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Sunday Weigh-In September 29, 2019
Good morning... How is everyone this morning? It looks like it's going to be another hot day, here - I'm SO looking forward to cooler weather but it's beginning to look like it's going to be a while before we get any even though fall is in the air, with leaves turning colors, falling off some of the trees, etc... At least, we're down to only one storm in the Atlantic and the track has it going off to the east, towards, UK, I think so we're out of that one.
This week has been pretty quiet, which was nice for a change. I'm just waiting for time to pass so I can get to some of my doctor's appointments. I have a dermatology appointment coming up tomorrow. Hopefully, I'll find out what's causing my itchy skin and the red blotch on my leg. My dermatologist has removed spots on my back in an effort to resolve my itching, but it hasn't worked. He's prescribed a steroid cream for the blotch on my leg; that didn't work either, nor have the variety of OTC products I've tried, ranging from hydrocortisones to lotions and/or antibiotics.
My nails have also begun to split, crack and peel so maybe the dermatologist will take a look at those as well... *I* believe that whatever is going on with my skin is associated with what's going on with my nails and I also believe that those are associated with what's going on with my stomach. I mentioned this to the assistant at the gastro's office and she said "well, that might be, but each doctor tends to deal with their own thing, so the gastroenterologist isn't going to worry about your skin/nail or weight problems and the dermatologist isn't going to be concerned about your digestive problems." Whoa - there... I know she's right to a certain extent, but don't they connect symptoms anymore to come up with a condition that affects the whole body? No, I guess not. That's left to the primary care doctor who isn't trained in gastroenterology, dermatology or endocrinology... that's why s/he sends us to specialists.
Anyway, we'll see what the dermatologist has to say tomorrow and my gastroenterology appointment is coming up on the 9th. I know that one is going to end with an appointment for a colonoscopy because I'm overdue and even I know it's important to stay current because my brother that just passed away was a colon cancer survivor and I've had polyps removed during prior colonoscopies. Add all the other cancers in my family and I'm a prime candidate for colon cancer.
I've been trying to get back out to my shop and start working on some things. I have an order for 3 of the ink pens I make, plus a couple I need to make for gifts of my own and a request to bring some to a meeting next month. I don't know if I mentioned that I've also joined a calligraphy guild and took one class a couple of weeks ago. I've been practicing on that in preparation to help man a booth at the local Art Walk next Friday evening, so I'm starting to get a bit busy, which is good.
Weight-wise, I'm up by 0.4 lbs - wow; I wasn't really expecting that. I've been back at going for a short walk many evenings, even if not every one and I'm really trying to cut back on what I'm eating. I guess I'm not cutting back enough. I do have to keep in mind that it was early this morning when I weighed so if I follow true to form, I'll be down by about a pound later on, so I'll post that later if it happens...
I do believe a lot of these symptoms - the itchy, blotchy skin, nail issues, weight gain, and of course, the never ending fatigue, are all thyroid-related. My thyroid hormone levels have been declining steadily the last 3 times I've been tested, but my doctor keeps telling me they're "fine" because they're within the reference ranges. This is what so many people run up against with thyroid issues and it's so hard to fight against, because if the doctor won't prescribe an increased dosage, one is stuck. Trying a different doctor isn't as easy as it might sound since many doctors think the same way "in range is fine", without considering that each body has its own preferred level - what we call our "sweet spot".
We'll see how these next doctor's appointments pan out - perhaps one of them will get the right diagnosis. We can only hope.
So - how about you? I hope whatever you undertook turned out exactly the way you intended.
~~Wishing everyone a wonderful successful week~~
This week has been pretty quiet, which was nice for a change. I'm just waiting for time to pass so I can get to some of my doctor's appointments. I have a dermatology appointment coming up tomorrow. Hopefully, I'll find out what's causing my itchy skin and the red blotch on my leg. My dermatologist has removed spots on my back in an effort to resolve my itching, but it hasn't worked. He's prescribed a steroid cream for the blotch on my leg; that didn't work either, nor have the variety of OTC products I've tried, ranging from hydrocortisones to lotions and/or antibiotics.
My nails have also begun to split, crack and peel so maybe the dermatologist will take a look at those as well... *I* believe that whatever is going on with my skin is associated with what's going on with my nails and I also believe that those are associated with what's going on with my stomach. I mentioned this to the assistant at the gastro's office and she said "well, that might be, but each doctor tends to deal with their own thing, so the gastroenterologist isn't going to worry about your skin/nail or weight problems and the dermatologist isn't going to be concerned about your digestive problems." Whoa - there... I know she's right to a certain extent, but don't they connect symptoms anymore to come up with a condition that affects the whole body? No, I guess not. That's left to the primary care doctor who isn't trained in gastroenterology, dermatology or endocrinology... that's why s/he sends us to specialists.
