I have a similar issue from 15 years ago that I actively monitor.

If you are covered by Insurance, and need to take a Statin, Look into Zetia (Ezetimibe)
It was developed for/in Japan, as they Genetically suffer as you/I did under Lipitor.

Youll know in a very short window if you have any side affects, as well as Cholesterol reduction.

Equally, Reduction of Triglycerides and Cholesterol can benefit from Vascepa, which has now been picked up by many Insurance companies.

Super High LDL, might mean Genetic, especially if diet and Exercise arent helping, along with Tri, Look into Repatha. A PCSK9 inhibitor (Genetic Traits from Spanish descendant and Northern Europe. as well as some Middle Eastern) $9 Co pays in some cases.

Otherwise its a Radical diet and exercise change.

Best Wishes

The habits of life and food do a lot, both to cause health problems, and to cure them.

In my case, it is a mixture of a problem that I discovered only 5 years ago, after many years of rare symptoms that the doctors did not solve.

In short, intolerance to gluten (celiac). In addition diabetes due to having abused for years of sweets and fats, glycemia and high triglycerides. That also ends up affecting the functioning of the kidneys and almost everything you eat starts to feel bad, because the body is filled with toxins that should filter and eliminate the kidneys (ammonia, uric acid, phosphorus).

Everything is resolved with a diet, basically vegetarian, is what works best for me with difference, without any drug. Control of glycemia and triglycerides, avoid all foods high in carbohydrates and high in fat. It is a diet based on vegetables, at first it is somewhat monotonous, but it is a matter of looking and trying, vegetable creams (I really like the asparagus), sautéed vegetables, mushrooms, artichoke, etc ...

I did the same. Am pre-diabetic and had gall bladder removed due to a polyp. I ate poorly for a long while, beef stew from a can, dairy, etc. Been eating well for a few years and with exercise, my body has come fully around. I eat plants, grains, fruit, plenty of nuts, and a range of spices. Turmeric has shown to have a better effect on inflammation in the body than drugs.

I continue to be shocked at how the average person eats, but I was in their place for years.

I, of supposed miraculous remedies, have practically tested them all, the turmeric also and many more. I have never noticed any beneficial effect with any, except with vitamin C, this one is really miraculous, although its effects are not permanent or seem random, but some beneficial effect is noticed.

Now I know that the only thing that works is a proper diet, food is the most important, intermittent fasting also helps a lot. Nuts (I like pistachios very much), unfortunately I can not eat, because they are very high in protein and phosphorus, and that does not go well with damaged kidneys, because many toxins accumulate in the body.

The accumulation of phosphorus in blood, produces many itching in the skin, is very annoying. Simply reduce the consumption of protein foods and those discomforts disappear. I can not drink Cola either, even without sugar or caffeine, because they have Phosphoric Acid, again the phosphorus that causes so many problems when the kidneys do not work well.

My gallbladder is loaded with stones, but it does not give any symptoms, and that's why the doctor said there was nothing to do for now. Some diverticula detected in the intestine, but without symptoms, there is nothing to do about it.

My problems have been basically, gluten intolerance, glycemia and high triglycerides, a poor diet for years, or probably for decades. I found out about gluten after trying many things, and by chance. Gluten intolerance also caused me atrophic gastritis, with permanent stomach pains, 24 hours a day, for 13 years, until I stopped eating gluten foods and the pains disappeared in 3 days.

I also developed insulin resistance, derived from a diet high in carbohydrates, which is the precursor of type 2 diabetes.

OP- you have a lust for life! All that you have done and continue to manage- keep on keeping on. Did you try the kratom? It is illegal in many states, and for good reason. There are several all natural products that kill people- opium comes to mind. If you can function with your current meds, why mess with the devil you don’t know?
For me- healthy and athletic for most of my life. Barely drank, less then 10% body fat. Brain aneurysm rupture at 35! Live smart, eat well- genetics still f with ya.. 50% survival, of that 50% will have brain damage..I asked doctor what do I do now, how do I not get back here,etc.. he said “Have a beer, relax.” Of course, terrible advice but some wisdom. Enjoy life or with all our efforts to prolong life, we forgot to live.

