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649848 tn?1534633700

Sunday Weigh in May 21, 2023

Good morning, everyone.  It's a bright sunny day, here but it's going to be very hot again.   We did get a brief rain shower yesterday, but it didn't last very long or amount to much.

This has been a busy week, but relatively quiet.  I did see my hand doctor on Thursday - the fractures in my wrist haven't healed as well as we'd expected/hoped, but they are healing.  I guess when we get old, it just takes longer.  At any rate, I'm still required to wear the cast, but only when I'm out and about, doing heavy work and when I sleep -  that's for the next week, then I can stop wearing it unless I feel the need for it.  

We did schedule surgery for my left hand to be done in July.  They will have to release, both, the median and ulnar nerves in my wrist as well as at the elbow.  That means they will do 3 incisions - one in the wrist to allow access to both nerves and 2 at the elbow to access each of the nerves.  

I was also given 3 steroid injections in my hands (2 in the left for carpal tunnel and arthritis and 1 in the right for arthritis).  It can take up to 10 days for the full pain relieving effect, but it seems that they're doing better already.

My pcp's office finally provided a lab order to get my Vitamin D tested, in an effort to figure out what's going on with the elevated PTH.  I had that test done this week, as well and yes, my Vitamin is quite low, at only 23.   I have not heard from the doctor's office as to what they want me to do.  Some doctors would order megadoses of Vitamin D, but don't know what this one will do.  Of course, considering the extended response time I've been experiencing with them, it may take a while to find out!!  

So - in addition to all of that, I've really been trying to watch my food intake, but in spite of my efforts, I've gained a couple of pounds this week.  I'm inclined to blame it on the steroid injects, which I find can cause weight gain as easily as oral steroids.  That said - it could just be that I've actually eaten more than I think I have and with my walking partner gone for the summer, I'm certainly not getting the exercise I was used to when she was here.

I do try to make an effort to get outside and do "something" every day, but it's not the same as going for a walk consisting of a couple of miles.   I'll have to make a real effort to change my habits.  

So - that's my story for the week.  How have you done?  I hope you've been able to meet your goal(s) and look forward to hearing about your week.

~~Wishing everyone a wonderful, successful week~~
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Avatar universal
Hi Annie and Barb
I am up one pound. My experiment of not weighing myself everyday did not work. I ate a lot of bread this week and some cookies.

Annie I have been in therapy for panic attacks while driving. Make sure you eat something with protein before you drive. I always have magnesium gummys with me. I take my favorite purple cup with me. I call it my baby bottle. I also have a lunch bag with me. I take sunflower seeds, peanuts, and almonds. I also take chocolate and gum with me. When I feel an  attack coming on I eat my nuts or chew gum or suck on chocolate.
Magnesium helps so much with Anxiety and panic attacks.

I just did my colonoscopy. I was glad I bought baby wipes  and some crystal light lemonade powder to mix with the drink.

Barb I  glad you had your Vitamin D  tested. Staying on Vitamin D should keep you healthy and prevents cancer and other illnesses from developing.
Have a great rest of your week.
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Athena, thanks for the ideas. I'll try them. I have been taking magnesium already, since I take vitamin K and it helps with the absorption. But I think eating or drinking when I get anxious would probably help, not necessarily for the food value but to give me something else to focus on.
Vitamin D has also been associated with anxiety.  In addition, magnesium and vitamin D need each other for proper absorption.

When my doctor ordered a bank of blood tests last week, one that she ordered was Vitamin D. I'll be sure to ask her my levels.
Annie also I  ate Beef Jerky too when I was driving. It helps to eat a good meal with protein before driving too. My therapist also told me to turn on the radio and sing along.
Annie - do you not get a copy of your blood test results?  Being able to check back has changed the course of treatment for me, more than once.

That said, remember that even if your doctor tells you your vitamin D is "normal", it might not be adequate.  Vitamin D levels need to be somewhere around 50-70 to be adequate, even though the reference range goes all the way down to 30.  
Hello Athena
I'm sorry to hear you're up a pound this week, but I'm sure you'll be able to get it back off again.   Bread and cookies will certainly put pounds on me!!  lol

I'm sorry to hear that you've had trouble with anxiety/panic attacks while driving, as well.  It sounds like you've worked out several "solutions" to the problem.   I'm lucky I don't have panic attacks - with a "lunch bag" like that, I'd be eating all the time.  :-)   I think it's a great idea to have a special bottle to drink from.  I have one that I used to take with me all the time to make sure I drink enough water - it's a 20 oz bottle, so if I drank 3 of those, I'd had my quota for the day.  I've kind of gotten out of the habit of taking it with me, so thanks for the reminder.  

The nurse practitioner at my doctor's office, who I saw for my physical this year and has been handling these blood tests, told me she was ordering Vitamin D when she ordered the other blood work that included the elevated PTH and low RBC, but she didn't order it until the other tests came back out of range.  Now, it's been a couple of weeks since I had the Vitamin D test done, it's low and I still haven't heard from anyone with a plan of action.  My doctor has never been this way before, but apparently, the NP doesn't really care whether she does follow up or not.  Anyway, I took it upon myself to increase my Vitamin D intake to see what will happen.   It's really frustrating when you have to keep calling to try to get a response about something - makes me feel like they really don't care - which they probably don't!!  

