My health history: Part 1

On this blog I talk about anything from our crazy love of dogs to my adorable niece and nephew because this is MY blog and well, quite frankly I CAN. I like to write about things that are important to me: my family, my animals, traveling, being "green", photography, art, etc. Lately, I've been concentrating a lot more on my health because I've learned (the hard way) that if I don't make my health a priority then I will forever be talking about how horrible I feel today. And honestly, well, I don't want to be known as the person who complains all the time about her health. I am very aware of how much I talk about my health to those around me. My mom and my husband probably get more than their ear full and God bless them for always providing a listening ear. Looking back in the last 5 years I have made leaps and bounds. Leaps and bounds, I tell ya! I am a new woman but I am still not the woman I want to be.

This is my life. I am taking control.

Let's take a look back... this is mainly for me but also for those interested in my health history. Obviously, a lot of this is personal so I won't go into a lot of details but feel free to leave me a comment or email if you are struggling with the same or similar issues and I will be glad to discuss more with you in private.

"Were you sick as a child?" I get this question a lot actually. And the easiest way I know how to answer it is this: I was a normal healthy active child. Yes, I got colds every now and then like other kids but I don't really ever remember being extrememly sick. My only real memory of extreme pain comes from elementary school when I use to have 30 minutes drive to and from school every day. I used to get these horrible migraines in the afternoon. I remember laying down in the backseat of the car very often on the rides home, praying we would arrive home soon. Now whether these migraines had anything to do with my current health problem, I do not know. Maybe it was some sort of foreshadowing in to the future...

My true real health problems begin in college.

2003 - 2005 I struggled with my health for several years in college, suffering from intense migraines, body aches and many other unexplainable symptoms. I missed a lot of class due to illness. I'm sure my professors thought I was lazy. The truth is I had no clue what was going on with my body. I turned to drinking and partying for a few years to help with the pain which, of course, only ended up making things worse. During this time is also when I was first diagnosed with depression after one of my best friends died of leukemia.

May 2005 - I remember being so incredibly sick with pneumonia, bronchitis, laryngitis, etc. This was my senior year of college. (Random side note: This was also the month I met Buie. He brought me soup and sat with me for one of our first "dates.") The day after I graduated college I flew to Montreal for 2 weeks. In hindsight, this was a stupid decision as I ended up getting a lot worse. I went to a nice French doc who loaded me up with lots of steroids, antibiotics and an inhaler to help me breath.

Summer of 2005 - I took yet another trip but this time it was to South Africa to visit friends. This whole trip was a blur of back pain, upset stomach and Ib profen tablets. I think I owe my friend, Angie, a family size bottle of Ib profen because I finished off hers in the 3 1/2 weeks I was there. The plane trip there and back was so painful, I swore I would not make another long overseas flight until I knew what was wrong with me and I was well. After this trip was when my mom and I decided to take action. I was tired of living in constant agony.

That same summer I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia by a local physican. Before this time I had never heard of Fibro. I started researching it and finally connected some of my symptoms such as: unrelenting fatigue, depression, flu like muscle aches, migraine headaches, constant joint pains, and even IBS. Ok, things were starting to make sense a little bit. But WHY do I have all of these symptoms? There had to be a reason.

2006 - If you were close with me during this time, you remember this was a hard time for me. I must apologize to my roommates at the time. I cried a lot. I slept a lot. It was not a fun time for anyone.

Fall 2006 - I found the Fibro and Fatigue Center of Dallas and my life started to change. I was taking control and I have my parents to thank for everything - for footing the bill, for driving me to and from appointments in Dallas, for listening to my cry when I was in so much pain to move. Thank you, mom, for being my rock during this time.

I had about a bazillion tests run and found out that I had several serious viruses living in my body which were causing me to get sick and stay sick: 1) parvovirus infection 2) epstein-barr virus 3) Cytomegalovirus or CMV This was all kind of overwhelming news but totally treatable. It's not cancer. It's not terminal. It's treatable. I knew it was going to be a long road ahead of me but what choice did I have?

