Doctors

[liveweyerd]

Hubby's surgery today was a bloody horrid hell. I have never seen someone in so much agony. And there is a common procedure often, if not usually, used that would have prevented the complications and severe pain.


My Drs, past, present, and future. I promise if I went to 20 Drs I would get almost that many answers and that many different prescriptions. Having had my illnesses for that long...this has basically all ready happened.

On the other hand, thank heavens for modern medicine.
I hope and believe that we have caught my husband's problem in time.
And I know without my antidepressant, I would be basically dead.

Several people have mentioned effexor for anxiety in the last few days. I want to research it. I had a friend who took it and he did indicate that it caused a dependence and likened the withdrawal to Paxil. It is not a controlled substance, right? Anyway....I will look into it and discuss it as an option.

Anyway, hubby's surgery was 2 hours away, same day surgery. I really wanted to get a room in the same town and stay over rather than drive him and also to be close to hospital in case of further complications. I kept thinking, I would have gladly taken his place and birthed a baby in 1/3 the time and with far less pain.
And I could see that same day surgery pretty much shuts down at 4pm and they were rushing to get him out of there. They weren't going to give him anything for the pain, right there in the hospital while he was thrashing about etc from agony and they were going to release him too soon. My mother instinct kicked in even tho' he is my mate....and I made sure he got something for the pain and was kept a little longer. I couldn't imagine him having further problems and being 2 hours away.

Sorry, but I believe we have to advocate for ourselves.
Shoot, if I could I would put an iv in him now to keep him very hydrated and prevent further clotting. He can't stay awake all night and drink water.

next up....bone scan Monday and my last phone appmt with shrink in FL Wed.

Tomorrow I type up 2d assignment. or Sunday.



live

[51anna]

I totally and completely agree with you Live.

We cannot depend on our drs to know what is best for us. We have to be our own advocates with our medical issues. We have to speak up, ask questions, even demand answers at times. I think we need to rely on our intuition and if we are concerned about something, then it's time to question it.

I'm sorry the surgery was difficult and I hope that you will find your husband feeling much better tomorrow.

[leviathon]

liveweyerd you did the right thing in standing up for your hubby... docs are too willing to cut and then just expect the nurses to deal with it after the fact... had surgery on the inside of my nose to open up the cavity b/c it was crushed when i was a kid... doc operated, knew I was allergic to gravol (*actually makes me throw up worse), wrote a prescription for gravol anyway instead of toradol or some other anti heave med... I was in horrid state of affairs with the heaving and stuff for almost three hours (blood running down from sinus cavity into stomach ... auto throw up situ) when the nurse finally over rode the doc's authority and gave me toradol or whatever it was... I was so greatful as was my girlfriend... I was heaving so hard I was in severe pain... it was awful.

I hope the surgery works out.

IMO, medicine, like law (i'm a lawyer), has 20 answers for every question... modern medicine is developing every day and while there is some general consensus, nothing is settled by any means. Just look at forms of surgery, what they used to cut you wide open for 10 yrs ago, they now do by way of a procedure in which operational tools are moved to the site via veins and arteries and nothing is cut open... some docs still don't trust that procedure... etc.

Peace, Levi

[liveweyerd]

thanks, Anna!

I almost feel like staying up all night...we did crash out as soon as we got back....and waking him every couple of hours to give him a glass of water.

[liveweyerd]

thanks, Levi.


I have seen so many things so wrong...right in my immediate family. I try to research everything. I am a professional researcher, anway. (Abstractor)

[leviathon]

lol, so am I (lawyer)... I did an undergraduate degree in history... all research... I worked for child and family services as a researcher... I am VERY good at research and I have to take a step back at times to let the professionals be the expert... Although, I do not let them bully me with BS... one doc tried that on me...

he was doing the surgery on my shoulder (torn rotator cuff) and I happened to review his chart while I was in the pre op room... he had actually written that I was insisting on the surgery as the only option... WOW, I am the patient pal, you the doc, I am relying on your expertise to determine if I need the surgery.... well that and the MRI that showed I had about 2 mm of the tendon still holding together verses about 4 cm that was torn... go figure... want surgery...

a good friend that was a chronic pain doc told me I had to have the surgery or the tendon would be irreparably harmed... put that in writing to him... so why is he writing that I am insisting on it... friend has more degrees than he does in medicine and told me it was necessary and sent him a letter to that effect.

