Things are changing

Well it's been a while since my last post and things are getting no easier. In fact they are getting a damn site worse. 

I now have a number of ulcers and the pain is now ruining my everyday life. 

I have recently changed rheumatologist and I am keeping my fingers crossed that things are going to improve although I know it isn't going to happen over night. 

I am now going to update the blog a couple of times a week so that you can follow the new journey with me and, I hope people will learn and have a lot better understanding of gout by reading it. 

Till later

Pete

Foot

The weight of the duvet tonight is unbearable.
Sleeping with one foot sticking out of the bed so not only does the foot now throb its also cold.

Not good, not good at all.

Pray

Do you believe in something higher, an afterlife, a creator of life?

I suppose what I am trying to say is are you religious, do you have a God? I can say I'm not big on the religious front but I do believe there is something or someone greater. With the kids being in brownies and guides we have been going to church a few times a year more than what we did.

If you suffer from gout do you ever, when alone quietly ask the three questions:
Why me?
Please make it stop.
Take me away from all of this please I can't take any more.

I must admit that in the past few months I have asked all three a number of times, especially at times like this. 2am in the morning and one joint or another screaming in pain with no way of getting comfortable and having to be up in less than five hours.

Just thought I'd ask the question as it makes you think.

Speak soon.
Pete

Relax, it's under control

Ok ok ok, I got complacent I admit it. I got into the routine of the water and the right foods and the attacks become a lot less severe and a lot less often, I was doing good.

Then I took a holiday!!!

You all know how things are on holiday, sunshine, warm weather and totally relaxed. One beer won't hurt, a glass of wine at the restaurant with my evening meal won't cause any issues if I carry on with the hydration and right food, and I was right they didn't .

It was the beers that followed, the glass of wine that turned into a bottle over an hour or two and the occasional burger and all the crap that goes with it.

The first signs started in the last few days of the holiday, "I can control this" I thought. How wrong was I?

The week we came back from holiday I had a relative who turned 21 and had the obligatory party with most of my family there, a lot of who I usually only see once maybe twice a year so a drink for the celebration then another reminiscing of the good old times when we were kids another one for the hell of it, a toast then another, then we went on shorts, after that is a bit of a blur, a bloody good night but a couple of days later I was paying for it. First in the feet then ankles then wrists and hands, I was in agony and I couldn't control the pain for love nor money.

I reverted to the lemon water to try and alkalise my system and this started to work, started to calm it down.

"Right this is it I'm gonna control this bastard once and for all, I can not carry on like this, it's bringing me down and it's bringing my family down too as we cant do anything together"

WRONG

I was then sent away with work and I have spent the last four weeks staying in hotels eating the usual microwave shit that you get served, a drink with my evening meal, no lunch most days and doing at least 13 hours a day at work or driving. Average sleep of around five hours a night. All this only added up to one thing - a bad ass attack anytime and it came on Thursday night in the hotel.

My hand swelled up and I couldn't move my fingers. I had no lemons to do the alkalising drink so I had to revert to indometacin which I hate with a passion as it usually knocks me for six. I got to sleep around one to be up at five and in work for six as I planned an early finish as I knew the drive home on a Friday would be awful. 

I managed to get through the day not too bad but as the afternoon shift arrived at half one they greeted me with the news that they had just shut the motorway due to a bad accident. 

That was it, laptop shut and some back roads back north for around thirty miles where I could get on a clear motorway. The first part was ok but then for over 80 miles on the motorway I never once got into top gear. A three hour journey took me ten minutes short of six hours. I was a wreck, my hand was cramping up and I had a splitting head and was knackered. 

I have spent most of the weekend on the sofa with my hand either wrapped in ice or a heat pad.

Needless to say I am now hydrating properly and eating properly again, I will never deviate from this again. 

From now on it is a minimum of two litres of water a day, fresh cherries, celery and other alkalising foods, cut out the crap such as fizzy drinks and processed foods as a lot of this is very high in acidic ingredients. I did this for five months earlier this year and brought the number and severity of attacks right down, it's all about alkalising your body.

