I have a new list of what all is wrong with me.
1> Parkinson’s.
Prescription:
carbidopa-levodopa 25-100 MG per tablet
Commonly known as: Sinemet 25-100
2-tablets, twice daily.
Symptoms:
Tremors in my right wrist and right ankle.
This is just what it is. I wake up in the morning and I’m fine. Until I start moving around. Then my wrist starts rolling back and forth in it’s own little dance. When I rest my hand on my computer mouse, my fingers continuously tap of their own volition to an unheard cadence. About thirty minutes after I’ve taken my morning dose, the tapping and rolling of fingers and wrist is reduced to something unnoticeable on the outside. It never quite feels gone from the inside.
2> Primary Edema.
Prescription:
furosemide 20 MG tablet
Commonly known as: Lasix
Take 1 tablet (20 mg) by mouth in the morning.
metOLazone 2.5 MG tablet
Commonly known as: Zaroxolyn
Take 1 tablet (2.5 mg) by mouth 3 (three) times a week-M-W-F.
Symptoms:
Swelling and fluid retention of my right midfoot and ankle.
This is my primary complaint. The swelling and neuropathy makes my foot feel uncomfortably cold at time. I’ve tried both heat and cold to make it stop. Neither seems to actually do anything like reduce the swelling. Both just make my foot feel more comfortable in my skin. Of the two, heat seems easier to apply. A warm foot bath or a heating pad isn’t a panacea but it helps. My last two visits to my PCP, he’s flat told me that there may not be anything that can be done as a cure. We’ll just do what we can to treat the symptoms.
3> Hypertension
Prescription:
atenolol 25 MG tablet
Commonly known as: Tenormin
Take 1 tablet (25 mg) by mouth in the morning.
olmesartan 20 MG tablet
Commonly known as: Benicar
TAKE 1 TABLET(20 MG) BY MOUTH IN THE MORNING
Symptoms:
Blood pressure of 180 over 110
Taking just the atenolol over the last ten years of so has reduced my heart rythme to a normal-resting rate of 52 bpm. This makes my arms feel chilled most of the time. I wear an overshirt most of the time to counter it. Until this year, it kept my blood pressure at a nice 135 over 85. But my blood pressure has been inching up to 150 over 90 this year. So we’ve added the olmesartan. That’s taken my blood pressure down to, at times, 90 over 60. Currently, we’re trying to adjust things. So I’m taking half of a tablet (10mg) and my blood pressure’s new normal is around 110 over 65. This can be a bit unpleasant. I find myself feeling dehydrated more often; inexplicably tired and a bit out of breath. A nice tall glass of ice water helps. But bathroom visits have increased to approaching hourly. So this is something to work on.
4> Cronic Kidney Disease
Symptoms:
My creatinines have been measured at 1.5 for at least the last six years. But my last work up they were at 2.0
My nephrologist, Dr Ali, has ordered tests to verify that I have CKD. Apparently until it gets to a certain point, the #1 symptom is that you have no symptoms. Now that I’ve reached stage 3a, blood workups and ultrasounds should be able give a better picture.
5> Tendonitis in my left shoulder and arthritis in both hips.
These were primarily added because I’ve mentioned them as aches and pains when my PCP asks if there was anything else going on with me. Also, in various x-rays and ultrasounds there have been shadows on these joints as noted by the diagnostic technician viewing them.
