Ever had one of those headaches? Yeah. You know what I mean...Only this one isn't going away. I've also got tinnitus...Sounds like rushing water...a waterfall. So bear with me here.
Concussion #1 at the end of March was a classic slip and fall on an icy sidewalk with Bree. It didn't seem too bad. At first. The next day or so, I called Christine, my doc, who tells me I need to get checked out at the ER. I called UofM, but, as always, they were slammed. So Michael drove me to the Chelsea ER. We got there, and it was deserted. Brand new remodeled ER. No patients. Fine with me. The surly old nurse with a scraggly long beard sends me in for a CAT scan. Back to my cubicle. Wait for two hours, and a kid...a 20-something walks in and announces that he's the PA, and thinks he should order a CAT scan. OK. Kid's not really got game. I explain to him, patiently, that it had been done hours ago. Surprise! Since there is no radiologist in the building, he wanders off to read it himself. Meanwhile, it's cold, dark, and creepy. So glad Michael was there. Eventually, he wanders back in and informs me that my scan is clear, and I can go. He hands me a pain script. So. I ask if there's a doctor available. He hems and haws, and tells me the "Doctor" is busy. I say: "With what?!" There is no doc. OKAY! Michael went out to get the car, and I walk back through the deserted and dark ER. The only humans present are the surly male nurse, and some other dude looking bored...both with their feet on the desk. I ask where I go to check out. Surly nurse says:"Talk to the girl up front." I was already in a mood, so I say:"You mean the WOMAN up front." He says:"Yeah. The girl." My response: "Thank you, boy." Get home and sleep for 16 hours straight.
Still with neck pain and a headache, I try to swim...but find it too painful. Only took their narcotic once. I hate those!
April comes, and it's a beautiful, sunny day. I grab Bree for our pre-dinner walk. We get around the corner of the house and BOOM. Lights out, and Bree is licking my face. Luckily, a neighbor sees me on the ground, and calls 911. I fell into the side of the house, I think, because I have a huge lump on the side of my head, and my left arm and shoulder hurts, in addition to my hip. Crap. EMS comes out, loads me up in their truck, and we make way through Ann Arbor, hitting every fucking pothole on the road. (And there are LOTS of them this year.) Wait on a gurney in a hallway, forever. Somebody comes by and takes my vitals. Some resident sends me back for yet another CAT scan...which takes HOURS to read, because the place is a zoo. Brand new ER here, too. Not enough nurses. Not enough real docs. Eventually, a diminutive little man, apparently the attending walks in and informs me that my CAT scan was fine. I have a concussion. Well. duh. and I could return home. I explain to him, that I had not healed from a previous concussion, and should I be concerned about a second one so soon after the first. He rolls his eyes, (little bastard) and tells me someone would be making an appointment at the "Concussion Clinic." I ask what that involves. He says he doesn't know. He's never heard of it. So. Back home again. Sleep again all night, except I come downstairs for some reason, and find myself on the floor. Again. Give Christine a call. She calls me in. I explain what's been going on, and she's pissed that neither hospital did an MRI, as, she pointed out, blood clots cannot always be seen with a CAT scan only. Great.
But Christine's worried about WHY I fell, so she ordered a halter monitor for me to wear for 24 hours...Originally, she wanted me to wear one for a month, but she also knows I'm training a lot, and need to get back in the water. It's taped to my chest right now, and, happily, it's only as big as a cell phone...and tomorrow, at exactly 3:05 PM I can take it off.
I'm guessing she won't find anything. Soooo....I'm left with this massive headache and neck pain. Took Bree for our long evening walk...something that I love to do...especially in the Spring.
This headache has GOT to go, though. We'll be digging up the backyard for a veggie garden this weekend. Not gonna be fun with vertigo, headache, and neck pain.
Is this not THE whiniest post you have ever read? I think I should get some kind of reward for that.
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