Tag: health (Page 4 of 5)

Pinching the Weekend

July 17, 2017 / DB

What was supposed to be a relaxing weekend got a little weird. All thanks to sleeping strangely, or something simple and dumb like that.

A few times a year I get a pinched nerve in my neck. It’s usually the result of sleeping on my stomach too much. Which is a problem because I prefer to sleep on my stomach. Anyway, sometimes these episodes are particularly powerful, and this weekend was one of those occasions. Strong pain through my neck, upper back, and left arm got in the way of my having very much fun on our weekend at home.

We did have brunch on Saturday morning at a cool little spot, then hit a couple hipster stores around the corner. By the time we got home, I could barely move my neck so I went for the muscle relaxers. I don’t do well with muscle relaxers, so that’s a sign of how uncomfortable I was. Sure enough, I dropped off to sleep about 20 minutes after taking one, and when I woke was groggy for the rest of the day and evening. I took another at bedtime thinking that would knock me out, I’d wake up in the morning refreshed and ready to go.

I got half my wish: it knocked me out alright. I slept straight through from 9:45 to 7:10, rolled over and looked at the clock, then went back to sleep for another hour. When I got up I felt like garbage. Drowsy, a little dizzy, and just plain out of it. Damn muscle relaxers! My sensitive system clearly can’t take them.

We went to a birthday brunch for one of my sisters in law, and I kind of muddled through that. When the rest of the family headed north to our nephew’s county fair parade, I returned home and sat on the couch watching TV and reading and trying to stay awake for four hours. I knocked out a couple episodes of Better Call Saul and about 50 pages of the book I’m reading, so it wasn’t a total loss. And my neck was feeling better. But I missed the fair, which I both always enjoy and is a great picture taking location.

Fortunately I woke this morning feeling close to normal again. All the after effects of the meds seem to be gone. My neck isn’t 100% pain-free, but neither is it keeping me from doing normal things.

Pinched nerves. Another chapter I should have included in my “getting older sucks” post from my birthday.

46

June 21, 2017 / DB

Anyway, I’m now officially closer to 50 than 40, which sucks big time. I know, I know, 50 is the new 30, blah blah blah. And most folks of our generation look a lot younger than I remember our grandparents looking when they were in their 50s. But, man, the body just keeps rebelling. It feels like I’ve aged more in the past five years than I did from 30 to 35, or 35 to 40. I think it’s because aging in your 30s is more subtle, where the changes are more dramatic in your 40s.

There are all the lingering aches and pains. The back that is always one wrong movement from seizing up. My right hip has gone a little wacky over the past couple years. Knees that creak. You know, all the typical joint and muscle stuff.

But then there’s my hearing, which was always kind of shitty in crowded, loud environments and seems to have gotten a lot worse. On my last visit to my eye doctor, he said I was a year away from bifocals. I swear as soon as I got home that day my close vision went to shit. When we first moved here, I laughed at how my father-in-law got pissed when they dimmed the lights at a restaurant and he couldn’t read his menu. He was in his early 60s at the time. Now I’m doing the back-and-forth, try to get the menu under the right light and at the right distance, dance at restaurants. And I’m only 46!

Good grief.

And then there’s the medical stuff. As I shared, I got my first colonoscopy a month ago. That was the result of about a year of varying stomach issues. Fortunately, the scope was clean aside from one small polyp that they took out. But I’ve had to make a dramatic change in diet – completely cutting out caffeine – to try to get my stomach to work right again. My symptoms have finally slackened off a bit. But I know if they bubble up again, I may have to adjust my diet in more ways.

When you’re 25 and your stomach hurts, or you have a bad knee, or your muscles are just a little sore for a couple days, you don’t really sweat it. When you reach this stage in life, you start getting a little more worried when your body tells you something isn’t right.

I don’t mean this to be a bummer of a post. I have a couple close friends who are going through much more difficult medical issues than anything I’ve ever experienced. I really shouldn’t complain, and I’m not. But I do admit I’m starting to understand the wave of movies and TV shows in the 80s and 90s by Baby Boomers who were lamenting the carefree days of their early adulthood.

Anyway, thanks to all who checked in yesterday. I appreciate the words. And I’ll try to keep the complaining about my age off these pages until my next birthday!

Testing Day

May 2, 2017 / DB

So yesterday was a fun day: I got to experience the joys of having my first colonoscopy. Yep, big time fun it was.

A few of you have already been through this rite of passage. For those who haven’t, fear not; this is not going to be a highly detailed account of what went down at the endoscopy center.

