The Canker Sore Caper
Cindy appeared on Thursday morning looking like a sad raccoon. She had deep, deep, very dark circles under her eyes. She said that one of the professional people in the area had suggested that perhaps we could help her.
Her diagnosed condition? BEHCET'S SYNDROME. According to the Merck Manual, page 242, this is a inflammatory disease that can produce painful and recurring skin blisters and mouth sores similar to canker sores. IF YOU'VE EVER HAD A CANKER SORE YOU'VE NEVER FORGOTTEN THE EXCRUCIATING PAIN. For those of you who have had them, or even one, TRY TO IMAGINE THIS! 1. Your mouth filled with them!!! 2. Your private parts filled with them!!!
NOW imagine hearing that there is no cure!!!!!
For two years Cindy tried everything that was offered to help ALLEVIATE THE SYMPTOMS. She had to get her nourishment via a sports drink bottle so it would go to the back of the throat to bypass the sores. Sleep? Very little! She would lie in bed hour after hour, day & night, just trying not to move. When she had to eliminate she would have to bring a pitcher of water to pour over herself to combat the pain. She took all of the medications, the steroids, the cremes, the injections that she had to administer to herself week after week, with no results. She then applied for insurance to cover the cost of an extremely potent & expensive drug that would suppress the immune system drastically in hopes of it, at least, temporarily giving her some relief, but, at the same time, being reminded that she can never be cured. With Cindy, being only in her thirties, this information was overwhelming.
In light of all this, WHAT COULD I POSSIBLY OFFER that might be helpful?
Well, I always try to KEEP IT SIMPLE, no matter what the endeavor. So, WHAT WOULD I SUGGEST IF CINDY HAD JUST ONE CANKER SORE? Remember Mary Poppins singing, "Start at the very beginning, the very best place to start!"? O.K.
Someone with a canker sore has to avoid any acidic foods. JUST ABOUT EVERYONE KNOWS THAT! No tomatoes, oranges etc. Sweets? Junk food? We all know there THAT belongs! Good quality protein, healthy (non acidic) veggies? Yes! That's the place to start. Then? Supplements that I have observed over the past forty years, that have been shown to be very helpful in most situations. OBVIOUSLY, nothing works for everyone. Cindy wanted to see if she could be part of the "most" who are helped. Knowing how serious her condition was, I didn't know what to expect BUT I WAS HOPEFUL. That's just how I am. I choose to be optimistic!
*QUICK SUMMARY*
THURSDAY Cindy came in and went home to GET STARTED ON HER "ADVENTURE" IMMEDIATELY! SATURDAY Cindy came in again and told us that she had NO PAIN IN HER MOUTH. TUESDAY Cindy called and told us that just a few little sores had surfaced but that SHE HAD NO PAIN! SATURDAY The following week, Cindy came in. I hardly recognized her because her eyes didn't resemble a raccoon's! The dark circles were gone. Her mom & husband were thrilled. SHE HAD NO MORE SORES. She told us that she had been contacted to begin her now scheduled infusion treatments that were so powerful that even catching a cold could be deadly. One of the main warnings on the drug is that it can cause death.
Can you imagine how thrilled she was, that AT LEAST FOR NOW, SHE DIDN'T NEED TO EXERCISE THAT OPTION?
MAYBE, just maybe, if she continues doing what she's doing, SHE WON'T HAVE TO EVER EXERCISE that option!
HMMMMMMM! Let's all hope that the canker caper is over.
posted by Janet & Tabitha @ 5:09 AM
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