Anyway, we'll see what the dermatologist has to say tomorrow and my gastroenterology appointment is coming up on the 9th. I know that one is going to end with an appointment for a colonoscopy because I'm overdue and even I know it's important to stay current because my brother that just passed away was a colon cancer survivor and I've had polyps removed during prior colonoscopies. Add all the other cancers in my family and I'm a prime candidate for colon cancer.
I've been trying to get back out to my shop and start working on some things. I have an order for 3 of the ink pens I make, plus a couple I need to make for gifts of my own and a request to bring some to a meeting next month. I don't know if I mentioned that I've also joined a calligraphy guild and took one class a couple of weeks ago. I've been practicing on that in preparation to help man a booth at the local Art Walk next Friday evening, so I'm starting to get a bit busy, which is good.
Weight-wise, I'm up by 0.4 lbs - wow; I wasn't really expecting that. I've been back at going for a short walk many evenings, even if not every one and I'm really trying to cut back on what I'm eating. I guess I'm not cutting back enough. I do have to keep in mind that it was early this morning when I weighed so if I follow true to form, I'll be down by about a pound later on, so I'll post that later if it happens...
I do believe a lot of these symptoms - the itchy, blotchy skin, nail issues, weight gain, and of course, the never ending fatigue, are all thyroid-related. My thyroid hormone levels have been declining steadily the last 3 times I've been tested, but my doctor keeps telling me they're "fine" because they're within the reference ranges. This is what so many people run up against with thyroid issues and it's so hard to fight against, because if the doctor won't prescribe an increased dosage, one is stuck. Trying a different doctor isn't as easy as it might sound since many doctors think the same way "in range is fine", without considering that each body has its own preferred level - what we call our "sweet spot".
We'll see how these next doctor's appointments pan out - perhaps one of them will get the right diagnosis. We can only hope.
So - how about you? I hope whatever you undertook turned out exactly the way you intended.
~~Wishing everyone a wonderful successful week~~
I'm up about a half pound. Not surprising. We went out to a steak and prime rib restaurant last night because it was cold and rainy and we were doing thankless errands and the restaurant (a former favorite when we were younger) was right across the street. We don't eat like that much any more, maybe one meal every three months. Along with the probability that I retained a lot of liquid due to salt, the servings were huge. My dogs got my prime rib scraps, though -- some too fatty, and some just because it was too much!
This week has been for tasks and errands -- getting a certain amount done, still a boatload to do. Our new house is awash in boxes that need unpacking, but first, all the shelves need lining. (I'm not going to put cans of food onto brand-new perfectly white shelving without some kind of shelf liner in place; can-bottom marks last forever, and don't get me started on drippy salad-oil containers.) We still have work with the deck guy, the landscape guy, and the curtain installer scheduled, and the plumber comes Tuesday to hook up the gas dryer. It makes me almost cry to think of adding anything else, but I think I need to find a cabinetmaker. The laundry room has no shelves, and we could use a tall cupboard in the living room.
My son liked the school he visited last week but not enough to want to change, so he continues to attend the school we moved to the district for. It helped that the other schools weren't obviously better. (He could see the positives of his present school by contrast to the less-than-exciting aspects of other schools.) Also, his school has made some adjustments in the meantime. The most important is that an assistant principal arranged for a small, quiet room where kids who don't like the chaos of the cafeteria can eat lunch. My son LOVES that, even though in his particular lunch time slot he is often the only kid in the room. He likes the quiet so much that he wishes he could sit in there between classes. (Which is amusing -- the school is bigger than a Home Depot, and he has 3 minutes to get from one class to the other and one more minute to have work out and be doing it. Where is he going to get time to sit peacefully in the private room between classes?) The school has also tweaked class sizes by hiring some part-time teachers and using every single classroom in every single time slot, which has made his average class size go from 45 kids to 36 kids. One class is even only 20 kids. That's a big help.
September here is often hot, even into the first three weeks of October, but it doesn't look like we'll have an Indian summer this year, it's been cold, gloomy and rainy and looks like it is going to last. We spent extra time and money this summer to get our house painted ivory and white on the interior -- when we bought it, every wall was a hip, modern grey (including the ceilings). We left the laundry room grey, and now I look at it on rainy days and wonder what anyone was thinking, painting a house in western Oregon such a grim color palette. If I had the oomph, I'd repaint the laundry room too before the plumber comes on Tuesday, but I don't think it's going to happen. lol
Have a great week! Good luck with those disconnected doctors, Barb. I'm sure sorry you haven't found one willing to tweak your thyroid meds.
This week has been for tasks and errands -- getting a certain amount done, still a boatload to do. Our new house is awash in boxes that need unpacking, but first, all the shelves need lining. (I'm not going to put cans of food onto brand-new perfectly white shelving without some kind of shelf liner in place; can-bottom marks last forever, and don't get me started on drippy salad-oil containers.) We still have work with the deck guy, the landscape guy, and the curtain installer scheduled, and the plumber comes Tuesday to hook up the gas dryer. It makes me almost cry to think of adding anything else, but I think I need to find a cabinetmaker. The laundry room has no shelves, and we could use a tall cupboard in the living room.
