Monday, March 16, 2009

I Can't Workout For 2 Weeks :-(

I just got discharged from hospital a couple hours ago, after spending the last 3 days in there...

Friday night around mid-night, just after I got into bed I felt some blood trickling down the back of my throat. I got up figuring I just had a nosebleed from the dry air in the house from having the electric heat on, something that does happen to me occasionally in the wintertime.

But this one wasn't like a normal nosebleed because I couldn't stop it. I tried pinching my nose for 15 minutes, tried packing it with cotton swabs and antiseptic gel, and all that stuff that you should do to get rid of a nosebleed, while these things helped slow down the bleeding a bit, it didn’t stop it.

So getting a bit worried I went to the emergency room at the Health Science Hospital. The emergency room doctor used a freeze spay to numb my nose, then packed it with a gauze soaked in mixture of adrenaline and cocaine to help constrict the blood vessels... But it didn't work, my nose was still bleeding!

So then they sent me to Saint Clare's Hospital (another hospital here in town) where they are better equipped to deal with nosebleeds. Anyway, to make a long story short after a while of poking, probing, and vacuum suctioning the blood away the ENT specialist found out that there was a blood vessel broken deep inside my nose.

So to stop the bleeding he packed it with a nasal pack that looked like a 5 inch styrofoam Popsicle stick and he jammed the full thing right into my nose! Talk about painful, I screamed out loud and said some things that I won’t repeat here. Then he squirted some water like solution inside my nose to expand the pack.

This eventually controlled the bleeding because the pack was deep inside my nasal passage and putting pressure on the broken blood vessel. Then the fun part... the doc said:

"We're going to have to keep you in here for at least 48 hours to make sure it doesn't start bleeding again."

Anyway after 3 days and 2 luxurious nights of being bedridden, doped up on painkillers, and dining on the "fine hospital cuisine" I'm home again. And the worst part is that I'm not allowed to workout or do anything strenuous for full 2 weeks because I may accidentally break open the blood vessel again.

That's the worse one for me. I can't remember the last time I took 2 weeks off from working out all together. Heck, even if I'm injured I'd still go to the gym and work around the injury. But this time around I can’t do anything physically demanding. I'm sure the break from the gym will probably be for the greater good in the big picture, but for now it's going to be a long 2 weeks...
















Here I am typing up this blog post wearing my fancy "moustache bandage" to help catch the drainage from my sinuses... fun stuff :-(

60 comments:

  1. Lee.. that sucks BIG time. Hope you heal up.. Stay away from the gym and heal! Sometimes taking a week or two off once a year can really help in the long run (Proper healing)

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  2. Wishing a speedy recovery for you!

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  3. hahah! Lee you look funny, but pain for not working out must be greater, take care and recover we are waiting for new things

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  4. Wish you'll fell better soon Lee, we need you heathy.

    Best regards,
    Soslan.

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  5. Not good Lee, was that caused by working out?

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  6. First thing i thought of after reading your latest blog -

    http://www.soonerinprovo.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/total_recall_12.jpg

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  7. Hi Lee,

    You still look good, except that little thing on your nose :-). Take care!

    Tvan

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  8. that SO sucks! I used to get nosebleeds quite a bit, then I started taking massive doses of Vitamin C.

    Not sure it would help in your case, but it helped me.

    Anyway, sounds like you had an ordeal. I hope you fully recover.

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  9. Dang...You poor thing!! Now that's a BAD nosebleed!!! Looking at the bright side, it could be worse. Two weeks will go by quickly, I hope!!!!

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  10. I understand exactly how you feel. My sport is dragonboat racing. In Dec. I was selected into the state team. The National Titles are on in 5 weeks time. Last week I injured my shoulder doing an erg test for team selection in my club and now I can do nothing for 2 weeks. What do we do to manage this frustration and disappointment?

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  11. Sorry to hear your news. The rest will probably do you good. I remember 4 years ago I took 4 weeks away from the gym due to prostate surgery. I hated being away from the gym that long but it also helped my tendon injuries to heal. Enjoy your time off.

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  12. Lee, are you sure your ol' lady didnt punch you in the nose?LOL!! hey bro, i had my whole face crushed in an attempted robbery( they never got the leather jacket they wanted though!) anyways I know your pain and some,however,they put 2and a half feet of packing inside my face to hold it all together! the worst part was them pulling it out after everthing healed! I really hope this dont have to happen to you when your healed! they had to tie my arms to the chair! good luck man, at least your still here..god bless!

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  13. o man...wow that sucks...Wish you a quick and full recovery.

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  14. Lee that is so horrible to hear about man. I'm bummed for you. To honor you, I will make sure to workout tonight since I just got home from work. This one will be for you man. I hope these two weeks blow by and you are 150% afterwards.

