Officially Old!

Published on December 2, 2007 By Gideon MacLeish In Current Events

This weekend I unwittingly got a glimpse of my future, and it ain't pretty.

It started Friday morning, when I had a tightness in my right knee. My right knee is arthritic to begin with, and rain was in the forecast, so I just chalked it up to life's aches and pains.

By Saturday morning, it was clear that it was more than that. The knee had swollen somewhat, and I limped through the day with an Ace bandage wrapped joint. When I came home at night, the pain had worsened, and I could not bear much weight on the knee. I took a hot bath, which restored a little bit of flexibility, and borrowed a cane from my elderly neighbour, figuring I'd limp through as best I could.

This morning, though, that thought was out of my head as I was unable to bear ANY weight on the knee, and it was swollen to the point that it was locked in position. I called my neighbour, who gave me a ride to the ER.

The doctor drained the fluid off of the knee (which restored flexibility, but the knee was more tender once the fluid had drained away) and had it tested. The verdict? Gout. A disease usually associated with older people. I'm not older people yet, am I? I guess so.

So after a trip to WalMart to fetch pills (yeah, I used one of those powered carts...no WAY I was walking through the store in the pain I was in), I'm home and resting. I've done a fair bit of research, and the bummer is, preventing future attacks of gout will mean some fairly big lifestyle changes, but I really don't want to wake up another morning when I can't walk to the bathroom, so...you do what you gotta.

Comments (Page 1)

aeryck

on Dec 02, 2007

That really sound naaasty, Gideon.

I got a bad pinched nerve (and my leg swelled up) from spending too much time behind the screen...I used to sit in one position for hours...now I go on walks...plenty of mountain out this side and there will be plenty of walks in England. What sort of meds are you taking for this ? Are there some erbal rub ons to help with it as well...?

In my prayers tonight,
Aeryck

KFC Kickin For Christ

on Dec 02, 2007

Yes Gid, a lifestyle plan is exactly what you need. I'm guessing it's going to entail a diet change, as certain rich foods are culprit and loss of weight?

I know another person who had gout pretty badly. He had it in his feet. He was only in his mid 30's but was very overweight and his diet was "see food," He knew he had to stay away from certain foods and keep his weight down, but was not willing to give up all those Little Debbies. It seemed as tho it kept flaring up with more frequency as he progressed with this.

Hope you feel better soon and pray this first flareup is your last.

MasonM

on Dec 02, 2007

Step up the dairy products and cut back on meat and fish.

Zoologist03

on Dec 02, 2007

I went through the pleasure of looking it up. Apparently caused by urate crystals clogging up your joints. Painful as hell, it seems. Sorry about that, Gid.

~Zoo

Gideon MacLeish

on Dec 02, 2007

I got a bad pinched nerve (and my leg swelled up) from spending too much time behind the screen...I used to sit in one position for hours...now I go on walks...plenty of mountain out this side and there will be plenty of walks in England. What sort of meds are you taking for this ? Are there some erbal rub ons to help with it as well...?

Tramadol and Indomethacin. Incidentally a combo that just gave me a rather good nap. Can't say I'm ready to run a marathon, but I do feel much, much better.

In my prayers tonight,
Aeryck

Hope you feel better soon and pray this first flareup is your last.

Thanks. Always appreciated.

I know another person who had gout pretty badly. He had it in his feet. He was only in his mid 30's but was very overweight and his diet was "see food," He knew he had to stay away from certain foods and keep his weight down, but was not willing to give up all those Little Debbies. It seemed as tho it kept flaring up with more frequency as he progressed with this.

Yeah, ironically, I think it's been the dieting the last week that has kicked this off, I just have to watch HOW I diet.

I am ever, ever so glad I didn't try Atkins, or I might have felt even worse.

Probably the best news about gout is that, with care, it is potentially one of the more preventable of the serious diseases.

Step up the dairy products and cut back on meat and fish.

Yup. Most of the changes I was headed for anyways. The other constant I've heard from everyone who has had it is cherries and plenty of water. So for the next couple of days, it's rest, drugs, cherries, and water, then try to get settled into a routine.