I would get your gall blader removed like yesterday. They are the most common risk factor for gall blader cancer, and like pancreatic cancer, that is one you do not want to get.

4 out of 5 people who are diagnosed with gall blader cancer have stones. That is why I had mine removed...I asked my surgeon what he would do. He said he would make the appointment, and I did. If you get bladder cancer, your doctor still goes home healthy.

https://www.cancer.org/cancer/gallbladder-cancer/causes-risks-prevention/risk-factors.html

What kind of diet do you need to follow after removing your gallbladder, a problem?
I think that fatty foods are no longer tolerated. I read many opinions of people that after that surgical operation, have many problems with food.

My sister recently had her gallbladder removed, and I warned her that she would have to follow a lifelong diet, very low in fat. I will ask her how she is doing, although it is still very soon.

I only went once in my life in a surgical room, it was for a peritonitis in 2015, I was 3 weeks in the hospital, it was not very pleasant especially when they put me the nasogastric tube, something quite unpleasant.

My father-in-law has been in and out, but mostly in for the last 4 weeks. He's had his larynx removed, a tracheostomy, a couple of nasogastric tubes and now a PEG. He can't piss now so has to use a catheter. Hopefully, that starts working again. And oh yeah, he about f'ing died after the first discharge because he had developed a severe bleeding ulcer requiring another surgery. I just don't think I could handle going through all that myself.

It definitely makes me think about the stupid shi* so many of us do to our bodies. Believe me, he sure wishes he never started smoking.

Best of luck. That last sentence bears repeating.

Thanks! He was discharged from the rehab facility today. He's still recovering, but at least he's home. Between the hospital and rehab, he was in for 28 days.

Can't wait to see those bills.

And back into ER less than 48 hours later. He's home again now. When that tracheostomy tube gets clogged it sounds like death throes. I keep thinking I'd rather just drop dead when it's my time.

Curious if anyone is on AG-120 / Ivosidenib / TIBSOVO by Agios

I find this thread somewhat difficult to read in that I don't take enough time to be thankful that, for the most part, I seem to be healthy. If anyone here ever needs any medical advice, please don't hesitate to PM me and I'll help if I can.

 
What do you think of Artificial Sweeteners? Aspartame, Acesulfame, Sucralose ...

Recently, in the last two weeks, I discovered that these artificial sweeteners were seriously damaging my health, specifically Sucralose (used in many carbonated drinks, such as Coca Cola, 7up, and other foods such as gelatin and in general to sweeten anything).

Problems of malabsorption, intestinal inflammation, general reactions of the immune system (mainly on the skin), deficits of vitamin K and surely other nutrients due to intestinal damage.

It has been to stop taking anything that has artificial sweeteners, and start to improve health almost miraculously.

In the United States, I think that Aspartame was banned long ago. Here in Europe, as we are the guinea pigs of the world, or there are more economic interests from companies in the pharmaceutical and food industry, all these poisons are still allowed, Aspartame is used to sweeten Coca-Cola light or Zero, pure poison.

From what I have been reading, all these artificial sweeteners, alter the intestinal flora, produce insulin resistance, damage the bowel and hence derive infinity of health problems difficult to relate to the cause. And far from avoiding diabetes and being overweight, they promote them with other additional damages.

Id like to share. and add to this. Large syn. Sugar molecules, are not processed the same by everyone.
For a percentage, it recrystallizes more as a pointy snowflake than a lumpy "rock candy" rhombic shape.
These collect and "stick" in kidneys, causing stones, intestines, to allow bacteria cultivation that causes damage as a large fuel source
for bad pathogens.

I have dealt with this myself, family members, and many doctor meetings with family and friends in private. Countless hours of research and discussion...off the books.

If you think this isnt affecting you, i understand, if you have concerns, try a month or two without artificial sweetners, if one wants to continue, but wishes to mitigate, one can add fungal enzymes, Something we use to all get from our food prior to heat/steam sterilizing our food. (found on Tubers, carrots potatoes)

Try eating Japanese Natto, or add in pill form....it will eat a great deal of bad gut bacteria, and fix many issues...Just take a few minutes to read about what Natto is, and the health it brings....