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  15. Wow. This is terrible. I used to get pretty bad nose bleeds but never had to wear The Moustache.

    Hope all is well now.
    Get well soon.

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  16. Get Well Soon Lee!!!!

    Take Care...

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  17. OH MY GOD! Lee no way man! I'm not trying to tell a pro like your self what to do, but maybe your body is trying to tell you give it a break. I'm no pro lifter, nor am I a doctor, but if I were lifting as heavy as you do week after week and that happened to me... I would take a month off plus I would do some research on my supplements ingredients to look for possible side affects that might trigger what happened to you. Eather way I would still cut off supplemets for a while and just stick to good old home cooked meals for a while, but thats just me. You do what you have to do. I'll say a prayer for a quick recovery for you Lee. Get well soon. God Bless.
    Robert Valdes

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  18. hey lee!!! I´m Bruno, one of your followers.
    I hope you get well soon.

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  19. Get well soon!
    That's f... life!
    Steve Donan
    Pasadena

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  20. Wow, that is crazy...my nose has been bleeding these last two days...not that long though...ugh...5-10 minutes total each day!

    Greg Alvarado
    pwrlftr242lbs@hotmail.com

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  21. Lee,
    Sorry to hear about your incident. I will include you in my prayers!

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  22. Hey Lee, hope you feel better really soon !!!!!!!! don't like seeing you hurt like that bro, but yah make sure you take those 2 weeks off, ive had many setbacks too, just gotta work through them. ull be back in the gym in no time bro!!

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  23. It's just a temporary setback, bro. You'll come back stronger and more determined than before!!

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  24. Sorry to hear that Lee. Hope you'll get better very soon. By the way have you got a hypertension history before or have you been on any kind of food supplements, particularly herbal like garlic, gingko biloba?

    Best,

    Cem

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  25. Hi Lee,

    Hope you'll get well soon! That's what concerns me, as we age our body tends to show some wear and tear. All in all we should age gracefully.

    Cheers,
    Dave
    a fan from Kuala Lumpur

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  26. crazy stuff dude....i hope u feel better soon :)

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  27. Hey lee , get well soon
    And i must say thnk you , you tips are workin like a charm.. and i shall post some developments soon
    well till tc n get well soon

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  28. Hi Lee, hope u get well soon & get back to the gym. Take good care of yourself.

    Chrs,
    Roddy

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  29. get well soon Lee! i read your blog regularly.

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  30. Lee,

    Bad news here too, I am suffering from duedonitis and doctors have give n me some medicines that would suppress the acid formation in my stomach, So I am unable to eat as much as I could and I still went to gym for some light workouts, but then I got mouth ulcers due to some infection and have nose bleed from the past 15days. I will be back in 3 months time, You are luckier than me.

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  31. Get well boss! Looking big in that photo too. from Poncho! :D

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  32. bad news that m8!do u think it will affect your body in any way?maybe a break will do u some good?

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  33. Take care Lee we're with you through the tough times too....you will probably clean up allot of that paperwork you might have stacking up around the house.

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  34. Nelson ( Herc ) Rivera,

    Sorry to hear of your nose bleed. I hope that you get better and get back to doing what you like Training.
    I just started recieving your Free 10-Part Bodybuilding Tips e-course and I am enjoying it very much.
    Keep up the good work Lee.. Herc.

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  35. Lee, Get well soon and think of it this way, you will grow while not working out. :-)

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  36. on the bright side, you will come back fresh and ready to get after it...God bless bro.

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  37. Bad luck Lee. Be positive. There must be a dozen things you've been putting of doing...Now's your chance! Besides your joints will probably enjoy the break. I've been training 47 years and mine really need a break from time to time. I always come back fitter, stronger and rarin' to go! Me and another old guy will be Blastin our Bench in a few weeks and I'll keep you posted. Get well soon mate. Little John McKeown

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  38. Hey, speedy recovery. Someone mentioned Vit C, but better yet try Vit K which improves blood coagulation. You can get a supplement, but I recommend eating orange peels which are kind of tart but super high in Vit K. Plus you get the C boost from the orange :-)

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  39. Sad to hear that, hope you recover soon, for the meantime take care.

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  40. Oh Lee, I really feel for you :( I had a stent placed in my heart artery a couple years ago and had to abstain from the gym totally for 2 wks, I used to go to the gym, close my eyes and just smell the place.... That was really helpful. Get better soon and keep the faith!!
    Janelle/ Oklahoma City

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  41. OH GAWD LEE!!! Take care of yourself! Do take time off and heal!! Any strenuous exercises could reopen the vessel and YOU KNOW THAT MEANS! More lean cuisine hospital goodies!

