Kidney-stoned
Again, I know it's been quite a long time since my last substantial post, but I've been reading all my friends' posts, believe me. I've been meaning to post lately, but it seems I never really have the time or my mental state just isn't correct. More mundate subject matter such as my photographic endeavors and my home life will have to wait, though: I need to discuss this past weekend.
We always sleep in late on Saturday mornings, so by Saturday afternoon we were hungry and decided to go out to J. Alexander's way out east by Wolfchase Mall to have a nice late lunch. Just as we were about to depart, I got a strange feeling "down there," as if I needed to pee urgently, only it was more like a burning sensation. I didn't think much of it, thinking it only a passing feeling, and decided that if it persisted, I'd deal with it when we got home.
At the restaurant, the feeling quickly escalated into a full-grown abdominal pain that radiated through and cramped my entire lower body. I could barely move or speak. We'd just ordered our dinner, so I ran to the bathroom to compose myself and maybe relax until the pain momentarily let go. It never did, so we explained the situation to our waitress and asked her to make our orders to go. The interstate heading home was bogged down with traffic that was at a standstill, so what should have been a twenty to thirty minute drive took probably forty-five minutes to an hour. I dashed into the house and started pouring myself a hot bath. I'd had this kind of pain many months back and we'd thought it a possible kidney stone, but back then a hot bath had helped to calm the terrible pain. It didn't help this time, and Danny started to insist that he take me to the hospital. When I then started throwing up from the pain, that did it. Off we went to Methodist North.
At the hospital, registration didn't even question the Iowa marriage license we flashed to ensure Danny would have complete access to me. My vitals were taken, then I was given a small room and urine and blood samples given. It was a while before I was even given pain relief, and the twenty minutes it took the Toradol to work seemed like forever. A doctor evaluated me and then had me sent for an abdominal CT scan. By the time a tardy nurse evidently forgot about me post-scan and a supervisor wheeled me back, the doctor was back to announce that indeed, I was suffering from a 2mm kidney stone. He prescribed me Percoset for the pain and Flomax to ease the stone's passage, and I was sent on my way. The Toradol wore on while at Walgreens to have my prescription filled, but by the time we were home I was once again comfortable. Sunday morning I had more pain and took another pill for it, but didn't have any further problems.
Until today. While preparing to clock out for lunch, I had the same combinations of sensations again, so I decided to only go about a mile away to Subway. All this week I'd had the foresight to carry one Percoset with me just in case, so when the pain hit hard while in Subway, I ducked into the restroom to take it, then retreated to my car to writhe in agony until it subdued the pain. I ordered and ate my lunch, went back to work, announced to a few managers what had happened and took the rest of the day off. Luckily I was most of the way home before the Percoset made my mind a bit loopy.
As of right now, I still haven't passed the stone, but I haven't had more pain either. Tomorrow I plan to go back to work as usual, but if it hits again, I'm going to experiment with taking just one half of the Percoset tablet so that maybe I can work the rest of the day pain-free with my wits still about me.
I haven't had a regular doctor in twenty years, so Danny's made me an appointment with his doctor so I can get a full check-up and have any health issues addressed. For a few years now we've suspected at least high blood pressure.
We always sleep in late on Saturday mornings, so by Saturday afternoon we were hungry and decided to go out to J. Alexander's way out east by Wolfchase Mall to have a nice late lunch. Just as we were about to depart, I got a strange feeling "down there," as if I needed to pee urgently, only it was more like a burning sensation. I didn't think much of it, thinking it only a passing feeling, and decided that if it persisted, I'd deal with it when we got home.
At the restaurant, the feeling quickly escalated into a full-grown abdominal pain that radiated through and cramped my entire lower body. I could barely move or speak. We'd just ordered our dinner, so I ran to the bathroom to compose myself and maybe relax until the pain momentarily let go. It never did, so we explained the situation to our waitress and asked her to make our orders to go. The interstate heading home was bogged down with traffic that was at a standstill, so what should have been a twenty to thirty minute drive took probably forty-five minutes to an hour. I dashed into the house and started pouring myself a hot bath. I'd had this kind of pain many months back and we'd thought it a possible kidney stone, but back then a hot bath had helped to calm the terrible pain. It didn't help this time, and Danny started to insist that he take me to the hospital. When I then started throwing up from the pain, that did it. Off we went to Methodist North.
At the hospital, registration didn't even question the Iowa marriage license we flashed to ensure Danny would have complete access to me. My vitals were taken, then I was given a small room and urine and blood samples given. It was a while before I was even given pain relief, and the twenty minutes it took the Toradol to work seemed like forever. A doctor evaluated me and then had me sent for an abdominal CT scan. By the time a tardy nurse evidently forgot about me post-scan and a supervisor wheeled me back, the doctor was back to announce that indeed, I was suffering from a 2mm kidney stone. He prescribed me Percoset for the pain and Flomax to ease the stone's passage, and I was sent on my way. The Toradol wore on while at Walgreens to have my prescription filled, but by the time we were home I was once again comfortable. Sunday morning I had more pain and took another pill for it, but didn't have any further problems.
Until today. While preparing to clock out for lunch, I had the same combinations of sensations again, so I decided to only go about a mile away to Subway. All this week I'd had the foresight to carry one Percoset with me just in case, so when the pain hit hard while in Subway, I ducked into the restroom to take it, then retreated to my car to writhe in agony until it subdued the pain. I ordered and ate my lunch, went back to work, announced to a few managers what had happened and took the rest of the day off. Luckily I was most of the way home before the Percoset made my mind a bit loopy.
As of right now, I still haven't passed the stone, but I haven't had more pain either. Tomorrow I plan to go back to work as usual, but if it hits again, I'm going to experiment with taking just one half of the Percoset tablet so that maybe I can work the rest of the day pain-free with my wits still about me.
I haven't had a regular doctor in twenty years, so Danny's made me an appointment with his doctor so I can get a full check-up and have any health issues addressed. For a few years now we've suspected at least high blood pressure.