My son liked the school he visited last week but not enough to want to change, so he continues to attend the school we moved to the district for. It helped that the other schools weren't obviously better. (He could see the positives of his present school by contrast to the less-than-exciting aspects of other schools.) Also, his school has made some adjustments in the meantime. The most important is that an assistant principal arranged for a small, quiet room where kids who don't like the chaos of the cafeteria can eat lunch. My son LOVES that, even though in his particular lunch time slot he is often the only kid in the room. He likes the quiet so much that he wishes he could sit in there between classes. (Which is amusing -- the school is bigger than a Home Depot, and he has 3 minutes to get from one class to the other and one more minute to have work out and be doing it. Where is he going to get time to sit peacefully in the private room between classes?) The school has also tweaked class sizes by hiring some part-time teachers and using every single classroom in every single time slot, which has made his average class size go from 45 kids to 36 kids. One class is even only 20 kids. That's a big help.
September here is often hot, even into the first three weeks of October, but it doesn't look like we'll have an Indian summer this year, it's been cold, gloomy and rainy and looks like it is going to last. We spent extra time and money this summer to get our house painted ivory and white on the interior -- when we bought it, every wall was a hip, modern grey (including the ceilings). We left the laundry room grey, and now I look at it on rainy days and wonder what anyone was thinking, painting a house in western Oregon such a grim color palette. If I had the oomph, I'd repaint the laundry room too before the plumber comes on Tuesday, but I don't think it's going to happen. lol
Have a great week! Good luck with those disconnected doctors, Barb. I'm sure sorry you haven't found one willing to tweak your thyroid meds.
1 Comments
Big steak dinners tend to be loaded with sodium, so that 0.5 lb gain isn't really a bad thing as it will probably be gone by today.
Moving always brings unexpected chores and errands to do and of course, just when we think we've found the place that suits our needs, we realize there are things lacking. There's never enough storage, or it's not where we need it. :-)
Well, there has been an advantage to letting your son try on different schools. It's teaching him that there are drawbacks to all of them. It's good that his current school is trying to make accommodations for those that prefer not to deal with lunchtime chaos - some simply need some downtime during the day, if only for a short period to catch their breath and regroup. I've always thought having 40+ kids to a class was too much but many schools do it. Our schools were supposed to downsize class sizes some years ago to 20, but haven't been able to do it across the board, due to financial constraints, room limitations, etc. I doubt it will ever be completely accomplished, but they've made progress in reducing the class sizes considerably. This does help students get better one on one attention, etc.
I'm sorry to hear you're getting such an early fall. That's never a good thing, but it seems you might not be the only part of the country to see that. We seem to be getting something of an early fall - leaves falling, etc - but the heat isn't breaking as it typically does in September.
I'm off this morning to see the dermatologist - have never seen her before, so am hoping she will be willing to put some sort of connection to everything, though I don't really have a lot of hope. I'd thought my cardiologist would do so a couple of years ago when he took my side with the thyroid issue, saying that there was no need to decrease my medication dosage simply because of my TSH level, but the endo I had at the time refused to listen to him. Apparently, she thought she knew more about my heart than the cardiologist does even though he (cardiologist) was doing the tests on my heart and she (endo) was not, although I was sharing all the good results with her... They simply don't seem to be willing to step on each other's toes. It's unfortunate, because that leaves patients in the "no-man's land" between them. But we can always hope things will change...
Moving always brings unexpected chores and errands to do and of course, just when we think we've found the place that suits our needs, we realize there are things lacking. There's never enough storage, or it's not where we need it. :-)
Well, there has been an advantage to letting your son try on different schools. It's teaching him that there are drawbacks to all of them. It's good that his current school is trying to make accommodations for those that prefer not to deal with lunchtime chaos - some simply need some downtime during the day, if only for a short period to catch their breath and regroup. I've always thought having 40+ kids to a class was too much but many schools do it. Our schools were supposed to downsize class sizes some years ago to 20, but haven't been able to do it across the board, due to financial constraints, room limitations, etc. I doubt it will ever be completely accomplished, but they've made progress in reducing the class sizes considerably. This does help students get better one on one attention, etc.
I'm sorry to hear you're getting such an early fall. That's never a good thing, but it seems you might not be the only part of the country to see that. We seem to be getting something of an early fall - leaves falling, etc - but the heat isn't breaking as it typically does in September.
I'm off this morning to see the dermatologist - have never seen her before, so am hoping she will be willing to put some sort of connection to everything, though I don't really have a lot of hope. I'd thought my cardiologist would do so a couple of years ago when he took my side with the thyroid issue, saying that there was no need to decrease my medication dosage simply because of my TSH level, but the endo I had at the time refused to listen to him. Apparently, she thought she knew more about my heart than the cardiologist does even though he (cardiologist) was doing the tests on my heart and she (endo) was not, although I was sharing all the good results with her... They simply don't seem to be willing to step on each other's toes. It's unfortunate, because that leaves patients in the "no-man's land" between them. But we can always hope things will change...
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