The reason I was going in a little early (white folks don’t generally need to get scoped before 50 if they don’t have a family history) is that I’ve been having some weird stomach issues for the past year and a half. The symptoms have changed over time, and often didn’t seem related to each other. But they’ve persisted long enough that I went in to see my regular doc and ask for her thoughts. She couldn’t think of any obvious causes or explanations for my issues, and thus sent me off for a scope to get a look inside. I was all for it. Most of you know it was colon cancer that killed my stepfather and I have no reservations about getting tested early.

The results were a mixed bag, but in the best possible way. Unfortunately the scope didn’t show anything in the area of my abdomen where I’ve been having pain. Which is both frustrating and encouraging. It could just be a diet issue, or I may need to do some other tests if the pain continues. They did find and remove a polyp the doc said could have become problematic down the road. So that’s good.

Colonoscopies are one of those procedures that we all seem to dread. I’m guessing they used to be a lot different than they are now. I was knocked out and a roughly five-hour stretch of Monday afternoon is a complete blank to me. There was no pain after. I slept for over nine hours last night and woke feeling crazy refreshed. I would say I still feel a little off today, but more from a combination of lingering effects of the sedatives and low blood sugar than from the procedure itself.

It was the prep that is tough, though. And even that wasn’t as bad as some suggested it would be. The hardest part for me was not eating any real food for 36 hours before the procedure. I’m not a good hungry person and I was getting pretty grumpy before I began the Gatorade and Mirolax cocktail part of the prep Sunday evening. I didn’t get much sleep Sunday as the Mirolax did its work. But, still, it wasn’t that big of a deal.

I had only been knocked out once before, when I was 18 and got my wisdom teeth removed. I have moments of semi-clear memories from after the procedure yesterday, but most of it is a complete fog. Apparently I told S the same story about one of the nurses living in the same neighborhood as several of our friends from St. P’s three different times. When I mentioned it again at dinner last night, even the girls laughed because S had told them I was repeating myself.

(Yeah, the girls laughed and laughed when I told them what I was going in for. “They’re putting a camera where?!?!”)

And then there was just a tiny bit of awkwardness because I met the doc doing the procedure at a social event a couple years ago. He had been enjoying the vodka at that event. I’m glad to say he was clearly sober yesterday. We have some mutual friends, and he and his wife have a lake house on the same lake as ours. We may get together over the summer when our mutual friends come to the lake. I sense an opportunity to compliment him on his boat/house/lake toys that I’ve now helped pay for.

Anyway, it’s all done now. I’m glad the results were good but wish I had a better idea of what was going on in my belly. For those of you who get to wait a few more years before you get scoped, I say don’t sweat it. If you follow the guidelines they give you ahead of time, it’s a piece of cake. And you’ll get to take a really good nap after!

Last Week Wrap Up

November 14, 2016 / DB

Some week, last week. Not my favorite of the year, I’ll admit. But, to be fair, not the worst, either. Perspective.

Monday got off to a fun start when C threw up in her bed at 3:00 AM. Just when you think you’ve changed pukey sheets in the middle of the night for the last time… So she and I hung out Monday. She was flipping through movies on Amazon to watch and picked A League Of Their Own. When S, who was home between meetings, told C that Madonna was in it, C responded, “Who’s Madonna?” Good grief!

Tuesday was, well, you know. Kind of ruined Wednesday, too. Still pretty upset, to be honest.

Thursday I woke to either whatever C had, or my own ailment. That was fun. Also fun was spending the entire day on the couch in discomfort. I did get a very exciting email sharing news that one of our girls gets to do something very cool in a couple weeks. I’ll share more about that as we get closer to the event.

Friday everyone was finally healthy. The weather was decent. And college basketball officially started. Which means my stomach hurt, although the pain had nothing to do with lingerings from Thursday’s incident. After over 13 years living here, the Jayhawks finally played the Hoosiers on the hardwood. It was a fantastic game, especially given it was the first real game of the year for both teams. Shame about the final result, but that was just a fun game to watch. I got minimal grief from my wife the next morning. I’ll write more about the Jayhawks after they get through tomorrow’s big test against Duke.

Our weekend was pretty chill. The girls got to meet their newest cousin, which thrilled them to no end. They also got to see their other two new cousins before the day was over. They thought they hit the jackpot, seeing three babies in about five hours.

Hard to believe that Thanksgiving is just over a week away. L has her First Reconciliation Wednesday. Her sisters start volleyball tryouts this week. After the lull since fall sports ended, we’re about to get things cranked up again.

Summer Kickoff

May 27, 2014 / DB

How did your summer 2014 start off? Ours had highs and lows. Breakdown? You betcha!

