2004-08-18 - 4:18 a.m.
So someone does read this stuff.
On further reflection this is just a bit of an extension of the small journal I keep daily (sorta� kinda�) Maybe a back up copy lest mine be devoured by a wombat.
Modern medicine is not really either. Sure there are lots of fancy gadgets now, but have we advanced at all in the last 50 years?
I say this because I spent Sunday night and Monday morning in the emergency room at UNC. Having personally spent a whole lot of time in emergency rooms, I consider myself a bit of a coinsure. I will say that when there is a visible problem; a large hole in the arm, a screwdriver stuck through the first knuckle, bone sticking out of the lower part of the leg, ect. The modern emergency room swings into action and (mostly) deals with the problem. But if you present yourself with an invisible aliment, well it�s a good idea to bring a book, several magazines, and possibly some knitting.
I awoke on Monday morning with a very sharp pain in my lower right abdomen. Having accepted the fact that my body is rebelling against many years of abuse, I�m never terribly concerned when one section or another falls into all out mutiny. I worked through the day with an ache in my side, very similar to the pain you sometimes get while running, except that I wasn�t running anywhere, and it was getting increasingly difficult to walk anywhere.
Sleep is my cure all of choice, so I lay down for a while before I went to pick up my wife around 5:30. It was much worse when I woke up, worse still when I got home, and by the time we sat down to watch the Olympics at 8:00 I couldn�t do much but lie one the couch like a landed carp.
We looked on-line for symptoms of appendicitis.
Sharp pain in lower right abdomen: Check
Swolen abdomen: Check
Nausea: Check
Fever: Check
Headache: Check
Pain increases when body is jostled: Check
Blood in Stool: Maybe, but I�m not making sure.
We also called Jill�s Dad, Tom Covert MD, who advised that we get to the hospital pretty soon.
It�s important to mention here that unless I have a visible problem, and a serious one at that, you can�t get me into a hospital with two strong men and a box of fresh Krispy Kreams.
I did not want to go, long experience had taught me that if the problem cannot be seen with the naked eye, not matter how sever the pain, you are better off staying home with the chicken soup and a good book.
My wife went to sleep around 12:00, I was going to stay up and try to work, but I gave up around two. I just couldn�t do anything, I couldn�t breath and every step was killing me. I sat down at the computer and read through the symptoms again, and decided that the possibility of dying because I was too stubborn to go to the hospital would not be very good for my family. I got Jill up and drove to UNC.
I�ll say that the night crew was actually pretty good. I was lying in a bed in the emergency room about ten minutes after I walked in the door. Was checked out by a resident who seemed pretty competent. I�ll spare you the details, but I will mention that lubricant was used. Got an IV, and had lots of blood drawn for testing. I also began drinking two quarts of �contrast� a vile tasting concoction of some heavy metal that won�t kill you but makes your insides show up nicely on the CT scan. You can either drink it, or they can but a tube through your nose and pump it into your stomach. After the first quart I considered the tube. I was also given morphine, (maybe) either the dose was very small, or my body remembers the good old days, because the only effect was more nausea.
I had my CT around 5:00 in the morning, waited for the results, re-explained my symptoms to the next shift at 7:00, (Don�t they have charts !?�) The nurse that came on shift on the morning was actually looking at my chart when she asked me if I was finished with my contrast, then said, �oh, actually you�ve already had your CT� Maybe you had to be there.
So the doctor comes in around 7:30 and declares that my appendix could model in intestine boy, and that there was almost zero chance of appendicitis. Most likely I have some kind of infection or flu or whatever and I should go home and get some rest.
OK fine you can�t do anything, now let me go home. We waited for about thirty minutes for someone to come in and unhook me from the IV and sign us out. I sent Jill out to ask if someone could come and do exactly that. They told her that they were finishing my paperwork and that someone would be there soon. I could have understood if they had been busy, but there were only two people in my bay, and I was one of them, after another half hour of sitting there I was getting more than a bit impatient. I pulled the IV out, popped my wrist tag off and we walked out the front door.
I expected someone to say something as we walked by the nurses station, but nothing, we just walked to the car and drove home. I suppose I need to go by there sometime and actually sign out but I�m still fairly pissed. I�ll wait until I�m actually feeling better.
Aftermath: It�s been two days now, I don�t feel much different now than when I first walked into the ER. I hope I get better soon. The only good thing that came of any of this is an even deeper appreciation of my wife. It was really nice to have her there with me especially since she does not like to stay up late at all, and had to miss an important meeting today because of it. She�s the best.
Justus
