Catching Up

[K&GB]

Thanks Wade. It's probably too long and complicated to go into here. Gina's been in poor health for a long time. High blood pressure, heart problems, diabetes, and some auto-immune stuff. She had a gastric bypass 2-1/2 years ago and lost a lot of weight. Her blood pressure and many other problems cleared up quickly. For a short time, we seemed to enjoy a long awaited period of good health.


But the bypass comes with a price. She can't absorb nutrients the way she's supposed to anymore. And I guess it taks a while for the resulting problems to surface. Six months after the bypass she was at a place where she could eat whatever she wanted. She just ate a lot less than most people. Her health seemed greatly improved. She had a problem with potassium uptake for a while, but that eventually cleared up. Only now we're finding that she's critically deficient of several vitamins, B6, B12, D, etc. These cause a whole host of symptoms, some of which she's had for the past 9 months. Constant headache, dizziness, depression, dry eyes mouth and skin, and finally seizures.


She's taking vitamin injections now, and I guess it just takes time. But she's really down about it all.

 

[RkyMtnWine]

So sorry to hear about all the medical issues Gina is dealing with.. Has to be so difficult for everyone. Hang in there guys.. You and Gina are in our prayers...

 

[Wade E]

Wow, my wife has most of those symptoms and gets B-12 shots often. Hope she escapes these and improves quickly. What is the treatment consisting of?

 

[NorthernWinos]

Hope Gina improves soon...such a worry when the problems are so complex and undetermined....Would be nice if they could figure this out and get the shots to take effect.

Hopefully when her Dad returns you can all rest easy....It seems your body can't heal when there is such worry and uncertainty.

Good Luck and Good Health.....

 

[swillologist]

Sorry to hear about Gina. I hope she gets to feeling better real soon.

 

[hannabarn]

Ken. Sorry to hear about Gina. I can relate to that a little bit but not that seriously. I had gastric bypass surgery about 25 years ago. I started taking B-12 injections monthly right after surgery. If I miss a shot, I get run down and tired but not anything such as Gina is suffering. I must eat smaller portions also. I am so sorry to hear that she is suffering so much. Our prayers are for you and Gina. Hang in there.

 

[K&GB]

Thank you all for your support. It means a lot.


When Gina was in the hospital, she had a brocho-spasm during a seizure and her airway closed up. So they intubated her. Later she was flown to a hospital in San Diego that had an ICU bed. This was a teaching hospital with lots of modern dianostic equipment, so we had high hopes. However, in retrospect we're very disappointed in the care (or lack of it) that she received there. They ran a video EEG that correlates body movements to brain activity and is the definitive test for epilepsy. She was negative. They also ordered an MRI with contrast and a lumbar puncture, neither of which she ever got. It seems after ruling out epilepsy, they decided she was psychotic. They gave her a psych consult and released her the next day.


After we drove 200 miles back home, they called and said "Hey, your tests came back and we think we figured out what's REALLY wrong with you. Looks likea vitamin B6 deficiency." And sure enough, that fit most of her symptoms, including the chronic ones we thought were unrelated.


But following up with local doctors in Yuma took weeks. Why didn't they just keep her another day until her tests came back and start treatment in the hospital? We later learned that she has several vitamin deficits, which are just now being treated.


While in the hosptial, Gina was on some pretty serious anti-seizure drugs, which did nothing for her seizures but didcause a whole host of side effects, including hallucinations and severe drowsiness. She's been weaned off of all but one of those, so we're finally getting a chance to distinguish between the side effects of the drugs and what's "normal". Unfortunately, the news doesn't look good. There's definite mental impairment. She can't remember things andcan't count in her head. She's developed a stutter. Her right foot has turned inward and causes her to always walk to the left. And then there's the dizziness and constant sleepiness. I don't dare let her walk even 10 feet on her own. But I never know when she's going to wake up and decide to get out of bed or off the couch.


Are these symptoms the result of the seizures, or maybe anoxia during her 10 min intubation process? We don't know. We've been trying to stay positive, hoping that as the vitamin deficiencies are addressed, her symptoms will improve. I used to joke with her about these things, even calling her a "dizzy blond" and suggesting she dye her hair. But I'm not joking anymore.


She got the MRI with contrast last week (finally), but we don't know the results yet. Her reumatologist ruled out Lupus, which is very good news, but said she has some other auto-immune disease which I can't remember. But it's not as serious, so we just have to watch it. Let's see, last week she also saw her regular doctor, her neurologist, her counselor... I think that's all. Getting a lot of mileage on the car driving her to all these places. My boss is very understanding about the time off work. But it'll be good when her dad and step-mom arrive to help out.


I'm rambling here, so I'll stop. Thanks again for listening. I really do appreciate it. Just writing this stuff down helps me process it all.

 

[Scott]

Ramble away anytime, again thoughts and prayers with you both.

 

[NorthernWinos]

WOW!!! That's some serious stuff...almost like she had a stroke....

It's so nerve racking when they can't figure things out....soon some doctor will figure it out and the healing process will begin....take the vitamin shots and hope for the best

Meanwhile, our thoughts and prayers are with you....Having faith that things will improve.... and the will to continue is most important.

 

[K&GB]

Thank you all very much for the kind words, thoughts and prayers. I went to work this morning and came home to check on Gina around 9:00 only to find she had gotten off the couch to look for a magazine and fallen and banged the side of her face on the coffee table. That's it. I went back to work and told my boss I was taking leave until her dad arrives.

 

[RkyMtnWine]

very sorry to hear how its going for Gina... certainly take some pressure off when her Dad arrives. Take care...