Enjoy the rest of your week.  
Thanks, Barb. The note from my doctor suggested I supplement with Vitamin D. Interestingly, I often do take Vitamin D, just not every day. Can't do anything about it for a week, because I'm supposed to stop all vitamins and supplements until after the colonoscopy, but I'll pick it up again after that.
Maybe in the meantime, I can do some sitting in the sun. We're going to have good weather for a while. :-)
134578 tn?1693250592
Wow, Barb, that's some list. I hate making medical appointments, the timing is never simple and then getting there has been complicated as well. But because I've been having some chest pain and other issues, this past week I've had an EKG, a treadmill test, a chest X-ray, a lot of blood tests, my latest Covid booster, and soon I'll be up for a colonoscopy. So far the results are good, but my at-home colon screen did suggest there's more to check. It's been 13 years since I have had a colonoscopy, so with the screening result, it's time.

My weight has stayed roughly the same, this morning up .2 of a pound more than last week, but down a pound from two days ago. I don't know why it's stayed parked at this level for a while: like you, Barb, I don't think I'm eating a lot more. I think I need to sign up for an actual exercise class, there's a Pilates place near where we live, and probably only taking a class will move the needle for me on the exercise front.

My little sister has scolded me that I need to see more of our mom. This is problematic because her definition of going to see Mom is to provide Mom companionship for long stretches of the day, and do things like helping her get dressed or shift her position in her chair the proper medical way, and play games or watch TV together. I guess it sounds like a nice chance to be with my mother, but there are practical problems. I've started to have panic attacks when driving, so anywhere I go now I have to get my husband to take me, and it would take a lot of his time to drop me off and then pick me up later (a half hour one way, so two hours of his day).  I'm also the supplier of lunch and dinner at home, (my son comes home from school for lunch, and my husband can make hamburgers on the grill but that's about it). And our son has been so stressed with school that he has missed 22 classes this year, he's also lonely (no friends at the new school yet) and me giving him attention makes an obvious difference for him. My reasons for not taking shifts with Mom probably sound fake to my sisters, though. They don't have kids at home, and their ideas for what to do with my son involve "Just let him fail, he'll wake up and improve," and so on. And while they haven't exactly forgotten that I spent all my time last summer getting Mom's house ready to sell, by now faced with different things Mom needs, my past efforts don't give me a bye. The fact that Mom and I aren't close doesn't help ... if she was healthy, I'd probably see her once in 8 months. My sister is concerned that Mom will be lonely, a valid concern, so I have to think of some way to connect all the dots on this. Thank heavens summer is coming.

Well, didn't mean to dump all that in a weight-loss post! (Though, it certainly might be playing a part in my weight.) Hope everyone has a great week!



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ps -- I just found out that the colonoscopy my doctor recommends I have (it's been 13 years since my last one) is going to be June 1. There's that weight-loss diet coming right on! lol and ugh
It sounds like you've had plenty going on, as well.   Sorry to hear about the chest pains, but good that tests are coming back okay.  Ugh!! on the colonoscopy.  It didn't take long to get that scheduled.   I never seem to lose any weight when I go on that special "diet", even though it would seem a sure thing.  lol

I understand the problems with visiting your mom for long periods of time.  It would seem easier if your sister could be happy with you going more often and not staying all day.  Most of us don't have an entire day to spend at an ALF.  When my Auntie was in the ALF, we went a couple (or more) times/week, but only stayed an hour or so at a time.    I know it's necessary to check up often to make sure she's getting good care, but having someone there all day, every day seems a bit excessive.  The ALF Auntie was in had a lot of activities the residents could participate in.  Auntie didn't usually participate, but she did enjoy some of the musical times, etc that they had most days.

I'm sorry to hear about the panic attacks when you drive.  Any idea what might have brought that on?   You haven't mentioned your son and his school issues, so I was hoping he might be having a better year, but it doesn't sound like it.   Loneliness can be pretty hard on teenagers (and yes - on their parents, as well).  

You shouldn't be sorry about putting the problems into a weight loss post.  We know that things happening in our daily lives can make weight loss more difficult - stress is especially problematic because of the cortisol produced when we're stressed.  

I'm not sure what's up, but I've managed to drop a couple of the pounds I'd picked up over the weekend, so we'll see how long they stay off.  

Have a good rest of the week.  
The panic attacks probably arose due to needing to cope with life events that haven't been in my control, which of course is also the case in a nutshell when driving. I'm thinking of doing one of those driving-simulator therapies to desensitize, so I can get past finding aggressive other drivers so stressful.

Barb, good work on dropping a couple of pounds -- I'll bet they stay off! I'm going to lighten my diet more every day getting ready for the colonoscopy, and hope to see at least a couple of pounds come off! :-)
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