I currently have a "cold". Not a big deal. Let it run its course. Drink lots of fluids. Take over-the-counter medication for symptoms. No need to see the doctor and definitely no need for antibiotics. UNLESS you are me.
We are going to take a journey back through time because I'm not sure when this all started. About 5 years ago, I got pretty sick in January and it took me out. I lost my voice, I coughed, I was stuffy, I was achy, I was miserable. I went to the doctor and they prescribed some meds and did bloodwork even. This incident lasted almost 2 months. I was sick for 2 months! Let me just say, I think that alone is ridiculous.
Since my doctors never really reached a diagnosis, I tried to be logical. I thought maybe I had developed allergies and my thought process was that if I could prevent from being THAT sick again, I would. I went straight to the top and was allergy tested. Intradermal, skin prick allergy testing. I was ready to start my allergy shots and do whatever else I needed to hit this head on. I was so almost excited to go to the consult to discuss my allergies when I went in and was told I am not allergic to ANYTHING. Nothing. I only reacted to the histamine. Who on this planet isn't allergic to anything?!
So, I regrouped. Maybe it was just a really bad cold/illness that my body struggled with. Maybe it was a one-time deal, blip on the screen. OK. Moved to Summerville, got pregnant. Had "pregnancy nose" with my first child. Had her and moved to Charleston. Got really, really sick again one Spring.
Side note: because my upper respiratory problems always, always led to cough and asthmatic like symptoms, I have an inhaler. This inhaler was one I only ever had to use when I was "sick". It was a little confusing because I don't have allergies and I don't have asthma.
Back to being sick one Spring. My doctor at that time prescribed Singulaire and told me to take Mucinex, Claritin and a Z-pack. It worked, but then about 2 or 3 weeks later I got sick again. We did it again and it worked but came back. I then went to her for the 3rd time. She changed up a few things and said if it continued, I was getting a referral. Time moved on, I changed insurance and doctors and such.
Christmas came that year and I stayed sick from Christmas until May. Really. I was sick for FIVE (5) months. I was on meds here and there but nothing "worked". It would be managed and then I would get really, really sick again. We even checked the house for mold. We looked into all kinds of things. NO answers.
Fast-forward to this Spring. April to be exact. I got sick (yes, again). Coughing, inhaler, antibiotics, Singulaire, you name it. Went next door from my job to a Doctor's First place and he put me on a Z-pack, inhaler, Singulaire, Zyrtec. Finished the Z-pack and went back in one week, no better. This time I got 2 injections: 1 antibiotic, 1 steroid. Another Z-pack. All the otc stuff. Went back the next week, still no better. Got another 2 injections, another antibiotic pack, told to stay on the antihistamines and singulaire for another 30 days after my appointment. This was confusing to me, so I questioned him. I told him it didn't make sense that I don't have allergies. He said this year was much, much worse for allergies and the amount of allergens in the air was causing a reaction. OK.......
I had made an appointment for a new primary care physician for May. So, in May I had finished the month-long medications as directed (it was a decent month) but I went off them just in time for my appointment and I was sick again. She listened to the whole story and because I had been allergy tested within the last 5 years, she wanted to send me to the pulmonologist. Put me back on a z-pack, all the other meds, made the referral.
Went to the pulmonologist who did breathing tests, did a SouthEast allergen blood panel, told me to try allegra daily in lieu of the other antihistamines since they weren't very effective for me, told me to continue Singulaire daily, advised Flonase daily and inhaler as needed. Re-check with her 6 weeks later (after a couple of rescheduled appointments). She stated my blood panel showed no allergens. She reiterated the "bad spring" talk. Sent me to the ENT doctor.
Went on Tuesday to the ENT. I have now been on the following medications daily:
Synthroid for low thyroid
Sertraline (Zoloft) because I need to be happy
Singulaire for my lungs
Allegra for my LACK of ALLERGIES
Flonase for my LACK of ALLERGIES
Melatonin to help me sleep
Biotin for hair loss due to stress(you think?), prescribed by dermatologist on a different visit non-related to this post
He had me breathe in some aerosol synephrine and lidocaine then put a scope into my sinuses. He said they are definitely inflamed, right worse than left. He also said my insurance company will not cover a CT scan of my sinuses until I have fulfilled a full regimen 3 different antibiotics. He also said there is an uncommon scenario of a parasympathetic neuro problem that will physically cause the nose to secrete more and so he prescribed me the nose spray to treat that in case that's what it is. So, now we add to the regimen:
Augmentin for the insurance company
Another nose spray in case it's a bizarre parasympathetic issue
Then, I get really sick. Like called in to work yesterday because I am so miserable I can't stand it. It's moving to my lungs. While I don't have allergies, I DO have diagnosed reactive airway disease when means anytime I get "sick", I get SICK. I added in my inhaler and Mucinex. And an OTC antihistamine with decongestant. I have to finish this course of Augmentin so I can't get the CT scan until August 30.
