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Well, I’m a gimp. What I thought was a stress fracture in my foot has turned into a full blow case of gout. In short, it’s a form of arthritis that hits a joint (usually a big toe…like mine) with a lot of pain due to the buildup of uric acid.

Because my initial thought was that I had a fracture, the plan was to just wait it out until it healed up. But by last Saturday (7/24), the pain was simply more than I could handle. I called my physician’s office with the hope of getting an appointment on Monday but was pleasantly surprised to learn that they were open and I had about an hour before close. Needless to say I bolted over and ended up leaving there with a steroid-based anti-inflammatory shot to my highney, a prescription for colchicine, and warning that it might give me the squirts.

It’s been almost 36 hours since all that happened, and I’m still experiencing symptoms. My toe is still a little swollen, but the pain isn’t nearly as excruciating as it was on Saturday. I’m still taking my meds and have been instructed to do so until it gets better. But more than all the crap that has happened as a result of this attack I’ve really come to appreciate what a blessing it is to be able to move around and do things, unhindered. All of a sudden, mowing the lawn and working on the pool under a 100 degree heat index isn’t so bad when compared to being stuck inside all day.

I also found out that I’m not the only one who’s experienced this. Gout shout anyone?

A little late, but planetchoi love none the less for John and Christine for their recent marriage!

I’m sorry I was unable to attend the ceremony, but the reception was kickin!

Thanks for the invite. Rosa and I had a great time. Enjoy the photos & vids.

A few years ago I had a primary care physician, but due to rising health costs and office costs among other things, he changed up the way he did his practice. He created a boutique practice which basically required me to have to pay an out-of-pocket fee for use of his services. Keep in mind this is outside of any insurance costs that I have to cover.

Anyways, after several years of not having a doctor, a lot of pressure from family to get a health checkup, and a recommendation from my buddy, Jay, I now have myself a new physician. The guy’s name is Roger Schultz. He is board certified in internal medicine and pulmonary disease. Like many other practices, his is comprised of several other doctors, all specializing in different areas of medicine. It seems to be a pretty large outfit. They have the entire second floor in the building that I went in to. It’s one of the largest practices that I’ve seen.

First impressions: he’s nice enough…very cordial…professional. He didn’t keep me waiting long (definitely a plus). Like any new doctor, he started asking me questions about my health, the history of my health, my parents’ health, etc. He paused in the middle of it to give me an argument as to why I need to have a vasectomy (uber-cringe), citing how easy it is and how much it better it is in relation to other forms of contraception. The killer story that he told me was about this patient (not necessarily his, he didn’t clarify) who absolutely refused to get the procedure done. As a result, his wife made the decision to get her tubes tied. Before the procedure even began, there were complications while she was getting anesthetized and she ended up dying. Can you believe that (well, I did)??? After that story, Dr. Shultz ended up writing me the names of some urologists (uber-cringe) that he recommended I see.

There were some more minor questions about my health and history again, but in the end he ended up telling me that I looked healthy and probably would only need to see him every year or two. Outside of that he wanted me to get some blood work done and gave me a prescription for some minor asthma symptoms. When I asked him about when he thought I would require a more “invasive” health checkup, he said probably not until my mid-forties or if I wanted it earlier. Usually I wouldn’t even give a colon cancer checkup a second thought. However, since I’ll be forty next year and colon cancer is statistically more prevalent in Asians, I’m actually thinking about getting it done earlier rather than later.

So, the initial visit was harmless. The staff seemed pretty nice (front desk could’ve used some more smiles). I think I liked Dr. Schultz. Honestly, it’s just really too early to give an honest evaluation of the man. But for now…

Memorial Clinical Associates
Dr. Roger Schultz

planetLove: approved