My ship may sail without me tomorrow

[Love PalmTrees]

vacruiser - Wow! You are the 3rd person in the past 6 weeks I know having (or did have) their gall bladder removed. A coworker of mine had hers removed 6 wks ago and a friend of ours is scheduled for surgery this coming Tuesday! I am glad to hear you are feeling better already. I was following the thread before your surgery and was anxious to hear the news the next day. I thought it was awesome how you kept us all in touch through your ER visit. I know how how the DH in the ER thing goes. About yr ago I ended up in ER and we had a long wait. I was fairly calm waiting, but DH was very impatient which only made me feel worse. But this was his frustration of not being able to make things better. They only want to fix things. Sorry you had to cancel the cruise. We too have been there. My dad was in ICU in a coma in 2009, days before our cruise out of Long Beach. We cancelled and were in cruise-mourning for that first week. But I wouldn't have changed a thing. DF passed away about 2 wks thereafter. Hope all goes well with your recovery and you can enjoy another cruise soon.

[maxamuus]

Have already had the office bugging me to do something today work-related and then had a co-worker get nasty with me on the phone about it first thing this morning. :( All I could think was "could you let me get 24 hours out of surgery before you make me deal with this stuff?"

 

I can help you with that, dear. Grab your cell phone. There is a little red button that is "power off". Hit that button and dont turn it back on till Monday morning.

 

If any of your family need to contact you i am sure they know your husbands number.

[CapsR1]

First, congratulations on having a successful surgery. Your recovery time will depend upon how fast you heal. Don't listen to others' who tell you how quickly you should heal as every one is different.

 

Cruises will always be around but your health is something you must take care of first. Even though you have to wait until the fall for your next cruise, I'm sure there are many people out there who "wish" that their next cruise was that soon.

 

Rest up, relax as much as you can and heal comfortably.

[QTBabyNurse]

SJ,

 

One of the first implementations of the act was requiring hospitals to justify admissions including previous admissions and basically prove that criteria for admission existed even though all documentation was previously submitted. Essentially they demand specific wording which is irrelevant to patient care or diagnosis. There's no longer a judgement to be made by a physician; it's either black or white and no gray area is reimbursed.

 

The requirement was mandated by medicare (the largest single payor), but applied to all admissions if the hospital receives any funds from the federal government. 'Coding' became more important than 'caring' or having staffing levels adequate. All units have their own 'coder' who's sole job is to inspect admissions for ways to word things appropriately for reimbursement.

 

What happens to staffing pars when hospitals must now finance coders for each unit? Staffing pars are cut which means less RNs to care for the same or larger numbers of patients. In our case we went from a max par of 13 to 10 for the ER and also eliminated a 12 bed unit staffed by the ER with a par of 3 that was only for 23 hour observation patients. Our 3 year old observation unit has sat empty since 2009 along with two other observation units that were less than 7 years old simply because they didn't have private baths in each room. Observation patients are always able to walk on their own so why require bedridden type care? Six RN positions eliminated simply to jump thru government hoops.

 

I personally saw my salary drop by $45,000 the first year of 'ObamaCare.' In the interim the ER staff has went from being overstaffed by an average of 3 RNs per shift to our present under par staffing level; If RNs are called off enough over time, they will eventually seek employment elsewhere and that's where we are now; understaffed and working short each shift simply to comply with regulations handed down to save money.

 

What has been saved? Not a penny; the hospital now employees and entire department devoted to making sure each admission meets mandated criteria and continues to meet criteria throughout their stay. The staff of that department is constantly on the phone with insurance companies and completing review after reveiw after review. The staff for the new department completely offset any hospital savings and actually costs the hospital money because we no longer have the resources to staff at our previous levels thus we lose patients.

 

LWTs (Left Without Treatment) are rampant. These are people who sign in to be seen and are triaged, but leave before ever seeing a doctor because of wait times.

 

Want a real life example of wait time? Ask vacruizer. Want an example of not meeting a specific admission criteria? Ask vacruizer. Her insurance is irrelevant. Even if she wanted to pay cash in advance, not having evidence of infection eliminated the option of admission. Before mid 2009, she WOULD have been admitted based on her symptoms and likely even just because it was her third visit. Her example is just one; there are countless people each day who like her need to be admitted, but are not simply because their human symptoms are not black and white.

