Any Unexplained Change In You Body Needs To Be Looked Into.

[TheMastersNemesis]

One thing that I found out is that any change in your health even if it seems minor needs to be at least asked about. Of course one need not be a hypochondriac. You can feel absolutely great. But it won't matter. There are lurking dangers.

I had my surgery yesterday over a health issue I could have not imagined in my wildest thoughts. At 74 I had health issues that have been manageable over time. Since I lost my foot four years ago due to staff infections I have recovered to feel as good as I ever have. But something snuck up on me and revealed its like running into a brick wall.

Any change in urinary patterns or color need to be looked at or asked about. I have looked back at my last year and cannot find any time when I could have detected a bladder tumor. There were changes but they were more consistent with other issues. Due to all the chemicals we ingest every day this problem is number 4 on the tumor list.

The trouble is that signs of this problem may not appear for a very long time and be almost not detectable or can be sudden after a period of "gestation" so to speak.

It is not that I can remember ignoring a symptom. It was case of not perhaps not recognizing subtle changes for what they were. I was not looking for what happened to me.

Everyone needs health care covering NO MATTER HOW YOUNG THEY ARE OR HOW GOOD THEY FEEL. The idea that young people do not need health care is a crock of shit. And I hear that meme all the time. And junk insurance policies are just a death sentence or bankruptcy waiting to happen.

[WhiteTara]

1. Whew! That must have

hit you like a ton of bricks. I totally agree that you need to check everything out in a very timely fashion. I am in the pre-cancer stage of a fatal disease that is currently incurable. What I do can help slow the progression, but it is a hard task master to follow. Had I not kept pushing on not feeling well, my doctors would have missed it until it was too late; so even if they tell you that you are a crank, keep pushing.

I hope you were able to get to your disease in time and that your surgery was successful. Big hugs and good energy and wishes to you.

[Yonnie3]

2. Good luck

I went to my doctor for nearly a year with urinary symptoms and was thought to be a hypochondriac. I finally fired him and saw a specialist. I was in surgery for a bladder tumor soon thereafter. I've made it 21 years since then with multiple re-occurrences. A good surgical urologist and frequent exams have kept these from being a life threatening issue.

The Affordable Care Act came along just in time to prevent me from being bankrupt and not having care.

[CountAllVotes]

3. I have a lot of serious bladder problems

You can buy this drink at the grocery story made by Ocean Spray. It is called "Just Juice".

I drink a large glass of this daily and dilute it with water and ice and drink it throughout the day.

I was having bloody bladder infections (5X last year alone) that landed me in the ER at 3:00 a.m.

I haven't had one since I began drinking the above concoction.

Bladder problems such as I have had are DEADLY so get yourself to the ER ASAP is you see ANY BLOOD at all as it can travel quickly and kill you.

I hope you are better and thanks for reminding people that no matter what age they are, they are not infallible!

[irisblue]

4. Best wishes for you TMN.

[babylonsister]

5. Thanks for this, and I hope

you're feeling better, or at least relieved you've taken care of this problem.

ftr, my dad had bladder cancer but had surgery as soon as it was identified. He will be 90 next month and this happened about 20 years ago.

Good advice!

[7962]

6. I heard a speaker from a heart Cath lab a week ago saying something very much like this.

He said, we all hear about the arm tingling, or elephant on your chest, etc. Thats all true, but it can be ANYTHING. he said "You all know how you normally feel. Whenever something odd starts to happen, thats a sign you dont need to ignore. Your body is talking to you"
Went on to give examples of people who DID come in and needed a heart Cath done, but had none of the well-known symptoms. One guy just noticed he could no longer push mow his front yard like he'd done for years. Had a blockage.
Scary stuff

[NewEnglandAutumn]

7. Very True

My husband had a lump on his back that we were assured was a cyst. Then when he went in for his 'getting out of the military physical' we decided to have it removed. The doc said it was nothing we said we wanted it out while he had their insurance. It looked unusual but we were again told it was a cyst.
One and a half months later my husband got a call. "hello, it is Dr____ turns out that lump was cancer. I would have told you sooner but I was on leave and the results were on my desk. You need a chest x-ray and a followup with a different DR. I'm getting out of the Navy' Don't worry it almost never metastasis "
Phone calls were made. 'sorry we can't get you in for 2 weeks' even after being told he was getting out before then they said 'nothing I can do'. The kids and I were already gone looking for a place to live and settle into our new life. So my beloved was on his own. He went into the Navy hospital and explained his situation. They took an x-ray. He saw the doc the following day.
"It is cancer and I can see several tumors in both of your lungs. I have arranged an appointment with a surgeon tomorrow."

