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Sharing Diabetes and Supplement Information #1: Introduction, Invokana, and ACA


First post in a series…

When I started writing this post two days ago, I had intended it to be just a “quick” post.

SIGH

Well, it is turning into quite the project.  And waaaaaaaaay too long for a single post.  So, here is the “introduction” and the 411 on Invokana.

For those who aren’t hip to all the current jargon…  “411” is what the kid’s these days call “information.”

Questions! I got Questions!

confused kittyBecause of a recent doctor’s visit, I have a bunch of questions.  And I went online and started doing some research, trying to get answers to those questions.

After a little bit, it occurred to me that I should put the information I found into a blog post.  Sort of a one-stop shop with links, where I use my searching skills to save you folks a lot of time.

I know that I’ve had a recent surge of new subscribers who found my blog because of the Diabetes information that I’ve posted.

So, if any of you folks have answers  or comments based on your own experience then, please SHARE them in the comments at the end of this post.

Standard Disclaimer:
I am NOT a doctor.  I am not offering medical advice. You should ALWAYS consult your doctor before making any medical decisions.

A bit of background…

How to measure your bodyI was diagnosed with diabetes in June of this year.  I started taking Invokana and Janumet in mid-June and started testing my AM fasting blood sugar levels in late June.

I’m visiting my doctor once a month right now so that my doctor can keep a close watch on things not only because I’m a newly diagnosed diabetic, but because I’m “obese” (workin’ on that!) and I have high blood pressure (workin’ on that too!)

One bonus of going to see my doctor monthly is that it really helps me; just knowing that I’m going to weigh in and will have my blood pressure checked, keeps me on track.  To date, I’ve lost 27-30 lbs since my heaviest weight of 333 lbs.  Yay!

My weight fluctuates a little, of course.  This morning I weighed 305 which gives me a 28lb loss to date.  But the good news is that I’m nearing at a threshold / plateau breaker of 300 lbs.  Unfortunately my body is resisting going past that hurdle.  Grrrrrrrrrr

At last month’s regular visit, about four weeks ago, I had a really BIG blood work panel done when I was at my doctor’s office.  That visit was the 3 month anniversary of my diabetes diagnosis; which is why she did the big blood work panel  — 3 months after I had been taking the two diabetes medications.

Well, last week, at this month’s doctor visit, she gave this multi-page report that were the results from the blood work.

OMG!  It was huge.

Who knew that you could discover so much about a person just from their blood!  A bit overwhelming actually.

Good & Bad News in the Report

Read the rest of this entry

Where Tony’s been hiding and Thank Heaven for the Affordable Care Act


I’ve been out of the loop…

I heard through the grapevine that people from the dance world have been asking “Where’s Tony?”  Hmmm…  Is that kinda like “Where’s Waldo but in cowboy boots?  Read on if you’re curious about what’s been going on and why I’ve not been around the dance scene lately

But first… let me share some good news!  On Jan 1st, I’m getting health insurance and…

I’m going to be able to see the Doctor!!!!!!

Handsome Doctor (CC)No, not the cutie to the right..  LOL  YummME!

First of all… some ground rules:

In this post I’m going to be voicing my opinion at great length on a “hot button topic,” the Affordable Care Act”, something which I’ve never really done on my blog before.

But this is important folks!  And, to answer the question of “Where has Tony been? well, it is sorta necessary.

Setting that aside though for the moment, it is important to let folks know that the the ACA not some remote political fight.  There are real people benefiting from this law.  People like me.  By sharing my story perhaps anyone who reads this can put a “real face” to the issue.

Having said that, I recognize that others may disagree and want to comment and/or voice a rebuttal to what I have to say, which is fine.

However… “No rude or mean comments!!!”  If anyone chooses to make a comment on this post, then awesome, but if you don’t like the ACA (I refuse to call it “Obamacare”) then also fine, you are welcome to post an intelligent politely worded comment and disagree with me.

I have absolutely no problems with people holding different opinions than I, nor with people voicing those opinions, BUT there is no need to be rude or mean or demeaning while doing it.   Any such posts will be deleted, not approved for posting,  and I’ll remove you from my “follow” list immediately.  So just don’t go there!

