I'm sorry to hear it, dude. Just chill, and I hope things get better for
you.
On Sep 21, 2013 7:38 PM, "Dusk Dreamer" <Duskdreamer_at_hotmail.com> wrote:
> **
>
>
> As one the best person I know would say
>
> "Any day on the right side of the soil is a good day..."
>
>
> The sorrow of dreams is that one must awake...
>
> A Miracle's a miracle / Even when it's ordinary, Cloud Cult - Story of
> Grandson Jesus
>
>
> ------------------------------
> From: a_change_of_plans_at_yahoo.com
> To: SkunkworksAMA_at_yahoogroups.com
> Date: Fri, 20 Sep 2013 22:59:54 -0700
> Subject: [SkunkworksAMA] Another fun update.
>
>
> Here's an update on things so no one thinks I'm either dead or flaking
> out or anything. I do not usually discuss much of anything about my
> personal life online, but since it's obviously affecting things beyond my
> Real Life (tm), I'd figure I'd spill the beans.
>
> I think I mentioned in my last post about heading out to St. Louis on
> August 27th for routine lab work. As it turned out, I was called the
> following day and advised to cut back on my Mycophenalate, as my white cell
> count was way too low. In addition to that, my creatine level was 2.9
> (normal is about 1 for the typical person, and usually around 1.5 or so for
> transplant patients or those with only one kidney). The higher the
> creatine level is, the less the kidney is functioning.
>
> I had to have more blood labs drawn (this time locally) on Friday the
> 30th. I received a call that night stating I needed to return to St. Louis
> the following day for admittance, since my creatine had only fallen to
> 2.7. I was in the hospital in St. Louis (St. Anthony's, actually) from
> August 31st to September 8th. I had blood labs done twice a day, every
> fucking day, plus a couple of IV's. Two ultrasound exams and a kidney
> biopsy was then done, as the doctors determined there was some sort of
> auto-immune viral thing going on in the kidney. A plethora of tests were
> done with the biopsy (tissue exam, special stains, immunohistochemistry,
> numerous immunofluorescent studies and an electron microscope exam).
>
> The artificial stent that I had replaced in May (which was causing some
> issues before then) was also replaced, as they determined it had shifted
> and was not properly allowing the kidney to drain like it's supposed to.
> Basically, what it was doing was similar to a person brewing a pot of
> coffee, drinking 2/3rds of it, then pouring the remainder back into the
> machine with more water to brew another batch. It was basically poisoning
> itself due to faulty glomeruli (filters in the kidney). Some of these
> filters are damaged and are allowing protein to pass through, and the
> protein is damaging them every time it courses through the kidney.
>
> So two surgeries and a shit ton of blood tests later, they put me on some
> heavy-duty steroids via IV for 3 days. I got home on the evening of the
> 8th, but had to get labs done again on the 11th, and then I had to return
> to St. Louis again on the 18th for more lab work. They had put me on
> Prednisone, which is probably one of the worst drugs out there as far as
> fucking up your body goes. I was taking 30mg a day for a few days, but
> they've since dropped me down to 20mg a day (in addition to several other
> medications they've added to my roster). For some really fun reading, go
> look up the side effects of this shit. There isn't a single part of the
> human body it DOESN'T fuck up when used. The doctors seem to think they'll
> be able to wean me down to a lower dose in a few months. Prednisone is a
> medication that you can't just stop taking, unless you want to get fucked
> up bad.
>
> Some of the wonderful side effects I'm getting to enjoy include having my
> hands cramp up in such a fashion as to make them unusable until I force
> them back open (the fingers and thumb draw inwards toward the palm, as if
> you're trying to narrow your hand to fit through a sleeve). It's also
> causing severe swelling in my legs, ankles and feet, which I wasn't having
> any issue with prior to getting on this shit. I can gain as much as 8-9
> pounds of water weight in a single day because of these damn pills, which
> makes standing or sitting next to impossible (or only for short periods of
> time).
>
> I'm in generally good health. I'm 5 feet 8 inches tall, weigh 155 pounds,
> have a 31-32 inch waist, work out 1.5 to 2 hours every day (or did, prior
> to recent events), and have a strictly monitored diet where I count every
> calorie, carbohydrate, cholesterol, potassium, sodium, protein and fat
> amount in everything I eat. No soda, no restaurants, no junk food and no
> caffeine. Obviously, this recent health situation has not made me a happy
> camper. And what has pissed me off more (aside from the aggressive
> tendencies caused by Prednisone) is that every test result from the biopsy
> came back negative. So the doctors actually told me they have no idea
> what's going on with the kidney right now. It's not rejection (which can
> happen with transplant patients), but it's also not anything they have been
> able to diagnose. So I dunno what the fuck is going on, but that
> medication is screwing me up something fierce and I need to know what
> exactly they are using it for (I assume for the swelling and whatever other
> condition is going on with the donor kidney).
>
> I'm currently on a very low activity level, as per doctor's orders, can't
> do any weight lifting (although they allowed me to resume stretching and
> light-to-moderate cardio periodically), have my immune system further
> weakened by the Prednisone (I have to avoid pretty much everyone right now)
> and would be ripping my hair out in frustration if I didn't normally shave
> my head.
>
> Not looking for well-wishes or sympathies or any of that shit, but I
> thought, after some consideration, that I should let folks know what's
> going on and why I've been so quiet lately. My hope is that whatever this
> thing is, it'll get fixed soon so I can get back to my usual robust health
> and resume doing the things I like to do. Hell, I haven't even picked up a
> pencil in months. I'm going to have some family members help with getting
> the office back in order, as I'm sure I can unpack the artwork and supplies
> myself (no heavy lifting involved in that, just time). I had gotten most
> of the furniture sorted before I went to the hospital on the 31st of
> August, but there's still some work that has to be done and I'm in no
> physical condition to do it right now.
>
> So don't freak out, I'm not croaking anytime soon (I hope). As I get
> things unpacked, I'll probably start posting some pictures and some
> auctions, since the office renovation pretty much killed my art output and
> recent health events have slowed me down considerably. I may look into
> setting up some sort of drawing table that could be used while lying on my
> back with my feet elevated (to prevent painful swelling). I have
> commissions to do and art to ship out.
>
> Other than that, things are just ducky.
>
> --JMH
>
> This is being posted on FA and IB as well, just to cover all the bases.
>
>
Received on Mon Sep 23 2013 - 02:00:20 CDT