And when you look at it, the price wasn't too bad.
As I mentioned last time, I've had a few niggling concerns over the last few weeks with regards some changes I've noticed. On Wednesday I got to see my GP, Tatiana, to discuss them all, and here is the results of that appointment.
I went in armed with a list of my concerns (didn't want to forget any) and after telling each one to Tatiana, the first comment she made was "the cancer is gone and your body is still adjusting to everything it has been through". To be fair, that set the tone for what was to come, and it was great to hear her say the cancer was gone.
Weight Loss:
So, we know my body is still adjusting to things and unless it continues to drop, it's nothing to get too concerned about.
Increased Appetite:
Obviously my metabolism has also taken somewhat of a hit and has adjusted as well. Again, nothing to worry about, in fact it's really a good sign as it means my body is seeking more nutrition and is therefore returning to a new normality.
Combined, these two are quite interesting - I'm eating more, but still losing weight. We also discussed what my ideal weight should be, and while Tatiana says she would be happy if I was carrying an extra 5 kg, she accepted my current weight was perfectly OK as well.
Unable to retain body heat:
Reality is because of all the weight lost, along the way I've also lost fat lipids, so no longer have the previous "mass" to retain body heat like I used to. Looks like my thermals and me will continue being buddies for a while yet.
Energy Levels:
Again, give the body time to recover. Don't do any more exercise than I'm comfortable with and just build it up over time.
Itchy Skin:
Seems just as my throat now gets dry, my skin in certain parts of my body (forearms & legs) have also been affected. There doesn't appear to be any medical reasons other than this for the itchy skin. Solution is to moisturise every day instead on just in response to the itchiness. Great, another addition to my daily morning routine.
Immune System Recovery:
Normal for this to take 1-2 years, so I'm effectively half way there.
Thyroid Levels:
An interesting one this. While it is indeed possible the weight, appetite and itchy skin issues are a result of a change in thyroid function, Tatiana feels it isn't the cause. Interestingly enough, the Gang of Seven haven't been passing on the results of my blood tests to Tatiana, so I went and had a comprehensive set of blood tests for thyroid, diabetes, cholesterol prostate (why not seeing as I'm there), hemochromatosis (as haven't looked at that since this journey began) to give Tatiana some updated base levels. We'll see what comes back in due course.
So there you are. My increased awareness of changes in my body had raised some issue, and thankfully all of them fall into the "normal" basket fortunately.
The price of this peace of mind? - a modest $41.
And one closing piece of news. As part of Tatiana's consultation she weighed me - and my total weight loss now comes in as 29kg. While beating the cancer is obviously the single greatest positive to come out of my journey, this weight loss has to rate as #2. It is indeed part of the 2nd chance I've been given and I have no desire to return to all those bad habits.
No comments:
Post a Comment