Weight Milestone

Let’s start with the constipation issue. Everything came out well in the end.

The reason I’m posting today is to announce I’ve reached one of my weight loss goals. Today, I weighed 224.6 pounds. I finally broke the 225 mark.

Unfortunately, I’m going to lunch with the boys and then going to dinner with Susan’s cousin who surprisingly showed up in Post Falls.

Neither of those meals is going to contribute to weight loss.

One of the things I notice during my constipation issue was my loss of appetite. I went on line to re-check the side effects of Ofev, the new drug I’m on that is giving me diarrhea.

It did say that one of the other side effects was loss of appetite. I had not noticed that since I started this drug back on the 7th. But it has definitely been the case for me since Saturday.

I’ll be keeping an eye on that.

Constipation

 I’m not sure if I’m having constipation or not. What I do know is I have not taken a crap since Saturday afternoon.

I don’t feel any giant urge to go and I don’t feel bound up. There is an ever so slight discomfort in my stomach, like an upset stomach, but not really.

I called my Pulmonologist because I’ve been on a new drug she prescribed called Ofev. The drugs is supposed to reduce the progression of scarring in my lungs. One of the side effects mentioned is diarrhea. 

I’ve been taking the drug since June 7th. The diarrhea started within a couple of days and has been a semi regular companion since.

I just got off the phone with Nurse Amy from Dr. Ajaz office. She suggested I increase fluids, drink Prune juice, perhaps some fibrous fruit like peaches.

So I’m off to the store.

Return to Posting

I was on a real streak of posting for a while and then it all went away. So I thought I better get back on the interweb horse and start posting again.

Back on April 27th was the last time my weight was below 230 pounds. I finally broke the barrier today, weighing in at 228.8.

I am very dedicated to losing weight right now in anticipation of my visit to Stanford Medical. And my dedication has been paying off. I have lost 8 pounds in the last week. The main changes I’ve made are cut down on beer and stay away from grains and sugar.

I’ve also been doing some exercise in the form of riding Mark’s eBike. I have been borrowing it now for well over a month. When Mark loaned it to me it had about 60 miles on it. As of yesterday, it has almost 300 miles on it.

I’m having a great time riding it around but it is easy to create the illusion that I’m getting some exercise. I try to peddle at all times. Depending on the level of assistance, I can create some resistance while peddling while not getting wiped out when I go up a hill.

I hardly ever use the throttle except when it’s the end of a ride and I’m trying to wear down the battery. Then it’s like I’m flying around the neighborhood on my twenty mile per hour motor scooter.

I have finally concluded that my best course of action is to set the bike on Assistance Level 2. That’s out of five levels. On 2, I can feel the bike being assisted, but there is some pretty good resistance as I peddle. It travels at around 8 mph. 

On Level 3, the bike takes off and runs at about 12 to 15 mph while I am peddling. There is very little resistance but as long as I peddle, the bike cruises.

The weather continues to be awesome. Nice sunny days but not too hot. I try to ride the bike whenever I can. Some friends loaned me their saddle bags so I can go to the store for stuff, as long as it’s not too much stuff.

I guess, this post is my way of letting Mark know that he’s not getting the bike back.

May BP

 

Stanford Change

We talked to Leslie at Stanford yesterday and learned that our initial week on the 23rd of June is not going to work. We looked at the following week but it contains the Fourth of July, so I don’t think that’s going to work.

So…for now…no Stanford for Stanburke.

Stanford Call

 We got the call from Stanford today.

I was out to lunch with Rob and Mark. We were at the Hub when I got an email from Susan that Stanford called and wants a callback.

I raced home and we made the call.

Leslie 650 725-3823

I am still waiting confirmation but we have set up an initial appointment for the week of June 23rd.  There will be a bunch of tests and meetings and then we should hear if we are approved (or not) by the following week.

I have already contacted my friend Arnie, who lives in San Fran and will put up with us for at least a week.

If we are approved, we need to move to San Francisco for three to six months. 

There are still lots of details to work out and lots of stuff we just don’t know.

Anyway, that’s the latest.

Summer Daze and Rash Update

We are having one of our first Summer-like days. Above is a screen capture of my weather app. We have several days of nice weather ahead of us. Too bad I can’t swim.

In the meantime, let ‘s get an update on my rash.

That’s today’s photo, seven days after the photo on my last post.

It stopped oozing almost immediately after I stopped applying Neosporun. It’s still pretty red and a little itchy but way better than it was.

I never did get the ointment that the doctor prescribed because Rite-Aid didn’t have it on hand. They had to order it and because of the Memorial Day weekend, they wouldn’t have it until at least Tuesday.

Well, by the time Tuesday rolled around, the rash was dramatically improving and I didn’t think I needed the ointment. So, sit on it, Rite-Aid.

I’ve been putting Vaseline on it because it gets pretty dry and scaly but I am definitely feeling that it is on the mend.

I have been riding the hell out of Mark’s bike. I’m really enjoying it. I can’t say that I’m getting the same kind of exercise as when I go on a walk, but I usually return to the house feeling like I stressed myself out a little.

As I’m typing right now, there is a guy named Tim from All Things Piano who is doing what I hope will be the final tune on the piano since it’s refurbishment.

We have been playing it for the last week and half, since Chris was here to do the initial tuning. As expected, it almost immediately went out of tune. During the shake down, we also indentified a few keys down on the bass end that needed a little adjustment.

He’s been here about an hour and probably has an hour to go.

In the meantime, I’m going to sit on the front porch and enjoy the weather with my lemonaid.