Thursday, December 16, 2010

And so it has come to this (as I knew it would)...

So... those of you who follow me on FB know that I went to the Dr. yesterday and that I have a bone spur in my neck (on one of the cervical vertebrae) which is causing all kinds of havoc in my left arm, back, and chest. What I left off of the FB post was that I also have a set of cervical ribs. I am some kind of lizard throwback since the only creatures with cervical ribs are lizards and birds. I seem to single-handedly (ribly??) prove the theory of evolution...YOU ARE WELCOME Mr. Charles Darwin. :) Evolutionary hilarity aside these extra ribs can wreak some serious havoc and the one on the left side is quite possibly impeding a nerve or two. So I am on some steroids and muscle relaxers with instruction to use my left arm as little as possible. No lifting, carrying, pushing, or pulling is allowed. No handbags, no coffee, no nothing. Go ahead, give being one-armed a try. It is more difficult than you think. Anyway I go back to see my doc on Jan 14 to see what is next. It could be physical therapy; it could be an MRI and surgery. I will keep you posted.

What sent me to the Dr. in the first place is a much more interesting story (maybe, I mean having lizard ribs is pretty interesting as only 1 in 200 people have them.). Because of the numbness and tingling in my left arm accompanied by severe pains in the left side of my chest and back my natural reaction was "oh shit, is this my heart?" Some of you know that my father died of a heart attack when I was 21. He was 43 and as far as we could tell it was his first and only heart attack. Now, his father died at age 55 of a clot in his aorta, so as you can see there is some heart history on my paternal side. My father was a heavy drinker, a smoker, was a bit overweight, and ate a not overly nutritious diet. For several years he complained of left arm/shoulder tingling & pain (hey, maybe he had lizard ribs, too!), indigestion, and general chest pain. The military doctors told him he had residual nerve damage from when he flipped his car at age 19 and they gave him every antacid ever manufactured (OTC & prescription). Turns out he had been having little heart attacks all along. The day he had the "first" heart attack they told us they just needed to balloon an artery or "worst-case scenario" do a bypass, but when they opened him up 3/4 of his heart was already dead and there was nothing they could do. The End. So you can understand why when I have chest pains and numbness in my left arm, with a bit of indigestion thrown in, I get a bit panicky. And of course panic/anxiety only made my chest hurt more.

So, the Dr. visit.

First off, my heart is fine. It sounds fine and the EKG showed a normal rhythm. (WHEW) My lab work from my recent physical is all great. I am super healthy . In fact all of my stuff it where it should be (lizard ribs aside). My cholesterol & triglycerides are normal, my blood sugar is good, everything is great. I am a picture of health on a chemical level...

BUT

and you knew this was coming as much as I did.

I AM TOO FAT.

Yea... I am basically undoing all my genetic gifts by carrying around about 125-130 extra pounds. Not to mention that the bone spur & lizard rib pushing on my nerve are aggravated by the extra weight load. So it has finally happened, my Dr. has told me I HAVE to lose weight. I see her again on 1/14 for the neck issue and I am sure she expects to see a decreased number on the scale.

Meh.

Yesterday sucked.

4 comments:

  1. omg. i don't even know where to start! the cervical ribs! the ms. counts jokes! (don't get me wrong, i love that wretched woman, but i spent most of senior year in hysterics with tina about that arm!) the family heart issues! i'll just focus on the most important one--the last one. that's SO scary and i'm mad at the military doctors who were like, "oh here, take this small spoonful of ice cream instead of MASSIVE HEART SURGERY that will save you." ugh. but either way, so scary and SUCH incentive to shed some pounds, or at least get much more active. last week one of my best friends' mom went in for an angiogram and they kept her--for a quadruple bypass AND carotid artery surgery. we're starting to hit that age, honey, and i don't want to hear ANY stories about friends of mine dying from stuff they can possibly prevent. so get up and get dancing, and i'll do the same--i'll do a little zumba in your honor. :)

    (ok, now. hehe, lizard rib. hehehe. that totally reminds me of the vestigal tail on the george costanza guy in "shallow hal." hehehe.)

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  2. What a sad story about your father. I'm sorry he passed at such a young age. But glad to hear that your blood pressure/cholesterol/sugar levels are all healthy. It's going to be especially tough to lose weight not only with the holidays looming ahead, but also with your 'lizard' condition. Losing weight is super hard, otherwise we'd all be walking around like super models. Try not to get overly stressed out, take small steps to cut out calories, and don't even try to resume an exercise program until your doctor approves it. Best of luck at your weigh in on 1/14! You can do it!

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  3. Wow. There's so much here. I'm sorry about your dad ~ military doctors can be complete and total asshats sometimes. I'm glad your vitals are showing that you're healthy. As for the weight, don't do anything too strenuous until your doctor clears you BUT you can make food and drink changes ~ fresh fruits and veggies, lots of water, etc. You can do this, Mylynka, I believe in you.

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  4. Thanks ladies! I am grateful for the friendship, love, and support. *tear*

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