This is the Message Centre for 2legs - Hey, babe, take a walk on the wild side...

D....... I ... -day....

Post 1

2legs - Hey, babe, take a walk on the wild side...

smiley - laugh Nurse came round today, and trained me on the growth hormone injection device.... - its a little difficult to load up with a new cartridge, as that does really require one to be able to see it, and check its all disolved, and the window is showing the right dose, but daily use is pretty straight forward, change needle, remove caps, turn loading dial at the bottom then point stick fire....

I gave myself the first injection whilst the nurse was here, though subsequently I'll be injecting last thing at night, as the growth hormone works best when late at night smiley - zen

.5 MM needles are rubbish... - I only felt it was in my skin, as I coudl feel the base of the 'pen's' plastic casing touching my skin smiley - laugh
I'll inject low on my tummy this week, then I think legs next week.... then breasts and tops of arms the next week. then.... hmm.... maybe somewhere else smiley - laughsmiley - weird no idea how long before I notice an effect; the dose is way way low, so that levels build up very slowely, to help avoid side effects, like oedema (which I already have anyhow), pain in fingers/arthritus type feeling (which I get already), and, I think there were some other side effects too... smiley - weird so it may take weeks or months to notice a real differnce, as the levels of the target hormone build up... actually, for once GH is both the target hormone, and th emissing hormone smiley - weird

off ten pin bowling tonight, so cooking up an early dinner (sausages spices, onions, mushrooms, garlic and bulghur), so I can get some steroids inside, and then have a very quick shower before going out, and self-medicating on half price Guinness smiley - whistlesmiley - stout felt all the rubbish this morning; hadn't slept again, and had weird abdominal pain which is thankkfully less now... low down so I didn't think I was risk of vomiting (which is a nuscience as that woudl require IM steroids and a trip to hospital smiley - doh ) smiley - erm just aching now like normal and fatigue and brain fog, but not overly so smiley - zen Must go check on dinner smiley - runsmiley - chef


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Post 2

Deb

Looking at google images your GH injection looks like my insulin pen, which I imagine I could use without seeing it as it clicks as I turn the dial to the right dosage. But it comes in a pre-loaded pen which would have made things much easier for you as that would take away the visual necessity completely. I don't know if that sort of thing is available, but maybe something worth looking into if you haven't already.

You know you can't rely on your healthcare professionals to let you know about stuff to actually improve your life smiley - grr

I've got my fingers crossed that this GH regime will surpass your expectations and really make a difference - Bob knows you could do with a break!

Deb smiley - cheerup


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Post 3

Pierre de la Mer ~ sometimes slightly worried but never panicking ~

Now all you need is a crash course in removing your own appendix and amputate a limb and you're good to go on an arctic expedition smiley - ok

smiley - pirate


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Post 4

2legs - Hey, babe, take a walk on the wild side...

Ahh; I will eventually switch to a pre-loaded GH pen; once my dosage is correctly determined; I'm on a 8 month trial of the Growth hormone, and the trial is for two purposes

In order to obtain continued funding for the GH, at about £3000 a year, I need to prove via both a quality of life questionaire and measurable blood work (lipids in blood, plus other things), plus things like waist size reduction, weight loss, etc, to prove the GH is actually working; only if its providing actual improvements, either/or both, in quality of life (it can affect mental stuff), and/or in physical (it alters fat balance in the body, reducing cardiac risk factors, plus reducing weight etc), and I need to qualify to obtain further funding after the trial period; Luckily I don't think that will be difficult; I got maxium score on the quality of life survey!- I.E., at the no quality of life whatsoever end... - so demonstrating an improvement on that oughta be straightforward, as it can't really get any worse on the survey they use anyhow! smiley - laugh - of course I'm really really really hoping to lose some of the 56 Lb I've put on since commencing steroids too; a lot of which is probably the water retention, but a lot is the weird fat deposits one gets with a GH defeciency....

Also; during the rial period, I start on a really low dose; to avoid overloading the system at once with teh GH, which as the body isn't used to it, if you increase levels too quick you are a lot more likely to get side effects; so today I got a set of appointments 1 month, 3 month, and 6 month, checkups, to measure bloods and weight etc; on blood results they will then increase dose, to get my IGF-1 level, up to mid range for age-adjusted 'normal'. - so this pen is useful as you can up the dose by adjusting it...

once the final set dose is arrived at I get the fixed dose pens; which I think are probably easier.

