Well after a metaphorical kick up the arse from Sid Smith today I’ve ventured back to blogland. My reasons for being away for so long are multitudinous and, frankly, rather lame but I did tell you all to expect this sort of thing in my first ever post.
What excuse do I feel like using then? Well let’s go for the health issue as it’s been the main focus in my life for the past 6 weeks or so. It all started with a headache I just couldn’t shift with any combination of preparatory medications and which felt as if someone was driving six inch nails though the temple of my voodoo effigy using a jackhammer. Being somewhat loathe to visit my GP I put up with this for 5 days before the sleep deprivation just became too much and I gave in.
As, I imagine, with most GP surgeries I was unable to make an appointment with my own GP at short notice and was given a slot to see someone I had never heard of never mind seen before. Don’t you just love the peace of mind the NHS doles out with its continuity of care policy? Anyway the GP gave me thorough going over and once I had convinced him that if I had been suffering from untreated meningitis for 5 days I might be dead by now so it would be safe to discount it he took my blood pressure. The look on his face as the reading of 210/105 came up was quite something and I have to say I’ve never come across one quite as high in all my time working in oncology. This spurred him into action and I was hurried out of the surgery with a prescription for some beta-blockers and an appointment for an ECG at North Tyneside General Hospital (Rake Lane) that afternoon.
I have only ever been to Rake Lane a couple of times before as a visitor and have never had the need to use public transport so I had no idea how to get there. Of course I didn’t admit this to the GP and so I wandered down to the Wallsend Metro bus exchange as I seemed to remember seeing busses heading up Rake Lane departing from there as I waited for my metro to work. I just got to the stop as a bus arrived and so I hopped on. 55 minutes later the bus eventually pulled up at the hospital after a wonderful magical mystery tour around the Hadrian Park housing estate and Cobalt Business Park, I guess I didn’t pick the express route. The ECG caused some concern to the staff who wouldn’t let me leave until both it and I had been examined by a medic from the coronary care unit. I wasn’t unduly worried as I have had a known heart murmur since birth and the quick glance I had of the ECG reading didn’t look like indicative of a heart attack to my admittedly untrained eye. A couple of hours and several blood tests later I was allowed to go home under the proviso I stayed off work and went back to see my GP ASAP.
So there we have it, at this point I had been cleared of any heart damage and my only problem was hypertension for which I was receiving medication. Of course that was 6 weeks ago and life has a way of complicating things just for the hell of it. To cut a very long story short and to maintain your will to live: I have been back to the GP surgery a further 3 times seeing a further 2 GP’s; my medication has been changed 4 times; I have been referred to a renal physician at Freeman Hospital and seen him twice; I have had a further referral to another renal physician and been her ‘guest’ on ward 4 at Freeman Hospital; I have had an ultrasound scan of my kidneys; I have had an MRI Scan of my aorta; and, finally (?), I have had enough blood taken to make several black puddings.
What excuse do I feel like using then? Well let’s go for the health issue as it’s been the main focus in my life for the past 6 weeks or so. It all started with a headache I just couldn’t shift with any combination of preparatory medications and which felt as if someone was driving six inch nails though the temple of my voodoo effigy using a jackhammer. Being somewhat loathe to visit my GP I put up with this for 5 days before the sleep deprivation just became too much and I gave in.
As, I imagine, with most GP surgeries I was unable to make an appointment with my own GP at short notice and was given a slot to see someone I had never heard of never mind seen before. Don’t you just love the peace of mind the NHS doles out with its continuity of care policy? Anyway the GP gave me thorough going over and once I had convinced him that if I had been suffering from untreated meningitis for 5 days I might be dead by now so it would be safe to discount it he took my blood pressure. The look on his face as the reading of 210/105 came up was quite something and I have to say I’ve never come across one quite as high in all my time working in oncology. This spurred him into action and I was hurried out of the surgery with a prescription for some beta-blockers and an appointment for an ECG at North Tyneside General Hospital (Rake Lane) that afternoon.
I have only ever been to Rake Lane a couple of times before as a visitor and have never had the need to use public transport so I had no idea how to get there. Of course I didn’t admit this to the GP and so I wandered down to the Wallsend Metro bus exchange as I seemed to remember seeing busses heading up Rake Lane departing from there as I waited for my metro to work. I just got to the stop as a bus arrived and so I hopped on. 55 minutes later the bus eventually pulled up at the hospital after a wonderful magical mystery tour around the Hadrian Park housing estate and Cobalt Business Park, I guess I didn’t pick the express route. The ECG caused some concern to the staff who wouldn’t let me leave until both it and I had been examined by a medic from the coronary care unit. I wasn’t unduly worried as I have had a known heart murmur since birth and the quick glance I had of the ECG reading didn’t look like indicative of a heart attack to my admittedly untrained eye. A couple of hours and several blood tests later I was allowed to go home under the proviso I stayed off work and went back to see my GP ASAP.
So there we have it, at this point I had been cleared of any heart damage and my only problem was hypertension for which I was receiving medication. Of course that was 6 weeks ago and life has a way of complicating things just for the hell of it. To cut a very long story short and to maintain your will to live: I have been back to the GP surgery a further 3 times seeing a further 2 GP’s; my medication has been changed 4 times; I have been referred to a renal physician at Freeman Hospital and seen him twice; I have had a further referral to another renal physician and been her ‘guest’ on ward 4 at Freeman Hospital; I have had an ultrasound scan of my kidneys; I have had an MRI Scan of my aorta; and, finally (?), I have had enough blood taken to make several black puddings.
My current medical position is that I have suspected Fibro Muscular Hyperplasia of my renal arteries and a confirmed coarctation of the arch of my aorta. I am currently under ‘house arrest’ at home and am not allowed to go out without telling anyone where I am going and taking my mobile phone but preferably going everywhere accompanied. Oh, and by going out anywhere my consultant recommended the bottom of my street and back! I have a further appointment to see the consultant on Monday and ECHO scan this afternoon for which I have to make my way to the Freeman which is just a bit further than the bottom of the street, eh Mr Consultant? The likely course of action is to have some angioplasty on the renal arteries and surgery to remove the coarctation if they can’t stent it. All in all I don’t think I am going to get back to work this year, Gill and I have had to cancel our long weekend we had planned for December in Budapest and, yes, AND I've been told I can't drink alcohol at least until this is all sorted and maybe never again!!!!!!!!.
Not the world’s greatest excuse for ignoring the old blog here especially as I’ve been at home with access to the PC but as you can imagine I’ve had one or two things preying on my mind recently.
1 comment:
So apart from bp of 210/105, heart murmurs, suspected Fibro Muscular Hyperplasia, a confirmed coarctation of the arch of your aorta, and impending angioplasty, what's your excuse for not getting on the blog????
Seriously though Chris,the very best of good wishes from all of us in the yellow room.
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