Here I sit, feeling sorry for myself and hoping and praying the CT scan shows something that can actually be fixed. How do you explain calling in to work for a cold that makes you really, really sick to the point of debilitating and this barrage of medication when you have no allergies?! So, as the title of this post suggests, hand over the cough syrup and no one gets hurt.
Saturday, August 18, 2012
Sunday, August 12, 2012
Dichotomy
“Money will buy you a fine dog, but only love can make it wag its tail” – Richard Friedman
"Anyone obtaining a dog or cat as a pet accepts a responsibility for that animal's care and existence for the rest of its life." - Bonnard L. Moseley
Both of these quotes are very true, and both symbolize one of the biggest problems I see with veterinary medicine today. On one hand, pets provide us with a sense of devotion and love and unquestioned acceptance. Pet ownership is a global phenomenon that started way back in the time before civilization when there was a symbiotic relationship formed between wolves and man. It progressed to work animals and to cats worshiped as royalty and today we continue to see a change in that bond as now pets have become family members. We LOVE them, they are so important to us, everybody needs a furry, 4-legged love in their life....right?
On the other hand, pets are a responsibility. A responsibility for a life. Once we have one, we are responsible for making all decisions pertaining to that pet's well-being. It's not free. They get sick. They get into accidents. They have parallel medical conditions to those experienced by humans. They have pain perception and personalities and feelings. They experience everything we do, and are subject to the consequences of the decisions we make for them.
So? What's the problem?
I am concerned about pet ownership becoming an elitist luxury, but at the same time I don't think anyone should be denied the ability to have a pet. It happens too often that in an exam room I am told how much someone loves their pet in one breath, and in the very next one they can't afford its treatment. It literally comes down to the dollar. Where do we draw the line and who gets to decide?
Who am I to say that if you can't afford a $1,000 knee surgery that your pet needs to be able to walk comfortably for the rest of its life, then either the pet doesn't get surgery and suffers or you have to find a way to pay $1000 even though your husband just got laid off and your kid needs braces?
Who am I to say that you have to pay $3000 because your beloved little dog slipped a disc in its back and without surgery the condition will decline and it will kill your pet because its bladder will rupture so we will euthanize it even though it is only 4 years old and you've gotten it spayed and kept it on heart worm preventative and fed it good food and "done everything right" and loved it like a child?
Who am I to say that I know you are on social security and your husband passed and now this little cat is your ONLY companion, and your grand-kids got it for you after he passed and the cat eats, sleeps and breathes with you but you can not afford to "take care of it"?
Then, there is the imaginary stamp I own that is bright red, with a big bold border around it, and I place it diagonally across the chart that simply reads "REVOKED". It literally covers the entire page in the chart from corner to corner. It's for the the people who "can't" afford to treat this pet or the 2 others they have at home and then they come in next week with a puppy they got on Craigslist and "saved" it. Or the people who go adopt 2 new kittens after putting down their cat last week because they couldn't treat hyperthyroid disease. Or the people who are on disability and have a new $400 Yorkie. Or the people who come in and get vaccines but will not keep it on preventative care, but are flying out next week for a family vacation to Las Vegas and have a brand new Altima in the parking lot. I always play in my mind that I'm stamping the REVOKED stamp on the charts of these owners, forbidding them the ability to ever own a pet again.
All of these events are normal, every day happenings. NOT exceptional. We see it all the time.
It costs money to go to veterinary school and run blood work and correct these issues. It costs money to pay the technicians and to buy vaccines and to run anesthesia. It costs money to have the power and air conditioning on in the building. It costs money to do a major surgery or even do a physical exam. We are not able to treat these pets for free and there is no financial back-up system in place for pets.
I don't have any answers for this, but I sure do see it as a problem that is not being addressed. It's overwhelming and disheartening and disappointing.
I want the little old lady to get to keep her cat. I want the student to be able to provide back surgery for her dog and get to keep it for the rest of its expected 8-12 years. I want to revoke ownership to the lady who "can't afford" her pets and saves another on Craigslist. I want to revoke ownership if you will not provide the basics for your pet. I want to yell, "Don't get a pet if you can't afford to take care of it!!!!" and then I want to help find a way to help the dog that needs knee surgery to walk better.
So, I will continue to do everything I can in my power to educate owners, prepare people for the idea that they are living beings with needs, and ultimately put the pet FIRST. At the end of the day, if the decision is 100% with the pet's interest at the heart of the decision, then I can have some internal peace. And my imaginary stamp.
