Well, I first found this website on 10-05-06 and posted on my first night. I still don't know exactly how to navigate the website, but I'm learning everyday. Today is October 19th and I have been on this website much of the day. I have no life, so that's ok. Actually, we've been waiting all week for our boxer, Baylee, to have puppies, so I can't leave the house until she has the pups - orders from my mom. LOL Vacation last week to Ruidoso, NM was fun, but we all went off of our diets big time. The last few months have been very difficult for me, so I thought I would make a record of it here.

First of all, I'm an RN and self treat myself a lot of the time. I don't know an RN who doesn't. Anyway, this past summer started off with a bang going to the Dermatologist for my hand. I thought I had scabies (self diagnosis) and it was continuing to get worse, so I finally decided to see a doc after trying may remedies for scabies on my own. I asked my dad for a reference since I am only visiting here - long story - and he had a dermatologist.

So, I went to see about my hand. That's where my fun filled summer began! The doc said I had exema on my hand and gave me some ointment for it. However, I had a place right below my elbow in my arm that had recently come up and I originally thought it was a bruise. Well, the doc called it a fancy name, (I'm a cardiac nurse so I don't know much about skin disorders) and told me that it could be a sign of diabetes. I told her I didn't have a PCP when she asked me, so she insisted I go see someone and recommended a couple of docs.

I went to see Dr. Hutson around the 1st of June. My B/P was 190/98 on my first visit and my weight was 265 lbs, down from my high of 315 a year before. She went balistic! Before I left her office, I had new prescriptions for several meds I was supposed to be taking, including K-Dur so I could take my Lasix, which I had not been taking. I also had an appointment with a cardiologist and a gastroenterologist. She wanted a pulmologist, but I told her I had to pay co-pays and needed to take it a little slower. I also had lots of lab tests drawn.

I went to see Dr. Rivera, the cardiologist, the next week. My EKG looked good, but he said it was a miracle that it did. My BP had dropped to 130/80 due to the dieuretics, but he was not happy in the least. He was really upset when he found out I was a cardiac nurse. He told me about "his diet" and ordered lots of tests to be done the next week. "His diet" is basically Atkins without the fat. Plus, he told me I had to stop smoking. Well, I started the diet the next day and had an echocardiogram, a non-exercise stress test, and a CT-Scan done the following week, but I still continued to smoke. The CT-Scan showed an 80% blockage in my left renal artery and an 80% blockage of my left illiac artery. I was told I would be scheduled for stent placement in their onsite facility, which I had placed on July, 28th on the left renal artery. He told me I would need to have 2 stents placed in the illiac arteries because the blockage was at the bifercation and would cause the right artery to collapse. So, I went into the hospital and had those 2 stents placed on August, 23rd, my daughters birthday. At the time, I had severe diarrhea that had started a couple of weeks before. Also during June, I went to the gastroenterologist and had an EGD and colonoscopy. He said my stomach looked like it had been sanded with sand paper, but my colon was a ok. On top of that, Dr. Hutson decided I needed to have a glucose tolerance test. I was either having a test, seeing a doctor, or having a procedure done at least once a week all summer. I finally saw the pulmologist and was told my asthma was doing well, but I still needed oxygen and my CPAP to sleep. I already knew that, but I also told him I really needed to stop smoking, so he gave me Chantix to help me. The diarrhea still continued. Dr. Hutson ordered all kinds of stool tests and they were all negative, so I had to go back to the gastroenterologist. He did another colonoscopy with biopsies to see if he could find something microscopically since my colon looked normal. I now am being treated for Ulcerative Colitis on top of everything else.

A few weeks ago I had to go see Dr. Rivera because I was feeling dizzy and my hands and fingers were tingling. I was very luck that day because he took me off of all of my B/P meds and 1 dieuretic. Yeah!!:clap2: :clap2: :clap2: :clap2: I was really doing well until I went on vacation last week. I have stopped smoking for the most part, but I still smoke ocassionally, which is not a good thing. However, I first gave up drinking Cokes, which I was totally addicted to, went on the diet Dr. Rivera told me to, and stopped smoking all at the same time. My nerves are TOTALLY shot! I am going to have to stop smoking completely because my B/P has started inching up since the vacation. I know the smoking is because I am very nervous most of the time and the Lexapro isn't helping like the Xanax I was on, but I will eventually get past it with the small dose of Xanax I have started taking again.

Long first entry, but I wanted to document all of this. Which brings me to my introduction to this website. I was searching the web to see if Medicare covered Lap-Band surgery and was elated to find out it did. So, now I'm finding out every bit of information I can and searching for a surgeon. I have an appointment with Dr. Hutson tomorrow and I have plans to discuss this with her. I am hoping for a referral to a doc in the Dallas area. I'm going home with my daughter tomorrow after my appointment to help care for the new Boxer puppies that still haven't arrived, much to our dismay! She is moving to Sherman, TX, so I will be close to the docs in Dallas!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am hoping for band placement around the end of this year!