I recently inhaled some Diatomaceous Earth, that I put in my garden to kill the rolly pollies and pincer bugs that were eating my veggie plants. Immediately I began coughing and the coughing lasted for more than three months, with a bout of bronchitis thrown in. No one diagnosed me correctly. Not the pulmonologist I was sent to, not the CT scan or the echocardiogram. The heart doctor said my heart is sound but he listened to my story about the Diatomaceous Earth and believed that might have messed my lungs up.
All those doctors, all those appointments.
When did doctors become so compartmentalized?
One guy deals with the lower back. One guy deals with the upper back, the neck. One deals with a bad shoulder and another deals with the other shoulder.
What if the nail salon industry was compartmentalized like that?
“Oh, I only manicure thumbs, no fingers.”
“Oh, I only do middle fingers. Sorry, that’s the Index Finger girl’s job.”
I landed in Pain Management from back issues. A supposed medical profession that can help. Seemed like another way to become a pain pill addict, which I could have been had I not been aware of the dangers of pain meds.
Things were different when I lived in Sri Lanka, where I lived for 14 years.
Doctors there rarely prescribed pain meds, A friend I knew had a hysterectomy and was sent home with no meds for the pain. None. I know this because she recovered at my house.
In my opinion it’s crucial to have doctors who treat us for separate issues communicate with each other. Even better; have all information flow to the principal physician treating us. I was in ICU in Sri Lanka for a severe case of bronchitis and a doctor there withheld medication that my primary physician ordered. He suggested that I was a drug addict because I insisted he follow my trusted primary doctor’s instructions. It medication was Valium, which helped slow my breathing down and stopped my constant coughing. When I recovered, I demanded to read my charts and have that ICU’s doctor’s remarks deleted.
An elderly friend recently had a hip replacement. Her last replacement on that hip lasted 17 years. When her hip was preventing her from walking she decided to go to Willits hospital where she recently had shoulder surgery. She told me that the hospital is so new that it sparkled, that the staff was caring and helpful.
I personally have found the hospitals in Lake County to have been good to me but I’m excited to hear that people in Lake County and its neighboring Mendocino County have choices.
What’s a Girl to Do?…maybe I should throw the dice and write the president to make better healthcare happen?
Lucy Llewellyn Byard welcomes comments and shares. To contact her, email lucywgtd@gmail.com