Lemons may sound daft as they are acidic but for some reason when in the body they turn alkaline, as yet no one is 100% sure how this happens but it does and it only happens with lemons and it works.

I have also been reading today that home made juices or smoothies made out of green vegetables such as broccoli and kale can also have an alkalising effect, this I may try though the thought of drinking a concoction made of this makes me want to puke but if it works I'll give it a whirl. 

Pete

Screaming in silence!

Ok, I'm going to let you guys into a secret......
I came home from work tonight, sat on the edge of the bed and wept!
I don't mean the bucket loaded outright bawling, more the I've had enough and I can't take this shit no longer.

At this point you may think I'm referring to work but I'm not, I'm referring to the sheer agonising, searing pain that is in my left elbow at present.
If you read my last post on Sunday you may recall the start of an attack, well Monday morning I got up dressed and ready for work in not a lot f pain but a dull ache, that was until I got in the car and tried to change gear.. I got to the end of the road and had to turn back, I simply couldn't take it.
No problem as I signed on at home and got comfy for a day working at the dining room table, I had everything I needed, laptop, drinks, fruit and phones. Bid farewell to the kids and the other half as they set off for their day at school and work respectively. By this time it's 9am and the ache is turning painful so I thought nothing for it but painkillers. At this point I am a couple of days short of three weeks without the need of painkillers of any kind.

I took indometacin.

Ask anybody who takes this prescribed drug and it is the spawn of the devil himself. The first half hour I was fine and then I started to feel really nauseous. You may ask why them then? Simple, they're the only thing I've found which works.
I managed to complete a full day doing work and got a lot completed but I felt like shit until late into the evening.
Nothing else for it I had an early night but felt ok and the pain had dissipated. This morning I got up and drove to work no problem. Had lunch and then the ache started again, by half past three I was rubbing the elbow to try and ease the pain thinking only an hour and half to go.
At ten to five I got the call - meeting at five o'clock but don't worry it's just a quick ten minutes.
Ok I thought ten minutes but by this time this elbow is red and hurting like hell. The ten minute meeting finished at twenty past six.
I packed my things and drove home in silence which for me is rare as I love listening to the radio on the way home, it helps me to unwind, luckily the traffic was clear so not many gear changes needed.

By the time I walked in the house I had to be helped off with my jacket and the weight of the shirt sleeve on my elbow was agony. I hastily ate my evening meal in silence and came upstairs because I didn't want the kids to see me, I sat on the bed and wept.

Because someone isn't cased in plaster or using a wheelchair etc doesn't mean they're not physically hurting!!!!

I have suffered with this for over twenty years now and it has never ever got to me like today and the reason for this is because due to the change in diet etc over the past month I thought I had finally turned a corner as I hadn't had a bad attack then this comes along and pole axes me.

I still truly believe that I brought this on myself on Sunday as not having any fruit or anywhere near enough hydration but I will persist with my battle against the dreaded gout.

It may look as if the above is all one big moaning session and maybe it is but if more people are aware of gout the more we can understand.

As the saying goes 'you live and learn'

Pete.

Getting to grasps

Ok. I think I'm finally getting my head around this gout thing.
I've had quite a good weekend, but now, this evening as I write this post I have a dull ache in my left elbow and from previous experience, that's one of the worst places for an attack not that there are any good places.
For the biggest part of today I have been out and admittedly my water intake has been very low and my caffeine intake quite high, gallons of tea and a couple or three shots of espresso courtesy of Mr Starbucks.
Too most the intake of caffeine may not seem a problem but there is an ongoing argument regarding this within gout circles at the moment. The current census is that if you are a regular coffee drinker then it does not have an effect on gout but if, like myself you only occasionally have coffee it can have an adverse effect and bring an attack on.
Now in the mainstay I drink tea which as you may or may not know when added to water has a much lower caffeine content than coffee and there lies my problem, my weakness is a the occasional cup of good quality ground coffee, I can't stand this instant shite (I also hear you ask then why do I drink Starbucks if I like quality coffee!!!) so today I had a double shot in a latte and a single shot espresso linked to the fact I've had very little water today and you go do the maths.

