Rat Poison

[jazzgeek]

And after two weeks....

....the INR levels took a small dip, down to 2.22, but nothing to be concerned about. Given my love of foods with Vitamin K, however, I'll be asking my Doc if I should just go with an "every other day" regimen, alternating between the 7.5 mg and 5 mg of warfarin a day. (Currently, it's 7.5 mg three times a week, so in essence, it would increase my "average daily intake" from 6.07 to 6.25 mg.)

Meanwhile, I'm hoping I never ever get the phlebotomist I had yesterday. If you looked in the dictionary for the Rat Pack-era word "broad", I swear there'd be a picture of her. Using her Seinfeldian man hands, this tough cookie literally plowed the needle into my arm, but not before """""complimenting""""" me by looking at the veins in my arm and saying, "Wow, ya got a faucet there, yanno??"

It took a good 45 minutes for the bleeding to stop. The gauze pad that was used to apply pressure to the point of the blood draw looked like a miniature flag of Japan.

And finally, the "junkie tracks" from the Lovenox are starting to disappear, so there's no more of this, this, this, or this on my gut. (Just for you, Janine. )

Next test in a month. You'll all miss my bumping this thread, I'm sure.

regards,
jazz

 

[Tula_Montage]

So glad things are improving Dale Keep getting better you tough cookie!!!

 

[diamondlil]

Dale, you're a star, I knew you'd give in and show if I pestered enough!

 

[JoannaD]

What, no full belly shots? You're such a tease!



Joanna

 

[jazzgeek]

Bump.

I had a PT/INR test on Monday.....the INR levels jumped up to 3.19, a little higher than they should be, which means I have to return in two weeks instead of one month for yet another blood draw.

I guess I gotta eat more stuff with vegetable oil and bump the Vitamin K levels.

And if this doesn't get under control, there's gonna be hell to pay. The colder temps we've recently had implies drier air, which implies easy nosebleeds by simply sneezing or blowing my nose. And I've got a nose you could go spelunking in. :grin01:

I had a half hour long nosebleed around lunch (well, around lunchtime, not around my meal). My nose, plugged with Kleenex for over 30 minutes, is not a pretty sight.


On the bright side, the blood pressure levels have decreased remarkably. Despite the cravings, I guess that there are some benefits to quitting smoking.

regards,
jazz

 

[SaulsMom]

Good luck on your next draw. Just keep up the good work, ya know?

You probably know this already, but if the dry air is bothering your nose, you can get a mini tub of Vaseline. Stick your finger in the jar and "swab" the inside of your nose. Ahem.

It creates a barrier so that the cold air doesn't cause bleeds.

Signed,

A former blood-from-the-face-at-inopportune-moments-girl,

SaulsMom

 

[JoannaD]

A humidifier will help the nose bleeds as well. Sticking stuff in your nose can cause nose bleeds! (Although usually it is fingers in noses that start bleeds!)

An INR of 3.19 isn't that high. There are people that are kept that high intentionally.

Congrats on quiting smoking and lowering the blood pressure, not an easy thing to do.

Joanna

 

[dwyn127]

Congrats on quiting smoking and lowering the blood pressure, not an easy thing to do.

Joanna

For real Dale, congratulations!!! Quitting smoking was the hardest thing I've ever had to do. Now you need to get that road bike out again. How about we make a pact, you stay off cigs and I'll loose my fat ars and we'll map out a half-way meeting point and bike to it. If we start now we might make it back before our 50th birthdays.:grin01:

 

[Nanci]

I'm glad you quit smoking. Every day- if you could see what I see in the course of my work. I used to smoke like a fiend. I know how hard it is.

I wish I could get back into biking, too. I think I got burned out. I just finished this R12 award, which is a thing where you ride a 200k or longer ride, once a month, for 12 consecutive months. No make ups. Only 16 people in the whole country achieved this in 2006. But since November, I've been riding 200k a month, in one shot. I don't know what my deal is...

I hate to tell you this, but you ought to be prepared. The craving to smoke, for me, has never gone away. No, it isn't there every day, but if my brain senses a weakness- it's right there, telling me I deserve a cigarette. And in person, when I am around smokers, it disgusts me, but if I see one on TV where I can't smell it- man- I miss it so much. You just have to be tough. Just don't ever say yes even one time ever again.

Nanci

 

[SnakeCreations]

Bump.

I had a PT/INR test on Monday.....the INR levels jumped up to 3.19, a little higher than they should be, which means I have to return in two weeks instead of one month for yet another blood draw.

I guess I gotta eat more stuff with vegetable oil and bump the Vitamin K levels.

And if this doesn't get under control, there's gonna be hell to pay. The colder temps we've recently had implies drier air, which implies easy nosebleeds by simply sneezing or blowing my nose. And I've got a nose you could go spelunking in. :grin01:

I had a half hour long nosebleed around lunch (well, around lunchtime, not around my meal). My nose, plugged with Kleenex for over 30 minutes, is not a pretty sight.


On the bright side, the blood pressure levels have decreased remarkably. Despite the cravings, I guess that there are some benefits to quitting smoking.

regards,
jazz

Heyyy... sounds like you are on your way.... Congrats D!!! It’ll stabilize out, I'm sure. The blood pressure - awesome news really. I can't speak for everyone, but for me I wouldn't want to have seen what you're like, spelunkin kleenex after a stroke and all... what a visual

No really, glad to hear that things are going your way!

-Tonya

 

[jazzgeek]

You probably know this already, but if the dry air is bothering your nose, you can get a mini tub of Vaseline. Stick your finger in the jar and "swab" the inside of your nose.

This would be a good idea. However, I'd need more than a "mini-tub". I could downright impact the world petroleum markets.