Thank you for your advices.

I think that over the years, I came to try everything (I like to read a lot, and try everything by myself), and only three things have helped me improve my health, and I discovered all of them myself. From the doctors I have not received any kind of useful help in the practice, an absolute waste of time and money.

The three things that have allowed me to recover my health.

1.- I discovered in 2013 that I am gluten intolerant (celiac). I was for 13 years with abdominal pain, permanently, 24 hours a day with pain. In 2007 I went to a doctor, and the only thing that occurred to this man, is to diagnose gastritis. That someone with studies and a university degree, is so IGNORANT, is already sad.

2. Intermittent fasting is fantastic for people with bowel problems. What comes to show that something that you are eating is hurting you, that's why fasting improvements dramatically. 24/48 hours of fasting, and the improvement was more than evident.

3.- This I just discovered, a couple of weeks ago. Artificial sweeteners, Aspartame, Sucralose, Acefulfame, and others, I think mainly Sucralose. These kept me with many health problems, mainly immune reactions with inflammation in the skin, and symptoms of intestinal malabsorption (vitamin K deficiency and others).

Now I've been a few days, in which I'm pretty good, and I can eat almost everything. Before, any food caused me discomfort, probably because my intestine was damaged.

In short, how much ignorance about chronic problems exists in the medical world. Nutrition is fundamental, eat well, avoid the artificial, because nowadays processed foods are full of preservatives, dyes, sweeteners, all pure poison. And the worst, all this officially authorized by governments, behind which are the big pharmaceutical and food industries, all for money.

I have searched for information about Natto, it seems that it is a derivative of soy or made from Soy, soy was never good for me. I will try it to see, in general I like to try everything, but at the moment with having left the food with artificial sweeteners, I have improved my health in just a few days.

Natto would manage bad bacteria, in pill form, there is no soy, thats the carrier...natto can be grown on peanuts!
(would love to have the ability to manufacture and sell this!)

But you are 100% correct, and if you are mitigating your diet with intake and fasting, you are achieving the same result.....decreases the food that hurts you, and the bacteria that grows from too much sugar, dairy, or processed carbs.

So glad you read, and pay attention to your body!
I have many friends that almost always stay home because of digestive issues, but never make any changes.....

Interesting stuff in here. Happy Easter to all.

Then it must be a product similar to probiotics, or that provides some type of probiotic and / or prebiotic. The main issue is that if the cause of the problem is not eliminated, the problem is usually not solved, something can be mitigated and only temporarily, that are the palliatives and by experience they do not cure anything.

For quite some time I tried all kinds of probiotics and prebiotics, also treatments against the excessive growth of bad bacteria (SIBO), and other more questionable treatments such as intestinal candidiasis. Nothing worked, until I discovered that the real cause of my problems was gluten and, recently, artificial sweeteners.

As soon as the cause of the problem is detected and eliminated, the problems disappear. That explains why fasting works so well, but it's much better if we just eliminate the negative elements from the diet and eat more naturally.

The biggest problem of intestinal disorders, are not the digestive problems. The real and big problem is that between 70 and 80% of the immune system resides in the intestine, and that is why when the intestine is damaged, we can suffer from symptoms in any part of the body. My symptoms were mainly on the skin, a lot of inflammation, psoriasis, dermatitis. Other people are affected by other organs, liver, kidneys, eyes, thyroid, and everything comes from the intestine.

You have a wound that is oozing a lot of mucus/puss. Do you dress it in gauze that allows the fluid to pass through or that holds it in? I think you want the fluid to pass through, but the Home Health Care nurses disagree.

wound should be kept dry

Its not a Bacteria. Both, in Pill Form, are Enzymes/Proteins. They scrub arteries of fats and pathogens.
As a Live Culture, Natto is a Micro-shroom.

Thanks for the information, I'll try it.

