Need Some Advice

Good Morning Cali Gang -

I have a few questions that you may be able to give me your thoughts / opinions.  I will be calling Dr. Ali's office today as well.

1.  Dr. Ali told me I could take Tums (1 tablet 2 times a day) for my calcium.  Problem is, because I can't take it with my iron in the morning, I forget to take it.  What calcium do you take and of course does it have vitamin D?  What is the mg., and how much do you take in a day?   Is there a chewable calcium with vitamin D?  I know of caltrate w/D but have only found 600 mg.  Is one tablet a day enough, or should I take 2/day?  Can the calcium w/D be taken at the same time as the Iron.  I really need to find my binder, the answers are in there somewhere.

2.  Since surgery I have noticed that my bladder will all of a sudden need to go. I do not have incontinence, although, I was treated for this several years ago.  The medication just did not help.  I have a very weak bladder and no matter how hard I try, I am literally yelling at people in my house and the office to hurry the hell up before I have an accident.  This has happend on a few occasions.  I do kegal (sp) exercises to no avail.  I have also noticed that my urine is very concentrated.  I know that I do not drink enough fluids but I am making a valiant effort to correct this.  Most days I feel like the lady in the Mervyn's commercial at Christmas except I am at the bathroom door "OPEN, OPEN, OPEN".

Any insight you have would be greatly appreciated. 

Thanks and have a wonderful day and weekend.

Annette 

 

 

 

Good Morning Annette,

Regarding the Tums, my surgeon also said Tums were fine.  My Dr who is also an internist said no go on the Tums because of absorbtion.  I take Citrical Calcium petites, 2 in the morning and 2 in the evening and I take my multi vitamin and iron supplement at lunch time.  My labs have been perfect so far.  I decided when I started my journey to buy all my vitamins at Costco or WalMart for convenience and price and it's worked out great.

As far as the bladder goes, I think age and babies haven't done us any favors not to mention carrying weight arond the mid section.  I sneeze it's game over and it's worse when I get a cold.  I did see a urologist who said they could do surgery but with the weight I was carrying at the time he didn't think it would last, so I just deal with it.  I don't usually have to rush though, I've gotten better at just going more frequently.  If the urine is dark, you probably aren't getting enough fluid though.

Have a great day and weekend.

Hugs,
Barb

Hi Barb -

I asked Dr. Ali about the absorbtion and he said not to worry.  Tums are ok.  However, I need to find something that I can take with all my vitamins and pills in the morning.  If I understand correctly we can't take calcium with Iron?  OK, if this is the case, guess I better put my iron in a baggie and place it on my desk to take with lunch.

I do buy my vitamins at Costco with the exception of Biotin (cant find it there).  At the market today I will look into Citrical Calcium petites.

As for the bladder, just have to deal with it.  I know all about it being over with a cough and sneeze.  The surgery can be done and is an office visit I understand, but again I was told about the weight thing.  I am just walking into the bathroom now at the office when I pass by it and when I need to go of course.  Something is better than nothing huh?

Thanks for your advice, much appreciated.

No, Tums will not give you the calcium you need. You want to get about 1500mg daily. If the bottle says 500 or 600 mg that does not mean your getting that much of the calcium. You want to take calcium citrate only. Not the carbonate. If you look in my profile thru the pages there is a nice article on reading the calcium labels that may help you. The labels can be deceiving.

Vit D you should do in the dry form. D3 is the Vit D we need. Have your labs done on the vit d when they do your lab work.

How is your ferritin levels?

Hope this helps...if you have other questions Michelle Curran can help you out also, she is Vitalady and is very knowledgeable. She's who I go to when having problems or questions...

Drink more water/fluids. Drink drink drink....:)

Thanks Darlene for your input.  I will defenitly check out your profile and look into Vitalady as well.

I don't know what my ferritin levels are.  I have only had labs done once since surgery and all came back fine.  I guess I should write the numbers down or request a copy of the report.  My PCP forwarded the report to the surgeon and he was fine with the results as well.  Only thing off is that my liver enzyme was high.  I need to get in and do that test again.

Thanks again, much appreciated.

liver emyznes are always high...make sure you get and keep copies of all your labs....so you can track. y ou have to be pro-active yourself. Normal is not normal for us.

Hi Annette
I love it...Barb has written exactly what I was going to say.  Calcium each day should total 1600-1800mg (per Kaiser Richmond) and they recommend that the D be included in the Calcium dose.  Citrical Calcium w/D Petites fits this recommendation.  Getting outside when the sun is shining will also contribute D but obviously not to the degree we need it ;-)

I also agree...if urine is dark, you definitely need to up your liquid intake.  Again, Kaiser recommendation is at least 64 oz a day, this being in the form of decaf coffee, water, protein drink, decaf tea, Crystal Light,...almost anything in liquid form counts.

And lastly, I again agree....not much we can do about weak bladder muscles..they are what they are...unless you want to do the surgery thing :-(  Apparently, there are new meds out there but I, for one, don't like the 'might have' side effects that come with them.  I've invested money in Always LOL  If ya can't beat them, might as well make some retirement money off 'em;)  (just kidding!)  Barb is right, going more often and not waiting until the last moment is about the best we can do..unless someone else has found a miracle cure ^_^
Nancy aka Sunray

Hi Nancy  -

I love that people are so honest and funny at the same time.  I am going to look into the Citrical Callcium w/D today.  As for sunshine - I only get the sun during the day when I go out to smoke.  Yes I still smoke.  Not ready to tackle that beast just yet.

I am working on my liquid intake and I need to buy stock in Always products - LOL 

As for the Caffine I don't understand why that does not count on our liquid.  I drink crystal light, diet snapple (they are not decaffinated), 1/2 cup regular coffee M-F at home and then 1 cup of decaf at the office.  No coffee on the weekends.

After my kidney stone blasting several years ago I developed the new motto of "I PEE FREELY" and yes I do.  I told my husband that I was considering purchasing a bedside potty as we only have 1 bathroom b/t 5 people in my house and this can be a challenge on some days if I GOTTA PEE.

Thank again for your advice, much appreciated.

Hey, we have the same doctor! I take my Tums around mid-day and my other sups in the evening. Tums ultra has Vit D, but the multi vit I take has 125% of daily dose. Good luck.

Hello,

I take the Tums Ultra 1000.  I have no problem remembering to take the one in the evening but I sure forget about the one during the day.  I think maybe I am going to put a bottle in front of my monitor at work and this will help me to remember.  However, I am going to look into the Citrical Petites as well.

Don't you just love Dr. Ali?  I think he is fabulous.  The entire staff is just as nice.

There are several of us that have Dr. Ali or that have gone through Dr. Leports office. 


Thanks for your advice, greatly appreciated.