"Anyone obtaining a dog or cat as a pet accepts a responsibility for that animal's care and existence for the rest of its life." - Bonnard L. Moseley
Both of these quotes are very true, and both symbolize one of the biggest problems I see with veterinary medicine today. On one hand, pets provide us with a sense of devotion and love and unquestioned acceptance. Pet ownership is a global phenomenon that started way back in the time before civilization when there was a symbiotic relationship formed between wolves and man. It progressed to work animals and to cats worshiped as royalty and today we continue to see a change in that bond as now pets have become family members. We LOVE them, they are so important to us, everybody needs a furry, 4-legged love in their life....right?
On the other hand, pets are a responsibility. A responsibility for a life. Once we have one, we are responsible for making all decisions pertaining to that pet's well-being. It's not free. They get sick. They get into accidents. They have parallel medical conditions to those experienced by humans. They have pain perception and personalities and feelings. They experience everything we do, and are subject to the consequences of the decisions we make for them.
So? What's the problem?
I am concerned about pet ownership becoming an elitist luxury, but at the same time I don't think anyone should be denied the ability to have a pet. It happens too often that in an exam room I am told how much someone loves their pet in one breath, and in the very next one they can't afford its treatment. It literally comes down to the dollar. Where do we draw the line and who gets to decide?
Who am I to say that if you can't afford a $1,000 knee surgery that your pet needs to be able to walk comfortably for the rest of its life, then either the pet doesn't get surgery and suffers or you have to find a way to pay $1000 even though your husband just got laid off and your kid needs braces?
Who am I to say that you have to pay $3000 because your beloved little dog slipped a disc in its back and without surgery the condition will decline and it will kill your pet because its bladder will rupture so we will euthanize it even though it is only 4 years old and you've gotten it spayed and kept it on heart worm preventative and fed it good food and "done everything right" and loved it like a child?
Who am I to say that I know you are on social security and your husband passed and now this little cat is your ONLY companion, and your grand-kids got it for you after he passed and the cat eats, sleeps and breathes with you but you can not afford to "take care of it"?
Then, there is the imaginary stamp I own that is bright red, with a big bold border around it, and I place it diagonally across the chart that simply reads "REVOKED". It literally covers the entire page in the chart from corner to corner. It's for the the people who "can't" afford to treat this pet or the 2 others they have at home and then they come in next week with a puppy they got on Craigslist and "saved" it. Or the people who go adopt 2 new kittens after putting down their cat last week because they couldn't treat hyperthyroid disease. Or the people who are on disability and have a new $400 Yorkie. Or the people who come in and get vaccines but will not keep it on preventative care, but are flying out next week for a family vacation to Las Vegas and have a brand new Altima in the parking lot. I always play in my mind that I'm stamping the REVOKED stamp on the charts of these owners, forbidding them the ability to ever own a pet again.
All of these events are normal, every day happenings. NOT exceptional. We see it all the time.
It costs money to go to veterinary school and run blood work and correct these issues. It costs money to pay the technicians and to buy vaccines and to run anesthesia. It costs money to have the power and air conditioning on in the building. It costs money to do a major surgery or even do a physical exam. We are not able to treat these pets for free and there is no financial back-up system in place for pets.
I don't have any answers for this, but I sure do see it as a problem that is not being addressed. It's overwhelming and disheartening and disappointing.
I want the little old lady to get to keep her cat. I want the student to be able to provide back surgery for her dog and get to keep it for the rest of its expected 8-12 years. I want to revoke ownership to the lady who "can't afford" her pets and saves another on Craigslist. I want to revoke ownership if you will not provide the basics for your pet. I want to yell, "Don't get a pet if you can't afford to take care of it!!!!" and then I want to help find a way to help the dog that needs knee surgery to walk better.
So, I will continue to do everything I can in my power to educate owners, prepare people for the idea that they are living beings with needs, and ultimately put the pet FIRST. At the end of the day, if the decision is 100% with the pet's interest at the heart of the decision, then I can have some internal peace. And my imaginary stamp.
Friday, August 3, 2012
A late start...
I glance at the clock and it's late. I'm usually already asleep at this hour. So, this intro will be brief. Well, sorta...
I was a ridiculously big-hearted child who loved movies with animals and soft fuzzy feelings and believed only good things about other people. I did not have a lot of direction and did well in school. I knew I was going to college. I was good at English/Literature. I told my mom and her best friend I might be a veterinarian when I grew up.
They both promptly decided that was a bad idea. "You're too soft-hearted. You won't be able to do that.You have to go to school for a very long time." They probably don't even remember the conversation, but I do. These two women were probably two of the most influential people in my life. If they said it couldn't be done, I believed them.
Lesson #1: Be careful when you speak because your words have unending influence.
So, I stayed on track to be an English major. In my mind, I was going to be young and successful working in the public relations division of a large corporation, going to cocktail hour, flying around the country for business meetings and living single, beautiful and rich in the big city.