I was not happy with that note and actually wrote as much on the chart... he was not happy with me. fortunately the surgery worked out in any event.

One weird thing about it... in pre op they actually took a large black marker and wrote on my arm... this is the arm for surgery or something... apparently that prevents them from making mistakes in surgery... what you don't read your chart????

C'est la vie.

Levi

[liveweyerd]

I saw those black marker instructions in the pre-op area!

After reading an article in Time Magazine about how Drs feel and act when there loved ones are hospitalized....I understand these extra measures.

BTW I do title abstract for oil and gas. And like the "plumber" who won't fix his own toilet, I reserve my exrtacurricular research for areas of my special interests and items of need.

[indigo]

You really blew those guy's away live.!!!!!!
I was on a high doseage of effexor for about 7/8 years they worked well for me, after a while as my condition deterioratated, as it will my doc put me on something stronger....I was pretty much maxed out on effexor and I didn't want hospitalizing so I changed meds. I'm not too well mentally at the moment though I am trying to accept the inevitable. Back on topic My eldest son who takes quite a few meds for his manic depression, takes effexor too and he is quite ok with the results. I hope hubby and yourself are feeling a little better now and all my positive thoughts are floating across the ocean to you both.

hugs Annie

[Lollipop]

Live!!!!

No words of wisdom here, I just wanted to give u a hug and let you know that Im thinking of you and hubby. I hope the pain eases and you both can get some rest!
Love Liss

[historyteach]

(((Live)))
Lots of for you as you struggle through this.
Oh, and you might want to look at BuSpar for anxiety. I had it years ago and had no ill effects. It seemed to help and there's no addictive quality that I'm aware of; it's certainly not like xanax, anyway.
My continued prayers for your peace of mind...

Terry, he wrote that in your chart to cover his own behind, just in case. Then, if there was a problem, the official record would show you as being the cause of the surgery, thus, more responsible.

Shalom!

[liveweyerd]

Thank you, I love you all!
I stayed up quite late to play night nurse and make sure that each time he stumbled into bathroom in a stupor he drank a glass of water. He is out of it and still in a stupor..the result of general anesthia and the shot of demerol he was given...and probably exhaustion.
He is normally awake by 5:30 am....this is probably the best sleep he has gotten in ages!!!!!

I will definitely ask about the effexor and buspar and so appreciate the info.
I will still have to very gradually detox off the benzos. But I really only take one when I am going into visible withdrawals. I have learned the hard way not to let that progress!

Another medical story of things gone wrong,...just one a day! LOL to add to the list. When my daughter was put into my ex-husband's custody at age 13 (who you know and money).....she began acting out quite a bit. No wonder, dad was doing crank and dealing it, was so crazy he had the kids practice lining up at the window with rifles and shotguns for a standoff with the police, did not provide groceries, medical care etc. So daughter is acting out.
She gets diagnosed as bipolar! NONSENSE! She is in an insane environment! They prescribed her lithium. Even tho' she and I were not on good terms, she does trust her mother when it comes to mental illness and drugs and I told her to never take even one and she didn't. Thank heavens!

BTW, he got into the crank etc and who knows what else
AFTER we were divorced. Cracks joke...but real truth...I was the rock of stability in the marriage...crazy old me, yup....he went off the deep end on his own. And chasing the wrong good timing women.

He later married Ms. Prude. Wonder why? LMAO

[shutterbug]

Live...have you tried the Buspar yet? Or read anything about it? My sis just got prescribed it today so I was looking to find out about it. From what I've read here at SR...no bad experiences with it.

Hope you're doing great. and Giant hugs back!

[windysan]

doctors have the best dope around.

legal too.

LOL

[Arura]

Big Hugs ((((Live))))