My treatment would take place in Dallas, Texas which was over 5 hours away from where I lived. Let me just say, I LOVE Southwest Airlines and I am so thankful they have a direct flight from Little Rock to Dallas. I can't tell you how many times in the last few years I have taken that flight.

I flew in to Dallas every 6 weeks or so to meet with my doctor and get IV treatments.

I was prescribed about a 30 or so different supplements. Seriously, at one point I was taking 34 pills twice a day. That's 68 pills a day for all you math enthusiasts. I remember taking so many pills it would literally make myself sick. I would have to space them out and take a couple of pills every 20 minutes or so, which basically meant I was popping pills from the time I woke up from the time I went to bed to kill these stupid viruses.

The damage that these viruses had done to my body is something I am still recovering from. Vitamin deficiencies, anemia, thyroid disease, chronic fatigue syndrome, autoimmune disease etc. - these would all soon be normal vocabulary in the next coming years. And I would soon find out that so would the word gluten and Celiac Disease.

tough week

This has definitely been a tough week for our family. My sister in law and brother found out some hard to swallow news about their pregnancy. She is 17 weeks along and just found out she has complete placenta previa. This basically means the placenta is in the wrong place and is blocking the birthing canal. There are many complications with placenta previa that COULD make this a scary thing including enough heaving bleeding to need blood transfusions. The baby could be born prematurely and Nicole will most likely have a C-section.

As of now, Nicole is not on complete bed rest but as been ordered to not pick up Landon at all and to take it easy. I am so thankful she is married to a patient and wonderful man. My brother, Craig, takes such good care of her. We are all praying for a safe and healthy pregnancy. I know that the Lord has his hand on this baby and He has a plan for that tiny little life. I know that you will also join me in prayer for Craig, Nicole, Landon and baby Walker as they figured out life with a few more kinks in it.

more not so great news....

Yesterday I traveled down to Ruston, LA for my second doctor's appointment with this new dr. I am trying out. (It's the same dr my mother goes to.) I've seen him once before when I came to do all of my 25 vials of blood work.

Thursday was results day. Yuck.

In a way I was dreading results day but I just wanting to get it over with. I have had several results days in the past 5 or 6 years of my life, some good and some not so good, but this one seemed different. This one seemed more hopeful.

Results: (the four MAIN issues)

severe vitamin D Deficiency

low adrenal function

low thyroid

too much yeast in my system

Not exactly the results I was hoping for by any stretch of the imagination but it's totally doable. There are thousands of people struggling with way worse. So what does this mean for me right now? Well, babies are NOT in our immediate future which is very saddening to us. I mean when your doctor tells you that having a baby would be the WORST thing you could do to your body right now, then I figure I should probably take his advice. So please don't expect babies from me and if you ask about babies - why we don't have any or when we are having them, expect tears to start flowing soon thereafter. You have been warned.

The other thing you can expect from me: crabbiness. lots of crabbiness. I mean, not only can I not have gluten but I for real can't eat yeast. I threw around this idea a few months ago and did some research on a yeast free diet and it almost seemed laughable. I guess I am the one laughing now. No dairy. No yeast. No sugar. No coffee. NO FUN! = CRABBINESS. Lots and lots of crabbiness.

More expectations: Needles. I am already used to needles. So used to them I could probably find my veins faster than any of the new nurses could. You can always tell who the NEW nurses are by how shaky their hands are. Drives me insane. I have to get more IV injections with vitamin D, vitamin C, magnesium and lots of other good stuff flowing straight into my veins. I call it liquid gold. It's the good stuff. I would take an IV any day over pills.

So does my diagnosis suck? Yes. But is it doable. Of course.

Does Nicole wish she had a normal pregnancy? Of course. She probably wishes she could pick up her kid too for the next 5 or 6 months. We Walker/Buie women are tough. But we still might need some prayers. ;)

Wintertime Blues

Do you have the blues?