 

How did my salary go down $45,000? I am an hourly per diem employee like 70% of my department was in mid 2009. Some two week pay periods I would work 6 hours instead of my usual 100+. Some I would work 8 or 12. A couple I worked ZERO. It took until March of 2011 for me to work 72 hours in a pay period. Who worked the ER while all of this was going on? Mostly new nurses with less than one year on the job. I had the option of working elsewhere in the hospital, but trust me when I tell you that I am not a psych nurse, floor nurse, or scrub nurse. I only enjoy ER nursing and do not have the background nor desire to learn other types of nursing documentation and procedures. My nursing skill moves easily from unit to unit, but the ability to document and follow their procedures is not something you just learn on the job or 'wing it.'

 

Prior to mid 2009 nursing was already barebones short staffed even when at 'par.' Since then it has been 'get the documentation criteria met' regardless of why the patient is here. We aren't encouraged to make things up, but if key points are not addressed then patient outcome is irrelevant. Patient outcome irrelevant? Yes. That is what Obamacare is all about. Socialized medicine? You betcha it is. It's not at all about treating patients, it's about spreading it around to everyone whether they actually need it or not.

 

Give us the right to say to people who present to the ER for BS that they need to leave and we have no where in particular to suggest they go as long as they leave. Give us this right and we will save money for our hospital, our hospitals insurers, and our country. Reinstate our right to say to people that they need to stay and be admitted and let us figure out why they are in pain and we will save lives and make them well again. Save lives and make them well. Isn't that what it's all about? Or we can build a larger beureaucracy consisting of additional people who serve no purpose for actual patient care; that's ObamaCare.

 

Is my experience as an ER nurse unique? No. I have dozens of ER nurse friends who lived thru it too. Some are still ER nurses though many have moved on to other things. Is it unique to ER? Hardly. My wife is an OR nurse and the results have been the same for her (at a different hospital with different management). My wife's hospital has an even larger department just for coding and meeting criteria. Her OR is also now understaffed and prior to 2009 they always had adequate staff. She is a full time employee and has worked in the same unit since 1987 and for the first time ever she has been called off due to cutbacks. Not just one or two times but repeatedly all since mid 2009.

 

The government has always meddled in health care and created monopolistic hospitals by limiting access to new technology and limiting procedures, but now they are micromanaging the actual hands on side of health care. The government made MRI costs astronomical by limiting the availability and they are heading that way with nurses. An MRI is non invasive and unless you have metal in your body, there's no reason we shouldn't use them in triage, but the government has hamstrung their use to limited cases approved by family docs months in advance. Is the time coming where having someone touch you and assess you will be similarly limited? MRI is just one of many examples, but ask around and see what it takes to get an MRI and research why those hoops are there to jump thru.

 

Sorry for the long answer.....I could go on for days and not find one good thing to say about ObamaCare. Granted I did not vote for him, but I at least thought he was human when others opted to take a chance on him. After living thru his tenure, I despise those who would speak in favor of him. Luckily I live in WV where the democrats chose a convict over a future convict in the democratic primary. :)

 

The sugar coating things that you mention that appear to be additional costs for insurance companies, are delayed until the goverment is able to show a savings thru their acts of attrition on healthcare providers. They may ultimately show a savings, but at what cost in humans?

 

Amen to that PaulMedik! Although my screen name implies that I am a "baby nurse" (and I was for many years)....I have been working in case management for the past few years. I am one of those RN's who search for the "criteria" that Paul mentions above that determines whether a patient can be admitted to the hospital or not. It is a nightmare!

Our healthcare situation is getting worse by the minute and Obamacare is going to make an already bad situation even worse. :eek:

[3dogsrule]

Been a little down in the dumps tonight. No cruise, time off was definitely not a vacation, will probably be fall at least before we can actually take time off again, and I'm going back to work a day earlier than I'd even originally planned for vacation. Have already had the office bugging me to do something today work-related and then had a co-worker get nasty with me on the phone about it first thing this morning. :( All I could think was "could you let me get 24 hours out of surgery before you make me deal with this stuff?"

 

Geez, girl, you poor thing! I suggest you print off a sign and hang on your office door that says "I have CCD, keep your distance". We've all had PCD (post cruise depression) but you've got cancelled cruise depression, that's even worse, and it can be harmful to those who cross a CCD sufferer the wrong way! If your co-workers don't have a little empathy for your situation, they need a butt whoopin'!

 

Hope you continue to improve this weekend, and get that next cruise booked asap so you have a definitive date to look foward to escaping from your work stresses! We'll keep positive thoughts flowing your way!!

