• catch22 said on Feb 21, 2008....

  What is really going on with your health?

• Holly-Go-Lightly said on Feb 21, 2008....

  catch~my old friend!!
  you may not remember...but for years now I have been ill, and increasingly ill,
  with something the Dr's couldn't diagnose. Now that it's finally diagnosed, we
  find out why it was so difficult--very rare disease--only 5 people out of every
  million are diagnosed each year. Its called Cushings Disease. It is a disease
  within the endocrine system, which throws a person's entire system off. I can't
  list all the symptoms, but you can look it up if you want to know. It is caused by
  either a tumor on the pituitary gland, or tumors of the adrenal glands (which may or may not be cancerous). It is fatal if it goes undiagnosed or untreated. If it is a pituitary tumor, they either operate to remove it, and then begin hormone replacement therapy. Recovery time is about 6 months-2 yrs. If they cannot reach the tumor to cut it out, they must radiate it, followed by longer recovery period. If it is
  in the adrenal glands, it is usually cancerous, and they would have to treat it accordingly.
  Hopefully~this will all be over soon
  take care Catch-22!
  ~*~*~Holly~*~*~
  

• uniquely-ironic said on Feb 21, 2008....

  I'm glad they have pinned down a diagnosis, though I'm sorry you're sick.
   
  How great is it that you and your dad were able to use this to come closer?!!!  Your dad is the real deal and I'm glad you two were able to improve your relationship despite the sad occaision.

• Battycat said on Feb 21, 2008....

  I'm glad you've finally got a diagnosis, even if its a horrible thing, at least you know. I'll be thinking of you through your treatment, and i'm glad you and your Dad had such a nice time :-)

• secretlife said on Feb 21, 2008....

  must feel so good to have a diagnosis.....
  gives you reason to see light at the end of the tunnel!
  thank God!

• Actorguy said on Feb 21, 2008....

  I'm so glad you finally found a doctor who seems to know what's going on, Holly.  I hope that things will start to get better soon.  I was just thinking about you the other day and I'm glad to see you back here.  Keep us posted okay?

• hotaka said on Feb 22, 2008....

  I hope everything works out as a text book curing. I am touched to read about your dad. It goes to show that people can change and become better than they were before. I am glad he had the chance to show you this and that you gave him the chance to prove himself.

• queenparanoia said on Feb 22, 2008....

  i hope you could fight this illness... and nice to see you blogging again... =)

• Holly-Go-Lightly said on Feb 22, 2008....

  I am so very thankful for all of you~it means so much to read your words of support and encouragement. As this deal has been going on for sooooo long, at times I have begun to lose my strength and my fight. But reading comments like these remind I am not alone in the world, and that I am lucky to have friends like you all!!
  
  *uniquely* isn't that amazing? I reconnected with a few other relatives while I was there as well, and couldn't help but wonder if God in his infinite wisdom, had found a way to use this awful illness to bring some of our family back together? Interesting concept. Thanks for the support dear! :)
  
  *battycat* thank you~you know it does wonders simply to know exactly what you're dealing with in this kind of situation...you hit the nail on the head! :)
  
  *secretlife* nice to "talk" with you again! you are so right~I can have hope that this isn't something that will drag down my life, for the rest of my life. I'm keeping my eye on the light at the end of the tunnel! :)
  
  *actorguy*  my dear friend! Thank you for posting. I appreciate your words of encouragement and support. Now that I finally have some good, strong medical advice, I feel I will soon be in the home stretch of this thing. Yay!! I will keep you posted.
  
  *hotaka* so nice to hear from you! Isn't that something re: my Dad? He has called me long distance at least once a day since I've been home. It makes my heart swell to finally have my Dad back. Thank you for posting! :)
  
  *queenie* queenie~queenie!! how is SC's greatest "bad-assed babe"?? heehee
  with the encouragement of all my friends, my prayers, and a little of my own steam, I know I can beat this thing!! Thanks queenie! :)
  

• catch22 said on Feb 22, 2008....

  ASK GOD TO GIVE IT ALL TO ME!

  DO IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

• Holly-Go-Lightly said on Feb 22, 2008....

  catch dear~ although I have no doubt that you could take this disease, crunch it down with your fist, and send it out to swim with the fishies (our old joke), I wouldn't wish this illness on anybody!!
  
  Thank you, thank you, for caring enough to take it away.
  
  ~*~*~Holly~*~*~
  

• silverwhisper said on Feb 24, 2008....

  holly, i'm glad that there's finally an answer to your health problems, i'm sure that's gotta be a load off your mind. and it's great that this gave you a chance to see your dad, at least. :>
  
  so now that i understand a little bit more about cushing's, what treatment does your doctor favor?
  
  ed

• Holly-Go-Lightly said on Feb 25, 2008....

  you are quite the detective ol' boy!
  that was a very informative article.
  the thing with me right now is this~~all the tests I took while I was down there will determine my cortisol levels, ACTH levels, and blood tests will determine whether it's a pituitary tumor, ectopic tumor, or adrenal tumor. Isn't that amazing that a blood test can tell the exact location like that? Fascinating to me. Anyway, once the tests show proof (this is for the insurance co.) they can do the MRI and depending on where the tumor is located, perform whichever procedure she feels is necessary. It's all about location, location, location!!  LOL
  thanks ed for your thoughtfulness!!
  ~*~Holly~*~
  

• silverwhisper said on Feb 25, 2008....

  holly, i'm just glad that you've got answers. and honestly, i kinda assumed you'd already seen either that article or the wikipedia/webMD ones, but when i saw "mayo clinic" in the search results, i just had to read that, you know? and don't be impressed: it was like the 3rd or 4th hit. :>
  
  i had no idea your blood work could reveal a tumor's location--that's really great, cuz otherwise they might have to do a more invasive test, right?
  
  i'm glad your insurance company will get the documentation needed--at least that's a headache you won't have to worry about too much, right? :>
  
  [hug]
  
  it's good to see you again, holly. :>
  
  ed

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