At this time, Ive found only Doctors Best, has an adequate enteric coating.
No food or drink 3 hours before or after. Bedtime is good.
Within 14 days youll know if it helped your issue.

This is the product ?
https://es.iherb.com/pr/Doctor-s-Best-Natto-Serra-90-Veggie-Caps/50502

I am not a doctor but I think it depends on the wound. When I have dealt with deep wounds that leave a cavity they have to be packed twice a day with packing material. Until they close from the inside out, kinda like filling a hole with dirt, it fills from the bottom.

Having lost my mom to sepsis, watch that wound.

I’m at the hospital today with my wife, it is her 6th and final surgery (hopefully) in her breast cancer journey.

You need the "pus" to drain through and you also very likely need prescription antibiotics if the wound continues to drain that after initial cleaning. If I was seeing you in the hospital or an office (if I had one), you'd be getting a script from me.

Best wishes to your wife!

Best wishes.

Yes, read up on Serrapeptase. It should be Prescription in your country, I think?

Thanks! Hoping for the best for you and your wife.

That's what I figured. This is related to that fistula I told telling you about. He was on antibiotics but finished the prescription a couple of days ago. We're waiting to be told what to do next. His temp went up about half a degree yesterday.

Thanks for the advice!

I hope all went well for her. John.

Thanks Art, it did! She is home now resting and taking it easy for the next week or so.

Temp now at 101.5 and skin redness around the wound. Hospital wants him to take Tylenol and come up on Thursday. Tylenol isn't doing dick for an infection. You just know where this is going and can you really afford to wait 2 days? I really wonder if the professional answering the questions is looking at the case history?

Home Health nurse told us if it hits 102 to take him to the hospital immediately.

I don't know anything about you or the situation and I am not a doctor or any kind of licensed medical professional, but it sounds like you know what you need to do to feel comfortable with the situation.

If it were my family, I'd be getting in the car and driving to either my primary care doctor, a wound specialist and/or the ER. The ER will have wound treatment staff available in the hospital that can give you either the right medications and treatments or they can give you peace of mind. Tell them he had a 102 fever if you need to justify it to yourself. Half a degree is easily a measurement error.

It's unfortunate but a lot of times today you need to be your own advocate in health care. Doctors and staff have a lot going on and are consistently overloaded. Find someone who will listen to you, no matter how much noise you have to make.

My mom was in the ICU with sepsis over the christmas/new years holidays a year and a half ago, and her blood tests were taking days to come back. When I pressed the staff for answers, they told me it was because everyone in the labs were on vacation and they were backed up. That is completely unacceptable and I wish I had freaked out on them more than I did. Maybe things were different if I had been a louder voice. Don't make my mistakes. Her sepsis came from a bug bite on her lower leg that she scratched until it became infected. We were on the phone talking about christmas eve dinner. She thought she might have the flu or a cold. 10 hours later she was in a coma she would never wake up from.

I'm so sorry you are in this position. I survived a life-threatening blood infection and hence that is why I'm doing what I do. I was kind of brushed off when I was deathly ill and almost died after I was sent home from the ER during my first visit. I can't critique the care you receive from others, but I can't understand why the situation is being brushed off.

Home Health has made extra visits (they visit daily) and the wife was given very clear things to look for by someone at the hospital familiar with their situation. So we're just monitoring for now. We have a hospital just down the road, but the hospital he needs to go to is a good 2 hours away, probably 3 given his current state. He went to the hospital down the road after the premature release from the first hospital. They kept him alive but made it very clear his complications were the other hospital's problem to fix, so he staid there for nearly a week ( and developed the infection) just waiting for a bed to open up at the first hospital.

Thanks for the thoughts guys. It just feels like 7 weeks of not much going right. It's hard to trust anything knowing a missed blood test would have probably saved a lot of these complications.

I already bought the Natto, we'll see how it feels. But since I avoid foods and drinks with artificial sweeteners (Aspartame, Sucralose), I have improved my health a lot.

The Serrapeptase do not need a prescription, but for now I'm not going to take anything else. I think that eating a healthy diet, low in fats and refined carbohydrates, and avoiding artificial sweeteners will do me good.