A humidifier will help the nose bleeds as well.

Given what happened, I've got two up and running right now. Of course, today, it's a warmer day. With precipitation.

Timing is everything.

Now you need to get that road bike out again. How about we make a pact, you stay off cigs and I'll loose my fat ars and we'll map out a half-way meeting point and bike to it. If we start now we might make it back before our 50th birthdays.:grin01:

:roflmao: HA! Truth be told Danny, my first "extended" ride when I was seriously into biking was when I was on a consulting contract in Ohio...a fundraising ride from Toledo to Port Clinton. I wish I'd remember the name of the event.

Meanwhile, the Trek 5200 is on the repair stand downstairs. A new chain, some new handlebar tape, air in the tires, and an adjustment to the derailleur cables, and I'm good to go, lungs be damned.

I hate to tell you this, but you ought to be prepared. The craving to smoke, for me, has never gone away. No, it isn't there every day, but if my brain senses a weakness- it's right there, telling me I deserve a cigarette. And in person, when I am around smokers, it disgusts me, but if I see one on TV where I can't smell it- man- I miss it so much. You just have to be tough. Just don't ever say yes even one time ever again.

Gah, I know, I know!!! Before I smoked, I couldn't STAND the smell of cigarettes - I still can't. Because of the smell, I smoked menthols. (As a fan of irony, I was well aware of "minty fresh tobacco"....but hey, I was addicted ).

And I know how difficult it is. My dad could never kick, and he succumbed to its effects. Twenty years ago, before I smoked, my self-righteous attitude was disgusted with his actions. Having smoked, I now understand just how addicting it is (I've read that nicotine is second only to heroin in its addictive "powers".), and can see the difficulty he had. And having lived and seen the crap in this world for the past twenty years, I'm amazed that more people don't light up.

I can't speak for everyone, but for me I wouldn't want to have seen what you're like, spelunkin kleenex after a stroke and all... what a visual

Thanks, Tonya! This reminds me of a reply email I got from my cousin a while back, when I told him of throwing the clot.

Now, bear in mind that I share the same genetic components as this guy. So it really shouldn't surprise you when he said:

"I've been on a blood thinner for the last 15 years known as "Busch Light". Its side affects are scary, apparently it makes me think I am whispering when I am not, think I can actually sing, and wake up next to women that sometimes look like my grandfather. So stick to what your doc provided you. Glad to hear you're okay though. Family reunions wouldn't be the same if you had a lazy eye."

When I first read that, I actually snorted with laughter. Thank God I didn't have a nosebleed. :grin01:

regards,
jazz

 

[dwyn127]

"I've been on a blood thinner for the last 15 years known as "Busch Light". Its side affects are scary, apparently it makes me think I am whispering when I am not, think I can actually sing, and wake up next to women that sometimes look like my grandfather.

regards,
jazz

Wooooooooow dude, Deja vu. And don't forget, makes me want to rob gas stations.:grin01:

 

[SnakeCreations]

Thanks, Tonya! This reminds me of a reply email I got from my cousin a while back, when I told him of throwing the clot.

Now, bear in mind that I share the same genetic components as this guy. So it really shouldn't surprise you when he said:

"I've been on a blood thinner for the last 15 years known as "Busch Light". Its side affects are scary, apparently it makes me think I am whispering when I am not, think I can actually sing, and wake up next to women that sometimes look like my grandfather. So stick to what your doc provided you. Glad to hear you're okay though. Family reunions wouldn't be the same if you had a lazy eye."

When I first read that, I actually snorted with laughter. Thank God I didn't have a nosebleed

So what you're tellin me here is that the entire gene pool is Homo. for the 'warped' gene?

hehe actually laughter and the the ability to laugh at ones self, the ironies in life and the pit falls for what they are is, in my humble opinion, the only way to live.

Bravo

-Tonya

 

[jazzgeek]

And the latest PT/INR results are in.......

....and back to "normal" - 2.65.

Methinks I'm over the hump. (knock on wood) Now I can get this knee tapped without worrying about bleeding out.

regards,
jazz

 

[gwb8568]

hey guy, i don't know the #'s or medical terminology very well......but as long as your alive and feeling good, i'm happy for you. i do know that you have been through quite a bit here lately so good luck with the upcoming knee operation. two cheers for the latest news. :cheers: :cheers:

folk metal

 

[Nanci]

Well, that's good news! How much longer do you have to take the rat poison? Three months??

Nanci

 

[jazzgeek]

Well, that's good news! How much longer do you have to take the rat poison? Three months??

At least that long, if not longer.

Given the family history of strokes, this may be a lifetime thing. More tests will prove that out.

Yikes, "prove out". It's as if I were het for caramel or something.

regards,
jazz

 

[Nanci]

Oh great, I thought you just had to melt the PE and DVT and then that was it. I have a fear of strokes for a different reason- I have a hole between my atriums in my heart, with a flap over it, that opens and closes randomly. If I break my femur, and big chunks of bone marrow/blood clots, whatever, go floating off into circulation, they could potentially bypass my lungs where they would normally be filtered out and head straight up to my brain. Kind of scary.

But there is good news! Abbot Laboratories is developing ANCROID from Maylayan pit viper venom to be administered after stroke. Cognetix is developing anticholinergic peptides form cone snail venom for stroke therapy. See-, venom is good!

Nanci

 

[Tula_Montage]

See-, venom is good!

Nanci

But it does NOT justify licking toads Nanci

What did I tell you about that! :grin01:

 

[plasticknives]

Jazzgeek-
I don't know much of you except what I read- but I just wanted to say that you have one of the best attitudes of life I have ever seen.

Props for keeping your sense of humour throughout your ordeal, and we all appreciate your words of wisdom!


-kels