beans, ask Duke for
the secret formula, and tell OPEC what they can do with their gas
prices. <G>

But, the abdominal pain from diverticulitis is worse than a woman's
monthly cycle.

Just before my wife and I got married, she had to have a colonoscopy
done. When I went to pick her up, they thought her married name was
what her maiden name was, and when they addressed me as that, I said
"Not quite". When she talked to her Mom (who's black, and her Dad is white...but they're both a couple of nuts <G>), she said "I'll bet you
didn't think you had a son that looked like him!!" <BG>.

Daryl

... Home Alone is when you can poop with the door open.
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Daryl Stout wrote to Don Lowery <=-

Even had to take a colon test a couple of months ago. At 58...they said
I was normal. Hearing that...I cried for joy. The reason...have had the "truck driver's syndrome" since my early 20's & didn't want anything causing more pain than what I feel through the years.

I've had several colonoscopies over the years...some have had
nothing, and others had benign polyps...but no cancer. I doubt any
family has escaped that scourge. I lost an uncle to colon cancer...my
Dad and his sister to pancreatic cancer...and my grandmother to lung cancer.

Colon cancer runs in my family on my mom's side - 2 great uncles died
from it, and my mother was successfully treated years ago. I've been
getting regular colonoscopies since I was 40. I'm 54 now.

The laxative prep is a pain, but given that beer is OK beforehand,
living on jello, broth and beer is an interesting experience.




... Twist the spine
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Don,

It's like the taglines "Marriage is SAME SEX -- the same sex all over again!!", and "Sex is a Misdemeanor. The more ya miss, da meaner ya
get". <G>

Very true. The 1st question I asked myself when I got served was who am
I going to have sex with now?

Well, aside from masturbation, abstinence, being with a faithful partner,
and "one safe humping another", that's the only "safe sex" available. :P

Or as ventriloquist Jeff Dunham's dummy, Walter noted...in describing
"oral sex". Walter's wife said "screw you", and he replied "bite me". :P

There is 1 more option...wonder how the hospital/insurance companies
would like to have reporters bringing this on the nightly news?

I've been able to get a payment plan set up, or it written off...
especially when I show my disability letter from Social Security.

I can tell you that the walls are not naturally that color...because originally being white or something close to that doesn't match what
you should've ended up with at that time. ;D

Actually, the color of ones [poop] can be an indicator of something
more serious. If it's black, it means internal bleeding...and if it's
another color, it's a bile issue with the liver. There are other things
in a thread I have on the BBS called "The Scoop On Poop"...but I moved
the QWK Mail and my terminal client to the laptop computer in my room.
The BBS is in my late parents bedroom.

kind of squelches that idea. The thing is, if it's a possible tornado
to my southwest, I'm going to stay awake for it.

That is something I never missed all these years.

Well, sometimes you can't stay awake...but hearing loud hail, a loud
roar, or tornado sirens, tends to get your attention.

Daryl

... I'm not speeding...I'm chasing tornadoes!
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Dallas,

Regretfully, permission denied. Survivor echo is not a place for regurgitation of published (or unpublished!) articles; it is a place
for people to discuss their issues and to offer support to others.
There are other places to get detailed medical information. WebMD is
very good for that, but frankly, the gruesome details of someone's
illness aren't what we're here for.

Thanks for asking!

I decided not to do it after all...and that was before I saw the post
you made.

Daryl

... Sign on a Maternity Room Door: Push!! Push!! Push!!
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Hi, Daryl -- on Aug 22 2020 at 20:31, you wrote:

I decided not to do it after all...and that was before I saw the post
you made.

Super - a wise decision, I think. Thanks!


Cheers... Dallas

--- timEd/NT 1.30+
* Origin: The BandMaster, Vancouver, CANADA (1:153/7715)

Hi, Daryl! Recently you wrote in a message to Ardith Hinton:

Even had to take a colon test a couple of months ago.

Seems to me you're in good company... [wry grin].

My next one is in April. But, I'm going to do the Citrate
of Magnesia, and the Ducolax. That My-Lytely stuff sucks
...the acid reflux I had reacted so with it, it felt like
my esophagus throat were on fire...so I couldn't finish
the prep work.

