Lower back pain

I am experiencing lower back pain the last few days. The pain that I am having is in the middle of my lower back, pretty close to the tail bone especially after I sit or stand for a while. It didn't stop me from doing my activity but it ached on prolonged sitting to standing. I don’t know what is causing me this pain but I was wondering could it be from the surgery last year? Is it because I started moving and being too active too soon after the surgery, it's from lack of calcium, or am I just shrinking? My pain isn’t disabling but it is uncomfortable. So I bought several calcium supplements, and promised myself that I will try walking/exercising more tomorrow. Hopefully this combo is the right cure for my problem.

4 Surprising Reasons To Get More Sleeps

I was wondering how many hours of sleep you get (on an average) each night. I sleep about 6 hours each night. It is said that sleep could have more effect on your health than you think . Here is the article I quoted from Reader's Digest, November 2007 issue :

It could make you thinner.
The less sleep you get, the higher your body mass index tends to be. Research showed that people who sleep five hours a night were found to have 15 per cent more ghrelin (a hormone that boosts hunger) in their bodies and 15 per cent less leptin (which suppresses it) than those sleeping eight hours.

It could boost your memory.
Sleep plays a key role in making new memories stick in the brain. A Harvard experiment showed that subjects taught complex finger movements such as a piano scale recalled them better after 12 hours’ sleep than 12 hours’ wakefulness.

It can fight colds, ulcers and even cancer.
Good sleep boosts the immune system. Melatonin, produced when you sleep, is a cancer-fighting antioxidant. Night-shift workers may have up to 70 times greatest risk of breast cancer. Also, the chemical to repair damage to the stomach lining is secreted during sleep, so staying up all night regularly could raise your risk of ulcer.

It can slow down ageing.
Persistent sleep debt affects carbohydrate metabolism and hormone function in a way that may increase the severity of age-related chronic disorders. A large-scale study concluded that people who sleep six to seven hours a night live longer than those sleeping less than 4-5 hours.

So how many hours do you sleep?

I'm back !!!

First, I'd like to thank you all for the lovely messages that you've sent. It makes me happy to know that you all care and are thinking of me, and I have been enjoying reading them. Special thanks to Eka from Pernik Unik for sending me the lovely Bali sundresses for my recovery. It will be a few weeks from now before I can wear my jeans again. Thank you, thank you!

Today marks 1 week and 2 days since my surgery, and I am back to a full normal life again. The surgery (I have had a partial/subtotal hysterectomy keeping my ovaries and cervix intact) went well. My uterus turns out was much bigger than the ultrasound indicated. It measured about one large adult fist size with leiomyoma and adenomyosis which have been the sources of my pain all this while. Because of that, my gyno doctor put me on 3 months of treatment with Danazol so any remaining endo that is probably still left behind can be eliminated. The downside of hormones pill is weight gain as my hormones will be all out of whack. Well, I don't really think it matters too much, I can increase my exercise and continuing my healthy diet.

Recovery has been a smooth process for me. My abdomen bulges around incision is diminishing everyday. I had my op on a Saturday morning (May 17), by 9pm or so I was out of bed and walking up and down the hospital hall ways, and home on Tuesday morning (May 20). I've been up for a walk each day since then. In fact I have been going to the mall, went to the bank, went to see the gyno doctor to collect my Pathology report on Saturday (May 24), visiting my sister in Bogor yesterday. All in all I am feeling great, much better than I would have expected. I still get those twinges every now and then on my belly but not so bad, my incision is healing well, my energy level is good, I look forward to doing more, but I know I shouldn't push it too much. I’m glad that one month prior to surgery I devoted myself in getting to the morning walk as much as I did, had a strict veggies and fruits diet plan ... it was a huge benefit in getting myself up and in and out of bed as my physical condition is on top form. Pain is nonexistent except I notice that I have been resting and sleeping a lot and retire to bed earlier lately...LOL!

I forgot to mention — I feel really good. I think it was a good decision to have this surgery. I am waiting for the day when I would be pain free and am hoping for everyday to feel better.

I am taking a break

Hi everyone, I just wanted to let you all know that I will be away from your computer screen for a week or two, spend the next few days in hospital bed. Yes, I'm scheduled for a hysterectomy surgery tomorrow, May 17. My gyno doctor and I have decided that surgery is my best option for treating my adenomyosis (internal endometriosis) problem and the chronic abdominal pain that I've lived for many years. It really has starting to have a huge impact on my daily activity. Now that having my own kids are not on my agenda (I am happy with my 2 nieces and 1 nephew that I love so much), I really don't see why I should carry on feeling this way. Even though it isn't fun to have surgery (this is my second surgery and hope it will be the last), I want to say that the nurses and gyno doctor I encountered in the hospital were all nice to me. I think that helps a bit. I'm hoping that all will be well! Fingers crossed. I'll be back home on Tuesday, May 20, but I may not be able to post for in a week or so. Thank you for visiting my blog :)

Going raw

lettuce, tomato, cucumber, onion, avocado with garlic vinagraite
I have been on the semi raw food diet for two weeks now. I am not looking to lose weight but am trying to ease the persistent painful period that I have been suffering for many years. The basic principle of the diet is to eat a high proportion of raw vegetables, fruits, nuts, grains and seeds. Food that contain starch such as bread, rice, wheat, pasta and potatoes - should be avoided, as should meat and most dairy products.

