all gout, all the time

So my sore foot just kept getting worse despite all efforts of rest so I returned to a doctor. One quick look and he just said 'gout' and prescribed some drugs.

I was a little sceptical and the list of side-effects of the colchicine was a little off-putting but I gave it a go. Well within a few hours all the pain was gone and within a day so was the redness and swelling of both feet.

I guess what I had the last couple of winters was also gout - even though it didn't really appear that way.

Drugs were the last thing I wanted but lifestyle wasn't doing it so that's that I guess. It's probably still going to take a while to get the dosages and medications correct but at least this rules out everything else and has me mobile enough to get back to living.

Despite the weather last weekend I hit the road for a ride intending to just visit friends but nobody was home so ended up doing the 65km round-trip city to coast triangle. It was cold and windy and I took it pretty easy (i'd only just taken the drugs a couple of days before) so it took me over 3 hours and fortunately I missed the rain. Despite freezing my knees and toes (the rest was rugged up adequately) it was more enjoyable than I expected.

Now, if only winter would end ... it's been bitterly cold this year.

Update: Through the last 3 weeks i had some symptoms return a couple of times. Taking some colchicine cleared it up and it seems to be reducing in frequency and intensity ... but yeah it's still around and that colchicine is not good stuff. I'm not really sure the allopurinol is helping or hurting just yet, or if diet is still an issue or not, or really resolved anything; something for the next dr visit. But apart from one day a week ago i've been mobile enough to live normally; although it's been cold, wet, and pretty bloody dull for the most part so it hasn't made much difference. At least the wet has cut the edge from the bitter cold so it feels like winter is finally on it's receding edge. Update 2: I went back to a doc and he took me off the allopurinol. That seems to have been keeping the gout going. So after a week or so its cleared up and i've not had an attack since. It's still a bit sore and not fully vanished but it's the best it's been for months and now i'm doing enough just to get sore from doing too much. I'm pretty much eating normally but i haven't tried grog yet.