Showing posts with label calcium. Show all posts
Showing posts with label calcium. Show all posts

9.17.2009

Lab Rat

Mom's first Chemo Cap So ok, I realize I haven’t done an update on how I'm doing physically in a while. Mostly, there hasn’t been much to tell… Last week I got my labs drawn to check my calcium and my Dr hasn’t called to tell me I can back off on the Tums yet so it must not be normal yet. I plan on calling next week to see if I can start tapering the dose and/or if I need another level drawn soon.

Today I got my labs drawn to check my thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) and I hope to hear about that on Monday. We need it to be at 30.00 or higher in order to schedule my pre-ablation WBS, radioactive iodine ablation, and post-ablation scans with Nuclear Medicine. They won’t even consider talking with you until you get to that point. I’m feeling positive that my TSH has been rising because I've been experiencing hypothyroid symptoms more acutely this week. I’ve been sleeping 12-14hrs/day, hair is falling out regularly, I've stopped feeling like I have hot flashes, and have stopped running a constant temp of 99F+ (that was annoying for over a week).

Yesterday and today I've been COLD. Yes, I know the weather has cooled a bit but I live on the 3rd floor, have my windows shut, layers of 3 shirts and 2 blankets and my hands and feet cannot get warm. I probably should try some socks too but I like the barefoot freedom of summer and its not officially fall… yet! I’ve also started getting the stupid body aches and headaches… and my mom and dad think I'm not making much sense or remembering things they told me so there goes my cognition! (sorry if the blog doesn’t make sense in the next couple weeks! lol) I have noticed it’s harder to concentrate on anything for more than a few minutes so its a good thing I'm a list-maker! Scar at 2 Weeks

Other than that, I'm hot on the trail for sugar free lemon drops – I have to eat one every 15 minutes when going through RAI for the first 48hrs, even waking every couple hours overnight to eat them. The sugar ones can make you nauseated (hazmat team needed) and the increased acidity of saliva caused by the RAI is hard on teeth so adding sugar into the mix means cavity city. The parotid glands also tend to have swelling and blockage issues after RAI so having these on-hand to stimulate salivation is key. I also need to remember to buy baking soda to do rinses several times a day to neutralize some of the acid. The stuff I have is OLD and I'm NOT putting it in my mouth!

Still trying to figure out what to do after RAI too but all will be clear in time I guess! I’m not worrying too much about it until I know when it will be, hence why I'm praying my TSH went up, uP, UP!

9.06.2009

Calci-YUM!

DSCN0593

Tum, Tum, Tum, Tum….TUMS!

So my calcium is still all out of whack! I get crazy tingling in my hands, arms, feet… it basically feels like my hand fell asleep and is starting to wake back up almost constantly. The Dr. said that if I got this sensation in both hands and around my mouth that I would have to get checked ASAP. So far i’ve had both hands, one hand & one foot, or just my mouth tingling - but never 2 limbs plus my mouth at the same time. Believe me I will be having a chat with the Dr on Tuesday when my stitches get pulled out because this is nuts!

To combat a calcium plunge, i’ve been dutifully chewing on 2 peppermint Tums tablets every 4hours while i’m awake. That equals 8 peppermint Tums a day or approximately 160% of my daily recommended value. Even this cannot stop the tingling and I wonder if I will ever be able to stop chomping on the chewable chalky peppermint goodness that is Tums? I’m thinking I must have some parathyroid damage so is it permanent or are they in a recovery period? Only time will tell… in the meantime, its time for my 7th & 8th breath refreshers of the day!