how am I?

It’s been a while since I blogged on my health, and as that was the reason for starting this in the first place, perhaps it’s time for a little update.

Since my diagnosis with multiple myeloma in October 2014 I have, as you can imagine, been through some tough times.

It’s now been just over 27 months since the back surgery that saw the removal of my L3 vertebra which had been shattered by my myeloma, and its replacement with some titanium bits and bobs.  My back is now as good as it’s going to get; which is not great.  I still suffer with excruciating pain which means my mobility and general quality of life is still greatly compromised.  My pain killers help to a degree but if I take too many I experience bowel problems ranging from constipation to the exact opposite (if you get my drift).  So there’s a bit of a delicate balancing act between pain relief and side effects.

If any other myeloma patient reading this has any suggestions for pain relief then I am all ears.

Also, I’m now 20 months post stem cell transplant.  Which is good as there is still no sign of my myeloma being active.  And I didn’t even opt for the maintenance drug programme if you recall, as I was worried about blood clotting and all the nasty things that come with that.  Anyway, all my bloods are stable and long may this situation last.  The experience is still too raw for me to be able to say I would go through it again if I had to.  But with the passage of time, I guess those bad memories will fade and I may be more open to a second transplant when the time comes.  Maybe.

So.  That’s where I’m at.  Oh, apart from my heart problem – still waiting to see a cardiologist on that one.

Thanks for taking the time to read this.  It’s really appreciated.

Postscript: One last thing, not health related, but I'm working on a blog entry documenting my visits to all the major waterfalls in the vicinity of my home.  It'll be photo heavy. (there are I think 9 falls that I managed to get to before I was ill) so there's a fair bit of work to do to get it into something interesting to look at, let alone read.  I've been meaning to do this for a long time but it's time I think to get round to it.  Hopefully it'll be published soon.