It was on of the most difficult time in our marriage.
-he was alone in VA with cancer and scheduled to be retired in a couple of days
-I was in NE with 3 kids, with no place to live. Back in VA our apartment was already leased to a new family.
-we had no idea who was going to cover the medical bills
-we were waiting for him to die
Remember we were told it was a cyst.

[DownriverDem]

11. Hello?

What happened to your husband? I hope he is all right.

[Honeycombe8]

8. Oh, my. I hope you're doing better.

So sorry for all your health problems. Our bodies start falling apart as we age. Sometimes I wake up in the morning and I have an ache somewhere. I'm thinking, what the heck happened while I was sleeping, to get a new pain? I was just sleeping!

[Achilleaze]

9. Thank you

[flying_wahini]

10. The thing that pisses me off is that insurance is SO expensive that paying

Monthly for coverage and then the high out of pocket deductible can wipe you out that it
Keeps people from going to the doctor EVEN when they know they should go!

Health care is way too expensive overall. My husband and I retired a couple of years ago and we spend 20k+ annually and pay out of pocket till we reach our deductible which is 3k per person.
That's absurd. (And we can afford it) When health care costs that much it keeps people suffering at home.

[DownriverDem]

12. Sorry

I hope you will be okay. My brother ignored not feeling well and he was gone in a year.

[TheMastersNemesis]

13. I Have Felt Better & Better Ever Since I Lost My Foot To Staph 4 Years Ago. And -----

Last edited Tue Mar 13, 2018, 07:29 PM - Edit history (1)

in the last year I never felt better. And I never really felt bad when I was sick with staff. I some manageable medial issues that I was focusing on when this bladder symptom erupted abruptly. There were changes in my urinary pattern and color that was consistent with these other issues as far as I knew at the time.

Had I understood a few medical things a few months ago I might done something sooner. What I found out about my bladder tumor is that these kinds of things can go on for even a year or two without ANY indication. That the only way to really diagnose is to have tests that are not usually given unless there is symptom that may or may not appear first.

One certainly should go to the doctor is they are feeling badly if it is over a period of time. And certainly one should go for some usual illnesses like the flu or cold.

Too bad about your brother.

[BannonsLiver]

16. BLADder cancer killed my grandfather

But it wasn’t caught until late in the game. I’m confident you will have a much better outcome. Best of luck to you for a speedy recovery.

[TheMastersNemesis]

17. Diagnosis Is Key. The Usual Symptoms Do Not Always Occur Early. Only A Scope Or Iiodine Xray ----

are the most sure. Those tests are usually not used unless there are other symptoms. And those symptoms to do not always occur or can be a long time coming.

[central scrutinizer]

14. Insurance companies are making the decisions

My wife went in for her annual physical a four years ago and out of the blue "pre-diabetes" came back on her blood work. No history of diabetes in her family, not overweight, active, good diet. She changed her diet anyway and saw some improvement. Then some hard to pin down aches and pains started and more tests and blood work. Insurance wouldn't pre-authorize a CT scan. Pre-diabetes is too common these days to justify an expensive test. More time and doctor visits and blood work passed. An MRI showed possible arthritis in her spine. Still no relief. Finally a CT scan is done. Stage four pancreatic cancer, inoperable, incurable. Of course the pancreas is involved in the production of insulin so the tumor probably explained the pre-diabetes. She passed away 11 months after the CT scan (one year ago)

[TheMastersNemesis]

15. So Sorry. You Never Know What Is Sneaking Up On You.

That story is an incredible one. Would never suspect pre diabetes would be caused by that.

[ooky]

18. How about this for a subtle body change?

After about a week of flu, the flu finally subsided. Two days later I noticed my coffee suddenly had a funny smell and taste to it, which went on for a few more days. It made me suddenly not want to drink my coffee. Then the fever came back suddenly, along with some killer chills. Then I lost consciousness.

When I came to, it was 6 hours later and I was on an operating table. My spleen had ruptured, clear out of nowhere. I had nearly bled out internally. My family had been told I had a 50% chance of living through that night. After 2 more days in ICU, I started to recover from this ordeal.
It took several weeks for my blood count to return to satisfactory levels. Only then did my coffee start smelling and tasting normal again.

I googled this out of curiosity and found that pancreatic cancer patients had reported the same thing about the smell of coffee. My mother was victim to pancreatic cancer. During that time she had complained about her coffee tasting bitter.

By the way, had I not had insurance, that one spleen incident would had cost us $80k.

If your coffee ever suddenly starts smelling and/or tasting funny and you are having other symptoms, it might be a good idea to get to a doctor.