    Get well soon sweetie!

    HUGS from TEXAS!

    Irma

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  42. Wow, sorry to hear that Lee. Stay positive and get better. - Did they tell you what caused it?

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  43. Yah I feel ya on that. I just started getting back into my workouts and spring break at UT just came around the corner and now im back home no gym to go and not working out for 10 days. It sucks but I guess I do need a break once in a while.

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  44. If you get frequent nosebleeds for no obvious reason, have your doctor check you for HHT. The onset and severity of the bleed resembles those my sister gets and it is due to a hereditary blood vessel condition. I hope that is not the case, but it's best to identify the cause.

    Ken

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  45. Lee...Luckily, your incident is under control...I would seriously listen to my bodys' warning...I would take this "time off" to do some research on whether your demanding workouts and/or supplements was a factor in this occuring...this could of been alot more serious ...be thankful..but heed the warning ...
    Relax And Recharge.....


    Happy Healing
    Bev......

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  46. That must have been pretty alarming. Hope all heals well.

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  47. Hang in there, Lee. When the two weeks is up you will probably feel fresh and ready to tackle anything. Praying for a speedy recovery.

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  48. Thanks guys :-)

    So far so good, no bleeding, etc. I'm just taking it easy and keeping the inside of my nose moist by putting polysporin gel inside my nostrils a couple times a day.

    I've been prone to nose bleeds over the years, but this was the worst one I've ever had. Besides the pressure on the blood vessels from lifting and training, I think a lot of it has to do with the dry air in the house from having the heat on all winter. And the crazy temperature fluctuations we get here in Newfoundland, being an island out in the North Atlantic we can go from –10 degrees one day to +10 degrees the next day depending on the direction of the wind. (That's going from about 10 degrees to 50 degrees for those of you who use fahrenheit).

    I'm seriously considering moving somewhere that's nice and warm year round, any suggestions :-)

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  49. hi lee..i can feel wat u r goin thru...2 weeks of no workout..damn..but hey heres the light..u wrote in ur blog earlier tht muscles need rest to repair themselves..so i guess u were not allowing them the repair time and ur body decided to take revenge lols :D get well soon
    regards,
    Salik (from Pakistan)

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  50. Come to California. At least you won't have to travel too far for those seminars you attend and muscle beach is on your doorstep.

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  51. Hey Lee, How about Vancouver and Victoria?

    That is where I live and the weather is not tropical but as close as you can get in Canada I guess.

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  52. Hey Lee,
    I just got done doing my morning cardio (XL Glider + AB Ripper 200 routine). I was thinking about your recent health issues, so right after my workout I went to check my email to see if there were any further developments, And there you were telling everyone how much better your doing. I know you can't wait to hit the weights again Lee! You first words when this happened to you might have been -I'LL BE BACK!- Don't be too anxious to get started. Giving yourself enough time to heal is is more important in order to prevent this from happening again. The rest will start new muscle growth even when going back to the same program. This type of layoff works well for me whenever I reach a plateau type situation. If I were in your spot... I would start my first week back with a moderate weight pyramid routine just to send signals to the body that I'm ready to go again. Second week I'd go back to my regular routine with caution! Well its lunch time Gotta go now. Glad your feeling better. STAY COOL DUDE! Oops... I mean stay warm.
    God bless
    Robert Valdes

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  53. Hello!
    'm surprised someone else still gets nosebleeds aside from me. Most people grow out of it or can take something for it but I'm not that lucky. Hope you heal well, cause I'm new to bodybuilding and I'm gonna need some tips so get well soon.

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  54. hope u get better soon ..

    I know some natural things thats may help u:

    1- Achillea Millefolium well help u, i'm sure about it, cuz i tried it befor. just read about how 2 use it.

    2- Shepherd’s Purse can helps also, cuz it has Vitamin K, i have never tried that.

    hope thats help u

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  55. Hope you get better soon mate,
    regards from England.

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  56. you remind me about something happened to me, a couple of moths ago, for 3 days every time I wake up in the morning and go wash my face, I start bleeding and i had to go to school with a piece of cotton in my nose, I hated it. So what I've done is, the next morning I washed my face reaaally carefully around my nose without even touchin it, I didn't wanted to have cotton in my nose again, and it really helped me.
    Just wanted to share,
    I wish you a fast recovery.

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  57. hey, as they say something that does not kill you makes you stronger, btw wts ure diet plan during all this

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  58. heyyy . .. . lee ! how r u now ??? I pray to God that He will heal you soon. hope for the best. takecare. bye

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  59. Hi Lee, Hope you get well soon!

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