The way things went, I finished my 4 years of undergraduate life and was a tour guide for my university. In order to continue with my tour guide vision (and then the plan had changed to run the visitor's center in my adulthood), I needed to be the graduate assistant to manage the group. In order to do that, I had to be getting my masters. The most applicable major was to get my master's degree in counseling, with my focus in Student Affairs. That would land me exactly where I needed to be so that I could continue with my vision.
In the process of getting your master's degree in counseling, you take a course in testing and assessments. The purpose of this course is to know when a test is indicated, what it is like to take the test, and how to interpret the results. So, the best test subject in a counseling degree is yourself. In the process, you get to learn some interesting things about your favorite person! In that semester, I found that I was very analytical, had a very low likelihood of developing an addiction, had a few areas of weaknesses and strengths, and that I should be in a pulic service job, a veterinarian, or something else....wait, what?
Lesson #2: If you can still be influenced by others, sometimes you miss your own voice.
So, I did three out of four semesters to get my counseling degree. I was in that third semester when I started to reassess things. Was I really going to rearrange my entire plan, life, education and well-developed job track to try to be a veterinarian? Did I realize I had a degree in ENGLISH?!
The resounding answer is yes. The final turning point was one day when I was with my then-boyfriend at his home an riding in the truck with him and his dad. His dad was talking about our futures in a vague, dad-like way (i.e. somebody needs to get a job and pay for things and be responsible). I mentioned that maybe I should go to veterinary school. Instead of hearing a replay of my high school experience, he simply said, "Why not?".
Lesson #3: If you don't have a good answer, there might not be one.
So, I did it. I went back undergraduate for another three years. I was 28 when I graduated with my second degree, this time a Bachelor of Science. I applied to veterinary school and was unbelievably accepted. I went all 4 years without turning back, no regrets.
I graduated at 32. I got my first job, and after a string of jobs I've landed in one I like. I don't know where it goes from here. But after my late start, I do know this:
Lesson #4: It's never too late to be what you might have been. ~ George Eliot
I was a ridiculously big-hearted child who loved movies with animals and soft fuzzy feelings and believed only good things about other people. I did not have a lot of direction and did well in school. I knew I was going to college. I was good at English/Literature. I told my mom and her best friend I might be a veterinarian when I grew up.
They both promptly decided that was a bad idea. "You're too soft-hearted. You won't be able to do that.You have to go to school for a very long time." They probably don't even remember the conversation, but I do. These two women were probably two of the most influential people in my life. If they said it couldn't be done, I believed them.
Lesson #1: Be careful when you speak because your words have unending influence.
So, I stayed on track to be an English major. In my mind, I was going to be young and successful working in the public relations division of a large corporation, going to cocktail hour, flying around the country for business meetings and living single, beautiful and rich in the big city.
The way things went, I finished my 4 years of undergraduate life and was a tour guide for my university. In order to continue with my tour guide vision (and then the plan had changed to run the visitor's center in my adulthood), I needed to be the graduate assistant to manage the group. In order to do that, I had to be getting my masters. The most applicable major was to get my master's degree in counseling, with my focus in Student Affairs. That would land me exactly where I needed to be so that I could continue with my vision.
In the process of getting your master's degree in counseling, you take a course in testing and assessments. The purpose of this course is to know when a test is indicated, what it is like to take the test, and how to interpret the results. So, the best test subject in a counseling degree is yourself. In the process, you get to learn some interesting things about your favorite person! In that semester, I found that I was very analytical, had a very low likelihood of developing an addiction, had a few areas of weaknesses and strengths, and that I should be in a pulic service job, a veterinarian, or something else....wait, what?
Lesson #2: If you can still be influenced by others, sometimes you miss your own voice.
So, I did three out of four semesters to get my counseling degree. I was in that third semester when I started to reassess things. Was I really going to rearrange my entire plan, life, education and well-developed job track to try to be a veterinarian? Did I realize I had a degree in ENGLISH?!
The resounding answer is yes. The final turning point was one day when I was with my then-boyfriend at his home an riding in the truck with him and his dad. His dad was talking about our futures in a vague, dad-like way (i.e. somebody needs to get a job and pay for things and be responsible). I mentioned that maybe I should go to veterinary school. Instead of hearing a replay of my high school experience, he simply said, "Why not?".
Lesson #3: If you don't have a good answer, there might not be one.
So, I did it. I went back undergraduate for another three years. I was 28 when I graduated with my second degree, this time a Bachelor of Science. I applied to veterinary school and was unbelievably accepted. I went all 4 years without turning back, no regrets.
I graduated at 32. I got my first job, and after a string of jobs I've landed in one I like. I don't know where it goes from here. But after my late start, I do know this:
Lesson #4: It's never too late to be what you might have been. ~ George Eliot
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