Dallas & I both used Colyte, because that's what the local pharmacy had, and found it reasonably tolerable. I could ask our friend again what she was so impressed by... but I guess you've established what works for you. :-)

When I first had the rectal bleeding (red), I thought it
was cancer. But, if it's red, it's hemorrhoids.

Or skin tags, which are also close to the surface & may be found in both males & females. What matters here AFAIK is that blood looks red when it has been exposed to oxygen but hasn't gone through the digestive system. When you have a stool test for occult ("hidden") blood the idea is that it can't be seen by the naked eye & is identified by chemical tests. If the specimens one provides are contaminated with blood from the rectum a colonoscopy may be next on the agenda because there's no other way to be sure what's going on.... :-)

When my doctor said "you've got the same thing women get
from having babies", I growled "I'm not a woman, and men
can't have babies".

No... but they can strain at stool, as some folks put it, and I was instructed to reproduce this action during the final stage of childbirth. :-)

When he did a flexsigmoidoscopy on me (I was not sedated
for that, and the cramping was awful), he said "Look!!
Your colon on TV!!". I growled "I want to change the
channel!! Where are the dancing girls??".

Very good. Stay as sweet as you are... [ROFL].

I have a 13 page med list of all my surgeries, conditions,
medicines, doctors, specialists, etc. The only thing it
doesn't have is a full front and full back nude photo of me.
Then, it would be "Everything you wanted to know about me
medically...but were afraid to ask". <G> If I'm going for a
full physical, a procedure, or an emergency room visit, I
print the full med list.

Dallas & do likewise. It saves all concerned time & effort, and it helps ensure the junior Dr. assigned to taking the history gets it right. :-Q




--- timEd/386 1.10.y2k+
* Origin: Wits' End, Vancouver CANADA (1:153/716)

Hi, Daryl! Recently you wrote in a message to Ardith Hinton:

...then said "See, Mom?? It's just farts!!" :P

But the stench of the methane is an indication of that
the bacteria in your colon are doing their job in
digesting the food.

According to both of my favourite dictionaries methane, despite its reputation, is odourless. However, it seems to me that whenever decomposition involves large numbers of anaerobic bacteria the smell can be pretty bad. :-)

Right now, the prescription strength Prilosec is taking
care of the acid reflux...the OTC version isn't strong
enough, and they only let you take that for 2 weeks.

With OTC drugs the manufacturers want to make sure you're not using the product on a long-term basis without seeking medical advice. When you do, your doctor may prescribe a stronger dose or tell you it's okay to go on using the stuff. Either way you're acting under supervision from a person qualified to determine what's going on. WRT some ailments symptomatic relief may be the best one can expect... OTOH, self-treatment may hide more serious issues. :-)

I know that they can't really treat arthritis, and I have
it all through my body (confirmed by X-Ray).

Archaeologists have found arthritis in the bones of humans who were in their 20's when they died, and IIRC such a person commented that anyone who lives long enough will get it eventually. Sometimes it's painful... sometimes it's not. Because the pain tends to come & go, and because different remedies may affect different people in different ways, there are no easy answers. :-)



[re urine]

If it's brown, it's concentrated, but one could be
getting dehydrated (that can also lead to kidney stone
formation).

I noticed that during a heat wave when our daughter was still using the potty & had been given an antibiotic which resulted in diarrhea. It's not hard, under such conditions, to monitor the volume of urinary output.... :-))

If it's red, it's either hematuria (blood in the urine),
or one has eaten beets (those who like these, can have
my portion <G>).

I'm told other foods can also have this effect, but my first & only experience with it occurred a few hours after I ate multi-coloured nacho chips at a restaurant I'd never visited before. Thanks to Uncle Google we were able to see that the red ones must have been dyed with beetroot juice... [chuckle].