 

[Waldo]

Will keep the both of you in our prayers .

 

[K&GB]

Gina's dad arrived last Friday, a week ago from yesterday. I checked in off of leave, went to work, and ran the PFT that day. 244 out of 300. Not too shabby for an "old guy". But I've finally accepted that trying to keep pace with my son is just a fantasy. At least I still out rank him...for now.

My daughter came out with her new puppy, Rollie, last week while I was off work. Gina was so happy, but also jealous. It's been 3 years since our Seyward passed away, and I think we're finally ready to move on. So...since the back yard is all rocked in, I contracted to have the cinderblock wall/fence extended down one side of the house, between me and the neighbor, to make a dog run. That's done; I just have toinstall a gate and find some grass that will grow in shade. The burmuda that was planted over there last year is almost all gone, and with that new block wall, there's almost no sun. I promised Gina we'd get her a puppy right after Christmas. (we're thinking about a Vegas trip with the kids over the holidays).


It's been 6 days since Gina's last seizure, and we're hopeful that maybe they're finally gone. Her vertigo hasn't improved, and she still has that constant headache. She hasn't made it back to the neurologist since her MRI, so we don't know about that. I'm taking her to a chiropractor today because her back and neck are so bad. We'll see how that goes. Not covered by the insurance. I worked really hard last week to get her designated as an "exceptional family member" which is a military program that offers certain benefits to families with disabilities. Mainly it keeps your familyaround a major medical facility that can offer the right kind of care. But it also offers a certain amount of in-home respite care, which Gina will need when here dad leaves and I'm back at work. But alas, her doctor doesn't feel comfortable filling out the paperwork because it asks for a diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment plan. He doesn't know what's wrong with her, how long it will last, or what her treatment will consist of, so he won't fill the papers out. Which basically means she'll be on her own after her dad leaves. Gotta love it. Who knows, maybe she'll be better by then.


When Gina's dad and stepmom arrived, we told them we were planning to go to Cracker Barrel for Thanksgiving dinner, but they wouldn't stand for it. So we went shopping and got all the fixins for a big Turkey dinner, which we enjoyed on Thursday and yesterday. I'm sure we'll still be eating turkey today too. I poured a bottle of our Viognier for Thanksgiving dinner, and it was excellent.


Monday I fly to New Orleans for a conference and get back home Friday. Gina's dad and stepmom will be here until I get back. Then they have to drive back home to Oklahoma. We've been playing spades, girls against the boys, and the girls are up quite a bit. Maybe us guys can make a come back before I have to leave.

Edited by: K&GB

 

[grapeman]

You guys are behind because you are such a "Sissy Boy"- making wine, drinking wine instead of beer, not hunting and don't like sports. Any you call yourself a man?!!!

Oh and I almost forgot- you cook and wash dishes. I suppose you iron and fold clothes too!

 

[Wade E]

Were not the 1 running on a treadmill wuss boy1

 

[JWMINNESOTA]

Oy....Im JW...and yes...I cook, do dishes..and occasionally laundry...Please forgive me.

( One of my wifes favorite pics is of me scrubbing a toilet, NO, you will never see it!)

 

[PolishWineP]

Ken,
You just keep on keepin' on. And I bet you DO know how to run an iron!

Do you think you could get the doctor to fill out the paperwork saying that at this time he can't make a diagnosis and that would be the #1 reason for keeping her near a major medical facility, etc? I've learned over the years that sometimes all the little boxes don't have to be completed. The worst thing that will happen is they will refuse to accept it. But it's worth a try.
And yes, you should continue to count on us as friends who will listen. Because that's exactly what we are. There's always someone around who cares.

 

[K&GB]

Thanks PWP. Gina will follow up with her doctor in person next week while I'm gone. She only spoke to him on the phone last week after I dropped off the paperwork. She's a nurse and has a nack for getting doctors to see things her way.

But it may be that he's right not to fill them out. The program seems to be for people with disabilities, and we're not sure if her current problems will persist. It's just frustrating. The reps at the Family Service Center made it sound like a sure thing. "She can start getting in-home care next week." I guess we'll see.


And for the record, I do iron my own uniforms. At least I used to. Now I take them to the dry cleaners...

Edited by: K&GB

 

[grapeman]

Make sure the vitamins she has contain just a touch of Selenium. Selenium deficiencies can exibit the exact symptoms you describe her as having. I used to have some cattle and our soil is deficient in Selenium in the area. I had calves and young cattle start to get extremely gaunt, followed by muscular atropy and finally nerve damage causing convulsions and seizures. I came across a mention of similar symptoms in a really old book and they said it was Selenium deficiency. I showed the book to the vet and he had a product called Bo-Se out there pronto. Within hours of injection there was a marked improvement and full recovery of the affected animals (after I had had two die prior to treatment). I has since become a routine injection of the calves at a young age and no further problems. When you don't know what is causing something- rule nothing out no matter how bizzare it sounds. Good luck with her continued improvement.

 

[NorthernWinos]

When we raised livestock, both hogs and steers we used Bo-Se or other types of supplements....

Our animals needed Vitamin E or they would get White Muscle disease as well as Mulberry Heart.....a vet told us about this early in our venture, so it was always used.

Never thought of humans getting that.

My brothers Cancer doctor told him and I that if you take Vitamin E to always use Selenium with it for it to work best.

I had to quit taking all my vitamins and minerals with the last Chemo round...the drugs were trying to kill cells and the supplements were building them....I didn't resume during this 'Drug Vacation'....Was sick of taking meds...wanted to be as natural as possible.....