A Bout with The Gout…and it’s winning..for now July 20, 2009

I have come down with  The Gout.  That’s what they called it when I was a kid.  I  remember hearing people say, “Grandma got the gout”.  Even then I knew it was such a bad mamma jamma that it had its own title – THE  GOUT.

As a kid I never knew what it was, but I knew it sounded way serious.  Well now that I’m fifty and holding I sure as hell know what The Gout is and it is definitely a worthy opponent.  As a matter of fact, right now it is kicking my butt.

Two years ago I woke up in the middle of the night with a deep persistent, throbbing pain in my big toe on the right foot.  It hurt so bad that I couldn’t even stand to touch it.  After  a couple days of being in excruciating pain, hobbling around on one foot and hoping it would go away, I finally took myself to the doctor.  She told me that  she suspected that I had gout.  I’m thinking, I can’t have gout, that’s what old people get”.  She went on to explain  about uric acid levels and that mine were quite high, but at this time I’m still a little confused as to what the hell gout really is.  After doing some Internet research, I found out that gout is actually a form of arthritis.  Hell just what I need – arthritis – another sign of my seemingly rapid descent into senior citizenship.

Now this lastest attack has lasted over five days.  I can’t walk, I can’t sleep, and I am barely getting around.  I’ve been taking all the prescribed medication – colchicine and indomethacine, but they are not helping.  Now it’s time to try some natural remedies to see if they can help.  I’ve been hearing that organic apple cider vinegar relieves the pain and helps in stopping recurrent attacks.  At this point they certainly can’t hurt.  The Gout may be winning this battle, but I’ll be damned  if it wins the war.

Going Thru The Change… Hoping to Come Thru Sane June 26, 2008

The other day I was listening to a popular local radio show that featured an “expert” gynecologist talking about menopause. What struck me about her was that she seemed to spouting the same medical techno babble that you would expect from an uninformed man. Women were calling in describing the different symptoms they were experiencing. This so-called expert was shooting them down left and right. One of the symptoms were those dreaded “hot flashes”. You know, those “private summers” or “power surges” that for some seemed to be emanating from their legs up. This “expert” said it was “physiologically impossible”. I really hate it when a doctor or anyone else for that matter just about calls you crazy when you are trying to describe what your body is experiencing. There are a few things that can trigger a hot flash. For me, if I get really ticked off about something, it can trigger one. So you can imagine by listening to this doctor I was literally “fuming”. Also I discovered that wine is a trigger. Other women reported that “sweets” such as chocolate triggered a hot flash. Wow, bummer!

Anyway, the last caller in the segment asked if there was something that could be done about the weight she was gaining around the middle. This so-called expert told her to watch what she was putting in her mouth – that there were good carbs and bad carbs. The caller sounded bewildered and slightly frustrated. This doctor was a complete idiot!! By this time I was totally infuriated!!! This doctor obviously knew nothing about menopause other than what she had read in some outdated medical book.

If you are Going Thru the Change – Fear Not! You can get to the light at the end of the tunnel. First, you have got to research and read for yourself. Most doctors know very little about menopause. Much of their time was spent learning about your child-bearing years and they know very little about the last half of a woman’s life. In my opinion, a caring doctor would never discount what symptoms a patient is describing. If you say your legs are hot, than by golly you got hot legs! (Remember Rod Stewart’s song “Hot Leg”, anyway I digress.)  Secondly, most women experience weight gain around their middles. During menopause estrogen levels decrease significantly. The fat cells in the abdomen most resemble estrogen cells, thus the reason for the ever-increasing middle. It has very little to do with good carbs, bad carbs. If only it was that simple. Thirdly, check out the miracle of adding soy to your diet. Lots of stuff on the Internet about – check it out. I’m going thru the menopause tunnel, but I do see the light!