h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Sorry I haven't dropped in sooner, EV

Good luck with your procedure tomorrow


lil xx

Hiya lil

Thank you sweethert

It P minus 5 hours and counting right now. I've had "the light breakfast" they said I could have, and the cuppa. After that it's Nil by Mouth till 1.45 when Wendy shoves me in thru the consulting room door and the ptb unhook my fingers that'll be clawing around the door jambs to get me into the consulting room proper.


Not that I'm in any way nervious, or frightened or apprehensive of any potential discomfort of course

Who?

Me? Naw......

Yes.

Gah! C'mon woman pull yourself together and go and do something to take your mind of stuff; the kitchen needs a tidy around, the kitchen floor would welcome a bit of a wipe around...and there are new colonies of dust bunnies that'll have squatters rights if you don't get the hoover onto them quick.

Come The Actual Time, I'll be alright. Its always the last few hours of "waiting" I've never really been very good at.

Right. Kitchen - kitchen floor...and *maybe the hoovering. I *like the Dust Bunnies. They're sorta furry...and friendly

Breathe!
I would say 'relax', but I really don't fancy being hit round the head by a wet this early in the morning
Go get those dust bunnies!
I guess we'll get the details later on today... Just hope its not as bad as perhaps you might now think Mmm someone say breckfast?

Honestly, I am *such * a wimp. I really needn't have worried about ...anything really.

Wndy came in with me whilst I booked in, had lots of questions to answer with two or three different nurses, and although I wasn't gibbering as such, I think they picked up (and probably mentioned to the Surgeon - who looked just about old enough to be Son No 1's girlfriend) I went a bit white when they described exactly the width of the tube which was going down my throat and the procedure they were going to do, and I mentioned I wasn't good at *looking when the put the canula in for the sedative.

So I didn't look, and it went in fine. They always do if I shut my eyes. It stops the nurses being frightened and nervious I think

I'm FINE about the theory, but for me, I really do need to starve my imagination prior. During and after? THEN you can tell me! Just don't let me see the instruments!

Anyway, got into "operating theatre", was given a couple of squirts of local anesthetic that made my throat feel like I'd been to the dentists, put on a thingy that blew oxygen up my nose, made sure I'd got the thingy that held my moth open right in position, and I saw the surgeon shake her head at the nurse who was going to deliver the sedative and heard her say "Make that *400ml*"

"The sedative's going in now...." said the nurse

I raised a thumb....and that was it. I wasn't even aware that I was becoming completely unaware.

They tell me the sedative makes you forgetful, but I don't remember anything atall. I woke up all snuggled in a nice soft blanket on a trolley in the recovery room, feeling fit to take on the world about an hour later, absolutely ravenous.

A cuppa and some biscuits later, Wendy got called in, and I got my results, her sitiing with me.

Nothing cancerous, or any other nasties like that, nothing anatomically wrong with the stomach interior... but they found I have a bug that can withstand and live in the hydrochloric acid that the stomach secretes for digestive purposes. It can be sorted with a couple of months course of heavy duty anti biotics (metronol?) and 2 others.

The fact that I had an acid attack that was severe enough to make me stop driving for the day and actually prompted my GP to get me up to the Cardiac Dept have my heart checked a couple of years ago

(? It's somewhere in my journals, I'll look up the date)

and then go on to get a vague diagnosis of "Hiatus Hernia/Silent Acid Reflux" via the ENT dept a year later on makes a lot more sense now.

I think it's called something like Heliobacton pylori.

And the reason I can spell that is that by one of those odd co-incidences, Wendy was diagnosed with the same thing about 6 years ago, took this course of anti biotics and then we all forgot all about it.

But she's good at remembering complicated spellings!

So it's hey ho back to the GP and god up at Barts to chase for investigations for the original problem -It doesn't explain why the bowel is still kicking out the threatening coloured waste, but it does narrow the area of the problem down, and I s'pect Barts will deal with tht without too much hysteria. At least I'm in the system for that area already, so I feel pretty confident it will be dealt with quickly.

So apart from feeling rather embarrassed that I was afraid of the thought of a procedure that proved to be totally painless and very productive I feel pretty good now. You see, with a bit of luck I can soon be rid of feeling constantly nausious and fevery and not so*generally poorly in the form of some Magic Pills.

Which'll give me a lot more energy to hassle the ColoRectal bods

Is it this Ev?

http://www.patient.co.uk/health/Helicobacter-Pylori-and-Stomach-Pain.htm

Glad all went well. That is at least one hurdle over, and I am glad you sound so perky. The relief must be enormous.

Take it easy now till you have to fight the next round

Treat yourself to something nice

Websailor

Oh trust me, I have done Webbie .

I'm off to the Stop Smoking Nurse to get a pat on the back and a Tick VG from her in a few minutes, for starters!

Small wonder I was so gibbery, really

And I'm being taken to The Ballet this coming Saturday - a Christmas Present this is, to see the all male version of Swan Lake (it's a Matthew Bourke production... apparently this is a Good Thing)

and from the trailer I've seen of it it looks an absolute hoot. And it's a lovely opportunity to put on the glad rags and a bit of make up and preen

I think you've put your finger on exactly what it is they described to me yesterday - That's a very good link you've found. It amused me no end when I first read about "the breath test".... my god I thought... are my Best friends Not Telling Me? Reading along the line a bit, I sussed what it was

I know the last time I was given a course of Metronol<sp?) - actually 2 courses quite close together, but for different problems, I actually did feel incrediably well for a couple of months afterwards, - no nausia, no sweats,... very little fatigue, too, if I remember rightly,nothing.