[blondietink]

If you had been on the cruise, they could not have gotten hold of you, so they should be able to work it out themselves now. Just because you are home should not indicate that you have a welcome sign put out. Tell them to deal with it.

 

Generally with the aftermath of surgery, you feel great he first or second day, then the 3rd day hits and you feel like crap. Hope you continue to feel better and can enjoy the weekend!

[timmy's girl]

:( All I could think was "could you let me get 24 hours out of surgery before you make me deal with this stuff?" .

 

 

All I can think is.....you must work with the same people I do!!!

[dillonsmimi]

Lots of pages that I didn't read, so this may be redundant.

Go see doc and just tell him you need him to sign the insurance claim that you were unable to travel.

Most docs won't even think twice if you word like that.

I got full refund from the Carnival insurance (my year old DGD had a cold, I am managing conservator, the doc felt it was unwise for her to travel at such a young age)

NO problems.

 

mimi

[golfadj]

All I can think is.....you must work with the same people I do!!!

 

I was home from being in a hospital for two weeks before being back at work and after a few days encouraged my coworkers to call with work questions. Was bored out of my mind.

 

However a day after being in the hospital is a bit early for hounding you.

 

Take the time you need.

[vacruizer]

I was home from being in a hospital for two weeks before being back at work and after a few days encouraged my coworkers to call with work questions. Was bored out of my mind.

 

However a day after being in the hospital is a bit early for hounding you.

 

Take the time you need.

 

I am laughing about it now but it really stressed me yesterday.

 

I mean really? I haven't even gotten the crazy anesthia drugs out of my system yet and you're yelling at me on the phone at 9am over something from last week? If I were home for two weeks, absolutely, I'd be bored silly, too.

[vacruizer]

If you had been on the cruise, they could not have gotten hold of you, so they should be able to work it out themselves now. Just because you are home should not indicate that you have a welcome sign put out. Tell them to deal with it.

 

Generally with the aftermath of surgery, you feel great he first or second day, then the 3rd day hits and you feel like crap. Hope you continue to feel better and can enjoy the weekend!

 

 

I told my husband exactly that - if I'd been on the cruise they couldn't reach me. But since I'm in town, sounds like I'm fair game.:p

[sjn911]

Amen to that PaulMedik! Although my screen name implies that I am a "baby nurse" (and I was for many years)....I have been working in case management for the past few years. I am one of those RN's who search for the "criteria" that Paul mentions above that determines whether a patient can be admitted to the hospital or not. It is a nightmare!

 

Our healthcare situation is getting worse by the minute and Obamacare is going to make an already bad situation even worse. :eek:

Double that..so agree Paul Medik..it is such a horrific mess from so many angles including insurance..worked in a hospital for a while as a ward aide..

 

Had 4 years of misdiagnosed gallbladder..and pain form hell..sent home over and over again with agony repeated ER pain trips...until finally i threw up and when did they think to do the sonogram..not then..when i informed my backpain doctor..when they got to me it was a shot to He__ and i was lucky...but have some chronic pain from the mess.

 

OP..yeah..give yourself a week..lots adjusting..eat within reason..happy for you..sad about your trip most have minimal pain in long run..but day 3 thing is right..but when it has to go it has to go and you have the right atitude and will be well..so glad you have some immediate improvements..Sarah

[Nanaimobound]

I wish you a speedy recovery in your own time!

 

This was really a blessing in disguise though. Had you decided to travel you could have found yourself in really dire circumstances!

Turn off your phone and rest!

[Florings]

I had my gall bladder out in October. My doctor said you can take up to a week to go back to work, so I took the whole thing and he signed my release for the full week. Maybe just ask your doc to release you a few days later than he originally planned.

 

In the meantime, screen your calls and don't take any from your work.....

[Eeyoregon]

will probably be fall at least before we can actually take time off again

 

I think you should sail the Valor with us November 10 :D!

 

We can compare scars, LOL! I'm so glad to hear that yours was your gallbladder. I had the same symptoms but the pain was unbearable (I know pain having had two 9 pound babies naturally with NO pain meds). Pain that would make me black out but the non-stop vomiting would wake me up. It came on so fast!!

