Forgive me, LJ, for I have lagged....
It has been six months since my last entry.
Since then, life has continued.
My back was extremely bad, to a point where I couldn't walk, starting in early October. By mid-November, I took myself to the ER only to have a hack of an MD berate me for abusing the system (since I have a family doctor two hours away, I should have visited her), for using the emergency room when it wasn't an emergency (hello? I couldn't walk!) and for not being satisfied when he prescribed me twenty days worth of Naproxin. I didn't go to the hospital for pills, I went for answers. -_- And then, when I asked him to prescribe physiotherapy, he didn't know what I wanted.
Me: Would you mind giving me a piece of paper so I can show my insurance company and my physio-therapist that I've seen a doctor and that I require physio?
Him: I'm not sure what you want.
Me: I need a prescription for physio, for my insurance, and for the therapist, so the therapist has a basis for treatment.
Him: What do you want?
Me: *getting ready to shove his clipboard up his self-important ..., yeah >.>* I need a requisition for physio, to show my insurance and therapist!
Him: ....oooooh, a requisition.
Me: -_- Yes. Please.
Then he had the nerve to tell me my back was in muscle spasms and it would just go away with anti-inflamitories and heat. Don't patronize me. I've had back pain longer than I can remember; I know the difference between something out of place, a muscle spasm and something new, severe and needing immediate attention. Idiot. Be proud of me, I didn't scream, yell, cry or use obscenities, no matter how tempting it was. I did let him know I disagreed with his diagnosis (he didn't even examine me, he was too busy telling me why I shouldn't have been there) and that I would be getting a second opinion. He didn't take that well. He took his clipboard and went home. :P
Anyhoo, thanks to my family MD, I had a series of x-rays on my back. Then, she scheduled an MRI. I was fearing the worst: either they were going to tell me there was nothing wrong with me and it was all in my head, or it was cancer around the base of my spine. The good(?) news is it's not nothing, and it's not cancer. It's osteoarthritis (the old woman's disease) and a protruding disk. The protruding disk is compromising a nerve, causing the intense discomfort. The arthritis is the general ache and limited mobility. Ha! Take that Mr. ER MD!
From my online research, I've found that the arthritis should be manageable with supplements and low-impact, minimal weight bearing exercise. The protruding disk is another story. 10% of all cases require surgery to correct it, 80% self-correct with exercise and the other 10% have options in between. I see the specialist on Wednesday, hopefully to find a working plan of action.
One of the MDs I saw prescribed Celebrex. Turns out, I have one of those "If you suffer from any of these symptoms ... stop taking immediately and contact your physician" type reactions. Whee. And Naproxin lists a rare side-effect of "extreme fatigue". Yep, got that, too. So, it's back to Advil, or other over-the-counter things until I find something else that might work.
In other news, Ruggy's gone to day shift, so now we have a normal schedule, with Mon-Fri work, he's home in the evenings and all weekends. Can we say 'Yay!'? :D
Pinny's cruising through grade 1, reading at at least a grade 3 level, and having a ball. Beanie's talking up a storm, making friends in the church nursery, and generally being 2. We're so proud of them both. They get along very well together and with all the other kids they come in contact with. They are respectful of all people and polite. They truly are joys to be with. :P
Prayer requests:
* That the specialist will be a help, that we will find some course of action that works, and the right combination of pain medication - so I will be pain free and still able to function normally.
* Our pastor resigned last week (he was NOT asked to leave by the board, this is a decision he and his wife made based on prayer and their walk with God... and he's retiring). Pray that our church is led to the right new pastor for the area. Pray that we, as a church, will grow together, and closer to the Father, and that our decisions will bring glory to Him. Pray that our leaving pastor will be blessed in his new city, that he will find a church where he will be able to use his gifts and abilities to honour God.
* That I'll be able to figure out a way to replace Sketchy (the laptop). He's not doing well, and I'm getting very tired of the random blue-screen-of-deaths. The financing for that doesn't seem to be in the cards, for now. :(
I'm off to say seven "Hail Frank"s, then I'm logging back into Dofus. >:D
What Be Your Nerd Type?
Your Result: Literature Nerd
Does sitting by a nice cozy fire, with a cup of hot tea, and a book you can read for hours even when your eyes grow red and dry and you look sort of scary sitting there with your insomniac appearance? Then you fit this category perfectly! You love the power of the written word and its eloquence; and you may like to read/write poetry or novels. You contribute to the smart people of today's society, however you can probably be overly-critical of works.
It's okay. I understand.
Drama Nerd
Musician
Artistic Nerd
Gamer/Computer Nerd
Science/Math Nerd
Social Nerd
Anime Nerd
What Be Your Nerd Type?