I've also had no bananas or cherries this weekend and through the week I have been going through these by the pound as they work magic in neutralising the acid in your body.
So looking back, I may be starting an attack but I have brought this on myself and from this I will learn. I am currently sat here on my third glass of water with the juice of one full lemon, one more to go before I go to sleep (it's recommended 4 glasses on the hour every hour each with the juice of one lemon)

So tonight I will read until my final glass and hope that that does the trick. Tomorrow we start phase two of the healthy eating, and that's to get rid of some weight, I am already feeling better but I think that if I can loose around half a stone or a little bit more then I will feel great.

Catch you all later in the week.

Pete.

Bring me sunshine

You all remember the finishing credits to Morecambe & Wise, the one where they dance off stage to the tune "bring me sunshine". Well that's how I feel at the moment.
As of tonight I am two full weeks without the need of pain killers, to say I'm happy about this is an understatement, I'm ecstatic. I nearly had a bit of a wobble in the early hours of this morning when I woke up with a pain in my ankle but with the help of a well placed warm wheat bag it was ok when I woke up.

Not only have I managed without prescription drugs but also the ones you can buy over the counter,you can not wipe the smile of my face. To add to todays happy mood I received a message from a friend who had just passed her driving theory test this morning, I was made up for her.

I've also noticed the weather is picking up and it staying lighter a bit later each evening. Great that means spring is finally on its way and I wont feel so bad about eating all this salad, not that I'm complaining a few sacrifices made and I'm feeling great, well when I say great I mean a lot better that what I have been doing this past twelve months or so.

Well only two more days to work then the lovely weekend is here so see you all then.

Pete

Whoop Whoop

Well, its now been three weeks since I last had a carbonated soft drink and its over a week and half since I have had a painkiller and, get this, I haven't had an alcoholic drink since new years day.

Has it been easy? No. It's been one of the hardest things I have ever had to do. I have more or less completely changed my diet.
The weight isn't dropping off me though I have shed about 3 pounds in as many weeks but i just feel so much better. I'm sleeping better and I seem to have a bit more energy, and the main thing is I am not in crippling pain.

It goes to prove that the old adage is right. "YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT". You eat shit, you feel shit.

There is still a long way to go dont get me wrong but feeling so much better after this time is only encouraging me to carry on.

Milestone

Today has been a milestone for me. I have completed a full week, 7 days without a single pain killer. I am not saying that I'm completely pain free, its just now more of a dull ache rather than a throbbing red hot pain that nothing can touch other than the strongest of painkillers.
A week may not seem much, but trust me, after living with this for the best part of twenty years and hardly passing a day without some kind of pain relief this is a massive step forward for me.

All of this is down to changing my diet and cutting out a lot of crap. I haven't had soft drinks for nearly three weeks, only two drinks a day containing caffeine, increase water intake by 2L a day and cutting out processed foods.
My sleep has also improved. I have gone from 3-4 hours per night to 7-8 and I don't half feel better for it..

Also having advice and support from Bert Middleton aka The Gout Killer has been a massive help.

Lets see what the rest of the week brings as the colder weather is on its way again if we believe what the weather men say and that can sometimes make it worse.

See you at the weekend.

Pete.

Time

Where does it go? Time that is. I can't believe it's nearly three weeks since I last posted.
Well what have I been up to? In all honesty I'm not sure, I seem to have been busy but not done that much if that makes sense?

