Pilcrow

I have updates on the health issues I discussed in the previous post. My dad was out of the hospital Tuesday last week (later in the day that I made that post), and had a meeting on Thursday with a specialist of some sort to help figure out what the problem is. This past Monday, he became too weak to stand from a sitting position, so they brought him down to the hospital in Boston. However, they have finally made progress: they've learned that there's a past history of some patients having this reaction to a particular medication he's been taking - it's rare, but it is documented. Apparently they've also definitively ruled out infection, cancer, and other causes. So now they're going to transition him off that medication, and then he'll be in some kind of (physical) rehab program for a bit. This all sounds good, hopefully he'll be back to normal - as normal as things are, being an almost-15-year heart transplant survivor - soon.

My anxiety symptoms eventually went away - I think it was Wednesday that for most of the day I just had the tension and tingliness in my head, but definitely by Thursday I seemed to be mostly back to normal. However, I did make an appointment for a general physical, and had that done Friday morning. I checked out generally okay, in particular my blood pressure rating was good and my cholesterol was great. I had a tetanus booster, which left me feeling tired and headachy through Sunday. I discussed the apparent anxiety problem with the doctor, explaining that's what prompted me to make the appointment (although I'd been meaning to have a physical for months), and he discussed options of medication and therapy. As these events seem to be just once a year or less, I felt I'd rather hold off on getting into medication or therapy for now, but if I still seem to be having problems over the next month or so then I'm supposed to get back in touch with the doctor. I'm also supposed to get back to the doctor in a month for another problem - my throat feels like it never really recovered from the cold I had back at the end of October, it's just felt slightly scratchy and irritated since then. He took a swab to check for strep, although that was rather unlikely; if it's still bothering me, he said he'd check for other infections, but it's more likely to be an acid reflux problem, which is definitely something I occasionally suffer from. In all, though, I seem to be basically healthy, and I probably just need to get some regular exercise in.

---

In other matters, today is the sixth anniversary of my arrival in Seattle. Like last year, I did not do anything special today to mark the occasion, but I do still like to take note of it in the journal (as you can tell). Recently I was asked, in the context of life in general, "are you happy where you are?" I'm not fully satisfied with the state of my life yet, but taking the "where" part of the question literally, yes, I am happy where I am, here in Seattle, and rather pleased that I've been able to say that each year for the past six. I'm looking forward to saying it again next year, and the next, and the next...

Nimiel apparently recovered from whatever was troubling her in early May, and returned to normal litterbox behavior. I kept her on dry-only food, a mix of her regular dry allotment (Wellness brand) and the prescription dry food the vet recommended to help clear up her litterbox problem. The thing is, I had somewhat contradictory information - on the phone the vet made it sound like a temporary thing to help her recover, but when I picked up the food at the office, the assistants made it sound like it was a permament dietary change.

Then, a couple Thursdays ago (the 31st), Nimiel went to her food dish three times and each time shortly afterward threw up what she ate. That is also notably unusual behavior, so I called the vet, but ended up taking her to a local emergency care animal hospital because the vet was booked. At the hospital, Nimiel's vitals checked out normally, and when I talked to the doctor about her recent problem and dietary change, I learned that the prescription dry food was really only good if she suffered from a particular urinary problem, otherwise it could irritate her in other ways, and that doctor recommended returning Nimiel to her normal wet/dry food mix.

When I got home I called my regular vet again to confirm her original diagnosis, as the emergency doctor had recommended, to be sure it was okay to take her off the prescription food. I got some contradictory information - apparently there was a note in Nimiel's file indicating that the lab had found urinary tract infection bacteria in the sample, even though I was sure that when I'd last talked to the vet on the phone, she had told me the lab did not find bacteria. I didn't get to talk to that vet again until Saturday, when she reconfirmed that the results indicated it was not an infection, and that Nimiel didn't need to be on the prescription food anymore. I'd already returned Nimiel to her regular diet, as I was concerned the prescription food was what caused the vomiting, and she's been okay since then.

I'm a bit annoyed with the vet's office as it seems they mixed up Nimiel's files with someone else's - considering they'd also called the wrong number to leave a message about her lab results in the first place - but they've been good overall, so I'm not planning to switch to another vet yet. I do need to take Nimiel to have her nails trimmed this week, so when I go in I'll talk to them about my concerns about her file and just be sure everything's okay.

