No Shoes, No Service
In case you get tired of reading before the end, I want to know if any of you have a Primary Care Doctor in the Phoenix/East Valley area that you can recommend. Today I am kicking mine to the curb and, as you will see, it's not the most convenient time to do so (but I'm wholly dissatisfied with the care I get there). If you have a suggestion, please email me using the link on my side bar or give me some indication in the comments (if you don't want to put there name on my blog) and I will email you for more info. TIA.
So....
There I am, sitting at my desk on a beautiful Friday afternoon -- Shoes in tact. I get up from my desk to take a little break and BAM! Huge pain in my leg. Hmmmm, I think to myself. I didn't do any crazy yoga or strange exercise that might have caused me to pull a muscle. Why does my leg hurt? On the way home I take off my shoe (carpool buddy was driving) and my toe hurts like a mo-fo. Fast forward an hour or two and I'm sicker than sick can be. But I think I can handle it. Fast forward another hour and I am asking the one who shall from now on be referred to as St. Pam the Euphoric to bring fluids to my house and make sure I am alive. Fast forward another hour and St. Pam is calling 911 for me and taking care of my pets and holding my purse and bringing me personal items and sorting through my mail, while a spend a few days at "Club Med-ical". (Is it becoming clear why she will now be referred to as "St. Pam"?) I got a horrible case of cellulitis in my leg and my body basically could not fight it. I got a really high fever and the ER Doc would not let me go home.
4 days, 12 bags of Antibiotics, 3 IV sets and ump-teen vials of blood later -- I'm home and feeling like myself again. My leg is practically back to normal and I learned a few lessons...
1. I should never walk around without shoes on. This is really a hard one for me. I love bare-footin'. But leg infections are a real drag. Therefore, I will protect my feet from evil bacteria. Except when bathing or swimming.
2. A fireman fantasy is much better than the reality. In reality, you will probably be too nauseous and delirious with fever to give them their due appreciation. I was just happy they were helping me to feel better.
3. It's ok to yell at your paramedics if they are ignoring you and saying inappropriate things in your presence. Apparently they are so used to being yelled at, that it will not even phase them. (*Note: Fireman show up and make sure you're really sick. THEN they call the ambulance which brings Paramedics who will take you to the hospital. However, it is better if you could call them at a convenient time and not during the first NHL playoff game...)
4. If your doctor is speaking to you in some beautiful baltic-style accent, remember to concentrate on the words he is saying and not just the beauty of the words. He's telling you some important stuff that you're going to need later.
5. Don't be shy about asking hospital staff for what you really need or for guidance on how things work. They are really overextended and if you don't ask, you may never know what's happening. On day 3, I found out that there actually a guide which tells you which channel is which on the television. This is kind of important when you stuck on your back with an IV in the crook of your elbow, making it impossible to knit. TV is the only thing the brain can handle.
6. Hospital food has taken on a gourmet edge. They give you a menu in your room and a 'Nutrition Counselor' stops by everyday to take your order. The title is funny to me because every day this lady would stop by and I would give her my lunch request and she would always ask me if I wanted to add a dessert. I'm thinking that dessert is the last thing that I should be adding to a nutritious meal. The head Chef (yeah, chef) at the hospital used to be an award-winning chef at a hoity-toity resort and so everything came looking all pretty, drizzled with this or that, and always a slice of fruit or two. Tres Classy.
I am really grateful for all the phone calls and visitors I received while on my surprise vacation from reality. It makes that kind of a thing a bajillion times more bearable.
After my IV was moved for the 2nd time, I was able to knit and made good progress on my Gansey Tee. I also read a lot and tried my hand (brain?) at Sudoku. And began an addiction to the TV show Lost. I'm only 5 episodes in, but I think I understand why people are hooked.
If you're still reading and have a doctor you love, please give me their name... Mine didn't have any of my hospital records or test results and didn't think it was important enough to get them while I was there so we could discuss them. I gave them all the info they needed to retreive them 5 days ago. And they wondered why my BP was elevated (but didn't take any action,of course). Yeah, time to move on.
Posted by Mel at 10:34 PM
