Transformation

No bread. No pasta. No cookies, cake, crackers, pie, pastries...

None with wheat in it, any way.

No, I am now living gluten free. I rely on the more expensive, unknown realm of rice and alternative-grain products. (Though I must say, rice pasta w/ alfredo sauce, so yum.)

I've not had any migraines, heartburn, weight gain or upset stomach since I started (except for when I inadvertently ate wheat). I'm losing weight without even going to the gym, though I plan to go back immediately.

I'm going to South Africa in October 2009. That's 15 months from now. I plan to reach all my goals for weight loss and health optimization by that time.

Fascinating isn't it?

I promise to write more later, at home. I also have a plan to write four Photoshop posts a month, two Health Watch posts, and two Goal Progress posts. I'm hoping it will help keep me on track with my goals. :)

By now all my friends and fam know that I have Celiac's and Barrett's. Yay me with all the GI stuff, right?

So, Barrett's is the worst of it. I take some pills, hopefully it goes away. If I hadn't found out about this, it could've become cancerous, like, years down the road. Thank God I got anemic and needed a camera stuck down my throat.

It's a good thing. Really.

... has absolutely nada to do with basketball in my world. It's been kinda crazy, and I'm still lacking in the energy department, although I don't ALWAYS feel tired now.

I went for a follow-up with the doc and thought I'd post an update. The good news is there is a marked improvement in my numbers. The bad news is... it isn't much.

My blood count went up from 8.5 to 9.4 (should be 12.5). My iron went up from 16 to 21 (should be between 40 and 130). And, I don't have the numbers, but apparently, I don't have very much in the way of "stored" iron -- that is, when our natural iron levels get low, we have a bit of back-up iron that helps out. The doctor said she was very worried and we would need to work to raise that as soon as possible.

I have an appointment to see a hematologist on 4/11 regarding the Alpha Thalassemia. You'll know more when I do.

I plan to pick up on my blogging again, so you should see more in April than you did in March. We'll just see how it goes. =)

It has been confirmed that I have low-iron anemia. But what was also discovered is that I am also "probably" genetically predisposed to it. I have either Thalassemia or Alpha-thalassemia, both mild and not prone to generate typical anemic symptoms, according to my PCP (primary care physician). However, because my iron levels got low, anemia developed and - tah-dah! - I'm now required to take medication.

I have to visit a gynocologist next week to make sure that there are no... erm... "womanly" causes for the iron-drop. And I am expecting a call today or tomorrow to confirm my appointment with a hemotologist (a blood guy, for all you laymens) to confirm my PCP's diagnosis on the Thalassemia. Gah, what a mouth-full.

Just a few fun facts about my visit:

Downside - my iron was VERY low, per my bloodwork. Average iron levels in a person are between 40 and 175. I was a whopping 16. (Oh the joy of being special, right?)

Upside - I've lost four (4) pounds since my last visit two weeks ago. I don't know if it's because I'm avoiding wheat or if I've been on such restrictive terms for the last week and a half while trying to get the tests done for the doc. Still... four pounds is four pounds. Rejoice and be glad in it.

Now, just for the fun of it, I looked the thalassemia terms up via Google and found their definitions. (thanks, medterms.com!)

Thalassemia: Not just one disease but rather a complex series of genetic (inherited) disorders all of which involve underproduction of hemoglobin, the indispensable molecule in red blood cells that carries oxygen. The globin part of hemoglobin is made up of 4 polypeptide chains (usually 2 chains of one type and 2 chains of another type of chain). In thalassemia, there is a mutation (change) in one of the types of globin chains. Depending upon which globin chain is affected, the mutation typically leads to underproduction (or absence) of that globin chain, a deficiency of hemoglobin, and anemia.

Alpha Thalassemia: The problem in the thalassemias is with globin production. The thalassemias are classified according to the type of globin polypeptide chain that is underproduced. The alpha chain is involved in alpha thalassemia (and the beta chain is affected in the more familiar beta thalassemia).
In alpha thalassemia, the heterozygous state (with a single gene for alpha thalassemia) is innocuous or harmless. There are no symptoms or at most mild anemia, because there is another gene still able to make alpha chains.