 

First time under the knife at age 29, they discovered 2 & 1/2 feet of my intestines were diseased and dead so complete blockage...bad news! They took my appendix out while they were in there. Eight days in the hospital on IV fluids/NPO and wouldn't you know it, I gained 4 pounds?!?! :mad:

 

Several years later I get the SAME exact symptoms out of the blue and I think "Great, here we go again!!!". Drank a few bottles of that lovely barium crap and off to CT scan I went. I only got sucked into the tube one time when I heard the Xray staff say, "Take her back to her room and page surgery!" :eek:. I guess I should have know something was really wrong when the Zofran and Morphine drips were doing NOTHING for the pain/nausea.

 

Apparently I had a hernia that I didn't even know about! My intestines had gone through the hernia hole and were being strangulated. I've never seen ER staff move that fast before!!! I was in surgery 20 minutes later.

 

When I wake up the surgeon told me that it's an extensive hernia that needed mesh reinforcement but due to the extreme risk of infection i.e. death, he had to repair it without the mesh :( and told me I had a 60% chance of the hernia happening again. Spent 5 days in the hospital this time. Was given a 25 lb weight limit for life.

 

Well, wouldn't you know it...I fell into that 60% group and 2 years later I felt a little tiny "bubble" in my abdomen around my last scar. Was hoping it was just scar tissue from my prior surgeries. Nope, Hector the Hernia was back (I decided to name the little a$$hole).

 

Back to the surgeon I go. Mesh is an option since I'm going into it "healthy". He tells me laparoscopic surgery is the method. Then he goes on to say that his patients have reported back saying this is an extremely painful recovery. Yah, right, after what I've been thru? Psshh! The plan is be admitted and stay 2 nights in hospital but I tell him I see myself going home after 1 night.

 

I wake up in recovery and the nurse starts counting my incisions...1, 2, 3, 4, 5...10! Wow, I win the award for the most that she has seen this year on a hernia repair!! Nice. I had incisions EVERYWHERE!!!! It looked like and angry version of connect the dots except that each dot was 2 inches long.

 

And boy was my doc right, OUCH!!! There are NO words to describe the pain. It was so bad that on my second day at the hospital, my doc took one look at me and asked if I wanted to stay longer to get the pain management under control? Well, DUH!!!! I spent 4 nights in the hospital.

 

The recovery was SLOOOOOWWWW and painful. We're talking months before the pain was better. If my Hector ever comes back, they will have to drag me screaming into the operating room cuz I will never voluntarily do that again!!!!

 

And the above, long winded story, is exactly why I spend the $40 and buy travel insurance :)!

 

Dearest OP: I am glad that you are on the road to recovery. I'm also glad that you didn't go on the cruise because it would have been miserable for you. I wish you the best and hope that you can cruise again soon....November 10 :D.

 

Gina

[cvpends]

I think you should sail the Valor with us November 10 :D!

 

We can compare scars, LOL! I'm so glad to hear that yours was your gallbladder. I had the same symptoms but the pain was unbearable (I know pain having had two 9 pound babies naturally with NO pain meds). Pain that would make me black out but the non-stop vomiting would wake me up. It came on so fast!!

 

First time under the knife at age 29, they discovered 2 & 1/2 feet of my intestines were diseased and dead so complete blockage...bad news! They took my appendix out while they were in there. Eight days in the hospital on IV fluids/NPO and wouldn't you know it, I gained 4 pounds?!?! :mad:

 

Several years later I get the SAME exact symptoms out of the blue and I think "Great, here we go again!!!". Drank a few bottles of that lovely barium crap and off to CT scan I went. I only got sucked into the tube one time when I heard the Xray staff say, "Take her back to her room and page surgery!" :eek:. I guess I should have know something was really wrong when the Zofran and Morphine drips were doing NOTHING for the pain/nausea.

 

Apparently I had a hernia that I didn't even know about! My intestines had gone through the hernia hole and were being strangulated. I've never seen ER staff move that fast before!!! I was in surgery 20 minutes later.

 

When I wake up the surgeon told me that it's an extensive hernia that needed mesh reinforcement but due to the extreme risk of infection i.e. death, he had to repair it without the mesh :( and told me I had a 60% chance of the hernia happening again. Spent 5 days in the hospital this time. Was given a 25 lb weight limit for life.

 

Well, wouldn't you know it...I fell into that 60% group and 2 years later I felt a little tiny "bubble" in my abdomen around my last scar. Was hoping it was just scar tissue from my prior surgeries. Nope, Hector the Hernia was back (I decided to name the little a$$hole).

