Light at the End of a Long Tunnel

Well, it's been a nasty couple of weeks.

Last Monday, I got to the point where I couldn't swallow anything, not even water. I called NHS Direct and they made me an urgent appointment at the hospital, who decided to keep me in overnight. An overnight stay turned into a week, most of which I spent on a drip (to keep me hydrated).

One of the most frustrating things about this whole experience is that since April I've been referred from department to department for tests and consultations, with weeks or even months between appointments. Once I was in hospital however, there was a new sense of urgency that I'd not seen before, which was quite refreshing. I was put on a drip and had blood tests within about an hour, was sent for a chest x-ray within two, and was in a bed within twelve. The next day, I was taken for an endoscopy.

An endoscopy is a procedure where a flexible tube with a camera attached is fed down your throat, so that doctors can examine it in detail. It's usually done under sedation, but not in my case. I was given a throat spray! Having an endoscopy without being sedated is akin to being raped in the throat. I was held down by one doctor, who put something in my mouth which was supposed to hold it open (like a ball gag of sorts). Another doctor then fed the surprisingly large endoscope through that and down my throat (I had to try to swallow to help it down). It was uncomfortable at first, but the further down it went, the more uncomfortable and even painful it became (the highlight of the pain was when they used the endoscope to push through into my stomach, then took biopsies). At one point, I began to retch so violently that I actually burst some of the tiny blood vessels around my eyes - the doctor's reaction to this was to simply go 'ssssh' and assure me that I was doing well.

I had another unpleasant procedure the following day, called Manometry, which involved a smaller tube being fed through my nose and down my throat. It was used to measure the pressures in my throat at various points, while I swallowed some sips of water.

Anyway, after all of these tests, it was confirmed that I have Achalasia, which is a neuromuscular disorder affecting the aesophagus. It's a permanent condition that will never go away, and I'll never be able to eat the same way again. However, they can treat the symptoms somewhat, and I'm seeing a surgeon next Monday. I'll need to go into hospital again for the procedure, which is pretty serious (it involves deflating a lung so that they can get to the bit they need to get to), so I expect to wake up with lots of nasty things attached to me and to be there for about a week. In the meantime I'm on medication which helps me to eat and drink a limited range of things, and I've been prescribed nutrient drinks.

There is light at the end of the tunnel. Once I've had the surgery, I'm told I'll be able to eat most things again, and I can't wait to go out for a nice curry with my mates, and have some nice wine. There are other positive things about this experience too. I've lost almost four stone since I was on TV, and I'm now at the low border of my healthy weight range rather than the high one. People are actually remarking on how healthy I look!

Of course, Poker has had to take a back seat to this whole problem, and since April I've barely played . Not eating properly makes you tired and weak - and that combined with starting a new job and working early mornings did not equal poker success. I'm looking forward to getting back into the game properly and making the rest of the year as profitable as possible! Over the last few months I've had to turn down some fantastic poker opportunities, such as free entry into the Johnny Chan TCI Invitational, and work covering the European Poker Tour in London. In the coming months, I'm going to make it a mission of mine to win - and that starts with the Paddy Power UK Poker Tour in Edinburgh in the next few days.

Wish me luck.