I’m hoping the way our weekend began was not an omen for the rest of the summer. L. and M. both woke up with stomach aches Friday. It was L.’s last day of school, with her big bike parade on the agenda, so I did not want to be stuck at home with one or two sick kids. I’ll admit I told M. to suck it up so she didn’t ruin L.’s last day.1

We got M. and C. to school without incident, but on the way home L. puked in the bowl she had brought along. Moments after we got home, St. P’s calls asking me to pick M. up because she was throwing up.

I’ve said it many time and I’ll say it again: Father of the Year!

We had a couple hours of puking on the couch before a quick trip to the pediatrician’s office to check for strep (negative). There was puking in the exam room and in the car again as well. We left with a prescription to ease the nausea and once that kicked in, both girls were able to rest for a bit.

C. made it home feeling ok, but eventually began feeling bad and, you guessed it, puked before bed time. Three girls all puking in one day! A new family record, I believe.

This was concerning not just because everyone was sick, not just because L. missed her last day of pre-K, but because we had big Memorial Day weekend plans. We were not only opening up the LVS.2 We were not only hosting friends and some family for the weekend. But we were also going to take a new (to us at least) pleasure craft out for the first time. If the girls were sick they would likely not be eager to go out on the water.

M. and C. both rebounded and felt decent most of the weekend. L. never really shook it, though, and even got sick again Sunday night. She’s not going to look back on this weekend fondly.

Other than all that ugliness, it was a fine weekend. Gorgeous weather the entire time. Mostly good behavior by the girls, who had their buddies from next door along for the fun. Some really good times with friends and family. Cookouts. Swimming. S’Mores and campfires, with a bonus visit from a curious raccoon. Tubing, for the girls. And our first-ever weekend owning a pleasure craft. Other than someone else asking me to keep it straight for a minute or two, I had never driven3 a pleasure craft before. It was a learning experience, but certainly an enjoyable one.

So it was all kinds of good. The first of many fun weekends for the next three months. With, hopefully, less puking, of course.

I’m off shortly to spend a day with C.’s class on their last, big field trip of the year. It’s supposed to be warm and muggy. And my stomach has felt better. It could be an interesting day…

In my defense, C. complained about an upset stomach Thursday morning and ended up being fine. And the last time I let M. stay home, she miraculously felt fine the moment we dropped L. off at school. ↩
Local Vacation Spot, if your memory has slipped. ↩
Piloted? Run? Can I get a ruling here? ↩

In Sickness And Haircuts

November 14, 2013 / DB

It’s a double sick day. C. came home early yesterday with a fever and L., who was already on medication for a bad cough, was burning up this morning. Good times. We’re deep into a Netflix binge that will likely last all day.

I got called to come pick C. up about 2:20 yesterday. When I got to school, M. was sitting in the office with a big, proud grin on her face. After we got into the van, I asked her if it was cool to hang out in the office.

“What do you mean, why would that be cool?” she asked.
“Well, you get to hear everything that’s going on, see everyone that comes through, and know what Mrs. H and Mr. H (the school admin and principal) are up to. And you do like to know everyone’s business.”

She tried to play it off and acted like nothing much was going on.

Of course, later in the night she couldn’t help herself and started telling us all kind of St. P’s gossip. I knew it!

I didn’t hear all the conversation, but a couple nights ago I heard S. telling L. not to use the word chubby, because it can hurt some people’s feelings.

“But Mom,” L. shouted, “chubby people are awesome!”

I don’t know where she got that, but I like it.

Tuesday was haircut day for me. I go to a local spot where I can get in and out in less than 20 minutes. I never ask for a specific person, but tend to have one of two or three stylists¹ each time. One of them is full of opinions. Once she told me that she refuses to take any medication, including Advil/Tylenol, because she thinks medicines cause more problems than they solve. This week she told me that she didn’t think the Miami Dolphins controversy was that big of a deal because “everyone uses that one word,” and gave me examples of how she used it growing up and “it didn’t mean nothin’.”

It’s always an awkward position to be sitting in a chair while a person cuts your hair with sharp, pointed scissors and they begin dropping opinions that you disagree with. It’s one thing to talk about sports or pop culture or your favorite restaurants. It’s another to get into more political matters. I just don’t want anyone to shave a bald spot where I can’t see it, or “accidentally” stab my skull or nick my ear because I’ve argued that I think medications are generally good things or using racial slurs is never cool.

Like that old man who started talking about race at the football game earlier this year, sometimes it’s easier to keep your mouth shut, nod, and hope it ends quickly.

Speaking of high school sports, I cover my first girls game tomorrow night.