---

Besides all that, my bellyache problem also went away and hasn't recurred exactly, though I've still had occasional twinges here and there. The main thing is that there seems to be an irritated or strained muscle just above my right hip that keeps bothering me, and I can't figure out what the deal is and why it won't go away. Nothing in particular seems to set it off, it just comes and goes. I probably should talk to a doctor, and maybe just get a general checkup, but I've been putting that off partly because of my insurance changing - this is the last month of my coverage from my previous employer, and I need to get signed up to a new policy. It may be as simple as that I've been sitting a lot in my not-particularly-good desk chair at home, since switching to freelance, and not sitting in an ergonomically sound manner. I really need to make myself get out more and work elsewhere. I also still need to meet my physical goals, in particular getting a bicycle and starting tai chi again, but I've continued to hold off on those while my work and finances are in flux.

Basically, I've achieved one major part of the Year of Change by going freelance, but I haven't yet followed through on all that needs to be done to complete that transition, so I'm holding other things up. But I'm also working on another major part, the social goals, at the same time, so I don't feel too bad yet. On that note, last week I did finally register to volunteer with KEXP; however, that was days before their summer pledge drive. They didn't send me a password to get in to the volunteer board, and I didn't follow up with them, so I missed out on volunteering for the drive. I'll have to get that straightened out this week, though, so I can volunteer for other events. Also on the topic of social goals, besides the speed dating event that was rescheduled to June 26, I did go ahead and register for the next 25-35 event, which is this coming Wednesday. Hopefully something will come out of at least one of those events, though really I should just hope to have a good time and learn something.

I have updates on my last entry.

First, Nimiel is doing well. She returned to normal litterbox behavior by Saturday and otherwise seems untroubled by her illness. Giving her medicine has proven to be mercifully easy; she struggles a bit when I take hold of her so I can give it to her, and seems impatient to be done, but she doesn't actually resist being fed the medicine (liquid, from a syringe), she at least tolerates it if not actually likes it. The first couple days I gave her treats afterward, but by the third day she just ignored the treats, and as I've been giving her the medicine before her breakfast it's not like she really needs treats anyhow. The only worrisome thing was Sunday, an hour after she'd had her medicine and nibbled on some breakfast, she went into the bathroom and threw up a lot of liquid onto the floor. I'm still not sure why she did that, she hasn't thrown up otherwise and there was no reason for her food to have caused that. But as she hasn't repeated it and still seems to be fine, I haven't followed up on it.

Second, my outbreak of belly pain returned today, much to my annoyance. Last week I still had some minor belly pains on Thursday as well as other random torso/chest pains, but nothing that I couldn't attribute to my usual undefined probably-stress-related aches and pains. This afternoon (i.e. Wednesday) though, after I'd had some cake (leftover from a small birthday gathering I had for John on Saturday) as a snack, my belly started hurting again. It hasn't hurt as strongly as last week or spread up toward my sternum, but it has persisted and hasn't gone away yet, just varied from uncomfortable to hurting. Again, it doesn't seem like it ought to be stress, but I don't have anything else to attribute it to except perhaps the cake, and it doesn't feel like an upset stomach, more like upset intestines. I'm hoping it'll go away overnight, but if it still hurts tomorrow then I suppose I'll have to make a doctor's appointment. I don't really want to see the doctor because I feel like it's still too vague for a doctor visit to be worthwhile, but I don't want my belly to keep hurting and not check it out.

...meanwhile, poor Nimiel is trying to get me to chase her, and I just hurt and intend to go to bed now.

Recovery's going very well, so far as I can tell. The tingliness did go away overnight, and I've barely had any sore feeling in that part of my mouth, just some discomfort. I haven't needed to take any of the pain medication I was prescribed, not even any over-the-counter stuff.

However, I did have quite a bit of pain for a day - in my left elbow. I don't know what happened, I hadn't been doing anything unusual (and the IV on Friday was in my right elbow), but suddenly on Sunday night the muscle on the top side of my left elbow started hurting a lot, like I'd strained it too much or carried too heavy a weight. It hurt even more to bend the arm, twist it from elbow to wrist, or move my hand around a lot. That pain persisted right through Monday, and finally started abating on Tuesday morning. So the only time I was going to take the prescribed pain medication was on Monday night, because of the elbow not my mouth, and I ended up not taking it because it was supposed to be taken with food and I was about to go to bed and didn't want to eat more. (It's not like I could've had crackers since I can't eat crunchy things right now, I'd have had to have a bowl of hot cereal or ice cream.)

