I'm in the Eagle Creek library

picking up some books and logging in for a little blogging.

So, last night my best friend and I had a conversation about my health, how I'm the only one who can do anything about it, and how I haven't taken it truly seriously, so he was just prepared to enjoy my company for however long he had it and otherwise not interfere.

He's right. I chose the path to overweight and all the things that entails. Mind you, I have a strong genetic predisposition for diabetes, but my weight and diet have made things worse. But that doesn't mean it has to continue that way.

Fast forward to this morning, at the new podiatrist. He thinks that the pain I'm having is actually neuropathy. Plantar fasciitis tends to get better after you first get up. I may have some of that, too, but the point is my pain worsens over the course of the day, and actually keeps me awake at night at times.

So, he did all the subjective tests for neuropathy, to see if I'm sensing where he's touching, or the length of a vibration, or whether my toe is going up or down, and I passed that. But he did an objective test as well--he took a small biopsy of my skin on the outside of each ankle to test it for number of nerves per millimeter. [I have a band of that bandaging material (I think it's called Coban) that they use when you give blood around each ankle. Coincidentally, they match my outfit today. :)] In that way they can judge nerve health and make a more definitive diagnosis.

Since the ibuprofen isn't really cutting it, he's putting me on a non-narcotic medicine specifically for nerve pain. If the biopsies come back indicating neuropathy, he'll add a prescription medicine that is in essence a vitamin B complex, that is supposed to promote nerve health. Then we'll go from there. The idea is that if the pain can be controlled, I can be more active, losing weight, which will in turn help my blood sugar. Plus, of course, I've got to try to get a better handle on my blood sugar.

My blood sugar was actually better today, and I noticed the pain was not as bad, although I don't know if that's a direct result.

So, the plan is to do better. I'm checking out two books from the library on diabetes, The Uncomplicated Guide to Diabetes Complications by Levin and Pfeifer, and the American Diabetes Association's Complete Guide to Diabetes. I've had the latter out before and would highly recommend it. I should get a copy of my own.

Okay, I think I should go home and actually try to get some things done since I won't have the Internet to play with. And I still have A Beautiful Mind out from Netflix. Really.