I don’t know the proper term. “Person that cuts my hair” is too awkward, and I don’t go to a barber shop, so they’re not barbers. ↩

Kids, Football, And Seeing My Name In Ink

October 15, 2013 / DB

Slapping together some notes while attempting to actually stay awake past halftime of a Monday Night Football game, as the Colts are battling the Chargers. Not sure why I’m bothering. The Colts vs. San Diego has been nothing but bad news for about ten years.

My assignment last Friday was to cover RHS going to play DCHS, the team that lost the 83-78 thriller earlier this year. DCHS came in averaging 56 points and 550 yards per game. Their average gain on running plays this year was 8.5 yards. They had not scored less than 40 points through their first seven games.

So naturally RHS held them scoreless in the first half and won 41-28. It was an impressive, and surprising, performance, and made for a decent story. Although there were so many numbers to deal with – DC held to half their season average in points, lost as many turnovers as they had lost all year, gained 50 yards fewer than their average, etc. – that it was hard to squeeze it all in. But another beautiful night at a stadium.

Since we don’t live in the delivery area for my paper, I’ve only read my stories online. But we were down that way Saturday and I ducked into a gas station to pick up a copy. It was kind of fun to show the girls my name in the paper. Hell, it was cool for me to see it.

Last academic year, we made it all the way to April before any of the girls puked. This year we didn’t even make it to fall break. C. woke up sick Friday night and threw up a couple times Saturday. We learned at soccer Sunday that one of her teammates was also sick that night. At practice Monday we heard of other kids from St. P’s who have been puking. Really hoping this bug doesn’t go through the whole family like that April one did.

I’ve been fighting a cold for a few days. It’s one of those annoying colds that isn’t full-blown, but is worst at nighttime. Trying to sleep my throat gets scratchy, then I can’t breathe, and I spend a couple hours tossing and turning. So I was thoroughly wiped out Sunday night and went to bed when the Red Sox were still being no-hit. Sadly I missed the late-game fireworks. We’ll see if Big Papi’s grand slam was more Kirk Gibson 1988 or Albert Pujols 2005.

Your girls soccer update: L. scored two more goals this week, bringing her total to 12 through four games. Again, not that I’m keeping track. C. struggled with the after-effects of being sick and was not much of a factor in her game. And I missed M.’s game coaching L..

Well, I made it through the entire game. And, as expected, was rewarded with a Colts loss. I wish I knew what it was about the Chargers that makes them the Colts’ kryptonite. But man do I hate losing to them. Well, mostly losing to Philip Rivers, even if he is my fantasy QB.

Cursed

May 28, 2009 / DB

You may remember my four-month battle to get new glasses that spanned last October to January. I’m at it again.

This time I’m trying to get some prescription sunglasses. Since the first week of April I have 1) ordered a pair and been informed a week later that the frames I ordered will not work with my prescription, 2) ordered a new pair in the correct frames only to receive them and find the prescription was wrong, 3) sent that pair back to be corrected and then had my eye care provider fail to call and let me know they were in, 4) finally went in and got them and, you guessed it, the prescription was off again.

Step four came yesterday. The woman helping me asked what the problem had been on my previous visit, checked the problem on the pair I was trying on, did some looking at my account, and then said, “Oh, I think I see the problem. We shouldn’t have ordered this kind of lens material with your prescription. Let’s try plastic and I bet they’ll work fine.”

That information would have been helpful two months ago.

Keep in mind, because my optometrist is a family friend, we go to a fancy place and not the eye department at Target or Costco. Even with my crazy prescription, I’m beginning to wonder if I would have better luck going to one of those places.

So my sunglasses are on their way back to Louisville again. Hopefully they’ll remember to call me this time, but I won’t hold my breath that they’re going to work. With some luck, I’ll have them by the time we go to Mexico next month.

Ugh

April 6, 2008 / DB

Woke up on what should be a great day with flu-like symptoms. Have been rolling around on the couch for three hours and maybe, finally, felling a little better. Need some major improvement before 9:30 tonight.

In case I don’t get a chance, I will say, Memphis is way too good for KU. If KU is a really good college team, Memphis is like a mid-tier NBA team. How can we guard Chris Douglas-Roberts? Derrick Rose? Joey Dorsey is going to manhandle our bigs they way they shoved Tyler Hansbrough around Saturday. In fact, I might as well just get sick and not watch, because it’s going to be painful.

Memphis 129
KU 12

(cough, cough)

At Last, A Turn For The Better

January 29, 2008 / DB

Things are finally getting better here. C. was sick again all night last night. I finally broke down and got sick. A rough morning for some of us, but I’m feeling almost normal again and C. was looking much better before her nap. M. went back to school and was her now-normal bossy self upon her return. Now if we can just keep S. from regressing and getting sick tonight, we should be out of the woods.