New GP

I went to my new GP (which was actually my old GP prior to me leaving for Kuwait but it is the first time she has seen me post DS) the other day. She was very excited to learn about the DS. I took her print outs of what my system looks like now, what kind and type of vitamins I have to take and a list of the vitamins I take every day. She ran every test I asked for. (You know you are in for a fun time when the phlebotomist (sp) comes out with a hand full of tubes and the instruction book going "I have never seen some of these test".

I requested copies of my test results and she said no problem. Yesterday I got an envelope in the mail with my test results and 3 prescriptions.

I have anemia but no surprise there. I tended to that prior to the DS.

I have a Vit D deficiency. Uh...yeah. I know. I told you I was digging my way out of one and I'm sorry but that prescription D is useless.

My potassium is low. Uh...yeah. That happens every once in a while but thanks for the prescription. That may work faster than the OTC that I already have.

And I have a Vit K deficiency. Well that is new. And she's not sure how to handle that. Maybe I can call my surgeon about that. Uh...not really. If I had a question about surgery then yep I would call him. After care? Not so much. I will significantly increase my K intake and go back in a few weeks for retesting.

I'm actually saying all this to make a point. YOU have to know your surgery! YOU need to understand the after care because YOU may be explaining it to the doctors. YOU have to be able to advocate for yourself. Learn everything YOU can and never stop learning about YOUR surgery.

Take the RX potassium.  In some cases, OTC is just as good or better, but this isn't one of those cases.  OTC potassium is capped at 99mg each pill, and your Rx is going to be at least 750mg or more.  Totally worth it.

I think vit K deficiency is more common than we assume based on how rarely it is discussed.  Luckily, unless contraindicated by coumadin therapy or the like, it's a pretty darn safe vitamin to take.  Don't assume that because too little causes not enough clots that too much causes too many clots, it just doesn't work like that.  Your doc can help you out with an Rx vit K, if that's your cup of tea.  A brand name is mephyton or aquamephyton for water soluble form.  Cystic fibrosis people (who malabsorb a lot of fat) take 5-10mg vit K per day.  Vit K status is also a tricky beast.  Vit K test isn't very sensitive, so it's also important to follow K-dependent proteins, like osteocalcin.

Thank you so much Kayla. It's a new problem for me so I just had not done much research on it yet. I will let my GP know about this. I am so lucky to find one that seems to want to learn everything she can about my surgery.