Say it nicely or don’t say it at all! There is too much of that kind of BS in Washington.  I don’t have to put up with it on my blog.

Now… where was I?   LOL  I do that a lot don’t I… start out with one idea then BAM “Squirrel” I’m off on another topic!  Woot!  I should make a tee-shirt…  Hmmmm… now there’s an idea!  Woot!

I have an awesome Doctor!

LOL kitty RXHer name is Karen King; she is caring and kind and sweet, and efficient and knows her stuff and well, she’s just AWESOME!  And for almost 2 years I haven’t been able to see her about stuff that I really do need to see her about.

Uh… you guys did catch that right?  LET ME REPEAT:

For ALMOST TWO YEARS  I have needed to go to the doctor and to the dentist for things and have not been able to do so because I can’t afford it.  We live in the richest nation on the planet and a citizen of that country like myself has to go without healthcare because of money?

It is just wrong, that a person, an individual, has to ignore health issues and scrabble and scramble to make ends meet while corporations are sitting on BILLIONS of dollars protected by loopholes in the tax law written by the guys they helped elect allow them to keep piling up the wealth while people in this country go homeless and hungry and without health care?

Almost EVERY other major industrialized Western nation on the planet has UNIVERSAL HEALTHCARE for its citizens.  And we don’t?  There is something wrong with this picture.

ACA is getting a bad rap and it should not!

A case study of 1 — “Moi” who thinks it is AMAZING!

ACA imageRather than jump immediately into this big huge philosophical discussion of the ACA and it’s relative merits, let’s talk about this in a “real world” kind of thing.

Bringing it down to a “real person” level

Putting a face on it…  My face to be precise.

And after I’m done…  Read the rest of this entry

A Case of RVW Syndrome… …or the end of a “Waking Dream”


Mind over matter - Inside Tony's HeadBrace yourself…  You’re about to go on a trip through Tony’s mind.  It can get scary in there….

I bet you’re wondering whether you should be sending me flowers at a hospital somewhere and “What tha heck is RVW Syndrome?”

Well, dearest readers, RVW is short for “Rip Van Winkle.”

And, RVW Syndrome is an entirely fictitious disease I just made up, mere seconds ago, as I was staring at that blank box where the “title” of the blog post is supposed to go.

For a several weeks I’ve been thinking to myself, “I really need to do a post on my blog!“And the “Title” that has been stuck in my head every time I have that train of thought is “Rip Van Winkle.”

“Why? Huh? What?” I hear the teeming masses crying out…  all eight of you who are actually reading this…

Well, “Rip Van Winkle” keeps popping into my head because over the past few months I feel as if I’ve been asleep.  I feel as if I’m waking up from a dream — from a very long sleep — thus “Rip Van Winkle!”

Aha! say the teeming masses!  (I TOLD you that my mind was a scary place! *grin*)

In many ways, I do indeed feel as if I have been sleep walking through the past few months.

Another way to phrase this feeling is: I’ve been on automatic pilot.   Or, to say: I feel as if I were numb.  As if I have been taking pain medication and the pain meds are wearing off now.

Or, that I was in shock and Read the rest of this entry

What is “Health”?


Michelangelo's DavidHealth = Your body and mind operating smoothly.

There, we’re done.  Hope you enjoyed the post.

What? Do I hear grumbling from the masses?  Do I hear the stirrings of an “Occupy the Blog-o-sphere Movement?

Ok, ok, since you insist, I’ll elaborate; you guys should know by now that it doesn’t take much to get me to expand on any topic.  LOL @ myself.  🙂

Let’s “Google” it!

So, what does “health” mean?  I did a Google search for health and got this:

Google Search for 'Health'

Over a billion hits.  That is “Billion” with a “B!”  — Aha! A chance to use my Librarian skills!  Woo Hoo!

Take note: When doing a keyword search, adding more words in the search box, or the addition of suffixes, means fewer hits.  So, let’s add a “y” and do a search for healthy:

Read the rest of this entry