Anyhow, that did go away on Tuesday, and otherwise I've been okay. My first post-operation checkup with the surgeon isn't until next Wednesday morning, so I won't know until then how well it's healing. Hopefully the bone will persist this time and I won't have to do this yet again.

I've been eating Campbell's soups for lunch ever since the first operation, because it was a lot cheaper to keep buying those rather than going out to get a sandwich every day. But once I'd healed enough, I could still occasionally go out for lunch and get a sandwich or burger, and I could partake of the company Friday pizza lunch. Now that I'm back on a soft-foods-only diet, even if for a shorter time than before, I find that I'm just sick of having soup so often. I'll have to do something about that once my diet restrictions ease.

One observation I made at Bumbershoot is something I noticed and meant to write about, oh, I don't know, a year ago? For quite some time now, I've been seeing people who seem familiar to me - sometimes familiar enough that I'd swear I should know their names, other times just people I'm sure I've seen elsewhere - but I can never place where I know them from. Because I have been going to shows somewhat regularly, some of these people could be fellow concert-goers, but other times I'm sure I've been introduced and had conversations with them, but couldn't tell you where or when or who they are.

This happened a few times at Bumbershoot. In one case, I was able to place the couple with toddlers that I sat near during lunch, I recognized them from church. In another case, for a particular woman who happened to walk by, I'd swear I've had conversations with her and even have a strong impression of what her voice sounds like (without having heard her speak as she walked by), but just can't recall for sure whether this is so and where I know her from, or whether I'm just confusing her with one or two other women I actually know. I also wondered, after these latest close encounters, whether the truth is that more and more people seem familiar to me just because I'm getting older and I've seen enough people that they're starting to blend together.

---

Last Thursday morning, as I left for work, I walked outside and from the feel and smell of the air, I just knew that suddenly, it was autumn. The calendar may not agree, and there may yet be some summery weather for us, but something had shifted and I just had that little extra hum of energy, that feeling of wakefulness and desire to get out and do things, that means it's autumn.

Naturally, I then came down with some kind of cold or illness. I had a sneezy, runny nose all day, which made me think it might be some kind of allergy (and that thought was partially vindicated yesterday morning when I noticed that my car was covered in pollen, so yes, things were in fact still blooming). But the allergy medicine I bought and tried only made my nose very stuffed up, and the cold medicine I tried the following afternoon made me feel seriously spaced out (despite being a non-drowsy formula), enough that I was nervous driving home. I've been less congested since the weekend, but I still feel just not quite right, in particular my head feeling like very thick mushy dough. Whatever's wrong, I hope I get over it soon.

And speaking of things that are wrong, my lower back has been aching for a couple weeks now. We'd done some back rolls in aikido - and I think that was the first class I'd been to in three or four weeks, due to family visits and classes being cancelled - and it was a little sore after that, but then the following Saturday at Amy's graduation/new job party I played some Dance Dance Revolution, and late that night when I was getting into the car my lower back suddenly hurt a lot. Since then, it's been constantly a little sore or uncomfortable, and aches more strongly if I move or bend in certain ways. But it seems to be muscular, not skeletal, and my movement isn't actually restricted, just painful in certain ways. I haven't called the doctor yet, I was hoping it would just get better over time, but I suppose it's gone long enough now that I should call.

---

On another note, as I went to water my tree, to my amazement I just discovered a happy yellow mushroom growing in the pot. I removed it carefully using a ziploc bag, trying to avoid scattering spores or touching it (in case it was toxic - how would I know?), and it looks like I got the whole stem out. Hopefully I'm not going to have more sprouting. I wonder whether mushroom spores have anything to do with my stuffy nose/vague illness...

The thing that is driving me crazy is the inescapable awareness of my teeth. I cannot not be aware of every single tooth.

How the hell I'm going to get to sleep is beyond me.

On top of that, I seem to be going through another bout of Mysterious Shoulder/Arm/Leg Aches and Pains, Combined with Hyper-Awareness of Heartbeat, That I Have Been Repeatedly Assured Is Not a Sign of Heart Trouble. That kept me from getting much sleep last night and clearly hasn't gone away. I did not feel consciously stressed about getting braces, but the fact that Mysterious Ailment has coincided with that does suggest it is a Stress-Related Phenomenon.