Thursday, March 02, 2006

A Better Day

I hauled myself out of bed this morning determined to hit the road again and have a better run than yesterday. And I did! Of course, no meds and a little food helped. I dealt with a little tummy upset at about 30 minutes, then again about 10 minutes later. They were short and I just ran through them. I ran for about 47 minutes, and I plan to run for 45-50 tonight at the track.

I went to the family doctor today and got a new medication for gastritis. I only have to take it once a day and it will take four to five days to notice a difference. My biopsies were normal, meaning none of the scary stuff, just gastritis. Probably caused by an over-acid stomach. Apparently my Mom, Dad, one sister and a niece all have the same thing! Sheesh. My Dad and both sisters have had their gall bladders out, but Mom and both brothers have managed to hang on to theirs. Also, I got a better explanation about the first HIDA. The surgeon told me my gall bladder was "not functioning". The family doctor showed me the test results, which indicate that the "ejection fraction" is slightly below normal. So it works, just not optimally. So I have "some sludge and sludge balls", and a less than standard ejection fraction, and do not have classic symptoms. That all means it could go either way, could be gall bladder disease, could be okay. Thus the second test. I still wish things would move along quicker, but at least I understand why they are taking the conservative approach.

I guess I'll just keep up my normal schedule for the next couple of weeks till the next test is done. I'm still not worried about the Mt. Si Relay. Truth is that I am confident I can knock out two legs even if I haven't trained like I wanted to. I'd still like to get started on the two-a-days so I'll be ready for Rainier to Ruston (50 miles) in June and Rainer to Pacific (153 miles) in July. I also have three weekends in a row of planned races in June that I want to be ready for. One is the big local race - Sound to Narrows. It is a 12K, very hilly (check out the elevation chart). This was my first race ever. I ran it six years in a row, then had to run the 5K the year my heart was giving me problems, then ran the 12K again and really, really struggled. Last year I ran the 5K (not very happily, I really prefer the 12K). This year I hope to run the 12K again. I need to get through with this health issue and be able to run for about an hour and 40 minutes comfortably. Since I'm not supposed to run more than an hour, that becomes a big challenge, and a hot topic in our household. I'll have to see how things go this spring...

8 comments:

Unknown said...

Glad to hear you had a better day. I will see you at the track tonight.

Olga said...

Hurray for biopsy results! Now focus on meds and right diet, and it will go away.
And, Michelle, thanks...

Anonymous said...

Thanks for your encouraging words. I do hope the doctors can get to a solution that takes care of the health issues.

Thomas said...

Looks like you had a good day - great! I hope the gall bladder thingie goes into the right direction. Good luck on all those races - looks like you have an ambitious schedule.

Tammy said...

I love it when I get to read blogs and study...AT THE SAME TIME. You probably know all this, but I'm gonna practice, so bear with me.

The gall bladder stores bile salts synthesized by the liver. Then, when chemo & stretch receptors in your duodenum (beg of small intestine) sense fat in your dietary intake, they signal the gall bladder (among other things) to contract and release bile salts.

If your gall bladder is removed, the liver will release a steady stream of bile salts into your GI tract (alimentary canal). You will still be able to digest fat, but in smaller quantities because the amount of bile salts released will not be variable (the body can't ask for more). Ok, I've bored people enough... thanks for the study session :)

Tammy said...

OH, how rude of me.... I hope you are feeling better soon. I'll be sending lots of happy gall bladder thoughts your way. :) -My mom has had hers removed as well.

Donald said...

Good days are nice. Hope you have a lot more of them to follow.

onepinkfuzzy said...

Glad you got more detail on your gall bladder!