I visited with Dr Who (not his real name but somehow in my illness fuzzed brain that is what he became). I went into the freaky Oncology/Hemo office and everyone kept reiterating that I was there for anemia not cancer (perhaps a clue they should work on their PR a little?). I know I would change the answering machine messages pronto.
They drew some blood. The gals in the lab were very nice and made jokes. I liked them. I showed up early and actually got seen a full hour before my appointment :) Love that!!
Now the lame-o news. I have Anemia (well roll out the bandwagons that is new! NOT). He said the arm and hand pain were not the result of anemia. He wants me to come in for IV Iron though (4 freaking hours!!!). He checked my B-12 results and despite being told on the phone that mine was low..it was very average??? WTF??
So now a full week after thinking I was being sent to this guy to work on the actual pain I was in and continue to be in I am no further towards knowing anything. I called my GP back to ask..but of course you know you get the shuffle and I have now get to wait until next week for an appointment to see her again. OH wait..that is also when I see the band doctor for another teensy fill (oh yes the good saline is no longer there..stuff hardly touches the sides again and my 2 pound weight-loss is no more).
and a recap: I have not actually met the new surgeon. Just my old nurse practitioner is still working. My old surgeon retired and I have been left with DR saline miser.
so next Friday my only full on relax day for laying in, coffee and paperwork is now being filled with doctors appointments. Next week is fill, Mammogram and GP visit.
I have to cancel the Iron IV (4 hours) and move it to the 24th.
Did you know you are not supposed to take your Iron with coffee? Apparently according to DR WHO you are not..from now on I am to drink my coffee, take my alieve and then save the iron for two hours later and a glass of OJ.
If anyone has had hand/arm pain let me know. Right now no one is any closer to knowing why mine are screwed. I will take all opinions, speculations and ideas.
:( day.
Living with a lapband after seeing goal is just as much work as getting there. This blog chronicles my journey to qualify for band surgery, my work to goal weight and now living with the band long term. Weight will always be an issue but there is a whole lot of living to be done.
2 comments:
Are we talkin muscular pain like when you grip something or like a constant aching in your bones all the time?
I had some significant arm muscular pain that was resolved via massage. I have had numerous issues over the years with my right arm because I walk with a crutch on that side, but this particular instance was with my left arm, so I was puzzled. There was no one particular injury/incident that caused it. The massage through my neck, upper back and arm ultimately took care of it. The same issue was causing me jaw pain that was also relieved once we resolved several tension areas in my back. But who would have thought a tight muscle would cause both pain in my jaw and in my forearm?
Tension has a way of pulling things that can cause problems way down the line that you don't realize. For example, I have a lot of problems on my left side that are caused by things I do on my right side. I walk leaning to the right with my crutch so I pull a lot of things out of alignment with my improper gait.
I'm a big believer in massage. If you find someone good, it can really change your life. If you are new to massage I have a couple of tips. First, you need someone who does deep muscle work, not Swedish...the Swedish type massage is more "relaxing" but doesn't really get to the heart of the problems. Second, as it is deep tissue it can be uncomfortable. You need to breathe into the discomfort. I like to visualize with each deep breath that I take that I am sending super-oxygenated blood to the that spot to help it heal...like it's an old dried up crinkled sponge getting fresh water to become plump again.
If it is more like that constant bone pain...I would be thinking along the lines of fibromyalgia. I don't really know too much about that...but I do know that when I was active on low-carb diet message boards over the years, a lot of people saw dramatic improvements in their pain issues through eliminating processed carbs. That makes sense if the pain is caused by an inflammation issue as low-carb diets reduce inflammation.
Sorry...one more tip. Icing! Ice can also spot-reduce inflammation, so if you are dealing with an inflamed tendon in your arm, icing will totally help as well. This is what I deal with on my right/crutch side. I haven't had a flare up in a couple years, but when I did I would use an ice pack for 10 minutes every hour over a couple days. I've also had success with ice on bursitis and pain through the bottom of my foot (damn....I've had way too many pain issues! Stupid spinal cord injury!). Combined with massage and ibuprofen, you can treat this issue from several angles and hopefully find relief.
Sorry for the novel. I hope you find something that helps.
I've been reading your blog for years. Ask about Thiamine deficiency. I'm a doctor in real life and reading your symptoms makes me wonder about your Thiamine levels. Thiamine deficiency is more common in gastric bypass patients but perhaps it happens with the band too. Doesn't hurt to ask the hematologist. If you aren't absorbing iron then what else aren't you absorbing?
Be well, Tracey
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