Intestinal fortitude and stuff like dat dere.
Hello, and welcome to another installment. I haven't written anything for a while, but something recently developed about which I thought I'd do a little public service announcement or sorts.
Not going to rant and rave about anything this time around - which may be a surprise to some folks. No, I'd like to mention something about which I have recently acquired significant information.
I'd like to talk to you for a moment about...
...diverticulitis!
Well, diverticulosis as well, but the itis is a somewhat more pressing issue. For comparison purposes, if you have four cervical vertebra fused and you spend almost 24 hours in the hospital before you get to go home and then develop diverticulitis and end up with a five-plus day hospital stay... Well, that gives some indication of the relative potential seriousness.
First thing to be aware of is the fact that while neither of the following are pleasant, diverticulosis is similar to but not as bad as diverticulitis.
(From http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/diverticulosis/#complications)
(From http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/diverticulosis/#complications)
Diverticulitis with mild symptoms and no complications usually requires a person to rest, take oral antibiotics, and be on a liquid diet for a period of time. If symptoms ease after a few days, the health care provider will recommend gradually adding solid foods back into the diet.
Severe cases of diverticulitis with acute pain and complications will likely require a hospital stay. Most cases of severe diverticulitis are treated with intravenous (IV) antibiotics and a few days without food or drink to help the colon rest. If the period without food or drink is longer, the person may be given parenteral nutrition—a method of providing an IV liquid food mixture through a special tube in the chest. The mixture contains proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, and minerals.
After 31 days (16 of which were spent on heavy doses of at least two different antibiotics) the diverticulitis is "...nearly resolved..."
The point of this particular entry is simply this; getting older sucks eggs. The older you get, the more eggs it sucks. No sense in trying to prove how tough you are. Yeah, yeah. You can withstand a boatload of pain.
GOOD FOR YOU!
That's what I used to think. It has served me well in the past, but now... Well, this stuff can kill you. At very least it can damned near incapacitate you. 30+ days after the initial diagnosis (which I believe was actually just over two weeks after it got bad enough to be noticed) and I still have to be careful moving, lifting, twisting, and driving.
Stress is a contributing factor to aggravating the symptoms, so it helps to have management who understands those factors and is willing to make accommodations. Having this stuff is no fun at all. Having it AND having to struggle with unrealistic expectations would quite possibly start the whole process spiraling downward once again.
Here's the biggest issue to which you should attend ASAP while attempting to recover from diverticulitis.
Diet.
Health nuts yap incessantly about the benefit of a high fiber diet and how that will work toward preventing diverticular disease. Ummm... I've been doing the high-fiber boogie for a couple of years now, so that'd seem to shoot that theory in the booty.
Now you HAVE diverticulitis. Now what? You find just as many people prescribing a low fiber diet for a few weeks to avoid ingesting foods that will irritate the intestines further. No tomatoes. No fruit (other than bananas). Nothing with seeds. Nothing with skins (lima beans, peas). Nothing from the cabbage family (broccoli, cauliflower, etc.). Low fiber also means no salads and low-fat meats.
I did that until I had a chance to follow up with my personal doctor. He said his belief was that going to a high fiber diet would serve my recovery best.
Went back on the high fiber diet for less than three days before I thought I was headed back to the hospital. Apparently the type of diet during recovery will be determined on a case by case basis.
Be careful, y'all! Getting older ain't much fun to start with! Do what you can to NOT complicate it by collecting any of the bazillion infirmities that become more common.
Hockey is here folks! A full season, and Marc-Andre Fleury gets his 24th shutout in his career in the Pens home opener.
Blues look to be firing on all cylinders as well. Backes looks good. Steen, Oshie, Sobotka. Maybe we'll get to see a Pittsburgh/St. Louis Stanley Cup Final!
Oh yeah! And Steve Conte's solo CD is due out before too long. If it's ANYTHING like his last release - Steve Conte and the Crazy Truth - I can't wait. He's doing the kickstarter finance thing for the CD. Check it out.
Not going to rant and rave about anything this time around - which may be a surprise to some folks. No, I'd like to mention something about which I have recently acquired significant information.
I'd like to talk to you for a moment about...
...diverticulitis!