The only trubble with this one, is that I can't see to set the new dose in the window myself, which you do every month when you change the growth hormone cartridges over.... - William knows how to do it though; plus you then have to chek the powder is mixed into the liquid visually... smiley - zen

I've a little gray dial on the bottom of the pen; after I stick a new needle on, remove the two caps, I turn this as far as it goes, and it loads the dose, as shown in the little glass windo, set by the dial above; so long as I don't accidentially touch that second dial, I should b eok, as the dose will remain set the same smiley - zen

Appendix!? I'm game... - I removed my own ingrowing toenails when I was 14 years old. no anasetic, just a pair of pliers. smiley - laugh - hard for me to immagine now; I did that as I was so terrified as a kid of needles smiley - laugh - a phobia that has long ago been beaten out of me by so many needles of all kinds... - I even finally got to have the lumber puncture las year remember smiley - cool and now I get the intramuscular injections every couple of months too, plus I barely go a month without IV needles used for blood draws smiley - laugh - next IV blood draw Friday!; and a IM testosterone just after the blood draw smiley - laughsmiley - nursesmiley - doctor


Right. do I have to do my Christmas shopping yet, or can I wait a few more days? smiley - ermsmiley - doh


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Post 5

ITIWBS

smiley - goodluckHope all goes well on the trial and the pituitary hormone works well for you.smiley - smiley

Glad that the delays and wsiting are finally over.


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Post 6

2legs - Hey, babe, take a walk on the wild side...

Now all I need the Drs to do, is follow the Uk and euorpean guidelines on my thyroid replacement, and persuade them that the thyroid drug I'm on makes me hidiously ill, as it does, and perhaps, taking a medication that makes me so il, isn't a great idea smiley - grovel but they seem reluctant to change my meds smiley - doh or believe me smiley - huh (getting so close to just ordering an alternative online TBH and just risk the vagueness of online blackmarket medications) smiley - erm and possibly try make them do something about my steroids as they make me so ill too smiley - ermsmiley - weird oh, and try persuade them that I need some more testing on my testosterone levels as something odd is happening there smiley - weird Oh, and get them to investigate my weird temperautre dysregulation too... and just hope the GH fixed my concentration and memory and energy levels, assuming it can win over all the ill I get from the thyroid meds smiley - alienfrownsmiley - weird

Can't decide where to inject tonight... maybe my tummy on the other side... or perhaps in a leg/thigh..... or maybe just in my err... breasts I'll see what I think when I get home from the pub.... smiley - whistle


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Post 7

Baron Grim

I know... you should get one of those Operation Games and take the pieces out and put them in a cup. Pull one each day to determine where to inject. The Charlie Horse is the upper thigh, the rubber band is the calf (ankle bone connected to the knee bone), Funny bone is the upper arm, Writers cramp is the lower arm, the bread basket is the lower abdomen, Butterfly in the stomach is mid abdomen and broken heart or wish bone for pectorals. (Skip the Adams apple, brain freeze, and spare ribs). Once the cup is empty you toss them back in and start over. smiley - ok?


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Post 8

2legs - Hey, babe, take a walk on the wild side...

that's an excellent idea! smiley - coolsmiley - boing not sure even with my oedema I've enough flesh though on my ankles, or wrists to inject there! smiley - laugh most all everywehre else oughta be OK... heck I've a double chin now so I guess even my neck smiley - cool


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Post 9

2legs - Hey, babe, take a walk on the wild side...

Oh... it really is so simplisticly straight forward... Got home from pub, andm did the injection no problem smiley - zen - I'd remembered correctly how to do it, and easily fitted the needle, took off the caps etc., primed it, and boringly went for just the other side of the tummy today (well its easieiest I guess to just lift my blouse and inject there...

I did sort of make a mistake; I pinched the area I was aiming for; but not yet used to the length of the injection pen, so accidentially stabbed myself just near where I wanted to inject, en-route, but as I can't feel it, I just went to the spot I wanted, and injected there anyhow smiley - erm Its a little disconcerting, as I can't feel the needle go in at all; so I have to kind of guess it is in, before I inject, but as there isn['t any wet on the skin after I assume it went in... William doens't like needles, so he doesn't want to see; so I turn away when I inject (he'd checked the window on the device to check it still had the right dose on it), which is a bit of a pity as at least he'd be able to tell me I'd gone into the skin or not smiley - erm

pub was fun... got home got a phonecall from a very drunken and very boared Father smiley - laugh so chatted to him a while whilst I had tea, and waited for the feeling in my hadns to return afte rthe cold outside, then I injected, then I tok the melatonin, and then had more tea... supper next I think, then probably bed.... smiley - alienfrown injection pen back in its neat leather case and back in the fridge... smiley - zen (its the genotropin go quick pen 5.3 MG ) smiley - zen

hard to say, and its vry early, only my second injection.... but to hazzard a guess, I'd say its doing something ... I just... feel a bit more with it.... - like the world around me is a little more in focus, and ... I do hope it retuns me to some sense of normality, just being able to sense myself, and the world about me, and maybe even be able to feel again, emotions, sensations, etc... nothing has been real the past two years, and that is a little disconserting really smiley - alienfrown of course really hoping for the weight loss too, and oedema to go, and concentration to return enough that I might ever read anogher book again in my life or be able to finish something I start smiley - grovelsmiley - zen Oddly reassuring though, at the pub... I am, strangely still more saine than half the people there smiley - laughsmiley - weird quite... how they function... I just don't know... I barely do smiley - laugh


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