DD - NOW 16

K.S. YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE. THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR EFFORTS AND HARD WORK.

when I do not smile

when I am passively sitting I look very guant, elderly and almost mad but it is owing to the thinness of my face and the anglo saxon look.People very likely read the situation completely in error.

when I smile

DR. KELLY KAITA

Dr. Kaita is currently the director of the Viral Hepatitis Investigative Unit (VHIU) at the Health Sciences Centre, University of Manitoba. The VHIU started in 1997 and over a short 5 years has grown over 400%. This unit has proven to be a National Center of excellence and is used as a framework for other units across the country. He is also a member of the liver diseases research group, and the department of internal medicine
His hepatology research focuses on viral hepatitis. Much of his work is dedicated to clinical trials involving the use of new anti-viral agents that can be used to treat viral hepatitis. The unit is also responsible for understanding the natural history of viral hepatitis in Manitoba, continuing medical education for health care givers, patient education, and public health. The main goal is to establish in Manitoba the first Canadian unit focusing on all aspects of viral hepatitis. He is also involved in several international clinical trials looking for better and more effective therapies for viral hepatitis. His unit is also responsible to oversee the management of patient's affected with viral hepatitis in Manitoba.
Dr. Kaita graduated from the University of Manitoba in 1989 and then enroled in a residency in internal medicine. This was followed with a fellowship in hepatology here and at the University of Western Ontario. For the past three years he has held a geographic full-time appointment.

my dr. and nurses

I forgot to mention the name of my hepatologist specialist: Dr. Kelly Kaita has been the best doctor he could be in management of my treatments and the organization of all the testing procedures. He has also written numerous letters and filled out numerous forms for insurance companies. He must be a very patient man to do all those documents and do all the other necessary pieces and portions of his job. Plus big thanks to my nurses Linda and Jackie and the organizer of appointments Jay. Sometimes going to the Health Sciences Centre is a bother but I am always treated so well there. Also thanks to all the lab teckies who drew my blood over and over and over.

interview

The agent interviewed me and it went well as far as I can discern. It was a very fair and non-adversarial interview.It is hard to focus on the negative descriptions of the symptoms and to be always going over them and to be explaining all the negative conditions but it had to be done.I included in my assessment the following: fatigue, lack of concentration, memory lapses, soreness in bones and joints, shortness of breath, unusual sleeping patterns, nightmares and walking and talking in my sleep because of anxiety and stress, doing tasks slowly, having family members help me with heavier chores, and that was about it.I forgot to mention a poor appetite and poor organization of food management.

On next Tuesday I will be interviewed by an insurance agent concerning my claim but I will do it by telephone at my lawyer's office. All my other interviews of the past I had to be really up and positive and very professional. Now I have to speak about all the negative things to do with my medical situation. My lawyer will help me because sometimes I am in a fog or I get emotional. So I am sure it will progress along as it ought to in our universe.

I forgot to mention the way in which my tongue always feels- as though an alligator is residing in there.There is a strange heavy, dull taste and drinking lots of water does not really help. the surface of the tongue is very rough and I have to use mouthwash alot. I brush my teeth several times a day but of course my teeth are purchased teeth so perhaps that also prevents the saliva from rolling about. It is very annoying. Maybe I could eventually draw a cartoon using some of these ideas.

potential good news

My insurance company got in touch with my lawyer and they have decided to waive the lateness of the claim and proceed to look at the medical docs. of which I have files upon files. Thanks to Kirk and Jack and other members of my support group who encouraged me to proceed when I was uncertain about what to do.

I stayed six years at Garden Hill. I lived across the lake at Stevenson Island for four years and crossed to the other side daily by a variety of methods.

Positive memories of my job at Garden Hill
-when I went to the interview the one man asked how soon I could pack
-I received a travel cheque in a timely manner to get there asap
-my vp met me at the airport right away and he drove me over the ice road
-the highschool staff was cordial and friendly and supportive
-having luch in the Home Ec. room every day was a highlight
-my junior high students gave me a hard time and then did a turn around and did very well for the final exam
-I left at the end of June and decided to come back in November and they hired me very quickly
-The Director of Education, Mr. Nelson Mckay was always a very gentle and good hearted person who treated his staff with respect and courtesy
-I have fond memories of all my students, Grade 4, Grade 2, Junior High, Senior High,
-the young students were full of life and energy and enthusiasm
- the older students were quiet and maybe too passive at times but there was always the one or two who would speak up and say what was on their mind
- the students had so many challenges because of tragedies in the community and they rallied and stood firm with each other
-other teachers were a delight to be around
-it was a pleasure to watch and listen and observe the variety of characters who came up north and no doubt I was at the top of the list
-I have to repeat once again how the highschool staff had so much fun giving me a fun time with their good natured teasing and joking and even though I did not understand the native language they always included me and I enjoyed the flow and movement of the language and I could read alot of body language
-they always used enough English when I was around so I did not feel that I was left out of the loop
-one time when I had an emotional breakthrough the school counsellor and another staff member took me aside and gave me prayers and moral support
-hey, the pay cheques never bounced
-I grew as a teacher just at that crucial time of my life when something on the horizon was going to take me away from a job I loved
-I loved the northern landscape, and the sound of the crunch on the snowy ice road, the hoar frost gently hanging on the mighty spruce and pine trees, the amazing sunrises and sunsets, the flow of the water as it moved through the seasons surrounding my island home from water to ice and then the inevitalble return to the same and yet subtly different condition and circumstance
-the beauty and horror of nature that gives birth to both joy and depression
-how I miss the north

I feel stress from waiting to hear the results of claims. However I feel that I am improving my eating habits despite a very invisible appetite and my daughter and I have a New Year agenda to increase the quality and volume of fruits and vegetable and sometimes I take my grandchildren swimming because I have to push myself at something.

How do I feel today- when I go to do a task such as using the computer even now I get easily irritated or anxious about simple procedures. A few weeks ago I had large red spots all over my legs at a variety of areas especially my ankles and then I had a huge, bright red rash on my upper legs, very much on the surface of the skin, raised and bumpy, I took a picture of it with my cellular phone and showed the picture of the images to my weekly nurse, then I feel fatigued after very simple errands and then there is that red bruised area in a private area which is noted in my files. The dr. reduced my meds so the spots have almost disappeared. I will see the nurse on Wednesday for more blood work and an evaluation.Also I get very emotional with my teenage daughter-Is it the disease, the meds or just parental concerns or a combination of everything.