Ooops better retract that 'K' and replace it with an 'S' as in 'S' is for Shingles. Exactly two weeks, one x-ray, one renal ultrasound, three blood tests, two urine samples, four doctors, and one rash (and two misdiagnoses) later... it has finally been confirmed that the mystery pain is from Shingles.

How do I feel? The pain is less than last week, but I still need painkillers at least once a day. And a rash has popped up at the site of the pain. So all in all (unless this gets worse) I feel fine.

The only remaining outstanding part of the puzzle is that two weeks ago, my white blood cell count in my urine was 100. And last Tuesday it had risen to 190. So I'm not sure what that means....

My only concern is that I have a friend who has never had chicken pox before and has a wedding to go to in ten days and I am HOPING I haven't given her chicken pox, because that would make me feel TERRIBLE.

I take that 'K' for kidney back; after much investigation of joints, hips, bladder, kidneys today at hospital, during a routine 'let's rule out any stomach problems while we're at it', turns out I'm actually quite badly blocked up! ...to the point where paracetemol doesn't touch the pain. Oopsies.

Quite a relief really that kidneys are *touch wood* ok. They're still investigating the possibility of kidney stones though, but the pain and problems are a blockage. So now that I'm treating that, hopefully it will take the pressure off my abdomen and the pain will decrease.

While it's annoying this was missed on Friday and Saturday by two different doctors, I really should know my own body a bit better, however the only symptom I got was pain, so it was a tricky situation.

Anyway, 5 years anniversary last weekend, lung function 101%... I don't have much to complain about! :)

I hate it when i curse myself! On Tuesday I got a dull ache in my lower right back / hip. Convinced it was some sort of arthritic pain I figured it would be ok. Yesterday I needed pain relief and today I gave in and went to the doctor, so he could confirm I have some sort of osteo-arthritis (inevitable for me, considering the cocktail of drugs I pop on a daily basis).

However, the doctor swung my legs around and about and determined it wasn't my bones. It was my kidney. Amazingly I've never had a kidney infection (except that one time when my kidneys stopped working and briefly went into failure mode, but I was in bed when that happened and the morphine made sure I wasn't really 'with it' when that happened), but this is really, really painful!

Anyway I got drugs and I'll probably pop up and see my team on Tuesday. And I just ticked off the letter 'K' on my alphabet list of conditions and such I have managed to acquire. I already have osteopenia for the 'O' anyway.