Health update - December 2014

Lots has been happening to me over the past several months – almost a year, I guess.  I have been taking psychotropic medications prescribed by me by my psychiatrist for almost 10 years and decided I wanted off so I have gradually been weaning off first one then the next.  That left me only 2: Xanax and Depakote.  The Depakote is for migraines, sleep disturbances, etc. so it is not too bad.  The Xanax is another matter.  I am down to only 0.25 mg a day divided into 2 servings.  The withdrawal effects are unbelievable.  I am totally miserable.  Headaches, difficulty breathing, bad-tempered, and other negative consequences.  One of my docs told me it is easier to get off of heroin than Xanax.  Lovely.  Will keep trying.

MSA is getting worse, I think.  I am noticeably weaker than last year.  Bummer.

I had a concussion a couple of months ago (stupid accident, I literally ran into a doorjamb on my way to Tai Chi from Café Kili).  Had to get a ct-scan then an MRI.  The ct-scan showed mild hydrocephaly and the MRI indicated a brain growth (benign) in my deep brain.  Have to monitor it every 3 months in case it grows.  So what – nothing can be done about it so why go every 3 months to the doctor to monitor it?  Have to ask that question.

Have also been having migraine headaches since the concussion, perhaps caused by that.

I have been having such severe pains in my legs that I finally went to a cardio-vascular surgeon, Dr. Asad Sawar, to find out if it was what I thought it was, a problem with the veins in my legs.  Sure enough, it was.  It will take months of treatments to clear up the problem with the veins but the damage in them is so severe that the nerves in my legs are also damaged and I suffer from neuropathy in both legs.  The procedures will help with the vein problem but will not address the nerve problem.  Perhaps acupuncture?

Final problem, and this is a doozy, my kidney function (and I have only 1 kidney) has fallen almost to a stage 4 kidney disease.  My nephrologist told me I have to stop taking the Celebrex for my RA as it is killing my kidney.  I thought and thought and discussed the problem with others and decided that I would choose quality of life over quantity and thus would continue to take the Celebrex (if my PC will still prescribe it for me).  That is, if he does not have something that will be just as effective.  Have to remember that both MSA and RA can destroy kidney function so maybe it is not the Celebrex entirely at fault.  I am not going to live forever anyway (is anyone?) and I would rather be comfortable the years I have left than to be in even more pain than I already suffer.