As posted in my last visit I had to go to Yorkshire and to Yorkshire I went. How come you never have a bloody camera when you need one? You may recall the time my visit was due it had forecast snow and boy did it put some down followed by some very hard frosts.
As I turned off the A1M and split off the Selby road, I took the road towards Sherburn in Elmet which runs in between fields, and there, just as dawn was breaking running across the field was a fox. Its splendid red coat a stark contrast to the ploughed but hard, sparkling white field. A sight and photo opportunity I will probably never get again. The following Sunday I was out on my scooter with the dog and family and it happened again only this time I had my camera with me, unfortunately I also had Lucy aka gob almighty with me - two robins on a branch singing away not 20 yards in front of me.
I just managed to get them in focus in the view finder and Lucy comes along singing along to some crap that she had on her I-pod. Now as anyone may know Lucy is not quiet at the best of times, but now she was oblivious as to what was going on around her as she sang along at the top of her voice. She can whisper over three fields -Wakefield - Huddersfield and Sheffield. She never shuts up, the birds shot off and once again I was left feeling slightly miffed at the missed opportunity.

The gout oh the gout

To put it mildly this bastard has had me on the edge this time. one ankle and two feet at the same time and as soon as that cleared the forefinger and thumb on the left hand and then within six hours exactly the same on the right hand.
I got to the point where I was seriously considering packing in work full stop. For a few days it was a case of waking up at half six, struggling to get dressed, you all need to try buttoning a shirt up then putting a tie on without the use of the first two digits, trust me its not easy. A cup of coffee to try and have a boost and then to work, by 3PM most days I had lost all concentration due to the pain and lack of sleep, for just over a week I averaged between two and three hours a night and take it from me after a couple of nights like that it soon starts to catch up with you.
I started to follow a guy in the states, Bert Middleton aka The Gout Killer. Bert was a gout sufferer for 13 years and had three lots of surgery for Tophi, which is product which is basically crystallised uric acid in the joints or on ligaments, and its this that causes the pain. Through sheer will and determination and countless hours of research he has managed to keep his gout at bay and is now letting people know how to do it without pumping yourself full of drugs. Its all about diet and neutralising the acid within your body.

Well I have now been doing this for two weeks exactly and touch wood (I know I am going to regret saying this) it seems to be easing.
I have had no soft drinks for two weeks and I used t drink lemonade at home by the gallon. I now only have two caffeinated drinks a day, one in a morning when I get up and a second when I come home from work. I drink water and fruit juice now whilst at work, my bag that I take to work is now bursting with fresh fruit and I now snack on celery and cherries as these help to neutralise the acid. If I do feel a twinge a drink a glass of water with the juice of 1 lemon on the hour, every hour for four hours. Strangely when lemon juice although acidic enters your body it becomes alkaline. I haven't had alcohol since new years day which although I wasn't a big drinker must be helping.
I will keep on this regime and let you know how it goes.

Until next time.

Pete

Spoke too soon.

Once again the gout struck again on Thursday this week, a slight twinge in the right ankle and on Thursday night when I went to bed I knew that the following morning would mean pain of some kind.
I didn't have to wait that long, come around two thirty in the morning and the pain level was unbearable, not only in the ankle which had been giving me a twinge but also in both feet.
At around three o'clock I woke Anne as I could stand it no longer and I had no pain killers up stairs and I knew I couldn't make it down and back up a flight of stairs. As usual she went for the pills and also brought back a drink and the well used wheat bag without complaint. Following that I got about another hours sleep before having to get up for work.

Friday was tough, as the day went on the pain got more and more intense to a point were it made me feel sick and totally crap in general, all hopes of an early finish were banished when the usual three o'clock Friday afternoon problem cropped up. The tiredness brought on from lack of sleep the previous night didn't help matters.
How I manage to get from the office to the car, never mind drive home is beyond me but I did. As I pulled on the drive I had to sit in the car for around fifteen minutes with the engine running, I was freezing cold, nauseous and had I pain in my feet that I can only describe as somewhere between walking on broken glass and being hit in the souls with an iron bar, and this is before I even put any weight on them by walking.
Once through the front door I didn't even bother going into the living room I gingerly walked upstairs wincing with every step and run a red hot bath, sitting on the side of the bath waiting for it to run so I didn't put any unnecessary pressure onto my already throbbing feet and ankle.