Well, I haven't gone "totally raw" yet but am transitioning into it rather slightly. So far, I have been successful to just eat veggies (Indonesian cooked veggies, not salads) without rice. My side dish would consist of either tofu, tempeh or white fish. I'm also still having 2 or 3 slice of wholemeal bread for breakfast in the morning with jam or peanut butter. My lunch is still cooked but I hope to change that slowly. On the weight loss front, I haven't lost much weight. My weight now is around 49-50 kg (I am 5' 2"). Well, I'm not worried, at least I haven't gained any weight. Of course, when I walked past the food court or cake shops, I wish I could have some but I reminded myself that I must have my appetite under control. Whenever I’d have a “weak” moment, I would eat a few slice of tomatoes and cucumbers. Aside from eating raw I too get these kind of 'cravings' to get up early and go outside for a morning walk which has become my daily routine now.

Your life, your choice

When you hear that someone close to you has been diagnosed with cancer, your heart surely skips a beat. There had to be some mistake. Perhaps this was just an awful nightmare. That just doesn’t happen, etc. As you may remember from previous post, my good friend was diagnosed with ovarian cancer (ovca) two months ago. She had both her ovaries with a large cyst that was indicated of being cancerous, a 10cm umbilicus and an omentum (fatty tissue) removed. She was advised by her oncologist that she should take 6 cycles of chemo, but has refused this treatment.

She has a lot of reasons for refusing this treatment, she knew how harmful it could be, not to mention the amount of money she has to spend for the chemo which is quite expensive. In Indonesia a lot of people do not have health insurance and many of them go through a time in life when money is so tight they cannot afford medical care.

When caught at earliest stage, ovarian cancer has a good prognosis. At Stage I, ovca has a five-year survival rate of around 90%. My friend was told she had Stage 3 ovca and her probability of survival with chemotherapy treatment was 1-5 years. Having a later stage cancer is like seeing a horror movie. Except the horror is real and there's no escape. Ovarian Cancer can strike at any age, and has the highest mortality rate of all women's cancers. Some risk factors are family history of breast (my friend had a tumor surgery when she was 16), never being pregnant, history of infertility, early menstruation and late menopause. Signs and symptoms can be read here.

I strongly recommended my friend to find an alternative treatment practitioner / herbalist to work with since she had been resistant to the idea of taking a chemo, even though her onco was advising her to. I am a bit worry because her recovery has been rather slow. She was still draining puss from a surgical wound the surgeon cut in her belly even 4 weeks after her surgery! She can barely stand for any length of time. She also lost 8 kg (16 lbs) and hasn't gained much weight since. Another problem is her family also plays an important part on every decision she wants to make. They decided to wait until she gets better and seek for an alternative treatment in May or 3 months post her surgery. If she followed her doctor advice, she should already has 2 cycles of chemo by now. I was really worried that taking a couple months off might allow the cancer cells to start growing again. The problem is, no one knows what's going to happen when you take a break. Will the cancer grow? Will it stay the same? No one has those answers.

So, last night I spoke to her on the phone and informed her about a herbal doctor in Jakarta that I found from googling in the internet. To my surprise she agreed to see this doctor and will come to Jakarta on Monday. I do understand there is no guarantee that alternative treatment will succeed to cure her problem, but this is a tough disease and you need to give yourself every possible advantage at fighting it. I sincerely hope everything goes well and she gets through this.

Ladies, it is important that we be made aware of the risks and symptoms of ovca. Either read about it or look on the web. If you think you are experiencing any of these signs or symptoms and are at high risk for ovarian cancer, it is important to seek medical help. Do not wait until it is too late.

**Picture of cancer teddy courtesy of Lindasbearhugs.**

How would you react ...

My friend was diagnosed positive cancer after her surgery which was performed on her birthday last month. It was a very sad day for her as the doctors removed both her ovaries, omentum , and 10 cm of her appendix. Ovarian cancer for years was called a "silent" killer — causing no symptoms until it was too late to be cured. Her primary doctor, who was an internist, ignored her when she told him that she endured weeks of sickness, knowing that something wasn't quite right with her. She was experiencing discomfort and indigestion after eating, her menstrual cycle suddenly stopped, an unexplained weight lost, feeling bloated and an extended back pain. She had all the signs, but the doctor didn't have a clue until she decided to see another doctor and was ordered to have an ultra scan check. Ovarian cancer is often already into its late stages, since the symptoms can be attributed to other causes and are non specific. It is often misdiagnosed as an intestine or gastric problem.

The news about cancer hits her like a ton of bricks. It was devastating and totally unexpected, she just couldn’t believe it. She was diagnosed with a stage 3 Ovarian cancer and was recommended 6 cycles of chemo. Meaning that cancer is found in one or both ovaries and has spread to other parts of the abdomen. This is a serious challenge for anyone to endure and she didn't want to accept that she had an illness that seriously is fatal. My friend is now in self denial and she didn’t want her family to know the details of what went on and what is going to happen. At the same time she refused chemo and was thinking to look into the possibilities of alternative treatment. The thought of "poisoning" her body with chemo seemed overwhelming. She believed by choosing herbal therapy and because they are natural, they are obviously harmless. However, she overlooked the facts that a lot of herbal treatment have not been studied and has yet to be medically proven.

As a friend I tried to be supportive and advised her to think it over before she makes the decision she may regret later on. But then again everyone is entitled to choose what they wish to do. I know one of the best things I can do is just be her friend despite what she is going through and that I will be there for her. She really needs a lot of prayer, and a lot of luck. Anyway, I found this beautiful short poem to ponder ...

Money is the most envied,
but the least enjoyed.

Health is the most enjoyed,
but the least envied.

Life is strange...