Tag Archives: knee saga

getting my ducks in a row (maybe?)

19 Wednesday Aug 2026

Posted by in health, health & happiness, knee saga, knees, sevilla, welcome

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Back to the GP today to check on my next Mounjaro prescription. Not the fill-in Fab GP I saw last month, I guess my usual Nice GP is back from holiday. And that’s fine, I think? Anyhow, talked about the prescription, which she has now renewed for 3 months at the initial “starter dose” of 2.5g. Like me she thought a weight loss of 6 kilos in 7 weeks was a reasonable rate and saw no need to change things. So we’ll see. I mean, there’s no guarantee I’ll keep losing weight at that rate, but for now I’m happy with that and would prefer not to up the dosage.

Then I asked her about an issue I had last week with possible blood in my stool (it was hard to tell) but before sending me off for another colonoscopy (last one was three years ago) she wanted to test for blood, so that’s what we are doing. With my cancer history they tend not to fool around with anything colon-related. She told me I’d be having a colonoscopy in any case, but if the sample tests show traces of blood then it’s a different protocol to follow. Okey-dokey.

Next up… since my shoulder jab about three weeks ago, well it was starting to feel a bit better, but now the pain has resurfaced but feels more concentrated in the front of my upper arm. I told Nice GP they had told me to come back if the first jab didn’t take and so now I also have a new shoulder traumatology appt request in the system. I don’t know if I’ll get the second jab but I’d like to get another opinion on it.

Meanwhile, probably the BEST news of the summer has been that since about ten days ago I have been getting around on just one crutch for the first time in two years. Yes, it still hurts (a lot), and I still walk at a snail’s pace, but it’s actual walking (as opposed to hobbling). Whatever… I’ll take it! How’s your summer going?

shoulder shot

27 Monday Jul 2026

Posted by in health, hospitals, knee saga, knees, sevilla

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So I went to see the traumatologist today about The Shoulder and, after a few questions, the doc went straight to giving me a cortisone injection, which was totally fine by me. I did tell her that when they gave me the same thing for my knee last year nothing happened and she looked at me calmly and said “that doesn’t mean that this won’t help you now”. And I guess so? I mean, the other one was for pretty much bone-on-bone knee pain (with a torn meniscus thrown in), and this is apparently a tendon problem.

Subscapularis tendinosis. Chronic enthesopathy of the subscapularis, subacromial-subdeltoid bursitis, degenerative changes in the acromioclavicular joint.

Anyhow, I was told it could take 2-3 days before I notice any difference and, meanwhile, to use the arm as little as possible. So no chair workouts involving weights for now. I was also given a print out of other exercises to do, which look pretty straightforward. I can just add them to my daily workout routine.

The (possible) good news is that if it does work then my shoulder pain should be greatly reduced for several months. And if it doesn’t? Then I’m supposed to make another appointment via my GP for a second shot. And since I’m seeing the GP again in three weeks to update my mounjaro prescription that’ll work out. So fingers crossed this helps! Meanwhile, four weeks in with mounjaro (and my tweaks) and this morning I was down by 4 kilos.👍Still the tip of the iceberg, but it’s actually more than the 2-3 kilos a month I was hoping for.

wegovy vs mounjaro

29 Monday Jun 2026

Posted by in health, knee saga, knees, sevilla

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Spoiler alert… Mounjaro has already “won”, at least for now, but mostly because I was put on the spot today and didn’t want to have to wait another two weeks to see my GP again. It’s like this. Wegovy (semaflutide) and Mounjaro (tirzepatide) are both GLP-1 drugs that slow digestions and suppresses appetite, but Moujaro has another hormone called GIP that has a stronger impact on blood sugar regulation and hunger reduction.

I had been leaning towards Wegovy as I had read that it is also approved not just for weight loss but cardiovascular health, helping to lower blood pressure and inflammation, as well as reducing the risk of “cardiac events” by as much as 20%. Sounded good to me. And I was hoping that today’s blood test results, combined with my heart issues, would mean that it could be prescribed for medical reasons (not just weight loss) so I wouldn’t have to pay.

Mounjaro is mostly prescribed for Type 2 diabetes and weight loss, with no obvious cardiac benefits. The Endo had made it sound like the only way I could get either of these covered by social security was to be diabetic, hence the new blood test. But it turns out that not only am I not diabetic, my GP informed me today that neither of these drugs are covered under SS so I would have to pay in any case.

So then I asked… how much? Wegovy is 180€ for the first month, Moujaro is 210€. Apparently the price will either remain the same or increase depending on whether I need stronger doses going forward. But GP insisted that Mounjaro is the preferred option these days but if I wanted to think it over… no no, no more delays. I went for it.

Effectiveness… Wegovy shows an average weight loss of 15-21% over 72 week, Moujaro 21-22.5% over the same time period.

Meanwhile, I dunno. Yes, I’m going to give it a go. Picking up the prescription this evening (they had to order it in) so will start tomorrow. But everything I read is about it suppressing appetite, even about losing “obsessive thoughts about food” (probably from feeling nauseous from the drug) and this just isn’t my problem. I mean, yes I do obsess about food, but more in the sense of photographing it and, yes, making it too, but not about wanting to eat all the time. Because you may recall, after four major abdominal ops, my belly is full of adhesions (look at your own risk) so if I do ever happen to over eat, which rarely happens anymore… PAIN PAIN OMG VOMIT VOMIT MORE PAIN. I mean, it’s like I have my own built-in Wegovy/Moujaro. Anyhow, we shall see I guess. Wish me luck.

Apparently I should be down to acceptable knee op weight by Oct/Nov and then I’ll have to get my GP to request another Traumatology appt (average waiting time: 6 months) and THEN they’ll put me on the waiting list for an operation (as long as I’ve kept the weight off). Honestly, if I despair at times, can you really blame me? Every day the pain gets worse, walking (hobbling) is becoming almost impossible and now I have a whole year ahead of me before I will even be able to see the slightest bit of light at the end of this awful awful pain-filled tunnel. Anyhoodle… out of words.

vinoble 2026

29 Friday May 2026

Posted by in getaways, knee saga, knees, wine

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Off to Jerez tomorrow for Vinoble 2026! The hotel was booked in January, got train tickets last week, cat sitting is sorted… very excited but also worried about how I’ll hold up. I can honestly barely hobble these days, the pain has become so intense not only in my knee but also my damn shoulder. Some days I don’t know which is worse and together it sometimes just leaves me unable to do anything. BUT… I shall try! I see quite a few taxis in my near future.