Thanks for the tips.

March 22nd had my 5th hernia surgery. Same area too as the other 4. Left groin, and they did my umbiblicle (belly bhtton) as there was a hernia there to. Still have soreness after 6 weeks surgery. They opened me up instead of the larascopic like the other 4. I also have bulging disc in back, degenerate disc disease, and also get Cluster Headaches, which is by far the worst pain ever.. Still find lots to be grateful for considering my pain level is always 8 or higher everyday. I am also going through a damn divorce I didn't want. 21 years married and it's just over.

So Sunday a week ago my knee started hurting. I thought I twisted it on a fire call (I am a volunteer firefighter) and figured I pulled something or other. Limped around a little and went to bed. The next morning i could barely put any weight on it. as the day went on it seemed to get worse. I figured I'd make a Dr. apportionment then if it felt better I'd just cancel it.

Got an appointment for the next day (Tuesday) with an orthopedic doctor. Glad I did. The pain at that point was pretty much unbearable, and I think I have a high tolerance. It felt worse than anything else I have ever experienced with the exception of kidney stones.

Went to the doctor and they did X-Rays and an MRI. Surprisingly nothing broken or damaged. Lots of fluid, which they drained. After that it felt instantly 80% better. They also did a cortisone injection, and where I barely limped into the office. I walked out with almost no pain at all.

The Dr said I have arthritis in the knees, and they are almost to the point of bone on bone. He sent the fluid they drained for analysis.

The next day, I get a call saying the fluid tested positive for gout. Yay me! At this point the pain is still gone, and he said this may be a one time issue, but to follow up with my primay care physician to talk long term.

Anyone have Gout? I know diet plays a big part is helping keep it at bay, but some of the other reasons you can get it are an under-active thyroid (I don't have a thyroid at all) as well as the kidneys not filtering enough uric acid (which is also true for me since I only have one kidney). Just wondering what long term things I should be doing, as I certainly don't want to go through that again!

Oh the joys of the human body. It's a miracle of creation, but man sometimes it gets ya!

Chris

Just an update if anyone else has this issue - Through some research I learned that celery juice and Black Cherry juice were good for the treatment of gout (and general inflammatory issues). I immediately got some of each of those, and the remaining pain I had was gone within 24 hours. Had a follow up with my primary care Dr. and my Dr. Did not want to put me on a daily medication for something that may happen maybe once or twice a year. She suggested 3 supplements since my diet was pretty in line with what is suggested.

Those supplements were : Black Cherry extract, celery seed extract, and Bromelain.

I have been taking those with no other pain issues at this time. Just thought this might help someone else.

Chris

Has anyone had a refractive lens exchange? I have one cataract (well two but only one has progressed far enough along) that requires treatment. Not excited about having someone pulverize my lens and then replace it.

Cheers

c.

My sister had it done in the 1970s at 7 years old then the other eye in the early 80s. First time they froze it, shattered it and sucked it out and recovery was long. Second eye was laser, and recovery was much shorter. Now almost 30 years later it's WAY better than the olden times. Pretty common surgery now with a very short recovery period. If you're going to have surgery, this is one of the easier ones to have.

Thanks vireland. I never trusted laser eye surgery as some patients did not have great outcomes. Even though friends and family all had it done and were happy with it. With the cataract, I have no choice but to deal with it. While the refractive lens exchange is different, i read that in some instances they combine it with laser surgery improve the outcome. Yipe....

Cheers.

Although any procedure can result in complications, cataract surgery is pretty low risk considering the relative benefits. I have been told that cataract removal is so simple that it is frequently performed by street surgeons in some third world countries.

The purpose of the lens implant is so that you don't have to wear the "Coke-bottle glasses" that were necessary before the development of implantable lenses. A new lens has just been approved that can be adjusted after surgery to give the patient 20/20 vision:
https://www.aao.org/eye-health/news/new-iol-adjustable-after-cataract-surgery

Since the lens will (mostly) correct near or far sightedness, the purpose of additional laser work at the time would be to correct other issues such as astigmatism.

