Listening to the Voices in my Head

Pardon me if this post is a tad rambling

Or sort of incoherent.

Three days ago, my left calf, and behind my knee, and hamstring, and my annoying fused back started hurting a lot. I wasn't worried, because I had an upcoming visit with the physio, "Simon The Sadist" for a session.

To say my physio session rushed would be an understatement.  Yes, they were trying to clear up all clients before the up coming long holiday, and he, personally, was taking some time off. Good for him, but I felt I had been given the bums' rush. And I was charged $61 for the privilege.

Today, when I got up, I was in worse shape than I was BEFORE session. Tried to do some of my rehab exercises, and for all my efforts, I almost fell over, my knee kept giving out. I left comment on the "PhyApp" regarding it.. before I took something for the pain. Meds I haven't had to use October last year.

Yes, I hurt that f*cking much. With better living through (legal) chemistry, the acute pain is now just a dull ache. I can deal with that.

Due to early intervention with marvellous anti-virals

The worst of COVID-19 has passed in a week. The worst it got with me was an upper respiratory issue. I got a set of sore ribs, and sore abdomen from the coughing, but now, other than that first 'icky' cough in the morning, I'm feeling mostly well.

I get tired easily, and am noticeably short of breath, have a bit of 'brain fog', but well enough to be discharged from the WA Covid care nurse daily call. I'm still self-isolating, even from Alan and Wing.

I caught Covid, but because I was double vaxxed, and had boosters, it was no where as bad as it could be. I really feel sorry for people that didn't have them and got sick. I remember watching videos of anti-vaxxers begging their family and friends to get vaccinated after they caught it. I'm not one of them, and I am grateful and relieved.

And I had almost forgotten what it was like

I had my first appointment with Hayden The Horrible, physioterrorist. And as usual, I hurt more today than I did yesterday. He did find out, as Matt The Torturerer, and Simon The Sadist, I have a high tolerance for pain.

Got a new regimen of exercises, which I did expect. What I didn't expect was to be told to stop using any walking aids if I was walking somewhere I didn't have to worry about how fast I get from place A to place B.  This kind of scares the bejeebus out of me, because we have this HUGE wide open area in the house, where there is nowhere for me to reach out should I start losing my balance, or if my left leg folds, or an ankle decides it wants to roll again.

I have ONE lace up ankle support, but there are issues. First off, I have two ankles. Secondly, if I wear it, my shoes don't fit. I do have some of those elastic type, but they aren't comfortable for a AA heel.  Really digs in painfully after about 2 hours, maximum.

Loki is recovering faster than I am.

He had surgery on his hock/ankle. I had surgery on my knee. Two weeks later, he's walking around and the only evidence of surgery is the very short furred area that had to be shaved.

Me? 7 weeks on and I still have to use a cane around the house, and crutches.

Yes, there are some days I wish I was a cat.

And typing about Loki, I showed his histopathology report to someone. She said there were a lot of mights, maybes, could bes in it. IOWs they had no idea what the growth is. Just wait to see if it comes back.

Booked Trance for an ultrasound

Wing was on pins and needles the night before. Still was when he took her in at her 11am appointment.

Results: She's free of any other growths/tumors.  Wing pretty much sagged with relief, and said "YES!"  Now, she will go in for scans every 3 to 6 months. IOWs, as soon as her fur grows back, it had to get shaved again

And the hits just keep coming

Loki's lump was sent to pathology. Results aren't the same as the last lump. It isn't a lipoma, but soft tissue sarcoma. The vet said there was no way to get 'clean margins' as it was on his ankle.

Vet said it would grow back quickly, too.  He said the only way to make sure all the sarcoma is gone is to amputate his back leg. He's 15, almost 16 years old. I don't know if he would recover from it.

4 Cats with different types of cancer. Vets keep saying it's 'bad luck'.  My heart feels like it's breaking.

I don't know if I can go through this again

Trance and Loki both had lumps removed a week ago Saturday. Samples were sent off to pathology.

Trance has hemangiosarcoma (HSA) is a cancer that arises from malignant blood vessel cells and is an uncommon cancer in cats. It is a very aggressive cancer that spreads (metastasis) early and is associated with a poor prognosis. The underlying cause of HSA is unknown. Vet said it was just bad luck, because it's usually in dogs, not cats. And if it is in cats it usually in light furred outdoor cats, and Trance is a dark furred indoor cat.

I haven't been able to completely stop crying. First it was Ziggy, then Keito, and now Trance? Three different types of cancer, each of them 'bad luck'? I feel as if my heart is being crushed.

Seems Dr N's course of treatment is working

I have been on Ozempic for almost 6 weeks. Turns out I am a 'textbook example' of insulin resistance. With the exception of slight nausea when I followed the protocol of increasing dose to .50 from .25mg, I have had no other reactions.  Dr N does want blood tests to see how my liver is handling it. He's not worried, it's just standard procedure.

So far, I have lost 6kgs (13lbs 4oz) in 6 weeks.  My appetite, which has never been all that great, has reduced a bit, but I am still pretty much staying with the same things I have been doing. Dr told me not to change what I have been doing, because I have been doing everything right.

Yippy!

Today is the 4th week I stabbed myself. With a pre-load injection of Ozempic.

Now, I haven't changed my diet, or exercise routine. And I have lost a little over 3kgs (close to 7lbs) already. Huzzah for something that battles insulin resistance for non-diabetics!

It's gonna be fun the next time I tell someone taking my information down, when I mention two medications, and she tells doctor, or MRI tech "6X year old female diabetic" and I pull her up short. I am not diabetic, and ask her to read the 2nd reason people would take those two medications.

The Chemical Experiment That Is My Life... a new hope.

After consulting with a doctor who knows me, knows my history, even down to my eating and exercise habits, after a blood test to see if I was diabetic (I'm not. BGLs are perfect), I have finally been diagnosed with "Acute metabolic disorder". 

The new chemical in my life is "Ozempic".  A once a week injection. Needle is ultra fine, don't even feel it going in. Stings a bit 15 minutes later, but no biggie.

The only downside of this is Medicare/PBS (Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme to my U.S. friends) doesn't cover Ozempic unless you're a diabetic.  Private health cover does cover it, but only up to X amount of dollars a year.  I shall be grateful for small favors.