Next month, I will be turning 39-years-old. I was hoping that my body wouldn’t fall apart until the age of 40, but it doesn’t look like that will be the case.
It all started with some weird “finger tremors”. Occasionally, one of my fingers will just start twitching. Whenever they do this, they hurt like I’ve popped my knuckles too hard. After searching Google I was pretty sure I had Parkinson’s or something. The last time I saw a doctor, I mentioned it to him and he said, “sounds like carpel tunnel to me.” Then I told him it couldn’t be that and he asked me if I spend more than an hour a day typing on a computer and I said yeah, closer to 12-16 hours. Then he looked at me and said, “Hm, sounds like carpel tunnel.”
Then, a couple of weeks ago, my vision started going. Again I searched Google and, this time, I determined I had diabetes. (Perhaps the point of this post is, I should stop searching Google to diagnose my ailments.) A few years ago I went to an eye doctor who prescribed me some glasses. I wrote them twice before putting them away. Last week I dug them out, but they only seem to make things worse. I mentioned it to a co-worker, who suggested I pick up some reading glasses. I did, and it makes things so much better. I bought two pair from Dollar General and they’re both fairly awful, but I hear Sam’s and Walmart have better quality ones, so I may pick up some better ones this weekend.
I have been struggling all week coming up with something to write about. The best I could do was, “my fingers hurt and I need glasses.” I’ll try harder.
Welcome to Club Aging. Enjoy the buffet. And the aspirin.
Oh, I almost forgot — I seem to be suffering from semi-permanent hearing loss, thanks to semi-permanent sinuses.
My Dad had an operation to relieve carpal tunnel a while ago, they told him it would be about 2 weeks before he could drive (he needed his left hand to drive as most of us don’t have automatic gearboxes in the UK). It took closer to a month….so beware!
I heard on the radio this week, you should never try to diagnose yourself by googling your symptoms…. Or you will have Parkinsons, Diabetes, Hearing Loss and Sinusitis…. it’s just bad news…
Happens to all of us. At 42 I’m about ready for bifocals and I’ve experienced moderate hearing loss according to my last physical. No finger tremors, fortunately.
Come on Rob, don’t let this get to you. Nowadays a diabetes isn’t what it used to be. You no longer need injections. Just take some care with your nutrition and some pills, and you’ll be having a totally normal life. Avoid soft drinks, ketchup and burgers: they are bloated with sugar to extremes that you would not imagine. Keep low in bread and pasta. If you want healthy burgers go to the butcher, get meat and have it minced, then cook delicious, home made, burgers. And you’re on the go!
When 900 years old you are, fall apart even more you will. Have a head start, you do.
Hypochondriac as I might be sometimes, there comes a moment when Dr. Google is simply not a good option. A good conversation with an ACTUAL doctor is always the best way to go, but then again, I don’t know if I’m the best one to listen to… my cancer flares up sometimes (undiagnosed of course) but combined with my tinnitus and sleeping syndromes, I’m falling apart at 27.