 

Back to the surgeon I go. Mesh is an option since I'm going into it "healthy". He tells me laparoscopic surgery is the method. Then he goes on to say that his patients have reported back saying this is an extremely painful recovery. Yah, right, after what I've been thru? Psshh! The plan is be admitted and stay 2 nights in hospital but I tell him I see myself going home after 1 night.

 

I wake up in recovery and the nurse starts counting my incisions...1, 2, 3, 4, 5...10! Wow, I win the award for the most that she has seen this year on a hernia repair!! Nice. I had incisions EVERYWHERE!!!! It looked like and angry version of connect the dots except that each dot was 2 inches long.

 

And boy was my doc right, OUCH!!! There are NO words to describe the pain. It was so bad that on my second day at the hospital, my doc took one look at me and asked if I wanted to stay longer to get the pain management under control? Well, DUH!!!! I spent 4 nights in the hospital.

 

The recovery was SLOOOOOWWWW and painful. We're talking months before the pain was better. If my Hector ever comes back, they will have to drag me screaming into the operating room cuz I will never voluntarily do that again!!!!

 

And the above, long winded story, is exactly why I spend the $40 and buy travel insurance :)!

 

Dearest OP: I am glad that you are on the road to recovery. I'm also glad that you didn't go on the cruise because it would have been miserable for you. I wish you the best and hope that you can cruise again soon....November 10 :D.

 

Gina

 

Wow, I'm going to stop complaining about my little ol' double mastectomy! I'm hoping you never have to go through surgery again!

[cvpends]

vacruizer, please don't go back to work on Monday if you are not up to it. You have the right to take care of yourself so that you can recover correctly. If you aren't up to working, have your doctor write a note extending your time off. I believe I am speaking for all of us here when I say we want you to get better quickly, but thoroughly!

[CrabbyPatti]

Vacruiser, I am glad you are feeling better. I just started reading this tonight as I am going on an Alaska cruise in September and just hurt my knee at work! Facing surgery and telling them to hurry up...................I have things to do.........like cruise. But L & I doesn't move fast. PaulMedic spoke very well to how things happen in the ER and how things have changes. I work in an ER in Washington State and much of what he said................I would swear he was working a shift with me!

Get better and do make sure you are really ready to return to work, before you head back. You have been ill and had surgery, allow yourself time to heal!

[cruisinsassy]

VaCruiser, glad you are feeling better! :D

 

I am going through a similar situation as you right now. We leave 2 weeks from today on the Legend, it will be my son's 7th birthday and my DH and Mine's 15 year wedding anniversary. I have been having mild to moderate pain under my right lowest rib for about 3-4 weeks and went to the doctor last Monday. After an ultra sound they found a sludge ball in my gall bladder. :( I have a referral into a surgeon and my primary MD thinks I should be ok, but more than likely they will need to remove the gall bladder. My hubby and I are anxiously awaiting to hear what the surgeon says regarding giving me the go ahead for the cruise. Have been waiting on this vacation for 6 months and I'm really dreading having to cancel. Co-Workers, family, and friends keep reassuring me the healing time is fairly quick. The pain has never been bad, nor have I had the quite the symptoms you had experienced...just more of an annoyance at most...but I know it's sitting in the back of my DH's head and my own that it could get worse. I'm too stubborn to admit it I guess! lol! :)

 

 

Really am glad you are feeling better! I agree with the others, kick your feet up and relax!!!!

 

-Beth

[vacruizer]

VaCruiser, glad you are feeling better! :D

 

I am going through a similar situation as you right now. We leave 2 weeks from today on the Legend, it will be my son's 7th birthday and my DH and Mine's 15 year wedding anniversary. I have been having mild to moderate pain under my right lowest rib for about 3-4 weeks and went to the doctor last Monday. After an ultra sound they found a sludge ball in my gall bladder. :( I have a referral into a surgeon and my primary MD thinks I should be ok, but more than likely they will need to remove the gall bladder. My hubby and I are anxiously awaiting to hear what the surgeon says regarding giving me the go ahead for the cruise. Have been waiting on this vacation for 6 months and I'm really dreading having to cancel. Co-Workers, family, and friends keep reassuring me the healing time is fairly quick. The pain has never been bad, nor have I had the quite the symptoms you had experienced...just more of an annoyance at most...but I know it's sitting in the back of my DH's head and my own that it could get worse. I'm too stubborn to admit it I guess! lol! :)

 

 

Really am glad you are feeling better! I agree with the others, kick your feet up and relax!!!!

