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The Doctor Visit

June 29th, 2017 at 03:31 pm

I met with the nephrologist, who was a very lovely young woman who was a a dead ringer for Amal Clooney! Anyway, she had nothing but positive news for me. She said my kidneys are healthy, no sign of disease. The blood and urine tests showed no problems other than the low D, which is not related. She said she believes the original high creatinine reading occurred because of my Advil habit (which I have quit). This is surprising news, because my GP was much more cautionary, but the nephrologist said he was showing an abundance of caution, which is certainly better than the opposite. She did tell me to continue my avoidance of Advil and Aleve. I am stuck with Tylenol which really doesn't help much with the pain I have. She advised me to try glucosamine/chondroitin to ease my joint pain. I didn't think it worked so great before, but I'm willing to try anything now.

She prescribed a high-dose vitamin D capsule which I take once a week.

The financial damage was: $50 for the copay; $13 for the prescription, $28 for MoveFree (I got a BOGO deal, and Schiff's MoveFree was one of the supplements recommended by Consumer Reports).

While I was at Walgreen's, I also picked up a package of generic "Poise" liners on sale for $5.

I will also work to add vitamin D to my diet. I can't have dairy products, but I can add salmon and fortified orange juice. I already get plenty of eggs, cheese and tuna, but I can eat them more often.

I went to bed feeling pretty awful last night. I am starting to feel I am dealing with some kind of bug or virus that is affecting my joints as well as giving me a headache. It feels like I have a fever, except that I don't have a high temperature. Weird. I do feel better this morning.

I see my GP on Friday, so I'll discuss these issues with him.

I'm going to my brother's house for the July 4 holiday -- at this point planning to go Monday morning and stay through the 5th.

9 Responses to “The Doctor Visit”

  1. Butterscotch Says:
    1498747798

    My father, 65, recently started taking hemp oil 2x a day for his joint pain and he has been shocked by the results. He is moving better and standing for longer, and not relying on OTC pills nearly as much as he was just a few weeks ago. Maybe that is something to look into if Tylenol (which works wonders for me so I'm lucky) isn't working for you.

    Great news about the kidneys!

  2. creditcardfree Says:
    1498751026

    That is very good news! Pain medicine, like any other drug, can cause side effects. Here's one study to read: http://www.greenmedinfo.com/blog/turmeric-beats-ibuprofen-arthritis-knee

  3. Jackie n Says:
    1498777183

    I've been trying to avoid Advil but Tylenol doesn't seem to do much.
    Hopefully you can find an alternative to give you some relief.

  4. Bluebird Says:
    1498778662

    That is awesome news! Advil triggered microscopic colitis for me, so please stay away from it. I will never take it again! So happy you received good news!

  5. rob62521 Says:
    1498779384

    Glad you received good news! Yay!

  6. Carol Says:
    1498825971

    Happy for your good news!

  7. starfishy Says:
    1498843266

    i am reading this correctly, that you don't have any kidney disease?? if so, that's great news! bummer about the pain, though, and i hope you can find some relief for that soon.

  8. FrugalTexan75 Says:
    1498925870

    Sounds like lots of good news!

  9. CB in the City Says:
    1498938617

    Starfishy, I believe what she was saying is that I have minimal kidney damage which can be arrested (but not reversed) by not taking Advil. Time will tell! I think I am still considered to have stage 3 kidney disease, but if it doesn't get worse, this is very good news.

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