Sorry for my delay...

I have been remiss in my blog duties, and I apologize. I am discovering so many things about my condition. First among them is the fact that the kidney condition from which I suffer (polycystic kidney disease, or PKD) is my big problem. Yeah, I know. That's not this blog. I've come to understand that I'm not going to live as long as I might otherwise have if I have any greater complications from my kidneys.

The reason I had an aortic dissection is because of my history (since 1997) of elevated blood pressure. It has been treated, but sadly without much success and worse, without a great deal of focus or interest on my part. In short, I chose to ignore it. My bad...

GET YOUR HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE UNDER CONTROL!

Yes, I shouted. I'm serious. I am now looking at a shortened life because I ignored it. Check it often, know if it rises, and if it stays high, nail it down and keep it down. I know that the medications are a pain in the butt. I am on three of them: Bystolic, felodipine, and if necessary to manage spikes, hydralazine. I know what meds can do. I am "anti" meds, as a rule. But I cannot manage my bp naturally. I hope to be able to, one day. I have problems with conflicts, notably with Coenzyme Q-10 and lots of my other meds. It is off the table for now, until I discover a clear path through the morass of contraindications and drug interactions.

I am so tired these days.

Aortic Dissection (A.D.) - More background

I was a Marine for over 18 years. I stayed mentally and physically active and watched what I ate. I studied nutrition and exercise physiology for fun. I was not unaware of my risk factors, one of which was my heredity - my dad was black - that carries a risk penalty that I had no way to calculate. The primary risks included high blood pressure and increased stroke, heart attack and kidney disease risk.

I do have kidney problems, but have been asymptomatic. It took the results of a second day of scans and X-rays to disclose the problem. Apparently, my left kidney had gone polycystic at some time in the past, and now looks rather like a kidney upholstered with grapes...yum. It has virtually killed the kidney. I understand this is somewhat anomalous; it (polycystic kidney disease) classically affects both kidneys at the same time. I'm still on the uptake end of all of that. Once I know more, I will pass that on. Another discussion for another day.

Aortic Dissection (A.D.)

I thought it wise to begin with pertinent background. My name is Paul, I turned 54 on June 5th. Two months and 9 days later, I had my A.D. I hadn't a hint of what was coming. I was not asymptomatic; I've had high blood pressure since 1997. Thrice treated with various doses of various medications, it remained high. I was frustrated, but unmotivated to do more. Like most people, I was content to let a trained enemy sniper sleep in the hilly country surrounding my heart. As long as he slept silently...

Clicking on the post title will take you to a quick look at A.D. provided by the Vascular Disease Foundation.

Missed It By This Much

This blog is dedicated to a lot of people, some whose names I may never recall. For me, this is kind of sad, but I think it accurately reflects life. It is full of people who make enormous and anonymous contributions that impact us in ways we don't always see. To you and all of those who are unintentionally left out, thank you. I have nothing but the highest regard for you all. I invite comments from those left out, both in hopes of righting the omission and forming a more complete impression of what I've been through in the last month. Thank you all for reading and contributing.


The blog title "Missed It By This Much" is suggested by the line "...missed it by that much," often uttered by "Get Smart" secret agent Maxwell Smart after some near-disaster. The article shift makes it personal to my own experience. How appropriate...