It’s been awhile and I figure it’s time for a health update. These missives are helpful to me at least. I hope they might be helpful to others dealing with similar issues.
I’m a bad-news-first kind of girl so let’s start there. No real change in the hypoparathyroidism situation. We’ve tested calcium and parathyroid hormone levels a few times in the last couple of months. For fellow hypoparas who will want numbers, calcium is hovering around 8.0-8.3. PTH (parathyroid hormone) has been as low as 10 and as high as 22. A “normal” person’s calcium is around 9.0. PTH goes up and down like a seesaw with calcium, but if calcium is below 8.5, PTH should be a lot higher than mine is. My parathyroids have not woken up yet. The longer this situation continues, the greater the chances that I am stuck with this disease forever.
I haven’t given up hope yet and in fact, I am trying to focus my energy on remaining hopeful. If anyone wants to help, this is where to place your energy. Please pray that my parathyroids begin working again. If you aren’t the praying type, just send good vibes in the general direction of my neck.
I’ll write something soon with more information about the condition of hypoparathyroidism. I know it’s confusing. For now, what it means is that I take more calcium and activated vitamin D supplements than I am comfortable with in order to keep the symptoms of calcium deficiency at bay. Calcium deficiency causes muscle cramps, especially during exercise, so I have to supplement more when I run. Some runs are fine. Other runs are really painful because of the cramps. I keep running because this situation is “just” uncomfortable, not dangerous.
Since November, I picked up one “new” health issue, atrial fibrillation. “New” because I have a history of afib, but it dates back quite awhile. I had several incidents between 2010 and 2013 and then only one more in 2016. In my case, atrial fibrillation clearly correlates strongly with stress. There’s no denying that the past few months have been some of the most stressful of my life. I am doing everything I can think of to mitigate stress and I don’t really need (or want) advice here. In case anyone’s wondering, something important did happen in 2013. I started running marathons and the afib incidents stopped. I have a cardiology appointment next week. I wouldn’t want to neglect my newfound hobby of going to the doctor.
The tone here is coming out more bitter and defensive than I mean it to, but I’ve been reviewing insurance claims all afternoon so the bad stuff is on my mind. There’s a lot of good stuff to report as well!
I got excellent news on the thyroid front this week! My thyroid levels have been “good enough” for a couple of months. But this week, all numbers were excellent! I am also feeling good with plenty of energy to get into trouble.
The skin cancer situation is also resolving. I had Mohs surgery on 11/28. Irene and Kevin both went with me. The doctor and the nurse were great. Only one slice needed! Just over six weeks later and the scar has faded a lot. I expect no further issues here, knock on wood.
The best news is about my voice. It’s a long way from normal, but the progress here is significant. I’ve been able to get semi-regular voice therapy appointments and I do exercises every day. My range is increasing! My tone is more resonant! I can talk louder! I can even sort of sing, if you ignore the squawking and the song doesn’t have any high notes. Both of the voice therapists I work with are fantastic people. We don’t know what the final outcome here is, but I am still making good progress. In three weeks, I have to start lecturing. That’s still a daunting prospect, but I am a lot less worried about being stuck with a croak for the rest of my life.
The fear and panic I experienced before running the Philadelphia marathon were really the peak of awfulness. But marathons serve to give us courage and Philly served that purpose. A friend who has also had serious health issues this past year says she is in the process of “re-braving” herself. I plan to join her in that project. The past year taught me that health is out of our control much more often than we understand or want to believe. But maybe hope is something we can work to rekindle, in ourselves and in others. I am so grateful to those who are helping me get better, regardless of what the final outcome looks like. Re-braving in progress, so here’s to hope in 2023.