My regular blog readers will no doubt have noticed my absence from the blogsphere for a week ... and I can now explain why.
For some time I have been experiencing medical problems with my urinary system, something that I not unusual in a man of my age. I discussed it with my doctor, who sent me for a blood test and he referred me to the consultant urologist at the local hospital, the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich. I turned up early for my appointment on 23rd March ... and almost as soon as I arrived, the consultant whisked me into her office and told me that she wanted to admit me as an emergency!
After allowing me time to overcome my initial shock, she explained why. I had had a CT scan done some time ago, and it showed that I had an enlarged prostate. The blood test ordered by my doctor had revealed that bladder was very distended, and my kidneys were not functioning properly, and the consultant felt that unless I was admitted immediately and my system was drained of all the excess urine that it had in it, there was a very distinct possibility that my kidneys would rupture.
My appointment was at 2.30pm, and by 3.30pm I had been fitted with a catheter, my urine drained from my bladder (there were 1.3 litres/2.3 pints of it), and I was sitting in a hospital bed 4 in Ward 15, Bay 12. I remained there until yesterday afternoon, at which point it was felt that bladder was beginning to shrink back to its normal size and my kidneys were beginning to function normally, and that I could be sent home to await further treatment.
I will be having an MRI scan on Sunday to help to diagnose the cause of my enlarged prostate, and once the results are known, I will return to the hospital to begin whatever treatment is necessary. In the meantime I have been fitted with a catheter and have to wear a urine bag strapped to my thigh during the day, and a larger bag on a stand at night when I am sleeping. This is inconvenient but I can live inconvenience for as long as it takes to get well.
I will try to continue to blog regularly cannot guarantee that I will be able to. I will, however, be continuing to work on the PORTABLE WARGAME COMPENDIUM and my FUNNY LITTLE WARS/PORTABLE WARGAME project.
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Literally just got back from another blood test half an hour ago... three years in on an incurable kidney condition... so know how you feel. Hope things work out psitively for you.
ReplyDeleteRob Young,
DeleteThanks for your best wishes, especially as you know just how worrying and debilitating this sort of condition can be.
Stay safe and stay well,
Bob
I sympathise with your plight, something we gents of a certain age must put up with, it seems. At least they caught the problem in time and can get you back on track. I wish you a speedy recovery.
ReplyDeleteJoppy,
DeleteThanks for your best wishes.
Getting old does have its price, and this is one example of it. Having had a lifetime of experience to draw on, we have learned to cope as best we can so that we can live the sort of life we want to have,
All the best,
Bob
Bob,
ReplyDeleteI had begun to wonder if there was something wrong as you had not posted for a while and am very sorry to learn that you did indeed have further health problems. But at least the problem has been identified and you are receiving treatment. I hope the scan will aid your diagnosis and you will soon be on the road to recovery.
Best wishes, Arthur
Arthur1815 (Arthur),
DeleteCheers, old chap! The road of life can sometimes be a bit rocky, and I seem to have hit one of those stretches. It is eventually come to an end … I hope!
There are a variety of possible outcomes. I just hope that the medical profession can deal with it as soon as possible.
All the best,
Bob
All the best for a full and prompt recovery Bob...Regards
ReplyDeleteTony Adams,
DeleteCheers! With luck I’ll be back to normal as soon as possible.
All the best,
Bob
Hi Bob
ReplyDeleteYour story sounds so familiar to me. I endured this sort of treatment for just over two months until I had my kidney cancer op.
That was over 4 years ago and I'm still here.
Best Wishes, Jim
Jim Duncan,
DeleteThank you very much for very helpful and supportive comment. It helps to know that other people have been through and survived this, and can understand what I am going through.
All the best,
Bob
Best wishes Bob, get well soon.
ReplyDeleteMaudlin Jack Tar,
DeleteCheers!
All the best,
Bob
Bob
ReplyDeleteSending my best wishes and hopes for a swift return to health. Your absence has been generally and severely felt!
S&F
Mike
Mike C (Mike),
DeleteThanks very much for you kinds words and best wishes. I hope to get better as soon as I can, and then I can - as the used to say on TV - resume normal service.
S&F
Bob
BOB,
ReplyDeleteI mentioned to my Partner that I thought something was wrong there as you had not posted in awhile- I sensed that it may have something to do with your previous operation- certainly glad for you Bob that the specialist Doctor has identified the current problems and that you are receiving expedient medical treatment. I do hope and pray that you'll be fully recovered in awhile and be back to normality very soon. Best Wishes. KEV. (Sydney- Australia).
Kev Robertson (Kev),
DeleteThanks very much for your prayers and best wishes.
I only wish that my GP had looked properly at the CT scan that I had in late 2020, and referred me earlier. The consultant was very concerned that had I not gone into hospital then and there, I would have had total kidney failure due to rupturing with a matter of hours.
At least being in hospital gave me time to work on a few ideas whilst I was idle ... more of which, later!
All the best,
Bob
I imagined three possibilities for your absence and hoped you were hard at work while taking a cruise, two things you seem to do a lot. Then there was the third possibility which turned out to be true. Sorry to hear about your troubles but I'm glad you're on the mend.
ReplyDeleteMr. Pavone,
DeleteI wish that it had been work or a cruise that kept me away from my blog ... but sometime ill-health has a way of catching up with you unawares.
Hopefully I will get better soon, but in the meantime I have a few things that will keep my busy and my mind off my problems.
