I'm lucky enough to work in several different hospitals with a lot of really wonderful providers, so I asked a couple of them for their input. One is a renal case manager. She was very helpful in telling me some things I should ask the nephrologist. She also said heart problems can cause kidney issues, … Continue reading It’s Who You Know →

November 15, 2019 Multiple appointments today. (This is how most of my days off would become.) I started off with the consult for the endoscopy/colonoscopy. I met with a nurse practitioner, and we both agreed that in light of the kidney issues (which was unknown at the time this consult was placed), an endoscopy was … Continue reading Hematology, Part II →

I went to Costa Rica on vacation for two weeks. The first week it was just Kyle and me, and then the second week, my private nurse (ha) Rose and her niece joined us. We had a great time. None of us are trailblazers so it wasn’t as though I was holding them back from … Continue reading No, Seriously, Get the Fried Chicken →

October 22, 2019 I was anxiously awaiting my appointment with the kidney specialist. I needed answers. It had been seven months since my first “spell,” and I still knew very little about what was wrong with me. It was making me nuts. I’d have to force myself to stop googling my symptoms and remind myself … Continue reading The Kidney “Specialist.” Yeah, Right. →

It didn’t take too long for the fatigue to set in. Despite the high potency iron, my hemoglobin kept dipping lower and lower, reaching as low as 8.2, where it hovered for two months. My job took every ounce of energy I had, and that was really pushing it. There were many many nights I … Continue reading And… Goodnight →

You know how sometimes when things happen, you wish later you understood the significance of them? You didn’t recognize at the time it was going to be important. Looking back, maybe there were some things that happened in the past that might have been indicators that something was wrong. Somewhere in 2016, I just didn’t … Continue reading Other Symptoms, aka, Is It Cold In Here? →

While waiting for these appointments, of course I hit the googles to see if I could come up with any ideas as to what was causing the kidney issues. I didn’t have untreated high blood pressure, and I wasn’t diabetic. Those are always the two things at the top of the list. My grandfather had … Continue reading Paging Dr. Google… →

In addition to the prescription for iron, I also got a referral to hematology and for a colonoscopy/endoscopy. I didn’t suspect I had any internal bleeding that would be causing the anemia; I had no signs. But Rose told me sometimes you can have a “slow leak” and not even be aware of it. Plus, … Continue reading Waiting, Waiting, Referrals, Waiting →

June 21, 2019 The appointment with my PCP finally arrived. I explained all my symptoms and how they tended to occur mostly with physical exertion. He ordered more blood work, and this time my hemoglobin was 9.0. So it had actually DROPPED even though I had been taking iron supplements and eating iron-fortified foods. (Remember … Continue reading The Doctor… Finally →

I had no choice but to come back home from Greece and go back to that thing called a J-O-B. It hardly compared to crystal blue waters but what are you going to do. Toward the end of June, I traveled to Denver for a work conference. Kyle came with me, and when it was … Continue reading Oh Right… Elevation, Stupid. →