Until the first of the year, I’ve consistently blogged weekly. Since then, however, I’ve been silent (publicly). Before continuing to write on my favorite subjects of Job, mental illness, death and dying, and recovery from addiction, I want to fill in the blank of the past couple of months. The major story of these months has been my health.
In November, I experienced what medical people call syncope, or fainting, a loss of consciousness. Nothing unusual in what I was doing, just sending Happy Birthday greetings to Facebook Friends. But three times I lost track of where I was in the process (email, or Friend’s Facebook?). As a precaution, I spent overnight in the Portland Adventist Medical Center for observation (pictured above). They ruled out any major issue, such as heart attack or stroke in the ER, then kept me overnight to monitor my heart. Nothing unusual. They needed me to wear a heart monitor for a month; again, nothing unusual.
Meanwhile, my primary care provider keeps me back from driving (what if syncope happens when I am driving?) and wrote an order for a sleep study to test my CPAP machine’s effectiveness. That meant another doctor’s visit (a sleep doctor) and an overnight visit to the sleep ward at Adventist to allow them to monitor my sleep (22 electrodes all over my body). Turns out, I needed a higher setting and this week I received a new machine. That first night, I slept deeply!
As if that weren’t enough to contend with, last year I saw an endocrinologist to discuss my thyroid levels. After I complained of sore arms, he referred me to a neurologist, who diagnosed me with Carpal Tunnel Syndrome in both arms. In January, a surgeon in the Providence system operated on my right arm, and in February on the left, at the Columbia River Surgery Center. As with Adventist, I received excellent care. Fortunately, even right after Carpal Tunnel Release surgery, I could use my fingers to type. Although I have numbness in both hands (thumb and two next fingers), now my wrists are healing well. I’ve been using virgin coconut oil, recommended by a colleague who does a lot of body healing.
Most activities I had to curtail because of lack of energy, but I’m now getting back to more normal activities. I hope to continue blogging to serve people looking for biblical wisdom and helpful information.
