medical escapades

Yesterday, I spent the morning again calling around to find a doctor who would see me the same day. I finally found a place near my house that said I could walk in at 1:00. I stressed that I was a new patient, and she said it was fine, that there were walk-in appts starting at 1. Of course, it took four calls to finally talk to someone--they kept transferring me to a nurse and I left her a message but she never called back. She still hasn't.

So I showed up at like 5 till 1, and was told that I had to have an appt. So I explained that I had talked to someone who said I didn't. The whole time I was explaining, the lady behind the desk was shaking her head at me. WHATEVER!! She tried to send me to a place down in Orlando, but I wasn't driving out of Apopka.

Cue the tears. I got in the car and called Brian, blubbering to him about how doctors are supposed to be there for sick people, etc. etc., while my cell phone kept dying. I finally drove by a place even closerto my house and went in. They were closed for lunch, but I sat down and waited anyway, along with about 10 other people. But I was prepared: I brought my book.

I waited for about 45 minutes and was finally called back. The jovial Spanish doctor came in my room about 15 minutes later and wanted to know if I had been there before. I explained, as I had to the 2 previous nurses, that we had recently moved and I hadn't found a doctor yet. He wanted to know where I had moved from and I said Albany, and he launched into a 20 minute conversation (mostly one-sided, remember I'm sick) about the northeast, his residency in PA, his residency in Brooklyn, his visit to Albany, the snow, the weather there and here, the fact that it's colder than normal right now (what? it's 80 degrees!), the price of real estate here and there, taxes, NY taxes, his friend in NY who had problems with taxes, FL taxes, and on and on. No, I'm totally not exaggerating. All I know is that I could hardly swallow and why the heck wasn't he treating me yet!!

Eventually he looked in my ears, nose, and throat, and listened to me breathe. He pushed around on my belly and asked me about my symptoms. Then he started typing on his computer and started asking me about antibiotics. I had to ask him what I had. He didn't know what I meant, so I clarified: did I have a sinus infection, ear infection, strep throat, or what? He said it could be strep, he wasn't going to test me because strep lives in the body and it's always present (? then why does anyone ever do a throat culture?), but that I probably had a sinus infection.

He then handed me a prescription for a Z-pack and told me not to take it unless I started feeling worse, (mind you, I had to be feeling pretty bad to be at the doctor's in the first place) because he didn't want my body to get used to any antibiotics because what if I got pneumonia and really needed one? As if I pop antibiotics like vitamins.

I went straight to Walgreen's, filled the Rx, came home, and took the pills. Good grief! I was feeling pretty crappy! I still had trouble going to sleep last night because you know how it is when there's all this mucus running down your throat. (Sorry, that's gross.)

At least this morning I woke up with a croupy cough so it's starting to break up in there. My throat is still really raw, but I know that the cough is a good sign. I've spent the whole day on the couch watching tv. I am so sick of laying around!! I've GOT to feel better soon!!!! :-P

By the by, I woke up at about 7:00 this morning and felt like death warmed over, so I got up and took my antibiotic and some Advil and went back to bed. When I got back up later, I noticed that my Z-pack was missing and the bottle of Advil was on the floor. Guess who--MAX! I still can't find my Z-pack so I'm guessing he batted it under the fridge or stove. That's a job for Brian when he gets home. Crazy cat!