The Hardest Break Up I’ve Ever Had!
Just recently went through the hardest break up of my life. This is how it went down:
Me: We need to talk.
Beer: Uh oh, this doesn’t sound good.
Me: There’s no easy way to say this, we can’t see each other anymore.
Beer: No! Why not? What have I done?
Me: It’s not you, it’s me.
Beer: Yeah, I’ve heard that one before.
Me: No, in this case it literally is me.
Beer: What you talkin’ about Willis?
Me: If we were to continue to see each other I could die. Whatever is wrong with me has caused liver damage which has turned into Cirrhosis.
Beer: Oh my God! Then it was me!
Me: Not true. We only hung out a bit on the weekend and during vacations. It’s not your fault. Something is causing high levels of iron in my system which has done the damage.
Beer: I can’t believe this. I am going to miss you so much!
Me: I’m going to miss you too buddy. More than you’ll ever know.
Beer: Can we still be friends?
Me: Sure. I’ll still wave when I see you and maybe sniff you a little. Good-bye my oldest friend. Dilly Dilly!
As you’ve probably already gleaned from that silly attempt to put a humorous spin on a not so humorous topic, I’ve learned a few things since the last time I posted. I don’t want to bore you with all the details so I’ll try and give a quick overview.
My new doctor was like night and day from my old one. She took the time to listen to me and went over every one of my symptoms and tried hard to come up with a plan. She ended up referring me to a hematologist (something my old doctor said was unnecessary) because of a low white blood cell count. The ball started rolling from there. I’ve had a CAT scan, an MRI, a bone marrow biopsy (just as fun as it sounds), a cardio echo gram, a tilt table test, and a cardio stress test. Not to mention the liters of blood that have been taken from me for countless lab tests. The CAT scan and MRI revealed that I have Cirrhosis of the liver and an enlarged spleen. This is thought to be caused by high levels of iron in my blood which showed up on the blood tests. At one point the doctor suspected a genetic condition called hemochromatosis which causes the body to store excess iron. However, a DNA test ruled that out. I am now seeing a gastroenterologist and they are testing me for a condition called autoimmune hepatitis. It’s different from the traditional types of hepatitis because the body’s own immune system attacks the liver and other organs.
So that’s where I sit now. Waiting on the results. Trying not to think about that fact that you can’t live without a functioning liver. This has caused me to slide down into my own little pit of misery. I haven’t even been reading my favorite blogs lately. I’m trying to climb back out by writing this post. I hope it helps some.
BTW, because Cirrhosis can cause blood to back up and create new veins along your esophagus, I have to have an upper GI tract endoscopy so they can look to see if that is happening and tie them off if it is. I’ll be under for that procedure, so they decided to do a colonoscopy at the same time since I’m due one. Guess I’ll be getting it in both ends. Sounds like the plot to a bad porno. I just hope if they use the same scope, they do the upper one first!
11 thoughts on “The Hardest Break Up I’ve Ever Had!”
I am so sorry! Doctors. I know there’s a rating system, but not all of them are listed, and patients don’t always rate their doctor so it’s a crap shoot every time. I’m so glad you went for a second opinion. I’d hint, rather broadly to your new doctor, that she should advise the first doctor of what he missed. They shouldn’t be allowed to practice indifferent medicine – that goes against the Hippocratic oath!
Interestingly enough, I just found out that my old doctor is retiring at the end of the year. Almost like he was just phoning it in until that time.
And how much damage has he done in the interim…..Good thing you found a concerned second opinion that is pushing for an answer!
Well. ANSWERS, at last. And because of that, your humour is back (yes, I spelt it like an English woman – SHUT UP!).
I am very pleased to know that a) the new doc is so fan-damn-tastic, b) the old doc is outta here!, c) your Dx isn’t a death sentence, and 4) you’re going to get the treatments you need (at both ends). Will you still have to drink that vat of disgustojuice for the colonoscopy, or because you’ll be knocked out, did you get a BONUS of skipping it? I still have my gallon container and my mix for the procedure I cancelled before I lost my health insurance. Luckily, it doesn’t “go bad” if you leave it unmixed. Yay for me. 😛
emelle recently posted…It’s been … one week since you … GOTCHA!
Yeah, I still have to drink it. Lucky me. Yes, answers, even if they aren’t exactly what you want to hear, are better than none at all.
I’m sorry this is happening. That sounds like a lot of very intense tests. I’m glad you’re doctor is good and is on top of things. I hope you get a solution or a treatment that improves the situation.
Lucy recently posted…Work-From-Home Colleagues
Thank you. That is my hope as well.
Damn dude. I’m so sorry to hear this. If it’s any consolation, I had to give up drinking a few years back because my liver was pissed at me. In that instance, it was my fault because I drank too much. So I gave it up. When my liver was okay again I tried to drink again and it was nasty, so now I don’t drink. Maybe that’ll be the case with you so that you won’t have to miss it so much. I hope all turns out well, buddy.
Thank you. I haven’t had a drop since I found out. It wasn’t hard to stop it just kind of sucks in social situations where I am so used to tossing a couple back. I’ve had a kegerator for the longest time and I still haven’t been able to pull the trigger on getting rid of it yet.
Fact: Sir Osis of Liver was the least liked of King Arthur’s knights.
I’m sorry you have to give up such an old and faithful friend. I know there are non-alcoholic beers, something which, the older I get makes more and more sense–sometimes I want a beer but not a nap–but I have yet to find a non-alcoholic brew that tastes like, well, beer. You may remember that there used to be a product called “Near Beer”. I never tried it but I understand the name was misleading. A friend told me “it tasted like the liquid from a jar of olives” which is about as far from beer as you can get, and would probably be worse for your liver than alcohol.
Let me buy you a root beer.
Christopher recently posted…Winning The World.
Ha! Only you could find something funny to say about Cirrhosis. Thanks for the laugh Chris! I needed that and I’ll take you up on that root beer.