We had our first thunderstorm of the year yesterday afternoon. It rained off and on much of the day…not terribly heavy. Just fits and starts. After driving most of the day Tuesday, I had a slump yesterday. There were still things that needed doing. I picked up the mail at the Post Office. Mr. FixIt went to pick up the cat at the vet. I emptied the last of the stuff from the truck. I discovered the freezer in the garage fridge wasn’t closed tight before we left so we lost all the food in it. I found a leaky pipe in the basement. I did a load of laundry. I filled all the bird feeders and checked to see if the daffodils have bloomed yet. And, after that I was done. I was so hoping I’d be one of the rabbits that get better really fast after this surgery, but I have to be patient with my little turtle self. I took the steri-strip off my incision yesterday. It’s still quite swollen but it’ll get better before I know it.
We were watching the news last night and Mr. FixIt went into the kitchen to fix a cup of tea. He called me in to look out at the road. There was a sheriff parked in the road directing traffic and a tractor was driving back and forth. I said, “I don’t know about you, but I’m nosy enough to go out and ‘check the mail’…what do you think?” He came along with me to see what what going on. Not a lot happens out here so this was big stuff. Apparently, a dump truck lost a bunch of dirt out on the road there and when it rained, we had a little slip-n-slide going on. We’re lucky no one went flying off over the guard rail.
One of the favorite pastimes of rural folk is listening to the police scanner. I’ve never really gotten into that because I like peace and quiet. Instead, I either call my friend that has one, or I check the County Scanner Page on Facebook. You know you live in the smallest county in the state when someone comes on the page with “What’s going on?” and seventeen people come back with exactly what’s going on and where. It’s better than a game of telephone. Anyway, the report of the dirt falling from a dump truck was not only in front of our house, but also on top of the hill a few miles down the road. Nic & Son wanted to make sure we all knew none of their trucks were working in our area yesterday. I love small towns.
That was the extent of my day. There’s so much work that needs to be done around here, but I am just going to make myself lay low for a few days and heal. That isn’t easy for me to do. At least it’s not mowing season yet!
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“If you are tired from carrying heavy burdens, come to me and I will give you rest. Take the yoke I give you. Put it on your shoulders and learn from me. I am gentle and humble, and you will find rest. This yoke is easy to bear, and this burden is light.”
Matthew 11:28-30 CEV
Hi, I have hyperparathyroidism for years, never knew it could cause all the problems it does. I also have hypercalcemia. I was told to take Vit D3 and I would not need to go back to the Endochronologist. A few years ago I was told to stop taking calcium. Now I am told calcium is being leached from my bones. I have so much pain, mostly in my legs for the last 6 months. I have lost so much hair and I am so tired. What tests do you think are the most important? Any advice? Glad you are doing better.
Hi Peggy…Thanks for sharing your experiences. I am not a licensed medical practitioner so what information I share is from my own experience and research and cannot be considered medical advise for diagnosing or treating any medical condition. (There, the legal part is done.) When they first suspected hyperparathyroidism, I started my research. I did work in medicine for 42 years so I understood the terminology and the pathophysiology they discussed. But I stumbled upon a website that turned out to be lifechanging. There is an endocrine surgical practice at Tampa General Hospital called the Norman Parathyroid Center. Hyperparathyroidism is the number three endocrine disorder in the world so it’s not as rare as you may think. It’s just that most physicians don’t have the information they need to make a proper diagnosis. I’ve found that way too many want to take a “wait and see” attitude and that’s not helpful with this disorder. As a matter of fact, left unchecked, it can shorten the life span by years because of damage to the cardiovascular and renal systems, as well as osteopenia or osteoporosis. You can find an incredible amount of information on the NPC website at https://www.parathyroid.com with videos, articles, and charts. You can also download their app called Calcium Pro on your iPad or smartphone. You enter your labs and it calculates what your chances are of a diagnosis of hyperparathyroidism. As far as the tests that diagnose primary hyperparathyroidism, you should have Blood Calcium, Ionized Calcium, Blood PTH, Vitamin D3, and a 24 hour Urine for Calcium. Also, a DEXA scan tells the doctor how much bone loss you have suffered. I am the point in my life, with my medical experiences, I am a powerful advocate for my own health. There are ways of being assertive without making a doctor feel denigrated or untrusted. It is by all means your right to get a second, or even third or fourth opinion. Hubby #2 is an internist and he told me when I got to the point of having surgery, I should have it done by a surgeon who does these surgeries a lot. No one in the world does more parathyroidectomies than the Norman Parathyroid Center so that is where I chose to have mine done. Even with being in a top endocrine surgery center, my surgeon was still unable to find two of my parathyroid glands. He feels they are down in my thymus gland which is in the top of my chest.
I hope this information is helpful and I wish you all the very best in finding a solution to this disease. It is a hard diagnosis to get, but hang in there. I am still cautiously optimistic that my surgery was successful because my pain is nearly gone and I drank REAL caffeinated coffee this morning for the first time in six months without serious acid reflux. I know the doctor couldn’t visualize my two lower glands, but I am still hopeful.
Ginny