Blood test results Feb 2014 – making progress with an ostomy

I love blood tests, I really do.  Maybe it’s because I love to keep track and benchmark “stuff”, like my health, computers and mobile devices.

So it came as no surprise that I’d be excited to see the results of my recent blood test results, six months after having my ileostomy.

Here are the results of my recent blood test (Feb 2014), compared with the results from Nov 2012 (before my drug trial and surgery) and Nov 2013 (pre-op for rectal removal):

Blood-results-2012_2014
Blood-results-2012_2014

The results made me happy, despite the fact that many values are still out of the normal range, because I see a trend towards normal and it’s only a matter of time before I get there.

Almost all the out-of-normal variables (B12, Ferritin, hemoglobin, hematocrit, RDW, etc.) are related to my anemia, which I picked up from years of intestinal bleeding, being unable to eat and frequent bowel movements or vomiting.  

I will admit that these numbers may have been a lot better if I’d stuck with my regular supplement schedules, especially for iron, but I really got lazy after my rectal surgery and hadn’t been taking anything regularly.

My doctor did give me a B12 injection while I was there, and I’ll try to make a habit out of taking my B12 supplements more regularly. Vegans should always be sure to supplement regularly with B12, especially vegans with IBD (duh!).

As an ileostomate, keeping a good electrolyte balance is important, since one of the functions of our colon is to absorb both potassium and sodium (among other things) and it was nice to see that my levels were in the normal range for both sodium, potassium and chloride.

I have NOT been restricting my sodium levels since having my ileostomy, and I won’t be changing much in that regard.

My vitamin D status is still low (not shown in the spreadsheet), but it’s double where it was a few years back.  Considering I’ve either been bedridden through each summer or not able to leave the house, this was surprising and completely attributed to supplementation.  

This spring and summer, I’ll make it a point to get outside in the sun more often and get those levels to naturally go up.

My weight is 158lbs (5′ 9″ tall), which makes my BMI 23.3 and puts me in the “healthy” category.  

This is a vast difference from my lowest weight during my struggle with Crohn’s, which was 108lbs.  I do plan exchanging fat for muscle weight as I begin an exercise routine in the next few weeks.

My cholesterol levels are (unsurprisingly) in the “optimal” range – plant-based diet FTW! My blood pressure is also in the “ideal” at 108/70, in spite of the higher dietary sodium (which is known to raise blood pressure).

Blood-pressure-chart
Chart courtesy of https://www.bloodpressureuk.org/

There you have it.  

My health is starting to get back on track and I look forward to seeing what the next six months brings.  I’ll post the next results when they are available, hopefully August 2014, which would mark my 1st-year “Stomaversary”.  :)

Question: Do you get your blood regularly checked? Are you happy with the results?

4 thoughts on “Blood test results Feb 2014 – making progress with an ostomy”

  1. Thanks for the comment :)

    The hospital tests aren’t the same as the ones you get at a lab, especially since you aren’t ever “yourself” in a hospital and likely don’t want anything else sticking into your arms! LOL

    Reply
  2. Awesome to see you are getting good results :) I myself am not too keen on blood tests, one hospital is always in a super rush so just sticks you like you are a pin cushion … but I switched hospitals and they are so light I don’t even feel them. I also think it is essential to thank the nurse if you didn’t feel it as positive feedback always brings a smile. Good news x

    Reply
  3. Just an update…

    When I received the blood test in this post, I had also received a tetanus booster the same day. I developed joint pains a few days later and then I had my inflammatory markers checked.

    ESR was 6 (ref range 2-25)
    hs-CRP was 3.5 (this is higher than it should be)
    Negative rheumatoid factor.

    I still have those joint pains and will be seeing an rheumatologist today. Not sure if the vaccine triggered this inflammation, as I was free of joint pains since last summer.

    I should note that my blood was checked just over a week ago, when I was in the hospital for a blockage and hemoglobin was in the normal range of 161 g/L, a few others that were out of reference on the last blood test were also now in the normal range.

    Maybe I’ll get more lab work done today…

    Eric

    Reply
  4. John, great to see the trend toward normal! Do you know if they’re checking C-reactive protien, as a measure of inflammation?

    Reply

Leave a comment. (Your email will not be published)