Earlier this year, I wrote a blog post called Always at the Doctor’s Office because it seemed like I had been spending an increasing amount of time there.
That blog post covered January to the end of May of 2019. This blog picks up where the first one left off. The main reason I am writing this is to track how often I go to the doctor, as well as how sick I had become before going to one.
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The majority of the time I have gone outside in 2019 were in order to do two things. I was either going to get groceries, or I was headed for the doctor’s office.
To me, it feels like I’ve needed more trips to the doctor this year than typical. I haven’t had the energy to keep up with writing about it, so I’m just going to put the whole story into this blog post.
Continue Reading “Always at the Doctor’s Office”
I’m going to start this blog by saying that I have dental insurance – but it doesn’t cover very much beyond regular checkups. At my most recent checkup, the dentist found some expensive problems that need to be fixed.
Content warning: This blog post contains details about my most recent dentist appointment. I’m not going to post anything graphic and will not include any photos (other than the one at the top of this blog).
The best thing to catch while waiting for the doctor to see me …. is a Pokémon. This time, it was a Whismur, but really, any of them would do. I was bored, and very tired, and fairly certain that I had a sinus infection (again).
Shortly after the 2017 Fall pollen season ended, California went up in flames. It seemed like the majority of the state was on fire at the same time. I was fortunate that there were no fires near me, but the smoke from other fires filled the air.
I assumed that the unexpected sore throat I had was due to the fires. Then, I figured it must be a strange sort of sinus infection. It turned out to be tonsillitis – something I’ve never had before.
This post is an update about my health and my most recent visit to my rheumatologist. Nothing bad happened.
Here’s what got done:
Rheumatologist at first thought I only had fibromyalgia. Not sure why.
Today, I went back to my rheumatologist for a three month checkup. We agreed that I should not continue to take the medication he prescribed that was causing me harm (because it has gluten in it). He did not want to prescribe other medication (because the rest of what he prescribes is for cases much more severe than mine).
He looked at my x-rays and said that there was no evidence of any joint damage in my hands, feet, or chest. This indicates that I don’t have rheumatoid arthritis at all.
So, today I have my very first appointment with a rheumatologist. As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, it took a year (and a referral from primary care doctor) to get in.
The rheumatologist was a very nice guy. He listened to me describe my symptoms. He asked for more details. He wrote things down. It was clear that he believed me – right from the start.
Good News!
I have an appointment with a rheumatologist!
Here’s what it took to get it:
This post is about my most recent doctor’s appointment and an update on my health.
I went to my doctor’s office today to follow up on some blood work. Earlier this year, they discovered that I had a HUGE vitamin D deficiency. (As in: “normal” is somewhere around 100 or so, and I was at 6.)
Today, I’m somewhere around 80 or so. Still not great, but better. This improvement is due to months worth of prescription strength vitamin D (that are so strong they are taken once a week). The pharmacy gives me 4 of them at a time, and I’ve got 1 left from my current prescription. My doctor gave me one more refill, and then I switch to over-the-counter- vitamin D.
