Preliminary Verdict
Feb. 10th, 2009 06:25 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
thessalianSo I went to A&E.
...Want to know how glad I am that I didn't follow![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
therealsherbs' suggestion on going last night? (Then again, maybe they'd have taken me more seriously had I shown up in an ambulance...)
I got in there at 'round about half-twelve, half-blind and in a severe amount of pain, and gave some rambling version of why I was there to the receptionist because I just wasn't capable of anything else. She then just put it down as 'severe headache' (well, that boils it down, I guess) and took details like date of birth, next of kin, etc. Then told me to sit down and wait.
So I waited. And waited. And waited. In an A&E waiting room with lots of windows on a nice bright sunny day. In rather uncomfortable metal chairs that the person behind me kept kicking. When I couldn't focus on my book for longer than ten minutes at a go. For TWO AND A HALF HOURS. Possibly more; I lost track around 3pm.
Anyway, nurse finally called me in and I got blood pressure and heart rate checked and she asked me if I could move my neck - you know, the whole, "Look left, look right, look up". (No, Miss; I am not going to look up directly into the light source for the room; or did you somehow miss 'photophobia' in the recently reiterated list of symptoms?) The nurse asked if I had taken anything for the headaches and I told her no; she said, "Well, how do you expect to feel better if you don't take anything?" Cue having to explain analgesia overuse headaches to a medical professional, right after letting her know point blank that even higher than standard doses of over the counter analgesics just don't work for me. She said something about a doctor and a blood test and sent me back to the waiting room.
An hour and a half or so later, doctor calls me in. I am forced into a horrible hospital gown, which I stayed in for all of about 20 minutes (which is good in some ways, I guess) and subjected to various tests. Cue penlight to the eyes, multiple times, intensifying the pain. The doctor listens to my chest, does a bunch of nerve tests, doesn't seem to take it amiss when she has to scratch the living shit out of the soles of my feet to get the reaction she's after, never does a blood test or even suggests a scan, says something about meds and talking to me with a temporary treatment plan in a bit and sends me back to the waiting room.
At this point, I have no idea how long I waited - only that it was starting to get dark by the time I finally saw the doctor again. She didn't say much that was comprehensive, to be honest; it boiled down to, "It's good that you'll be seeing a neurologist and we'll see if we can get your referral moved up" and a painkiller that works well for people who can't hack codeine for some reason or other. It's not that I can't hack codeine - it's just that it doesn't work, but never mind. Thing is, I have to go back tomorrow to pick up a full supply of it because they don't stock it in A&E, it's apparently not available at the chemist and the hospital pharmacy was, by this point, shut for the day. She did apologise for not being able to sort more, said that I needed to be under a neurologist's care because even if this is just my migraines amping up, it's obvious that I need to have them managed by a specialist, and sent me on my way.
It occurs to me that A&E departments are busy places and they probably won't send people in for scans unless they've had multiple black-outs or a physical injury of some sort. But it was worth a shot, I guess, even if it was an uncomfortable, frustrating, painful shot that left me near tears in reception on at least four separate occasions. Now we see if the new painkillers work. I'm trying the lowest possible dose at the minute - 50mg, upping to 100 in a few hours if that doesn't work. 400mg per day is my maximum, apparently. Good to know. Though I almost hope this shit doesn't work because the way my headaches tend to last, I'll be taking these fuckers for awhile and I employed Google-fu on this shit; there are fucking withdrawal symptoms. I've got enough addictions, thanks.
So ... that was my birthday. Painful, frustrating, and generally No Fun At All. Yay for turning 32.
...Want to know how glad I am that I didn't follow
therealsherbs' suggestion on going last night? (Then again, maybe they'd have taken me more seriously had I shown up in an ambulance...)I got in there at 'round about half-twelve, half-blind and in a severe amount of pain, and gave some rambling version of why I was there to the receptionist because I just wasn't capable of anything else. She then just put it down as 'severe headache' (well, that boils it down, I guess) and took details like date of birth, next of kin, etc. Then told me to sit down and wait.
So I waited. And waited. And waited. In an A&E waiting room with lots of windows on a nice bright sunny day. In rather uncomfortable metal chairs that the person behind me kept kicking. When I couldn't focus on my book for longer than ten minutes at a go. For TWO AND A HALF HOURS. Possibly more; I lost track around 3pm.
Anyway, nurse finally called me in and I got blood pressure and heart rate checked and she asked me if I could move my neck - you know, the whole, "Look left, look right, look up". (No, Miss; I am not going to look up directly into the light source for the room; or did you somehow miss 'photophobia' in the recently reiterated list of symptoms?) The nurse asked if I had taken anything for the headaches and I told her no; she said, "Well, how do you expect to feel better if you don't take anything?" Cue having to explain analgesia overuse headaches to a medical professional, right after letting her know point blank that even higher than standard doses of over the counter analgesics just don't work for me. She said something about a doctor and a blood test and sent me back to the waiting room.
An hour and a half or so later, doctor calls me in. I am forced into a horrible hospital gown, which I stayed in for all of about 20 minutes (which is good in some ways, I guess) and subjected to various tests. Cue penlight to the eyes, multiple times, intensifying the pain. The doctor listens to my chest, does a bunch of nerve tests, doesn't seem to take it amiss when she has to scratch the living shit out of the soles of my feet to get the reaction she's after, never does a blood test or even suggests a scan, says something about meds and talking to me with a temporary treatment plan in a bit and sends me back to the waiting room.
At this point, I have no idea how long I waited - only that it was starting to get dark by the time I finally saw the doctor again. She didn't say much that was comprehensive, to be honest; it boiled down to, "It's good that you'll be seeing a neurologist and we'll see if we can get your referral moved up" and a painkiller that works well for people who can't hack codeine for some reason or other. It's not that I can't hack codeine - it's just that it doesn't work, but never mind. Thing is, I have to go back tomorrow to pick up a full supply of it because they don't stock it in A&E, it's apparently not available at the chemist and the hospital pharmacy was, by this point, shut for the day. She did apologise for not being able to sort more, said that I needed to be under a neurologist's care because even if this is just my migraines amping up, it's obvious that I need to have them managed by a specialist, and sent me on my way.
It occurs to me that A&E departments are busy places and they probably won't send people in for scans unless they've had multiple black-outs or a physical injury of some sort. But it was worth a shot, I guess, even if it was an uncomfortable, frustrating, painful shot that left me near tears in reception on at least four separate occasions. Now we see if the new painkillers work. I'm trying the lowest possible dose at the minute - 50mg, upping to 100 in a few hours if that doesn't work. 400mg per day is my maximum, apparently. Good to know. Though I almost hope this shit doesn't work because the way my headaches tend to last, I'll be taking these fuckers for awhile and I employed Google-fu on this shit; there are fucking withdrawal symptoms. I've got enough addictions, thanks.
So ... that was my birthday. Painful, frustrating, and generally No Fun At All. Yay for turning 32.