If I can be prescribed the right drugs (and the right combination this time) and if I feel even *half as healthy as I did then, it isn't half going to make a difference to me generally.

Gotta Go - see you in a bit

So something nice and simple medically that oughta just vanish with a quick bout of antibiotics :- Hoping of course your alright on the antibiotics (I'm normlaly perfectly fine though did react once to a particular one I got given )

Helicobacter Pylori is pretty common a bacterium, its now known to be the major cause of things like stomach ulcers

Actually, I think* it can also cause ulcers in the duodenium (small intestine first section)... Have they checked to make sure you ain't got no ulcers? Just an idea... I get the idea that the other* problems are a bit 'lower down' in the gastrointestinal tract, more in the large intestine, but... Dunno, just wonder if maybe something 'further up', might be affecting waht is going on 'downstream'....
Hope they all manage to 'talk to each other ' this time and that the information gets passed round all the various medical sorts your having to deal with

I keep forgetting you did something impressively medical in the way of studies at Uni Legs! I think you're right in your surmise that the main problem is a bit lower down the bed, but no, of *course they haven't done any tests for anything atall really. Just shouted at me when I said they were hurting me... well, up until prof god, anyway, but I *still think he made his decision too quickly, and without enough information from anyone else.

This, she says grimly, *will be dealt with even if I have to lie on the floor and kick and scream until I'm sick to get them to listen to me.

I don't mind being proven wrong... but I'd be in' miffed if I find out *they are after I've had something that couldn't be reversed!

I'm too complex, apparently, and a difficult patient. I'm not difficult. Just determined. And I, too, had a little bit of medical training, so I don't like being fobbed off with "budgets" and latin phrases I can recognise that mean "You've got I-don't-know-itus" (or in most cases "Bugger-off-itus")

It's nice to know I've got something "common" (like me that should, in theory be nice and easy to sort out. I don't do badly with that deep tissue anti-biotic - apart from thrush, which just needs some Nystatin to sort it out. I can put up with that for a week or two.

I think the problem is *always going to be getting the bugger to *talk* to each other though. I specifically asked the Gasto-bods to send the results to Prof god, as well as my GP but they said the departments weren't connected, so they wouldn't.

Well... *physically* they *are sort of connected - the knee bone does eventually sort of connect to the hip bone to coin a phrase.... it's just *Administratively they arn't.

I think your right... You really want* ... no need* a 'diagnosis' of what is actually* wrong, before you let em at you with the knife.... :- It makes far more sense, medically as well as personally for them to find the route cause before doing a bit of major surgery, otherwise there isn't any firm knowledge that it isn't something that will just either crop up again elsewhere, or give rise to some other medical situation.... (I.E., treat the illness not the symptoms....)

Anyhow.... at least your in contact with all the differnt departments, even if they're not communicating with each other
It'll be interesting once the halobacteria is cleared up to see if that makes a big or little differnce to other things... Maybe then it'd be worth getting 'god' to reconsider, reasses, or rediagnose... or at least do some more check/tests....

>>It'll be interesting once the halobacteria is cleared up to see if that makes a big or little differnce to other things<<

Ho yus

You're talking to the converted here Legs; I've always thought treating symptoms were an awful waste of the experts time, their training and frankly, of NHS money in the long run.

But that's another rant for another day.

I must away now, and get that letter I've already written to Prof god re vamped - I can send him the copy of the results I have alredy received from the Gastro Bods together with a few more observations/questions.

And I need to get copies of EVERY bit of medical records I've amassed to him.

If they won't talk to each other voluntarily, then I'll have to do a bit of arbitration, won't I?

And if necessary I'll ensure I get him to acknowledge *every point I've made, and get an answer for *every question I've asked answered beofre I sign the consent form for the major surgury.

I don't in' believe it

Went for an outpatients appt last night assuming I was going to be doled out a prescription for this Heliobactm Pyalori bug the nurse said I had when she read my results out to me.

The Consultant hadn't got any recent notes (and only one of my 2 files....so East Kent have misplaced the other one. Again.

The consultant hadn't got the results and had to have someone read them out to him over the phone

I was told I had nothing wrong atall in the stomach (which I was told anyway) PLUS... I had no sign of the Mr Helicopter Bug

I was also told - when I asked if he had any idea as to *why I felt so nausious constantly - that it was probably due to constipation

I think I once coined the phrase "I have an irrirtable bowel which isn't so much irribtable as bloody furious" May we just take it as read the constipation is *not an issue, and drawn a discrete veil over the rest

"Yes... this guy says "People eat too much fibre - go back to white bread, don't go mad on the fruit and vegetables, and drink about 30* mugs of tea - or water, or coffee, doesn't matter. You're dehydrated I'd imagine"
*That's 10 pints of liquid a day. I've never actuallly conted up the number of mugs of anything I drink, but it's safe to say I ought to have an intravenous drip attatched to the teapot to save time and effort.

"Erm... what about all this "Eat 5 a Day" campagne we hear so much about?" I asked
"Oh... thats just to ensure the population eats enough basic nuitrition and doesn't get cancer; it's just a guide line. No fibre and lots of liquid, that's the ticket"

I don't think I've ever heard such contrary advise before. It sounds unbelievable. I thought Fibre was the answer to a Nation's Prayer

And I actually *do like wholemeal bread - it's nice.

I did tell him about the other palava going on, (obviously) and .... guess what?

He's sending me for a colonoscopy.


7 years ago, when "all this" started getting diffficult, I'll give you 3 guesses what investigative procedure "they" *began* with?

Yup.

Full circle (in more ways than one


I have officially lost the will to live