Wake up call - part 2

Well, the cold was a fizzer - it wasn't a cold but a seasonal allergy,
as I suspected when despite frequent explosive sneezes, my 'cold'
didn't get any worse.  So, the next blood test showed a truly horrific
12.   Luckily for me, despite horribly wet and at times windy
weather, I hadn't fallen over or been knocked down, although I had
a couple of small bruises which I couldn't remember getting, and
my gums weren't bleeding. Time for the big guns, to arrest the slide
before I did get into danger.

We decided on a steroid pulse, a quick in and out to hit the immune
system without upsetting my adrenals. First night it was 50mg -
100 times the dose I'd been on for the past four months. The
second night it was 25 mg. By then I was starting to feel side-
effects: palpitations, indigestion, discomfort in the hiatus hernia in
my oesophagus, inability to get back to sleep after going to the
toilet.  In the morning, before my next blood test, I felt some
shakiness and was a little slower than usual.

That blood test was encouraging. My platelets went up two and a
half times to 30. I saw my doctor the next morning - a day of
flooding rain and very slow traffic - and we dropped the steroids to
15mg, with a maintenance of 10 mg/night until my blood test next
week. By then there's a good chance the platelets will be up north
of 50, and we can breathe easy again.

Back on the Chinese herbs

Although the platelet number was encouraging, my haemoglobin
levels are still low, and so are my sodium levels. I had low sodium
back in January 2010, & I was encouraged to put salt on my food.  I
invested in a salt grinder and some lovely sea salt crystals, while
keeping the iodised powdered salt for cooking, as I need to
maintain good iodine levels. This time, we noticed my sodium levels were down at the same time as the haemoglobin. There might not be a connection, but it's worth looking up. Back then, my
antihypertensive medication was implicated, and since then I've
been put on a daily paracetamol dose to relieve arthritis pain. I
thought that might have contributed to the sodium loss, but the
reverse is the case. There are warnings against too much sodium in paracetamol preparations

To boost the haemoglobin, protect me from the worst of the higher
steroid doses and generally assist my nutritional profile, I'm back
on the Chinese herbs, twice a day for two weeks. I have no idea
what they are - a list of 10 Chinese herb names that meant nothing
to me, as I only know European and Australian herbs.  But they
taste like the ones I had back in March 2010  and are actually quite drinkable, so I think they're the same mix.

On the bright side

The drenching rains of the past two weeks have stopped, and we
have sunshine,blue skies and mild temperatures (18C in the middle
of winter). The snow peas and rocket I sowed a month ago are well
advanced, the everlasting spinach is still going and my geraniums
are still flowering. Being mostly housebound means I have been
reading more and I've finished knitting the cardigan I started three
months ago.  In spite of the ups and downs, life is good!

Life is a Chronic Illness

A friend was recently diagnosed with breast cancer for the second time. Although her lump, which was pre-cancerous, was successfully removed, she has to have radiation therapy as a precaution, to reduce the likelihood of the cancer returning in a more aggressive form. Her oncologist told her “Breast cancer is no longer a death sentence. Breast cancer is a chronic illness.” I was there to support my friend, and it occurred to me that life is a chronic illness. While not immediately life-threatening (if that's not n oxymoron), it does kill us in the end. The trick is learning to live with this chronic condition, to take each day as it comes and make the most of it, not knowing when the end will come.

Now, I know this thought isn’t original. I’m not sure which philosopher put it into words first – probably not Marcus Aurelius, who I'm currently re-reading, although he had some helpful things to say. Do not act as if thou wert going to live ten thousand years. Death hangs over thee. While thou livest, while it is in thy power, be good. (From Meditations.) So why am I meditating on life and death? Because I’ve hit another little bad patch in my journey, and I need to remind myself that being ill is not the be-all and end-all of my life.

Low energy, shakiness, weepiness – so what’s new?

The most annoying thing about this chronic condition is the way a relapse takes me unawares. It’s a pain! I can go along feeling fine, full of energy, brain working almost as well as it always has (maybe a little slower, if I’m honest), and wham, suddenly I have a day when I’m feeling shaky, weepy, and an intense desire to lie on couch and feel sorry for myself.

The reason is I have been ignoring the little warning signs that this is creeping up on me. At some level, I have been believing that I well. Fixed. Cured. 100 per cent better. And behaving like I’m as fit or fitter than I was at 25. Exercising at the gym 3 or 4 times a week. Working hard editing, writing. Going out with friends. Filling every day with activity. When, to be honest again, I should know – and accept ­– that at best I’m only ever going to be 90 per cent or 80 per cent, and I can’t behave like I have the drive and energy of my younger and healthier self.

Low iodine and slow adrenals

In my last post, I mentioned the possibility of mild hypothyroidism. My most recent blood test reinforced that possibility. My blood iodine levels were mid-range at 48 – moderate iodine deficiency, so now I’m taking one drop of iodine tincture in a glass of water once a day.

Iodine is one of the micronutrients the body requires to produce the thyroid hormones. Although it is found in fish and seafood, the best natural sources of iodine are seaweed and kelp, which not many people eat, except as wrappers for sushi rolls. Japanese people, whose diet is high in seafoods and seaweeds, seldom suffer from iodine deficiencies, but many Australians unknowingly have a mild lack, and this is a concern with maternal and infant health. Other sources are eggs, yoghurt, milk, strawberries and some cheeses, but their iodine is dependent on the soil in which the grass or the crops was grown.

Worldwide, 139 countries have soil deficient in or entirely lacking iodine. Australia is one of them – particularly Tasmania, where I spent my childhood. Severe iodine deficiency, especially in pregnant and lactating women, causes horrific brain development problems in the foetus and young babies. Growing up in the 1950s, I saw many cases of cretinism and goitre, terrifying to a small child. By 1960, the cause had been discovered and we were given iodine supplements. The best sources of iodine in Australia are actually bread and salt, which have iodine added. (Milk used to be a good source, when iodates were used as part of the sterilising process in dairies, but this no longer happens.)

Adrenal exhaustion – not again!

Eighteen months ago, I was totally weak, limp and useless, as I was suffering from adrenal exhaustion. I was afraid this latest set-back would be the same, but I was over-reacting. Sure, I have a bit of adrenal fatigue, thanks to the low iodine, slight anaemia, having migraines on hot and humid days, and just doing too much, but I am 75/75 – ie – 75 percent well, 75 percent of the time. I just have to get it through my stubborn mind that I MUST rest more and do less, and keep taking my daily supplements of B12, folinic acid, vitamin C, iodine, and the Chinese herb, cordyceps. Find a balance between action and repose, to make the most of my chronic life.

Reasons to be cheerful

• Music on my laptop, for when I have to lie on my couch.
• Poetry cds, poems read by their British or American authors for couch time
• Good books and a local library that gets all the latest ones
• Walking through the Botanic Gardens or my favourite parks when I have the energy
• Work that uses my brain and provides disposable income to buy concert tickets, books, cds, occasional new clothes,
• Time with friends and family – either in the flesh or on Skype