And so it begins...

There are many of you out there who are new to this Cushing's Syndrome saga I have been going through.  It has indeed been a long strange trip since April of this year - one that, looking back, I can't really believe has been my life. Be that as it may, here I am.  I won't bore you with revisiting the good, bad, ugly, and definitely jaw-droppingly crazy twists and turns we've encountered during the diagnosis, testing and treatment of my little Cushie, but details will emerge as I reflect and blog I'm sure. 

I am so incredibly lucky to have a team of medical professionals here in Kansas City who have done everything humanly possible to get to the bottom of what's causing my system to create all Cortisol, all the time.  However, as is my typical game plan, I seem to be stumping the experts.  Thanks to the dedication of my Endocrinologist, and his ability to stalk speakers at conferences (!), I have the opportunity to go to the Clinical Center at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, MD for treatment.  If it wasn't for Dr. Laney chasing down and discussing my case with an amazing Dr. from the NIH that is tops in the field of Cushing's, I'd be running out of options.  As it is now, I have renewed hope that I can get cured and  back to my normal life.

I leave on September 12th to go to Bethesda, or as I fondly have started calling it, Medical Freak Camp.  I will be back there as an inpatient at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center for at least 3 weeks of testing and, hopefully, treatment.  Our goal is to find the little rogue tumor that is causing my Cushing's Syndrome, but that seems to be eluding any and all means of finding it so far.  In between all the medical fun, I plan taking in as many of the attractions in our Nation's capital as possible, and maybe even attend a Nationals game or two. I don't know how much I'll be up to doing, but I'm never one to let an unfilled moment go by if I can help it.

As soon as I get admitted to the Clinical Center on the 12th, I will have a mailing address that I will publish here on The Cush Life blog.  This blog will hopefully be part information dispensing, life-as-irony commentorium, travel log, and crazy medical case study.  Not to mention a mini lesson on the inside happenings of the NIH. Please feel free to visit often and comment freely on The Cush Life.  I appreciate all input including sightseeing ideas, humorous anecdotes, pictures of cute puppies and kitties, and just notes to say hi.