Thursday, May 14, 2020
Today was a wound care day. My visit was fairly uneventful. Honestly, after the early months of 2020 when my wounds were getting slightly bigger at each visit, I am glad to have an uneventful wound care visit. Until I started the Soul Sucking Chemotherapy last week, my appetite had been pretty good, and I had been gaining weight. I am not losing weight yet, however, I am concerned it could happen in the future. Today, I am simply going to be happy my wounds are not any worse than they were last month.
I finally have urology news; however, it is not good. The doctor who specializes in spinal cord injuries and urology in Colorado Springs has pretty much thrown up her hands and told me she is not qualified to help me fix my recurring urology problem that has become an extremely annoying problem during the past four or five years. I have what is called a suprapubic catheter. In a nutshell, it means a urologist cut a hole in the lower part of my belly so they could stick a tube into my bladder to help me pee without making a mess. A suprapubic catheter is common especially for women with spinal cord injuries. I was 27 when I had my automobile accident, so periods and sex were still a part of the equation and by using a suprapubic catheter instead of a urethral catheter there is less risk of urinary tract infections.
The local urologist told me my issue would require surgery, but she was not qualified to do it, even if it could be done. The urologist referred me to a doctor in Denver, however, a surgical procedure would require a large break in my chemotherapy treatments, and Dr. Doom and Gloom will probably not feel I need the surgery desperately enough to discontinue chemotherapy treatments to do so. Yes, my urological problem is quite annoying, however, it is not life threatening and my cancer is. Cancer trumps urological issues.
I tried to fix my urological issue ten to 15 years ago when it was still a small urological problem. The urologist I had at the time pretty much blew me off saying, “I could fix it, but there is a 50-percent chance it will simply reoccur after surgery. I was willing to take the chance, but the urologist was not having any part of it. I should have pushed harder at the time, however I felt it probably was not really a serious problem because the urologist made it sound like it was not a serious problem. It is now a serious problem which will likely not get fixed in my lifetime.
My issue now is my own fault because I did not push harder several years ago. Acknowledging my own failures is not going to stop me from also blaming the entire urological mindset in the United States for my woes. It seems to me urology doctors have one goal in mind. Urologists simply want to make a lot of money making it possible for men to have sex. If your issue does not involve making a penis work better, you are simply not a priority. I know my thoughts are not true, and there really are urologists who want to help everybody, but my experience has only thrown doctors at me who were not interested in helping anyone who was not a boon to their bottom line until I finally found the local doctor who specialized in spinal cord injuries this past year. Surprise, surprise, she is a woman.
Now that I have finished ranting about urologists, it is time to mourn for an item in my home I may not be able to use any more. I have a stand I use to raise my computer monitor that has a lower tray which pulls out for my keyboard. My computer tray is probably 20 years old at least and I got it when I worked at the Better Business Bureau. I have been unable to find another desktop computer tray like this one, because all the new ones mount the keyboard tray under the table, which is too low for me and my wheelchair. When my helper cleaned my tray today, the bearings on the tray that pulls out my keyboard finally died. I am not sure I will be able to continue to use this tray that I love so much, but I am sure going to try.
My piece of advice to you is to hold on hard to what works for you. I knew my tray was not much longer for this world and I have been looking unsuccessfully for a replacement for several years. I am going to make it still work without a replacement for as long as I can.
Until next time,
Susanne
Please check out my GoFundMe page.
Today was a wound care day. My visit was fairly uneventful. Honestly, after the early months of 2020 when my wounds were getting slightly bigger at each visit, I am glad to have an uneventful wound care visit. Until I started the Soul Sucking Chemotherapy last week, my appetite had been pretty good, and I had been gaining weight. I am not losing weight yet, however, I am concerned it could happen in the future. Today, I am simply going to be happy my wounds are not any worse than they were last month.
I finally have urology news; however, it is not good. The doctor who specializes in spinal cord injuries and urology in Colorado Springs has pretty much thrown up her hands and told me she is not qualified to help me fix my recurring urology problem that has become an extremely annoying problem during the past four or five years. I have what is called a suprapubic catheter. In a nutshell, it means a urologist cut a hole in the lower part of my belly so they could stick a tube into my bladder to help me pee without making a mess. A suprapubic catheter is common especially for women with spinal cord injuries. I was 27 when I had my automobile accident, so periods and sex were still a part of the equation and by using a suprapubic catheter instead of a urethral catheter there is less risk of urinary tract infections.
The local urologist told me my issue would require surgery, but she was not qualified to do it, even if it could be done. The urologist referred me to a doctor in Denver, however, a surgical procedure would require a large break in my chemotherapy treatments, and Dr. Doom and Gloom will probably not feel I need the surgery desperately enough to discontinue chemotherapy treatments to do so. Yes, my urological problem is quite annoying, however, it is not life threatening and my cancer is. Cancer trumps urological issues.
I tried to fix my urological issue ten to 15 years ago when it was still a small urological problem. The urologist I had at the time pretty much blew me off saying, “I could fix it, but there is a 50-percent chance it will simply reoccur after surgery. I was willing to take the chance, but the urologist was not having any part of it. I should have pushed harder at the time, however I felt it probably was not really a serious problem because the urologist made it sound like it was not a serious problem. It is now a serious problem which will likely not get fixed in my lifetime.
My issue now is my own fault because I did not push harder several years ago. Acknowledging my own failures is not going to stop me from also blaming the entire urological mindset in the United States for my woes. It seems to me urology doctors have one goal in mind. Urologists simply want to make a lot of money making it possible for men to have sex. If your issue does not involve making a penis work better, you are simply not a priority. I know my thoughts are not true, and there really are urologists who want to help everybody, but my experience has only thrown doctors at me who were not interested in helping anyone who was not a boon to their bottom line until I finally found the local doctor who specialized in spinal cord injuries this past year. Surprise, surprise, she is a woman.
Now that I have finished ranting about urologists, it is time to mourn for an item in my home I may not be able to use any more. I have a stand I use to raise my computer monitor that has a lower tray which pulls out for my keyboard. My computer tray is probably 20 years old at least and I got it when I worked at the Better Business Bureau. I have been unable to find another desktop computer tray like this one, because all the new ones mount the keyboard tray under the table, which is too low for me and my wheelchair. When my helper cleaned my tray today, the bearings on the tray that pulls out my keyboard finally died. I am not sure I will be able to continue to use this tray that I love so much, but I am sure going to try.
My piece of advice to you is to hold on hard to what works for you. I knew my tray was not much longer for this world and I have been looking unsuccessfully for a replacement for several years. I am going to make it still work without a replacement for as long as I can.
Until next time,
Susanne
Please check out my GoFundMe page.
RSS Feed
