Support thread for those awaiting medical appts,tests and surgery

[ohyouBadBadkitten]

It seems that there is probably rather a lot of us who are impatiently waiting to see consultants, have tests or waiting for surgery. So a thread for you to vent in or post your 'hooray's'

me. Am waiting to see my cardiologist. been a bit of a catalogue of delays and getting lost in the system. I have a wonderfully supportive gp who has just calmed me down after me losing the plot a bit when I found I wasnt on the appt system.

How about you?

Breastmilk - I'm always having to ring around, get passed around to lots of different people, to chase up appointments or find out what's going on, or I get my partner or mum to ring and write letters.
I feel for people who are unable to do that, and have no family to do that for them.

reeny breastmilk
Feel so much the same way about chasing results and appointments, seems at times no coordination, found this when I was in Bristol went from a ward in Gloucester by ambulance so you'd think I'd be on the system as an inpatient in Bristol but continued to get appointments for tests in Gloucester, even though I'd had them in Bristol,
Then had the nightmare of getting hold of results for Gloucester consultants.
I think being under lots of different specialists doesn't help.
Feel like I've over done it today, the spoon theory ringing very true made me cry when I read it last night, exactly how I feel.
Hope you manage to get some rest tonight breastmilk.

backpack can't believe what your ve been
Through, what an awful decision to have to make, hope it goes as well as it can tomorrow.

madsometime re scaring I''ve been trying on wedding dresses as I'm getting married in June.
My scars are very visible was thinking of getting a jacket or something to cover them, my mum said something very sweet,
She said they are part of me and the journey i've been on
I should be proud to show them off, of what I survived .
My mum always says just the right things :)
Not sure about the lovely steroid bloating and acne though I'd happily
Get rid of those :)

Breastmilk - only just read one of your replies, I'm hoping the surgery will reduce some pain. I know it won't go completely, but I'd be happy if it's reduced so I can lower my dose of pain medication.
Unfortunately I'll be like this for the rest of my life, because of damage to spinal cord. But there is hope for incomplete injuries, coz at first I totally no feeling below my waist, but some came back :-)

I have another nurse appointment this week at the hospital to try teach me self intermittent catheterisation, but I'm nervous and dreading it to be honest. Nurses have struggled to catheterise me, so if they struggle, how am I gonna do it myself!
Plus I also have appointment with foot consultant ( I broke both my feet and spine in 3 places and spinal cord damage in an accident). My foot is floppy and not in correct position so seeing what to do next. I've already had foot surgery and tried splints. ( to stop me falling when I transfer with crutches).

Good luck with surgery this week! If I don't post again before. Will be thinking of you.

Thanks everyone for your support.

Reeny what a tough situation. What happened to cause you all the injuries, if you don't mind me being nosey asking? I really hope the self-catheterising works.

LargeGlass how lovely of your mum! I went to a wedding a few years back in which the bride had a few very visible scars. I don't know how she got them (groom was friend of DH) but I heard several guests comment very positively about her decision not to hide them.

Good luck with your wedding plans Largeglass. You and your mum are quite right that scars are part of what we are now, and hopefully after time they will fade a little. I'm just not quite there mentally yet.

Breastmilk stay strong and busy today. Think of how much better you will feel when your heart is working more normally. You will not be playing carpet bowls in 6 months time, you will be doing Zumba (maybe)... Seriously, you have age on your side, recovery from heart procedures for people in their 30's is totally different from people in their 70's.

My work collagues have been on at me to do an evening zumba class for months now

I hope you can get the rehab arranged painlessly and un-hasslingly.

Am terrified. Just terrified. And DH has just put his back out, too, and is in utter agony.

We were planning to take the kids somewhere fab today. But he's in too much pain to drive, and I'm so incoherently stressed and knackered...

I've just been told I can't drink for 6hrs before the surgery.

I'm tandem breastfeeding/expressing for two kids - how, how, how willI cope with the thirst? :(

Also just been told hospital stay gonna now be longer than planned :(

I don't think I can go through with it :(

Breastmilk - you can, just hang in there. You will be ok. Today is very low but tomorrow is the start of a new journey and although it will seem rocky at times I think you'll be ok.

Breastmilk you can do this. If you are really worried about dehydrating as you fast, then talk to your doctors. It probably will not be a problem, but they can surely replace fluids iv (not ideal, I know). There was a diabetic lady fasting when I was in hospital, and she had some kind of an iv set up to prevent her blood sugar from dropping.

How many days have they said that you will be in for?

Chased rehab program - someone will call me back (supposedly)
Chased EP appointment, his secretary said that she had my referral letter on her desk. I did the "my appointment is not that important" nonsense that I do, and his secretary said that it was, and that it had been delayed too much. She was really nice.

I'm about to pop a note into my GP asking her to chase my echo results. I know they are probably fine, but the registrar should have written her a letter about the appointment by now. That was the appointment from hell when I was told that I had probably been suffering from TIA's because I had been experiencing visual disturbances. My GP said that she would have diagnosed migraine. Not unreasonable that my GP and I should want to know the test results. Hopefully my GP will be listened to more than me.

Thanks for all your support. Have ingested 2mg valium and half a chocolate orange. Really, I should just ditch the valium and go straight for the chocolate. The fab thing about tandem feeding is that you can eat anything anything anything and never gain weight.

But I still feel sick with terror.

Mad in your position, I would definitely be hopping up and down for the echo results. Any doctor would agree that your fear of TIAs is completely legit, abd should understand how worrying that must be for you.

Can I have the other half of the choc orange? No excuse, just greedy

Seriously, it is natural to be terrified in your situation. Just hug your dc and your husband close. Hopefully, you will be first on the list tomorrow, so in 24 hours you will on the other side of the stress that is waiting.

Well done Mad. I hope that things will finally happen soon.
Keep hanging in there Breastmilk.
Had my x-ray. Radiologist said it would take 5 days to get to my gp. I told him I was seeing her on wednesday.he is going to try to get it there for then. In the meantime the consultants sec said she did put my referral through to apts last week but she is going to put another one through. . Starting to get seriously pissed off. I asked her when I should call back. She said tomorrow. We shall see......

Breastmilk hang in there, medicinal chocolate is a must! I miss being able to what I liked when I was breastfeeding dts.
I admire you do much coping with hospital says and expressing for two.
Do you know how long you'll be in?

Bad kitten, hope you get the results Wednesday,
I'm waiting for my neurologist to get back to me he's been away and back tomorrow, so will start chasing Thursday if I've not heard.
madsometimes defiantly keep chasing, you need the results.

Thanks LGR, it would be good!

I ate the rest of the chocolate orange Sorry, Mad

kitten I'm not surprised you're pissed off. My prayer for you is that your health condition will just get sorted, now: end of saga.

You know, I'm finding this thread not only supportive but kind of reassuring. Family and friends had been telling me that I was imagining/exaggerating all the delays and cock-ups I've been through and I was both beginning to doubt myself and to wonder whether it was all just happening to me because of the incisible evil demon sitting on my shoulder... reading the experiences of others on this thread has reassured me that I wasn't inventing or causing it.

But I still don't think I can go through this every five years for the rest of my life. I can't.

Feeling so awful. I'm sorry, I hope nobody minds me saying it over and over. It just helps to get it out. Thanks for listening. Off now for more chocolate another cup of tea.

(((hugs Breastmilk))) why do you have to go through it every 5 years if you don't mind me asking? I understand completely the enormity of what you are feeling from previous surgery.... It is just horrid :( Will you still be able to express etc when in hospital or are you stocking up in preparation