Quizzes for MySpace
Since then, life has continued.
My back was extremely bad, to a point where I couldn't walk, starting in early October. By mid-November, I took myself to the ER only to have a hack of an MD berate me for abusing the system (since I have a family doctor two hours away, I should have visited her), for using the emergency room when it wasn't an emergency (hello? I couldn't walk!) and for not being satisfied when he prescribed me twenty days worth of Naproxin. I didn't go to the hospital for pills, I went for answers. -_- And then, when I asked him to prescribe physiotherapy, he didn't know what I wanted.
Me: Would you mind giving me a piece of paper so I can show my insurance company and my physio-therapist that I've seen a doctor and that I require physio?
Him: I'm not sure what you want.
Me: I need a prescription for physio, for my insurance, and for the therapist, so the therapist has a basis for treatment.
Him: What do you want?
Me: *getting ready to shove his clipboard up his self-important ..., yeah >.>* I need a requisition for physio, to show my insurance and therapist!
Him: ....oooooh, a requisition.
Me: -_- Yes. Please.
Then he had the nerve to tell me my back was in muscle spasms and it would just go away with anti-inflamitories and heat. Don't patronize me. I've had back pain longer than I can remember; I know the difference between something out of place, a muscle spasm and something new, severe and needing immediate attention. Idiot. Be proud of me, I didn't scream, yell, cry or use obscenities, no matter how tempting it was. I did let him know I disagreed with his diagnosis (he didn't even examine me, he was too busy telling me why I shouldn't have been there) and that I would be getting a second opinion. He didn't take that well. He took his clipboard and went home. :P
Anyhoo, thanks to my family MD, I had a series of x-rays on my back. Then, she scheduled an MRI. I was fearing the worst: either they were going to tell me there was nothing wrong with me and it was all in my head, or it was cancer around the base of my spine. The good(?) news is it's not nothing, and it's not cancer. It's osteoarthritis (the old woman's disease) and a protruding disk. The protruding disk is compromising a nerve, causing the intense discomfort. The arthritis is the general ache and limited mobility. Ha! Take that Mr. ER MD!
From my online research, I've found that the arthritis should be manageable with supplements and low-impact, minimal weight bearing exercise. The protruding disk is another story. 10% of all cases require surgery to correct it, 80% self-correct with exercise and the other 10% have options in between. I see the specialist on Wednesday, hopefully to find a working plan of action.
One of the MDs I saw prescribed Celebrex. Turns out, I have one of those "If you suffer from any of these symptoms ... stop taking immediately and contact your physician" type reactions. Whee. And Naproxin lists a rare side-effect of "extreme fatigue". Yep, got that, too. So, it's back to Advil, or other over-the-counter things until I find something else that might work.
In other news, Ruggy's gone to day shift, so now we have a normal schedule, with Mon-Fri work, he's home in the evenings and all weekends. Can we say 'Yay!'? :D
Pinny's cruising through grade 1, reading at at least a grade 3 level, and having a ball. Beanie's talking up a storm, making friends in the church nursery, and generally being 2. We're so proud of them both. They get along very well together and with all the other kids they come in contact with. They are respectful of all people and polite. They truly are joys to be with. :P
Prayer requests:
* That the specialist will be a help, that we will find some course of action that works, and the right combination of pain medication - so I will be pain free and still able to function normally.
* Our pastor resigned last week (he was NOT asked to leave by the board, this is a decision he and his wife made based on prayer and their walk with God... and he's retiring). Pray that our church is led to the right new pastor for the area. Pray that we, as a church, will grow together, and closer to the Father, and that our decisions will bring glory to Him. Pray that our leaving pastor will be blessed in his new city, that he will find a church where he will be able to use his gifts and abilities to honour God.
* That I'll be able to figure out a way to replace Sketchy (the laptop). He's not doing well, and I'm getting very tired of the random blue-screen-of-deaths. The financing for that doesn't seem to be in the cards, for now. :(
I'm off to say seven "Hail Frank"s, then I'm logging back into Dofus. >:D
What Be Your Nerd Type?
Your Result: Literature Nerd
Does sitting by a nice cozy fire, with a cup of hot tea, and a book you can read for hours even when your eyes grow red and dry and you look sort of scary sitting there with your insomniac appearance? Then you fit this category perfectly! You love the power of the written word and its eloquence; and you may like to read/write poetry or novels. You contribute to the smart people of today's society, however you can probably be overly-critical of works.
It's okay. I understand.
Drama Nerd
Musician
Artistic Nerd
Gamer/Computer Nerd
Science/Math Nerd
Social Nerd
Anime Nerd
What Be Your Nerd Type?
Quizzes for MySpace