For some reason heat always seems to bring a certain amount of relief so I spent a good half an hour - forty minutes in the bath, hastily dried myself and got in bed, all by seven o'clock on a Friday evening. Rock n roll lifestyle wouldn't you agree?
Saturday morning started slow as I had had very little sleep so I spent the morning watching the usual tripe on tv followed by more tripe. Can I just add at this point that I have never known Saturday evening tv so abysmal. As I tweeted 400+ channels and nothing on!! All day I had to walk with the aid of walking sticks which is not good in a house this size

Sunday wasn't exactly pain free but it had abated a hell of a lot and was now more of a dull ache. At lunch time I got the scooter out and we all took the dog for its usual sit / lie in the mud whilst trying her best to look cute. It was freezing and it had also forecast snow. Once we got back and got a brew inside us it didn't wait long until it started to snow, for the first few hours it didn't stick and then later in the evening it's started to stick to the cars, Brilliant I thought, in general I like snow. It looks good first thing in the morning when there is no signs of humans on it and perhaps only the small marks left by birds, I also like the eerie silence that snow brings when it's first fallen. Peace and quiet. Then I remembered the last phone call I took from work on Friday was to tell me I was in Yorkshire all day this coming Wednesday. Now those of you who know the M62 corridor will know full well it's a pain in the arse in summer but in the depths of winter going over Saddleworth moor it's a nightmare. Already this winter they have had to shut it at Oldham due to the rain freezing causing sheet ice and trucks were not able to get grip going up the incline, even cars were struggling, suddenly my thoughts on this snow changed, checking the weather forecast for the week it looks as if its here to stay until at least next weekend. like I said brilliant.

Lets see what this new week brings then.
Till next time

Pete

New year, New start

Happy new year.......
Well it's here, the time of year we all dread, the post Christmas new year blues.
Been back at work since Wednesday and tomorrow is the start of the first five day week, I can't say I'm looking forward to it but we must do our bit or so they keep telling us.
As well as the first five day week it will also be the first day of the healthy eating regime!!! As I type this I am looking at two chocolate oranges and a box of maltesers which I received and still have to eat, to be fair I'd give them to the kids but there not big on chocolate and Anne is also doing the healthy bit though she started earlier this week.

As I've said I started back work this week and I can honestly say that I thoroughly enjoyed my time off which may sound surprising but I tend to get bored easily. All in All a good few days of with family and friends, even the kids didn't really annoy me as they were too occupied with their tablets and new games for the Wii and Xbox.
I've also started to read again as I thought it may help me to relax and sleep a bit better at night and to be honest it has done just that, bear in mind I've not picked up a book since my holiday in June, over six months ago. Currently I am totally engrossed in Zen, the Italian detective (you may remember the tv series on BBC1 from a couple of years ago). Can I add at this point that the kindle is the best thing ever invented.
We've started to walk the dog as a family as well this past few days, poor dog doesn't know what's hit her. We only take Poppy the spaniel as Jack (westie) is 14 now and when he walks any distance his legs seem to trouble him the following day so he just goes and the settee and sleeps.
Poppy on the other hand is, how can I say this politely? Brainless. As soon as you let her off the lead she will find either the nearest ditch or muddy puddle, and lets face it there's a few at the moment and lie down in it, so she comes home absolutely caked in mud then gets a shock when we wash her with cold water from the hose pipe. She the flakes out for a couple of hours but if you catch her ball or the front door goes, that's it she's up and raring to go again.

I have gone all through Christmas and new year with virtually no pain then on Thursday it hit me with a bang in my feet, luckily I seem to have brought it under control within a couple of days, that's the trouble with gout it just strikes. Friday night was a struggle to get upstairs but it has eased as the weekend has passed.