So... yeah. Very techinical, but you get the gist. There was a pretty interesting question-based article on the same site: Alpha Thalassemia. It goes into the terminology and helps to better understand it all, starting with plain ol' thalassemia. If you're interested, please go read. It's not very much, but it talks more about my (dun-dun-DUN) condition. (ha, gotta love the drama)

Also, I'm about half-way through a book I should've read years ago, but just got around to it: On Writing by Stephen King. It's about - surprise! - writing. This is a fantastic book. Why would I think differently? Very original, though. The guy is just... He's my favorite author.

Well, anyway, I'll write a review and put a few of my favorite snippets soon. Expect a post by the end of the weekend, or by Monday at the very latest.

Literally, my Saturday just flew by when I wasn't lookin'. I woke up - barely - with a headache. I managed to eat the breakfast my husband thoughtfully provided after my shower, but by noon, I was down for the count. I took a two-hour nap and woke - again, barely - with my headache intact. I went into the living room and stretched out on the couch, my head on Sarel's lap, and he rubbed my forehead and temples for me.

Can you believe how good he is to me?

And then, by the miracle of a few doses of Extra Strength Tylenol, I was able to join my husband and his employers for dinner at Longhorn Steakhouse.

Which was okay, even though I'm not supposed to be eating beef, or salad, because of these diagnostic tests I'm supposed to be taking for the anemia stuff. It was okay because I was able to make due, quite to my own pleasure, with a slab of salmon, a baked potato and a bit of shrimp & lobster corn chowder. (*yummm!*)

We were going to go see the 10:10pm showing of Cloverfield later on after dinner, but we went back home, and by 9 o'clock, I was again visiting the land of the sleeping. Poor Sarel got excited - he hasn't been able to leave the house much the last couple of weeks because he hurt his ankle - and didn't get to go to the movies.

" 'm sorry," I mumbled, wiping drool from his thigh, "Don' feel up to it."

Yeah, I know, I pretty much sound like a drunkard when I'm sleepy. It's cute and funny when I'm not being a bear.

So, last week, I was diagnosed as having anemia, though my doctor had no clue as to which kind because it was your basic, run-o-the-mill blood screening. (I didn't know there were whole different kinds, either - don't feel bad.) Apparently, the average blood count number is 12.5 for women, and I was all the way down to 8. My doctor told me that 7 is the actual "line" to cross into manditory-blood-transfusion territory. So, yay me. Caught it in time.

It would explain why I've been lucky to stay up past 8 o'clock for the last month, and a whole slew of other "symptoms" that I'd mistaken for pregnancy. Yes, I thought I was with child, and even got scared and excited and started thinking of names. Last Thursday was a real bummer, but I'm also VERY glad I wasn't diagnosed with something off-the-wall, like Thyroid Disease, or Diabetes.

I called my mother after my appointment and told her very calmly that I'd been told I was anemic, and that I'd originally gone in for a prego test.... because honestly, I needed to talk to her about it, but I was NOT going to tell her I was suspicious that I might be expecting. My mom has been looking forward to Grammy-status since I got married six years ago. I wanted to be really, really sure before I told her.

And I was quite proud at how she didn't try to ask about potentially future plans for making her a grandchild of her very own. She kept on-topic - my low blood count. And oh, by the way, almost every woman on my mom's side of the family has been anemic at least once in some point of their lives! Yeah, that's a good thing to know, don't you think? That's right up there with knowing cardio and cancer history, because you can die from it just as easily!

But she'd just found that out herself, so I didn't freak. I just said "Oh, okay. I'll tell my doctor."

Today I got to get more blood taken away - kind of ironic, isn't it? They need to find out why I have a low blood count, so they take more blood out. You'd think they'd try to find another way to test for that, anemia being a blood problem and all. They used a giant frickkin' needle that looked more appropriate for livestock and had to fish - yes, I said FISH - for my vein. (Apparently my veins are very strong and just as afraid of needles as my eyes are)

When they were finally done, I was sent on my way. My arm aches in a phantom sort of way. It only tweaks with actual discomfort if I lift anything or twist/bend it a certain way. It'll stop doing that in a while, though, so I'm not overly concerned.

My follow-up appointment with the doc is next Thursday morning. I look forward to finding out if I have a special kind of anemia, and what hoops I'll need to jump through to correct it. Updates as they become available.... whether you want to know or not.