 

-Beth

 

Oh, I'm so sorry!!!! It's really a tough thing. We were waffling back and forth on going until late the night before the cruise. Although I was really way too sick at that point, I don't miss cruises! Definitely ask your surgeon the possibility that it could worsen during the cruise or how cruise food could aggravate it - GB isn't always an emergency but can be in some situations. The surgeon saw me at 3pm or so on Wed. and had me in for surgery the next morning so while mine wasn't a "right this second" emergency he wanted it done quickly. I am actually quite thankful at this point I wasn't on a ship as it deteriorated this week.

 

Everyone is different in how they show symptoms from what my surgeon told me. Looking back I now suspect I had "attacks" on and off for years but didn't know what they were. This episode never really had an attack with it but I felt almost flu-like at times and it worsened to where I couldn't eat or drink fairly quickly. I'm sure I also aggravated it because before I knew what it was and trying to finish packing in the evenings last week I had a couple of unusually high fat meals the two nights before we were suppposed to leave. LOL - going for the "quick and easy" dinners of burgers and pizza really set it off! It was after those I couldn't really eat at at all anymore.

 

Best of luck on your cruise and with your drs. and honestly - I could probably leave for a cruise next weekend (8 or 9 days after surgery) if I were able to take another one that quickly. The back to work after 3 days may be pushing it, but I'm feeling a bit better each day and would imagine that by the end of this week I'll be feeling pretty good. :)

 

Oh - I had some minor pain under the ribs, too, for about a month ahead of time on and off. But it was more of an annoyance - I kept thinking the wire in my bra was poking me or feeling like maybe I had a "stitch in my side" that I needed to stretch (it was sometimes side and sometimes under the rib.)

[Florings]

Cruisinsassy, see if you can schedule your surgery this week. You will be over it and ready to sail by the 3rd. You just can't lift anything heavy for a couple of weeks. But really it's over so quickly these days you're back to normal in a matter of days.

[MSRussell]

I, for one am grateful for this thread. One, I am so happy to find out everything worked out ok with the surgery. I know the distress of missing a cruise, but your situation was a lot worse than mine.

Two, I now know the symptoms of having a bad Gall Bladder. I still have mine, but anything can happen, now I know what to look out for.

Melanie

 

 

[vacruizer]

I, for one am grateful for this thread. One, I am so happy to find out everything worked out ok with the surgery. I know the distress of missing a cruise, but your situation was a lot worse than mine.

Two, I now know the symptoms of having a bad Gall Bladder. I still have mine, but anything can happen, now I know what to look out for.

Melanie

 

 

 

I am actually thinking of writing a blog or something of my experience. This whole thing has been pretty scary. Those days of not knowing what the heck was wrong were pretty scary since I didn't have the classic "attack" symptoms of horrible pain under the ribs going on. As it it progressed I did have pain there (although not excruciating like I'd had in the past and thought was indigestion.) Might at least have someone think to get it tested. I've done a lot of reading and there are folks that go YEARS being told they have acid reflux only to find out eventually it was gallbladder all along. Mine worsened quickly enough that they had to do something and thankfully the ER doctor on the second visit recognized the possibility and got the ultrasound ordered.

 

I can definitely say that I haven't had the first hint of heartburn since the thing came out. :)

[Silent Penguin]

I, for one am grateful for this thread. One, I am so happy to find out everything worked out ok with the surgery.

 

I now know the symptoms of having a bad Gall Bladder. I still have mine, but anything can happen, now I know what to look out for.

Melanie

 

 

 

I was thinking the same thing. So, ditto on what Melanie said.

[Cruiseboy06]

Vacruizer.

 

I'm glad the surgery was successful and i hope you have a full recovery and cruise again soon, :-)

 

I have to see a vascular surgeon this week for possibility of removing a blood clot in my left leg. I was diagnosed with DVT last October and after 7 months on blood thinner I still have a blood clot. I went to see my regular doctor last Thursday, and he said I need to see a vascular surgeon. He thinks I need a stent in my leg. They said, it'd take up to 2 weeks to schedule an appt, and I figured it d take 2 to 3 more weeks to have an appt with the surgeon. On Friday morning they called to make an appt with the surgeon on Tuesday morning..

 

I know having a blood clot is dangerous, but its more dangerous when I'm in a wheelchair.