#SundayUpdate – #ImprovingHealth – #HereComesChristmas!

/ Marcia

The holidays are upon us, and I hope you are looking forward to them as much as I am. And I’m doing better every day, so I am definitely feeling the Spirit of Christmas!

Yep, I’m still improving, health-wise, though my second visit with my new cardiologist was an interesting one, to say the least. On the plus side, the Beta Blocker he put me on is working beautifully, so far. We’ll be monitoring that going forward.

On the questionable side, apparently, there was imaging done of my heart four years ago that showed this damage beginning to develop, and I was never told! I’m guessing my doctor at the time decided it was minor enough that he’d just keep an eye on it, but I sure wish he’d let me know about it.

What this means: the damage noted in 2018, untreated, could have continued worsening all on its own. Or, if I did have Long Covid for six months, that could have sped up the process drastically. Since there’s no way to diagnose LC, there’s just no way to prove what actually happened to bring me to this point. However, I can’t help but wonder if we might have been able to slow things down a bit, had we taken action four years earlier.

But … spilt milk, and all that! There’s no use what-iffing, since the damage is now done, whether Long Covid played a role, or not. Happily, the medication I’m taking has made an enormous difference! The dizzy spells, numbness in my right leg, and extreme fatigue have all disappeared.  I haven’t even had to use my cane in two months!

My energy level is still pretty low, so I am planning to take it pretty easy for the month of December, and you’ll likely see less of me. I do have some posts scheduled in advance, just to keep the blog active and give you guys a few smiles, but I won’t be resuming all of my normal features until next year, when I’ll reassess. Hopefully, I’ll be able to get back to things as usual pretty quickly by then. If so, I’ll be putting out a reminder for guest posts again, and hope to hear from many of you so we can get the new year off to a great start on TWS.

And on a cheerier note, for those who may not know, I’m totally OCD about Christmas and, even though I’m moving slower than usual these days, I still got enough decorations up to make me smile all month. I did have to draw a line before I’d emptied every box from the attic, but that’s okay this time. So what if the House of 1,000 Santas only has 600 or 700 hundred on display this year? Who’s counting, right? (Besides me?) I did what I could without pushing myself too hard, and it definitely feels like Christmas in here! With that thought in mind, I’m going to go relax in the Comfy Chair with my cuppa Earl Grey, and enjoy the fruits of my labor!

HERE’S TO A HAPPY WEEK AHEAD!

29 thoughts on “#SundayUpdate – #ImprovingHealth – #HereComesChristmas!”

  3. Bitter and sweet. The test thing–this is one piece I like about health records now being online. I can look up a test and read it myself. That’s how I found out one Glaucoma test showed optic nerve degeneration. So I brought it up to the Doc. At our age, I have time to dig through the five-syllable words!

    Glad you have your house decorated. That’s cheerful!

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  6. I am glad to hear you are doing better, Marcia! I had the same issue with my kidneys, my doctor didn’t say a word but luckily I saw the test results and knew I needed to make some changes before it got worse. To confirm my worries another doctor, specialist, brought up my previous results as concerning but now within a healthy range. We need information to make better decisions with our health before it gets worse. Glad you are pacing yourself and heading in a good direction. You made me smile about not putting all 1000 santas up. I did the same thing with the Christmas village, only a third up but still enjoying. Holiday hugs xo

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  7. Like the others here, I’m delighted that you’re beginning to feel better and that you’re being sensible and pacing yourself. I’m less delighted that your doctor kept quiet about the initial damage. Your approach to it is perfect – fretting only serves to put extra strain on things and does nothing to redress the harm.
    You’ll have to take a few pics of your Santas – I’ve not started decorating yet but I am almost finished with sorting out the gifts for family. I have my mother’s Christmas village and will start with that one first. All the decorative bits and pieces we accumulate over the years certainly add to the festive spirit. ♥♥

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  9. Well done, looking after yourself. I think we all have things that Might have been detected earlier. I was talking to a neighbour hobbling along on crutches with a broken pelvis! But that was only half the story; all the blood tests and scans they did when he was taken into hospital revealed far more worrying medical stuff…

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  11. I’m glad you are feeling better. Too bad that you didn’t know about the problem four years ago. Hopefully, the new cardiologist will keep you informed of these things.

    I’m sure your house looks beautiful. (Even if its only six or seven hundred Santas.) 🙂

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  14. You must be improving if you were able to take hundreds of Santas out of storage and display them. That IS good news! I’m hoping you didn’t use your new found energy to climb up onto the roof and pose a Santa by the chimney! Take care, Marcia. You’ve definitely earned that cup of Earl Grey.

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  17. 2018? Holy crow! I’m so glad that your heart problem was caught early enough to be treated properly.

    And, yes, you should take it easy. Remember, if you arrange your decorations just right, 700 Santas can look exactly like 1,000.

    Merry Christmas to you, my friend!

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  18. I’m glad that the meds are working and your health is improving, my friend. I know it’s frustrating not to have known about the start four years ago, but good that you have a doctor thoroughly focused on monitoring and correcting now.

    And yay for all those Santas! I’m glad LC hasn’t dimmed your love of all things Christmas. I also turn into a Christmas sap at this time of year. ‘Tis the season and such. BIG HUGS and take all the down time you need. This is a month and a season to be enjoyed! 🤗💕❤️🎄

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  23. I’m SO glad that you’re doing better, but DUMP that last doctor! I know, I know, why bother to get riled up now – but it just makes ME angry that they weren’t on top of something like that (or kept it from you like they used to back in the day). Well, here’s to going forward and busting it out in a good way 🙂

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    • Not to worry, Sue. When our insurance changed, I had no choice but to “dump” all of my doctors, even though they’d all been pretty great for more than 20 years. I’d always been very satisfied with my original cardiologist, too. But when my new one notified me of this imaging from four years ago, I was shocked that I hadn’t been told. It fell through the cracks somewhere, I suspect, but that doesn’t make it any better.

      We are NOW on top of the problem, and my current doctor is monitoring my progress very closely. I feel very confident going forward. And I will definitely be asking plenty of questions at each visit, or contacting them via the Patient Portal online, if I’m concerned about anything at all.

      And thanks for your kind comments, too! 😀 ❤ I'm going to try to respond to everyone's as the day moves on, but I'm taking it slowly, and not pushing myself harder than I should. 😀 ❤

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    • I’m enjoying every one of my Santas, Priscilla, though I’ve never REALLY counted. It’s enough to have them on every shelf in every room and all over my trees. 😄

      And I’m very happy you are enjoying the first Emissary story. I really need to get busy and do some promos, especially for that little series. They were such a pleasure to write, and I hope you’ll find each of them worth the read.

      Thanks for letting me know and for stopping by today. Wishing you a happy holiday season! 😊🎄😊

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  26. Due to some health issues in my family, I’m also a little slow on blogs and comments, but I love your blog and NOT loving reading about your heart issues. So many people (those I know in ‘real time’ and those I read about on our blogs) have noted the challenges of seeing doctors without a long wait and how stressed/too busy doctors are so that they don’t spend the time on each individual as needed. Falling through the cracks indeed. Turns out that now we all have to be special diligent about our health and nudge the doctors when needed. Patient portal helps for sure. Glad you’re feeling better, and your heart is resting and happier. Have a sweet fun holiday – no return comment needed, Marcia!

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    • Thank you, Pam, and the same back to you. (And if it helps, my new cardiologist has impressed me HUGELY with his approach to my health. Hope it continues that way.)

      In the meantime, stay well, and enjoy your holiday. See you in 2023!! 😀 ❤

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