Time to set the alarm and look forward to the rabbit food.

Pete

Looking back

Well we are at that time where we look back over the past twelve months, at times with rosé tinted glasses.
The past year has had both good and bad times. Health wise it has been up and down. There have been days when I have literally been unable to get out of bed due to immense amounts of pain, these days have gone hand in hand with insomnia brought on by the pain. I have recently started to follow a fellow gout sufferer from the states who has managed through years of sheer determination to overcome this debilitating illness. I am learning from him that stress levels brought on by lack of sleep increase the chances of an attack so it's a vicious circle at times.
Each day is now a learning curve and as from tomorrow the healthy eating starts.
Now I know that most people say this every year but after spending a lot of time reading into this I feel it really will make a difference to my daily life, more fresh foods and a lot less processed food and I will then be able to enjoy the foods which I had mistakingly been told would set of attacks.

In the past twelve months I have made new friends and also lost a couple of close friends and in particular one who was far too young to say goodbye to.
Back in the summer (yes that made up season that the uk does not have) we had a fantastic holiday in Spain. It's amazing what a bit of warm weather and sun on your back can do to your spirits, a full fortnight pain free until the morning of the day I had to drive the 1200 miles home, there was a few expletives in the car on that trip I can tell you, not helped by the Paris ring road which seems to have a rush hour at two thirty in the morning.

Turning 40 made me realise a few things, I need to start to look after my self properly for a start and cut down on the crap I eat.
Also we don't go out any more or do anything, is this because we have kids or simply because we can't be bothered? Who knows but I promise you this, it is going to change.

So looking forward to 2013 have I made any resolutions or plans? Not so much resolutions but I plan to:

Travel more this year with at least two family holidays one of which will be abroad
Go to more concerts, music is always better live.
Would like to go to the Le Mans 24hr
A lot more quality time with the girls
More weekends away
Get fitter as much as my limited capabilities will let me.

So I raise a glass to you and wish you all a happy and healthy new year.

Pete.

The Gift

As you may know I turned forty a couple of days ago, and one of the gifts I got from Anne (my other half) was a few days in a spa somewhere in the Cheshire countryside.
Never having been on one of these before I slowly warmed to the idea as it will be a couple of nights of no kids and being pampered, GREAT!!!!
As I've said I've never been on one of these spa breaks before so today whilst Anne was at work and the kids are arguing on the Wii I spent a few minutes on t'internet and looked them up.
The more I read the more I liked, these places are usually attached to a fine dining experience (the one we are going on has such a restaurant) and have various things to do during the day to help you chill out and relax all your worries away.
Sauna's, swimming pools, body massages and the like, then I started thinking well I can't have a sauna because of the heart condition, I swim like a brick i.e. straight down, so this is gonna be one hell of a massage.

I then got to paragraph on colonic irrigation, now don't get me wrong I've heard of these but never fully understood what went on. I knew it was a cleansing process via your butt, but I wasn't expecting what I read. I'm sure I went pale at the thought of it. I stopped reading with visions of a bloke stood on a chair with a bucket of soapy water being poured down a funnel connected to a pipe to which the other end is inserted in my ass, when the full bucket has been pored down he then shouts "FIRE IN THE HOLE" and pulls out the hose from my ass and stands back.

I think I'll stick to the salad, whale music and massage!!!

Coming of Age

Well it's happened. Yesterday I hit the milestone of becoming 40.
To be honest there was no bolt of lightening and no sign on my forehead saying "Middle aged".  I had quite a pleasant day some great cards and gifts, including a card from my ten year old daughter Molly who seems to have an assumption that I fart a lot!!
I downed a couple of beers and a bottle of bubbly all the time thinking I will be crippled tomorrow by gout as I have consumed quite a bit of wine and beer over the festive period.
Woke this morning with no pain, surprised? No. I was gobsmacked. Then it happened..........
I jumped in the shower still wearing my glasses, standing there dripping wet i thought "this is middle age, its here!!"