My apologies, peeps: I've been rogue lately.
Was knocked on my butt last week with chest pains and shortness of breath. When I got home from picking up a few groceries on Wednesday evening at 7:30, I sat down to check my mail like I usually do, when I suddenly felt sharp pain in bands across my back and I was having noticeable trouble breathing. My breath was coming in short gasps. My roommate gave me a couple of muscle relaxers, as I thought it might be from my Fibromyalgia, but after thirty minutes I had no relief, and so she decided to take me to hospital.
I HATE going to hospitals. If you're not clearly dying or decapitated, then they make you sit in the ER forever; although, I've known a few who lost limbs and still weren't considered "trauma". My minimum that night was 2 hours before being seen by a doctor, and another 2 once I had been seen to await my test results.
The highlight of the evening had to come when they needed to do a CT scan for blood clots or tears in the aorta, but they couldn't get a vein for the IV. Finally, after yet another chest x-ray and blood work, they sent me home.
Fast-forward to the next night, and I'm still having pain and trouble breathing. The very handsome doctor whom I saw that night said the only choice left, was to get the IV and do the CT scan. I think I've had gynecological exams that were more pleasant. My veins run deep and they roll, so it's nearly impossible to get a good IV on me at anytime. Tonight was no exception. I think I stopped counting at twelve times for how many times they had to poke me, and they still ended up doing an EJ (external jugular), and that one they had to try for three different times. They were tenacious, I'll give 'em that.
But, as soon as they got the pain meds in, I didn't give a flip what they wanted to do after that.
A few hours later, and the handsome doctor returned with the verdict that I had a good case of pleurisy, which is an inflammation of the lining of the lungs. He sent me home with Percocet and orders to follow-up with an off-site doctor.
Here I am a week later, and having just as much pain and breathing trouble, but with no insurance, there is not going to be a doctor on the planet who will see me. So, it's either make another coma-inducing trip to the ER, or sit in agony, as I've done now for the last two days since running out of my medication. It burns me up when people begin bitching about health care, who truly have no real need for it. However, my Systemic Lupus precludes me from the requisite bitching about socialised health care.
Just sorta ootzy that way.
And now after a nice, long break from writing, I'm back, working through the pain. Think I'll take a break--my back is starting to hurt.
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