Me, spilling out all my thoughts, inner and outer, on just about anything! Lots of poetry, short stories from past experiences, anecdotes about teaching elementary school, music, relationships....garage sale type thing...Something For Everyone!

Monday, July 23, 2007

My Medical Update
















































Today, I finally got the results of several tests I had taken at The Stroke Prevention Clinic.
Results of various tests were generally better than anticipated!





MRI:

No evidence of acute stroke. (Yah!)

Carotid Arteries (Neck): Right has a little plaque, left has none. (Yah! That means no surgery to remove plaque!)

There are non-specific white matter changes which may be ischemic in nature. (localised tissue anemia due to obstruction of the inflow of arterial blood) (And I thought it was the GREY that MATTERED! Not really sure what all that could mean.)

Demyelination (indicating MS) is a possibility, though the diagnosis cannot be made on the basis of this MRI. (I'm hoping never to get MS.)



And Just as a Bonus they found...!

My pituitary gland is prominent and at the upper limits of normal for size. (Does this mean I may still grow?!!)

There is fluid through the right mastoid bone and into the middle ear cavity.

NO KIDDING! I have not been able to hear for 5 months now! I had my ear drum punctured and vacuumed (ouch!) last Friday and it simply filled up again. The ear and bone/muscles attaching all over my neck and back of the ear are very sore and I will most likely require surgery to insert tubes in my ears.

Bottom line is ...it could be a lot worse and....I need to tighten blood sugar control, (it's not good!) exercise as much as I can, and keep taking meds for cholesterol and to thin blood. I'm going to go to a Diabetes Education Centre and perhaps get more information on the insulin pump. (I am resistant to this as I tried it before and hated the needle constantly under the skin of the abdomen, but we'll see.)

I'll be going on some holidays to my sister's cottage from Wed. to Sun.!
Catch you all later and thanks for your concern!

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30 Comments:

Blogger meno said...

This does seem like some good news, although i must confess that i don't really understand all of it. Enjoy your vacation!

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Rule out the worst and carry on!

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

 
Blogger GEWELS said...

Glad to hear that most things are not as bad as it seemed weeks ago.
Celebrate life on your vacation....Be thinking of you!

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

 
Blogger Diana said...

So much better than the mini strokes I was fearing. While the spectre of MS is not pleasant, it's an extremely variable disease. Have you had any more of the vision symptoms? E-mail me if you want to chat about any of it or if you want me to dig up or translate anything.

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

 
Blogger twilite said...

Hi MOI! Wishing you good hols. Careful though, too much exercise is not good too. Wonderful you've got a friend in diana for explanation. Take care...lol.

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

 
Blogger twilite said...

Great pics!

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

 
Blogger Pauline said...

MOI - good news sure beats bad news. Enjoy your vacation!

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

MoI - after all of that - you deserve a vacation ..... !! now i know why i don't want an MRI ..... can you imagine what my brain looks like ????? swiss cheese i'm putting my money on ......

you remind me that things could be a lot worse in life - and also that things could be a lot better than i fear - it is all about attitude: and yours is one of the best !!!!

hugs!

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

 
Blogger Barbara said...

Yay! Sounds like you could be Blogging for many years to come. I'm so happy for you!

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

 
Blogger Richard said...

That sound like a pretty good news health report.

A bit worrying about the pituitary gland though.

Hmm ... hmm wonder why your ear is filling with fluid. Jason had fluid in his ears and ended up having a his tonsils and adenoids removed and tubes put in his ears. Here is another thing I never heard of, vacuuming your ears.

Have you considered more garlic and onion to your diet. Garlic is supposed to be good at keeping cholesterol low (along with regular exercise) and onion is supposed to be a good blood cleanser.

Are those brooding sky shots indicative of your mood?

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

 
Blogger Mother of Invention said...

Meno: Thanks...yep, it does seem like a better scenario than I had expected.

Colleen: That's a great way to think! Thanks.

Gewells: Thanks! I am so ready to go to a cottage on a lake! can't wait to canoe!

Diana: Thanks so much. I did send you an e-mail with more details. The MS thing is vague and I have had "chronic fatique/fibro" for a long time which sometimes have overlapping symptoms.

Twilite: Thanks! I'm certainly not going to exercise in another heat wave again and we're getting air-con.

Pauline: You sure got that right! I'm going to have a great time, thanks!

RDG: You're so funny! Swiss Cheese! I think they'd find a lot of free-floating highly developed brain cells in the grey matter part!
Thanks! I'm so glad you're back in the Blogs!

Barbara: Gosh, I sure hope you're right. I do have a lot of work to do though, taking better care of my diabetes, though. it's a 24 hr job over which sometimes, I feel I have little control.

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

 
Blogger Mother of Invention said...

The sky pics I took the night before the appointment and yes, I was very nervous. But I also think sunsets are beautiful so I take a lot of them.

My cholesterol is quite good with thr meds I'm on.

The ear thing is supposed to be because of inflamed sinus due to allergies. Funny thing is that I've never had allergies until 3 years ago and all that I had was itchy eyes. I don't have them bad at all. He said my body may be changing, but it still seems strange to me. Yes, the vacuuming thing was weird and incredibly loud...like a shop vac inside your ear! They try it to see if that's all you may need. The flonase spray we tried did nothing.

