Coumadin, CHF and ascites

[Nancy]

Hoping Al has a chance to read this.

Joe has CHF and it ebbs and flows all the time. He frequently gets ascites when it's acting up. I have a feeling that this affects his INR quite a bit because it has the potential to congest his liver. Plus when he's filled with fluid he then has to take extra Lasix, and that too has the potential to affect his INR.

Am I right in my supposition?

 

[Christina L]

Nancy,

I have always wondered what is Joe's quality of life. He sounds so "sick" but yet I assume that he is up and around and does have a good life. I hope so.

Just wondering. He has been through SO much. He is lucky to have you!!

Christina L.

 

[Nancy]

Hi Christina-

This past year has been a tough one for Joe. But recently, he's been feeling a lot better and has been on the treadmill (did over a mile today), and doing light weights. He is able to drive and even to work around the yard when the weather is good. I would say that although he does have many serious problems, they are fairly well controlled with medications.

Everything that was surgically fixable has been repaired. His main problems now are medical. They are chronic and will never go away, but his medication and dietary regimen keeps things at bay for the most part. It's constant vigilance to keep things balanced and not let anything get too far afield. He has wonderful doctors.

Compared to his many near death experiences, he's doing very, very well. There aren't too many people walking around that would have survived what he's been through. The only other ones that I know are on this forum. He just never gives up, no matter how sick he's been, and somehow his body continues to heal. It's amazing.

He's basically a happy man, and we have many light moments.

 

[Guest]

Fluid around and in the liver usually leads to a high INR. When you take a diuretic, this relieves the congestion and the warfarin gets metabolized better and the INR goes down.

 

[Christina L]

Nancy,

Now I can picture Joe in a different way! I guess I had this visual of him almost bedridden. YOU didn't necessarily give me that idea, just that everything he has been through - WOW!!

Joe is a testament to the human spirit and the will to live - he must be an amazing person.

Like I said also, your care you give him, Nancy, is half the battle. You two are a great team, it seems!!

Both of you enjoy your holiday and I pray that Joe will continue to have a great quality of life for many years!

Christina L.

 

[Christina L]

I think this quote is talking about sports, but it pertains to all aspects of life and is just what I was talking about on my previous post on this thread. It is a great quote and very true - got it just today on my "quote of the day" E-mail.

"The spirit, the will to win, and the will to excel are
the things that endure. These qualities are so much
more important than the events that occur."

-- Vince Lombardi

Christina L.

 

[Guest]

For us older guys saying I think a quote by Vince Lombardi is about sports is like saying I think the Pope is about religion.

 

[Christina L]

Sorry to offend you sports fanatics! As you can tell, I don't give a flying fig about sports - like to go to a baseball game and sit in the stands and eat a hotdog and drink a beer, BUT other than that - I can take sports or leave them!! I know there are a lot of women who love sports, but I'm not one of them!!


Christina L.

 

[Nancy]

Great quote from Vince Lombardi. He says it all. Those are inspiring words to live by.

 

[Guest]

ChristinaL

It was as much a comment about us older guys realizing that not everyone knows who our old idols were. You look to be about my daughter's age and she probably would ask who Vince was, too.

He is also rembered for, "winning isn't everything, it is the only thing."

 

[Marty]

Football for women?

Football for women?

I took Alice to her first football game in 1948; Purdue vs Indiana
and she's been hooked ever since. Now she will watch two college games on Saturday and sometimes thee pro games on Sunday. We had Redskins tickets for thirty years( tickets now gone to the kids) and she never missed a game. Is this normal for a woman who will celebrate her diamond jubilee this Saturday December 20?

 

[Guest]

Does she remember who won the "Old Oaken Bucket" in 1948?

 

[Marty]

The Old Oaken Bucket

The Old Oaken Bucket

Yep, She said it was Purdue 14 to 7.