Well, diverticulosis as well, but the itis is a somewhat more pressing issue. For comparison purposes, if you have four cervical vertebra fused and you spend almost 24 hours in the hospital before you get to go home and then develop diverticulitis and end up with a five-plus day hospital stay... Well, that gives some indication of the relative potential seriousness.
First thing to be aware of is the fact that while neither of the following are pleasant, diverticulosis is similar to but not as bad as diverticulitis.
(From http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/diverticulosis/#complications)
Diverticulosis
When a person has diverticula that do not cause diverticulitis or diverticular bleeding, the condition is called diverticulosis. Most people with diverticulosis do not have symptoms. Some people with diverticulosis have constipation or diarrhea. People may also have chronic- cramping or pain in the lower abdomen—the area between the chest and hips
- bloating
Diverticulitis
(From http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/diverticulosis/#complications)
Diverticulitis with mild symptoms and no complications usually requires a person to rest, take oral antibiotics, and be on a liquid diet for a period of time. If symptoms ease after a few days, the health care provider will recommend gradually adding solid foods back into the diet.
Severe cases of diverticulitis with acute pain and complications will likely require a hospital stay. Most cases of severe diverticulitis are treated with intravenous (IV) antibiotics and a few days without food or drink to help the colon rest. If the period without food or drink is longer, the person may be given parenteral nutrition—a method of providing an IV liquid food mixture through a special tube in the chest. The mixture contains proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, and minerals.
What are the complications of diverticulitis and how are they treated?
Diverticulitis can attack suddenly and cause complications, such as- an abscess—a painful, swollen, pus-filled area just outside the colon wall—caused by infection
- a perforation—a small tear or hole in the diverticula
- peritonitis—inflammation of tissues inside the abdomen from pus and stool that leak through a perforation
- a fistula—an abnormal passage, or tunnel, between two organs, or between an organ and the outside of the body
- intestinal obstruction—partial or total blockage of movement of food or stool through the intestines
After 31 days (16 of which were spent on heavy doses of at least two different antibiotics) the diverticulitis is "...nearly resolved..."
The point of this particular entry is simply this; getting older sucks eggs. The older you get, the more eggs it sucks. No sense in trying to prove how tough you are. Yeah, yeah. You can withstand a boatload of pain.
GOOD FOR YOU!
That's what I used to think. It has served me well in the past, but now... Well, this stuff can kill you. At very least it can damned near incapacitate you. 30+ days after the initial diagnosis (which I believe was actually just over two weeks after it got bad enough to be noticed) and I still have to be careful moving, lifting, twisting, and driving.
Stress is a contributing factor to aggravating the symptoms, so it helps to have management who understands those factors and is willing to make accommodations. Having this stuff is no fun at all. Having it AND having to struggle with unrealistic expectations would quite possibly start the whole process spiraling downward once again.
Here's the biggest issue to which you should attend ASAP while attempting to recover from diverticulitis.
Diet.
Health nuts yap incessantly about the benefit of a high fiber diet and how that will work toward preventing diverticular disease. Ummm... I've been doing the high-fiber boogie for a couple of years now, so that'd seem to shoot that theory in the booty.
Now you HAVE diverticulitis. Now what? You find just as many people prescribing a low fiber diet for a few weeks to avoid ingesting foods that will irritate the intestines further. No tomatoes. No fruit (other than bananas). Nothing with seeds. Nothing with skins (lima beans, peas). Nothing from the cabbage family (broccoli, cauliflower, etc.). Low fiber also means no salads and low-fat meats.
I did that until I had a chance to follow up with my personal doctor. He said his belief was that going to a high fiber diet would serve my recovery best.
Went back on the high fiber diet for less than three days before I thought I was headed back to the hospital. Apparently the type of diet during recovery will be determined on a case by case basis.
Be careful, y'all! Getting older ain't much fun to start with! Do what you can to NOT complicate it by collecting any of the bazillion infirmities that become more common.
Hockey is here folks! A full season, and Marc-Andre Fleury gets his 24th shutout in his career in the Pens home opener.
Blues look to be firing on all cylinders as well. Backes looks good. Steen, Oshie, Sobotka. Maybe we'll get to see a Pittsburgh/St. Louis Stanley Cup Final!
Oh yeah! And Steve Conte's solo CD is due out before too long. If it's ANYTHING like his last release - Steve Conte and the Crazy Truth - I can't wait. He's doing the kickstarter finance thing for the CD. Check it out.
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