The pituitary gland is weird too but my thyroid is hypo-active and maybe that's connected. It's all related to diabetes likely.

Thanks, Richard.

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

 
Blogger Bob said...

sounds generally positive to me!

enjoy your vacation.

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

 
Blogger Cup said...

Good news! Enjoy the holiday.

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

 
Blogger Unknown said...

I'm glad the results came back more favorable than you had expected, and that you can relax a little now and enjoy your vacation.

My Ob/Gyn is on an insulin pump. She's the most active person I know. I hope the pump works just as well for you. Take care!

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

That is quite nice that the results seem quite good! And wonderful pictures!

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

For the most part.. the results sound positive. I am so very relieved. The insulin pump thing sounds very interesting. They seem to be making quite a few breakthroughs in diabetes research. I wish you all the best with all of this.

Have a great time at the cottage.

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

MoI, girlfriend -

giggle ..... lots of [[[[ hugs ]]]] and xxxxxx !!!

i'm glad i'm back, too. you guys are the best support group i have - thanks, friend.

Thursday, July 26, 2007

 
Blogger gary rith said...

That is quite a list. Good luck with all of it!

Thursday, July 26, 2007

 
Blogger TorAa said...

This is the kind of thing you can live with. hope you've had some nice time away.

Thursday, July 26, 2007

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

A little complicated, but glad mostly good news - you must feel relief and so do I!

Wishing you a great and relaxing break:-)

Thursday, July 26, 2007

 
Blogger Annelisa said...

Good news sweetheart! I'm glad it's a huge improvement on what you thought... see, things aren't always as bad as they seem!

I guess it's another of those scares that makes you appreciate what you've got when you've got it?

Anyhow, I hope you're enjoying your break. I have been, and will continue , thinking about you and sending you positive vibes (I've just been told I have the healing touch :-S - You'll surely hear all about this in due course!!)

Back to visit again soon XX

Friday, July 27, 2007

 
Blogger Lynette said...

M.O.I. that is really great news about your health report and I can feel your relief...enjoy your vacation with your sister and the sunset photos are so gorgeous!!

Saturday, July 28, 2007

 
Blogger Bobealia... said...

I had the urge to run and get my husband to ask him what it all meant, but he's sleeping, so I won't.
Anyway, I will believe that it's all good.
YAY!!

Sunday, July 29, 2007

 
Blogger Lynn said...

oh wow! Poor ear!
The pituitary thing is called Cushings disease.
In acute stages it can cause abnormal levels of cortisone in the body.
This enlargement is found in only two places. On the pituitary gland or on the adrenal glands on the kidneys.
The pituitary enlargement can effect sex hormones and reproduction. Usually a gal wont get her period if it is too bad.
Other probs it can cause is headaches and blurred vision.
There are two more tests that can be performed to determine if the problem is serious. 24hr urine sample and a cortisone suppression test. The cortisone suppression test requires you to take a does of dexamethazone to deplete your natural cortisone. If the enlargement is causing cortisone secretions, that cortisone will not go down. If the adrenals are effected it can cause weight gain and a moon shaping of the face and a bunch of arthritic type symptoms.

Sunday, July 29, 2007

 
Blogger Lynn said...

Oh and I should have said, Cushings is not a life threatening disease.
I think they can treat the petuitary issue with a med if necessary, and there are two arthriscopic surgical procedures that can deal with the issue if necessary.

I know it sucks to be diabetic, cuz you heal slow and you can take a long time before you feel improved.
I like the keep doing what you are doing attitude from the DR.

Remember you have worked really hard for your health for over a year now and you did not do that in vain.

Sunday, July 29, 2007

 
Blogger Mother of Invention said...

Bob: Yep, it is and I did! Thanks.

Beth: Thanks...I did have a great break.

Nancy: It is better than I thought which is a plus. Good to hear she likes the pump. I think I'll likely have to try it even though it gives me the heebie-jeebies thinking about it.

Chase: You got that right! Thanks.

Coll: Yes, it could have been worse. I hope the pump is something I can handle too. Thanks.

RDG: You betcha! We're a special group!

Gr: Yep...why does it get longer as I get older?!! BOO! Thanks, me too.

Toraa: I hope I can manage.

Renny: Yes, a little relief. Thanks!

Annelisa: hey! Glad to see you here! Yes, I know things can always be worse. Can't wait to hear of your healing powers 'cause it seems I'm always needing them! Thanks. I've been thinking about you a lot too.

Lynette: Thanks! I do love sunsets!

Bobealia: Well, maybe not totally but way better than it could be.

Lynn: Thanks, Lynn. Yeah, I don't think it's at that stage yet but it's good to know they can control it.
Yes, it is very tough being diabetic. I still don't handle it well after 40 years!

Monday, July 30, 2007

 
Blogger Michele said...

Whew...at least all of the "bad" news can be managed/controlled. So happy for the better than expected results, what a relief!

big hugs to you!

Wednesday, August 01, 2007

 
Blogger Stephen Newton said...

Wonderful news...

Wednesday, August 01, 2007

 
Anonymous Urology Surgery India said...

I found a bunch of good articles on this subject here. Thanks!

Sunday, August 27, 2017

 

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