It's a pretty good incentive, really knowing I DON'T want to feel the way I felt this morning ever again. So it is in many ways a very mixed blessing.

terpfan1980

on Dec 02, 2007

Haven't had the fun of Gout yet, but have been dealing with the joys of getting older and feeling as if I'm on the the downhill side rather than the uphill side of life. Getting old does suck. Sooner or later I could be the old coot that is my father-in-law. Oh joy!

Hope you get over this round quickly and don't see another round for a good long time.

MasonM

on Dec 02, 2007

By the way Gid, do you happen to suffer from Sleep Apnea? There is a link between it and gout. They say that treating the apnea improves the gout symptoms.

Gideon MacLeish

on Dec 02, 2007

Well, I'm looking at it this way, terp. It's a lot friendlier of a wake up call than a heart attack or stroke.

Incidentally, I WAS proud of one thing today. My blood pressure, which I have historically wrestled with, was a respectable, if imperfect, 130/70

Gideon MacLeish

on Dec 02, 2007

By the way Gid, do you happen to suffer from Sleep Apnea? There is a link between it and gout.

Yeah, I did read that and thank you for pointing that out. I have found that the more controlled my weight, the less problem I have with sleep apnea. I've also found that this time of year, keeping the air humid helps with the apnea, so we have to make sure to keep a pan of water on the wood stove.

MasonM

on Dec 02, 2007

By the way Gid, do you happen to suffer from Sleep Apnea? There is a link between it and gout.

I know they're expensive, but a CPAP machine works wonders.

Gideon MacLeish

on Dec 02, 2007

I know they're expensive, but a CPAP machine works wonders.

Yeah,

The problem is, I'm switching jobs to go to work on my bachelor's, so I'll be without insurance again for awhile (hoping that is resolved as quickly as possible). Usually, I hvae found that when I have problems with sleep apnea, it's a result of my poor eating and sleeping habits. If I keep my weight in the 250-270 range (I'm currently above that right now), eat my "big" meal as a midday meal rather than the supper meal, and sleep with my head elevated, I can usually keep apnea from being a problem. Breathe right stript can also make an amazing difference. Until about 5 years ago, I COULDN'T breathe out of my nose. Thanks to Breathe Right strips, I now breathe out of my nose 85-90% of the time, which can make a big difference in sleep apnea. When I next get insurance, I'll definitely see if I can get a CPAP machine, if I still have sleep apnea problems.

Dr Guy

on Dec 03, 2007

Ouch! Sorry for the pain. I am just glad I have not been so afflicted yet (knock wood).

Artysim

on Dec 03, 2007

Gid, sorry to hear about the gout. In regards to the joint pain, are you taking any supplements? Due to the amount of running I do I put my joints through hell and so take a supplement called "lakota"- a co-worker of mine with really bad arthritis (we call him the human barometer, as he can always tell us a day before a big weather change is coming)got me sold on lakota, he swears up and down that it helps his arthritis and I've found it significantly decreases my rebound time. It has glucosamine, chondroitin and willow bark extract in it among a few other ingredients.

Gideon MacLeish

on Dec 03, 2007

I'm seriously wondering if this wasn't my major problem for awhile and it just took this long to build to this point. Today's my first day up and on it, and it doesn't feel especially sore, I'm not limping anymore, and more to the point, it doesn't lock up or "pop".

arty, I'll check those out. I've heard good things about glucosamine and chondroiton, but I may need to be careful with the willow bark, as willow bark contains the primary ingredient in aspirin, and for gout, aspirin is generally considered a nono.

danielost

on Dec 03, 2007

despite all of the pain your still only as old as you think

i am 44

i have chronic pain in both ankles birth defect.

and now i have arthritis in my back in two places. i have been in a lot of pain from that for two weeks. yes i have pain pills provided from the VA but they only work for an hour or so and make me sleepy for two or three. and since i am the only one who can drive safely in this house..

and with all of this i still lie on the floor. mainly for comfort and you can't fall off the floor.

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