All the best,
Bob
Bloody hell, Bob - you have been in the wars lately. Here's hoping that you will shake this one off as well as you have the others.
ReplyDeleteWishing you all the best -
Ion
Archduke Piccolo,
DeleteCheers! Thanks for your best wishes!
It is a time when the quote 'When sorrows come, they come not single spies, but in battalions' seems rather appropriate!
All the best,
Bob
We never know what life has in store for us. Best wishes for a speedy recovery, we need the new book!
ReplyDeleteBarry Carter,
DeleteWhat will be, will be. I was lucky in that I shared my ward bay with a chap called Mohamed, who was about five years younger than me. We spent a lot of time talking about our lives and experiences, and keeping each other going when things were getting on top of us. He used the term 'Inshallah' ('If God Wills It') quite a lot, and I realised that it sort of sums up my attitude to life nowadays.
All the best,
Bob
Take care Bob, hope things move forward for you well and soon.
ReplyDeleteTradgardmastare,
DeleteCheers! I'm feeling a lot better now that I am at home, and once I've had the MRI scan, I know that I can begin treatment.
All the best,
Bob
Take care Bob. Sounds distinctly unpleasant!
ReplyDeletePeter Douglas,
DeleteCheers!
I don't think that I'll every use the expression 'taking the p*ss' every again, now that someone has actually done it to me!
All the best,
Bob
Wow, you've had quite a run of bad luck lately! I'm glad they caught it before it got worse and I hope for a speedy recovery and a long run of good luck for you in the future.
ReplyDeleteMark Cordone,
DeleteCheers! I hope that my situation will be resolved quickly so that I can get my life back on track.
When I compare myself with some of the people I was in hospital with, my problems are small beer indeed. One had Type 2 diabetes, two stents in his heart, pancreatitis, kidney stones, and gallstones. Another had multiple lesions in his colon, two hernias, and hypertension.
All the best,
Bob
Sorry to hear that Bob, but at least the medics spotted it in time! Hope you're on the mend and treatment is successful. Meanwhile as you say, good that you can keep working.
ReplyDeleteDavid in Suffolk,
DeleteCheers! I was incredibly lucky! The fact that they had a bed available so that I was admitted at once and did not have to wait in the A&E Department meant that I was being treated less than two hours after I arrived for my consultation.
All the best,
Bob
Wishing you the best of health, Bob, as far as possible under the circumstances.
ReplyDeleteFitz-Badger,
DeleteCheers! Many thanks for your best wished.
All the best,
Bob
Jings, you've really been put through the wringer of late Bob. Glad to hear you got some speedy attention. Best wishes for a speedy recovery back to fighting fitness!
ReplyDeleteDonjondo,
DeleteIt has been a rather trying few months (or should that be years!) but now that my most recent problem is being dealt with, I have hopes that things are going to get better.
All the best,
Bob
"Been there done that" Had the same experience when turning up at urology 1.5litres in my case, emergency admission, etc. Make sure you have the arrangements in place for regular catheter replacement, mine got confused between my GP and Urology. Net result is absolute agony when it fails. They did threaten me with a long wait till surgery and living with a catheter is a complete nuisance as it disrupts all normal activities such as walking and cycling. Hope it gets sorted quickly.
ReplyDeleteFire at Will,
DeleteThanks for your advice ... which is very relevant in my case as my GP is very bad at organising things properly. For example, he regularly sends the prescription for my stoma equipment to the local pharmacy rather than the company that supplies it to me directly, and they have to chase him up every month to send it to them.
You are right about the catheter being a right nuisance, but it is better that having the incontinence that I had when I went into hospital. Last night I did not wake up more than once, and had a continuous session of sleep that lasted six hours ... the longest since I had my colostomy back in December 2020.
All the best,
Bob
Hi Bob, sorry to hear that you had to be admitted to hospital. Good job the medics dotted the problem in time.
ReplyDeleteAlso just read the Saga of the Cheese Sandwich. Oh dear! I hope they get you home soon for some real food.
Nundanket,
DeleteI would have been a lot sicker if the consultant had not insisted on my going into hospital at once. For that I will be eternally grateful.
I’m now back home and getting good home cooking. I am - however - off cheese sandwiches for the present!
All the best,
Bob
I have a friend who is in hospital having had an operation and lost a lot of weight. The hospital is trying to fatten him up so he can regain strength; however, in between surgery and recovery his false teeth have vanished. He has been struggling to eat any solids since! I do feel for you Bob as you have been through a lot in recent months. Wishing you the very best and hope you recover quickly.
ReplyDeleteBob The Old Painter,
DeleteCheers!
Your friend sounds as if he needs to get a new set of false teeth as soon as he can. I took my spare pair in with me … just in case!
All the best,
Bob
Good luck to you Bob.
ReplyDeleteI had my prostate removed a few years ago and know the issues of using a catheter and bag.
Best wishes, Paul.
Whiskers (Paul),
DeleteThanks for your best wishes.
Removing my prostate is one possibility although it is not my preferred option. As to the catheter and bag ... well, like my colostomy bag, I'm getting used to them and the limitations they impose on ones daily life. As I said to one person, its better to live with a catheter and bag than to be dead without one!
All the best,
Bob
Just read your blog, all the best my friend and good luck with the treatment Bob. Get well soon
ReplyDeleteSteve
Stephen Smith,
DeleteCheers! Many thanks for your best wishes.
All the best,
Bob