Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke
Good news arrived at my hematology appointment yesterday: my hemoglobin is heading up! I’m still below normal levels, not exactly a cause for throwing confetti, but at least the numbers are trending in the right direction.
Here’s the funny thing: I haven’t actually felt any different. But I’ve spent so much of my life with what is essentially anemia that being anemic just feels… normal to me. I’d need a much more sudden and dramatic change before my body would bother sending me a memo. Fortunately, lab reports exist precisely because the human body’s internal reporting system can be a bit unreliable.
Background to My Anemia
A bit of background for newer readers: I have what is called Mediterranean Sickle Cell Disease. My red blood cells are misshapen, which can block blood flow and lead to complications such as anemia, pain crises, and organ damage. In short, my red blood cells aren’t great at carrying hemoglobin, and simply taking iron supplements isn’t a good solution for this condition.
This isn’t my first time managing this particular challenge. The first time I needed treatment was right after my brain stroke, when my blood count was already low from blood loss. With my existing condition on top of that, I developed severe anemia. That treatment stretched over several months. Now, ten years later, my hemoglobin has dipped too low again, so here we are, back to treatment.
I go to the lab and receive treatment every other week, with my doctor keeping a close eye on the reports. The good news is that this isn’t a permanent situation. If everything continues going well, I’m on track to wrap up treatment in May. (Fingers crossed!)
This appointment is just one more item on an already packed spring and summer schedule. I’ve been doing some careful calendar juggling to make sure nothing important gets skipped because of these treatment visits, and so far, I’m managing to keep all the plates spinning.
I hope I’ll be back to my best soon. As fun as anemia sounds, I really can’t recommend it.
Until next time,