Brief yet bloody huge to me!
All I'll give is what my results were in March, what they should be, and what they are now, followed by a brief editorial from my Dr..... I am a lucky puppy.
Alkaline phosphate levels; 360, 130-30, 91
ALT liver enzymes; 206, 40, 38
Gama GT; 700, 61, 40
As you can see I'm physically ok (the figures could still do with cutting down, but I'm in the safe zone). The worry is that I got ALT up from 17 to 38 in a few short weeks.
Lovely DR: "I'm really surprised by the results, and pleased. We'll book you in for the end of October for more bloods and a urine test".
Me: (Silent) "Fuuuuuuckkk"
Me; (Out loud). That sounds brilliant
Here's the life saver.....
Lovely Dr: "You do realise that you've been extremely fortunate this time? Next time you may not have that luck your side. You can never drink again".
She was so matter of fact, so calm. I'd told her the truth about my problem and now it's in black and white. From a medical point of view I am physically able to drink. Luckily this time I didn't see a specialist who only gave me that aspect. Mentally M*****, you cannot drink. You are an alcoholic. Learn to live with that. Otherwise we'll have this chat in three years and it won't be so pretty. I'm planning on sending pot plants to the surgery as a present.
More good news! Apparently the gynecomastia tissue on my nipples should subside. Fuck me. This day keeps getting better! I thought I had a kind of permanent booze tattoo. Thank god for that. They still hurt, by the way. I gave my Dr this blog address, and I apologised in advance for post 3. I was a bit angry....
I'm going to live. It's weird actually having to think that. All I have to do is make sure I spend my living alive....I've blown 17 years so I'd better make up for it. I think I'm going to start playing catch up.
Laters
R***
Hi! I'm a complete stranger who found your blog via Twitter. I'm teetotal; I've never been drunk (I'm 32). It's mostly because I'm a bit of a control freak and don't like anything in my body that takes over control of my behaviour, but it also just so happens that I've never liked the taste of anything alcoholic that I've tried. Anyway, I guess that serves by way of brief introduction. I've read through most of your posts. Your writing is great. I'm sure if you worked this entire project into a book you'd be able to publish easy and help an awful lot of people by doing so. But that's not why I'm here. There are two things I just wanted to comment on.
ReplyDelete1 - I wish my ex had the mind you have. He's an alcoholic. It was weird, a teetotal living with an alcoholic, and the relationship kinda came about because at first he admitted that he had a problem with Allie and saw me as some 'pure person' that would give him reason to give up. That lasted about a month and the other 8 months I lived with him saw me frequently talking him down from beating people up, smashing in car windows, going on various Allie-fuelled rampages, dismantling my phone in a fit of paranoia, etc. It would be nice if he read this. But he's stubborn and proud, and as you said in an earlier post, the only person who can really help you is yourself.
2) The 'why aren't you drinking?' questions. It's funny, I guess - I get them from the 'other side'. When I tell people I don't drink they asusme I'm an alcoholic. When I tell them I just don't drink, I never have, they see it as a challenge. "I'll get you drunk!", "Ahh, you just haven't found a drink you like." Etc. I even had someone offer to pay my rent for two months if I got drunk. It's kinda shameful behaviour from people you think would know better, or from people you're supposed to call friends. There's no 'That's cool, I respect your decision and values.' It's just 'your lifestyle is not the same as mine and so I will attempt to force mine upon you.'
I guess I just wanted to share that question from another perspective. It's one of those things I just kinda smile and shake my head at.
Thank you for a heartfelt read. From one random person on the internet to another, I wish you all the best. Live long and prosper! :)
Cheers Pixie. I'm glad you took the time to read this, and really appreciate the comments. I guess everyone works a different way. Personally I'm just jealous of those people like yourself who don't need the booze, and never have. Anyone who says 'you just haven't found the drink you like yet', is probably missing the point. If you want a drink you will always find one that you like. Occasionally even fosters.
ReplyDelete1) I obviously don't know your ex's situation but it sounds like he wanted to change, just not enough. I knew I had a problem for years and it was only the first bloods that made it real. I like numbers, and mine were big scary ones. As I said, even then I cheated and lied. I think you just get the moment when it's all clear.
2) bizarrely I don't think I would have swapped two months rent for being festival for the same period. I was chatting to my friends wife about it tonight, as she rarely drinks and gets the same question from strangers. It's a bit like Bill Hicks. 'What you drinking lemonade for??'. It's a funny world.
Glad you've liked it (probably the wrong words, but you know what I mean), and cheers for the comments! First anyone has made.
Take care