[re the "baby talking" nurse]

The nurse fainted dead away...and never bothered him
again. <G>

Alternatively, you may be able to get rid of certain people just by telling the unvarnished truth. Years ago I was in the gynaecology ward of one of our local hospitals, i.e. a teaching hospital. Since I'd dutifully watched the required film about hysterectomy (together with most of the other patients in the ward) it wasn't difficult to guess why most were there. However, I was there for another reason... and I figured so was my roommate, who looked to be about 15 years old. When a young doctor came into the room & asked permission to do an internal exam of Yours Truly I was puzzled as to what he thought he'd be able to see, considering I was bleeding. I guess folks like him need folks like me to practise on... but I also realize teens may be very sensitive about such things. When, as an afterthought, he enquired why I was there I told him calmly & quietly that I was having a miscarriage. He immediately fled & never showed his face again. I can't help wondering who would choose gynaecology if s/he can't stand the sight of blood. Perhaps it wasn't his choice, but I hope he's now learned to read the charts before initiating various procedures. :-Q




--- timEd/386 1.10.y2k+
* Origin: Wits' End, Vancouver CANADA (1:153/716)

Well, I thought I'd give folks an update...from Doctor Quackenbush...
aka Groucho Marx...who noted "Either this man is dead, or my watch has stopped". <G>

Seriously, I was concerned that I had glaucoma, as they suspected
such on an eye exam in March. A follow-up this last week showed that
my corneas were nice and thick, with an eye pressure of 9 in the left
eye, and 11 in the right (the highest it has ever been in either eye
has been 14). I think the threshold for glaucoma is 21. So, while I
do have astigmatism and double vision in the right eye at times, he
said I don't have to go back until December. One eye has always been
worse than the other...before and after cataract surgery 11 years ago.
I went from 20/2000 visual acuity before the surgery to 20/20 afterwards.

My appointments for blood work and a physical exam with my PCP, and procedures with my urologist are 3 months late. In mid-February, two
back to back snowstorms hit the central Arkansas area...and one of my
clinics suffered significant water damage...so much so, that they were
closed for a month...then they had a huge backlog of patients. The
urology clinic was shut down, but they didn't have water damage. However,
they did have a backlog in patients.

Anyway, at the PCP blood draw, they thought I was dehydrated, as the
blood out of my left arm was real thick. I have been drinking a half
gallon of diet green tea citrus a day, as it's a diuretic...which has
kept me free of kidney stones for over a year now...and the caffeine
keeps the migraine headaches away. Well, at the urology clinic, out of
the right arm, they got the blood to flow just fine. I wasn't thirsty
at the time...but I had such a migraine sinus headache yesterday (June
28) that I ate and drank very little...since I couldn't hold my eyes
open (I did very little computer/BBS work), and slept much of Monday.
I can't just drink water, as it sets my colon off...but the diet green
tea doesn't. Drinking excess water for me is like I was swigging prune juice...and we all know what that does. :P

After a car wreck in January (which wasn't my fault), I had to
undergo $9100 of chiropractic care (but I didn't have to pay for
it). I bought a pre-owned car (Uber was costing $40 a day), but had
to pay for repairs on it (pre-owned cars are sold AS IS, with NO
WARRANTY).

Then, a device in one of the bathroom toilets failed, causing
the tank to overflow, flooding both bathrooms. I had to dig into
some of that insurance money because of medical, transportation,
and other issues. I'm to see if I can get a bare bones bathroom
rebuild in the coming days...but everyone has agreed that "if I
didn't have my health, it wouldn't do any good getting the bathrooms
fixed". I cried several days either side of my birthday over 3 months
ago...and nearly hung up on my cousin when she called, as I was so
distraught. I still haven't been able to schedule an upper and lower
GI, due to cost. Right now, there are no sinks or vanities in either
bathroom, the offending toilet has been shut down, and they have
stuff in the shower area. I have to go out to the kitchen to wash
my hands, but at least I still have one working toilet.

I won't know the bloodwork results for at least a week...and likely
will have to resume low-T treatments. If I become type 2 diabetic, that
will be a major game changer.

Daryl

... Who needs veggies and nutrition? Give me the luscious fat!!
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Just over 4 hours after the anesthesia took effect, they were
discharging me to go home. I just have to take it easy for a few
days, but otherwise, I feel great. The doctor who did the procedure,
came highly recommended...several noted that "she's one of the best
in the central Arkansas area".

Daryl,
Good to hear that the procedure went well!

Mike


* SLMR 2.1a * Arnold Layne, don't do it again!
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