TheF9Key

I like my dermatologist.

His office is in Charlotte, NC. My very first appointment was in the winter. It rarely snows here but it was snowing that morning I went to see him. His office is in a bizzare medical building. It’s a single floor building shaped in a square. There’s a hallway around the perimeter of the square with medical offices on either side. The hallway has a rounded glass roof and it’s not heated. Plus, it is filled with tons of huge plants planted in the ground on either side of the sidewalk that meanders through the hall.

That day when I had my first appointment with him was so surreal. It was snowing outside but then as I walked inside the building it was like walking into Jurrasic Park. There was no one around and it was so quiet. But once I walked into his office, there were receptionists and the greeted me warmly.

When I finally met the dermatologist he shook my hand and simply looked at my face. I gave him a little history but that was it. He gave me a prescription and walked me back out to the receptionist.

The next time I saw him it was the same thing, but this time he talked to me – about stuff. I can’t remember the first conversation but every time I go there he just talks to me. On my last visit he talked about computer hackers and geneology. He’s a really nice guy. Older, maybe 60-ish. But very very nice. So different from every other doctor I’ve seen. I think he makes a point to shake my hand and have a conversation to make the office visit seem longer (with all his patients). Without the conversation I’d only be in the room long enough for him to write out a prescription.

I remember thinking I was so lucky in middle school because all the other girls had broken out with acne and I hadn’t. Well, as they were getting over their teenage acne phase I was just starting mine, and unfortunately, about 10 years later, it hasn’t stopped.

I’m pretty sure my condition is due to hormones, and I don’t think I’ll ever be 100% clear of it. But I need to manage it better.

I get large nodular acne, usually a week or so before my monthly cycle. The nodules bother me so much that I pick at them and it takes forever for them to heal. They’re very painful and very red, like open scabs. They take about a month to heal, and usually once they’ve healed I get new ones, so it’s rare that my face is clear.

My primary health care provider ran some tests and thinks I have PCOS – Poly Cystic Ovary Syndrome. I won’t describe it, I don’t really understand it, but it has to do with hormones.

My dermotologist has perscribed me several things over the years, mostly antibiotics. I don’t really think they worked. With each prescription I’d take the medicine religiously for a month or two and then stop using it because it hasn’t made any difference. But he recently prescribed me something new and I really think it’s working. At least for now, we’ll see how long it lasts.

In high school I was around 165. Not great but not terribly bad.

When I met the guy who would later become my husband I grew to 175. Not entirely his fault, I spent more time driving to places instead of walking to places and I just started my first “real” full time job – sitting behind a desk for 8 hours.

As I became better at my job and moved up the ladder, I started earning more money, going out to lunch, and going out to dinner. I went up to 199. A touch under 200.

Then I buckled down and was able to get back down to 175. But I slacked and it slowly came back. I’m now a touch under 190.

I’ve got to get it down to something more manageable. I want to do it for my husband and I’ve got to do it for my health.

I’m not even 30 years old and I’ve had my gall bladder removed and I have chronic lower back pain. I know it’s because I’m over-weight. I feel like I’m falling apart.