Good luck.

Keep the lower joints warm and yourself Well hydrated if your heart can cope with the extra pumping.

You shouldn't remove the antikoagulantia, if there arent other high risk problems, such as bleedings.
This is especially true for the patients that doesn't feel When the fibrillation starts.

Chris,
Have been dealing with Gout for over 13 years and it is quite debilitating. I acquired it after a 2 week trip to Ireland. Apparently a steady diet of 10 Guinness a night along with pub burgers is a non stop trip to Goutville. Over the past decade it has lied in wait till I have a minor injury or be in a stressful situation and flare up. It will strike almost any joint in your lower extremities... the worst being the knee. I know everyone complains about the big toe but when you knee is the size of a cantaloupe you would trade that for wearing sandals any day.

The main thing I find that helps is drinking plenty of water. If I have 2 liters of water a day I typically wont be susceptible to an attack. Of course you need to be careful with high purine foods (red meat, shellfish, mushrooms, beer, alcohol) make sure if you partake drink lots of water to help flush out the uric acid that the purines produce. If your having more than 1 attack a month go to the doctor and get a prescription for allapurniol to help reduce the frequency of attacks. It is hard on the liver so you need regular blood tests but each gout attack leaves arthritic damage to the joint it affects. They can also prescribe Colchacine that greatly reduces the duration of gout attacks.

In addition to traditional treatments, I have found that taking 15 mg of CBD each day has greatly reduced my inflammation I use the hemp bombs CBD gummy https://hempbombs.com/cbd-gummies/ it took about 3 days to start to have an effect and I no longer have to take 6-8 advil each day just to get around. They also carry a pain rub which is cbd and biofreze that is great after tennis or overdoing it in the yard. https://hempbombs.com/cbd-pain-freeze/ All of the above are expensive but I have had the best results with this company's products. Wish you luck with this disease I have met many people who suffer from it and everyone agrees they wouldn't wish it on their enemy. BTW the most common thing said to me when I tell people I have gout is the cherry juice recommendation unfortunately for me had little affect on my gout flare ups. Drink your water!
Regards,
Al

Just saw your post. I am scheduled for getting one eye done on Oct 31. I told them I just want to do one eye at a time. Just in case. They are pushing me to do a multi focal lens that correct both near and far sightedness. My eye dr said only do monofocal as that’s what he does. I guess the multifocal lens is a bit more difficult to do. I know it’s a common procedure. I hate messing with my eyes but if I can go without glasses, I will be pretty damn happy.

Cheers.

Hello all , as some may know already I have been battling stage 4 colon cancer for the past 5 years. In 2014 had pain when I shit so went to er. They gave a ct-scan and said I had spots on my liver which was most likely cancer that had spread from colon. Next got a scope to get clogged up and get a colostomy bag. Not very fun when you are 40 and very active in all areas. I eventually ended up at Roswell in buffalo for the tumor removal in my colon and bag reversal.

The next surgery was the liver 65% removal and it was second because other surgery was in the way. All went well as far as we knew everything was cut out.

Well went back 1 year later to find out the cancer was back on my liver and lung. Not what the family wanted to hear.

So for the last 4 years just continuing to take chemo, cbd, marijuana and plant based diet. Lucky for me the cancer seems to be growing slow last pic of lungs and liver showed stable but my tumor marker numbers still continue to rise.

I have been positive through it all so my family isn’t affected as much by this whirlwind of life we have been delt.

I have been to Boston’s Dana Farber for a clinical trial because I have exhausted all chemo a radiation treatments which means I am out of options. My platelet count would not rise enough for the trial.

I feel like it’s the family I worry about not me. I have three kids 26,21and 19. I have been with my wife since she was 14 and we had our first kid when she was 16. We have defied most of the odds on staying together for over 25 years married. I also had to put all the financial affairs in order Titles ,loans and bills to make it easier for my wife.

CANCER SUCKS and the sad thing is , it is hard to tell your story because most have been delt with some kind of similar situation.