I don't know about y'all but I am experiencing the wintertime blues. Did you know that this is a real thing? It's called Seasonal Affection Disorder and people with Fibromyalgia are more prone to S.A.D. (and yes, it spells SAD), especially in the wintertime. For some reason, this winter has been particularly hard on me, physically and emotionally. If you are still confused about Seasonal Affection Disorder, here are a few typical symptoms associated with SAD::

• difficulty waking up in the morning
• increased daytime sleepiness
• lack of energy
• decreased interest in work and other activities
• carbohydrate cravings, leading to overeating and weight gain
• difficulty concentrating
• withdrawal from family, friends, and social situations
  

Do any of these things sound familiar? Hmmm... maybe it's just me, then. ;)

Well, I may not have the cure for the wintertime blues but I'd like to share what I do for relief for a long winter of the "Blue Monday" and Fibromyalgia.

1. Sleep. Sleep. Sleep. Make sure you get plenty of sleep. I cannot stress this enough. Not getting enough sleep is probably the worst thing you can do to your body. Your body heals and recovers while you sleep. On the other hand, you will be tempted to over sleep and sleep WAY too much if you are suffering from depression, SAD, and/or fibromyalgia. All or even one of these things will make you want to stay in bed all day. Get the right amount of sleep for you, but face the day each morning rested and with a smile! :) (I am talking to myself here)


Melatonin. If you have problems sleeping, 3mg of melatonin might just do the trick. Melatonin is a naturally occuring hormone that helps with sleep. If you find yourself needing a little help in the sleep department but don't want to resort to sleeping pills, try melatonin. It's all natural and it won't make you feel groggy the next morning. Start out at 1mg and increase up to 12mg. (Again, please consult with your doctor. I am not a doctor - just merely making suggestions on what works for me.)


2. Exercise. This is the last thing I feel like doing but believe me, you will be glad you did. Exercise increases endorphins, which makes you happy. :) (Is anyone else quotting Reese Whitherspoon in Legally Blonde right now? Remember when she says endorphins make you happy and happy people don't kill people? haha) ANYWAY, moral of the story is you should exercise whether you feel like it or not. Your body and your mind will thank you later.

3. Vitamin D. One thing your body lacks in the winter is Vitamin D. We usually hibernate in the winter because it is colder, therefore we get less sunshine, and therefore less vitamin D. This vitamin plays a crucial role to bone and muscle strength. Vitamin D deficiency has a direct correlation to depression so supplementing this vitamin, especially in the winter months in vital. (make sure to speak with your doctor before starting on a supplement. Too much vitamin D can also be harmful.)

4. Heat. I should probably put this one right up there with sleep because heat is so important to someone in constant pain. Heat comes in many forms:: hot showers, hot baths, heatings pads, fireplace, a warm blanket, fuzzy slippers, your favorite sweatshirt, hot tea or cider, electric blanket... and the list goes on. You can see why winter is not my favorite month, but then again you can see why the fireplace IS my favorite.

5. De-stress. This one has been hard for me. I would definitely say that I'm still working on this one. When I think of destressing, I think of a harmonious home with everything its in place and the angels are singing the Hallelujah chorus. ha! My home is far from perfect but I'm learning to say no to things when I just can't handle anything else on my plate.


6. Diet. You knew I was going to mention this one, right? Sigh... As much as I don't want to admit it, the things we eat have a direct effect on how we feel, look, and act...oh and don't forget weigh. If you have fibromyalgia or even if you are suffering from those wintertime blues, eliminating things like caffeine, MSG, sugar, processed foods, yeast, red meat and yes, even gluten will help you feel more alive and energetic. So what can you eat, you ask? Eat a diet rich in greens, nuts (but not peanuts), beans, fish, organic chicken. There are plenty of healthy foods to choose from that aren't processed. One of my favorite websites for eating whole and organic foods is http://www.wholeliving.com/



Good luck beating those winter blues!