So it's all in my head.
It's taken five days, but I think I can finally talk about what happened at the my followup appointment with my specialist on Friday.
I showed up. I told him that yes, I am still in pain, and no physical therapy has still not helped; for that matter it left me barely able to move my neck for three weeks straight. We talked about the allergic reaction I'd had to the cortizone injection the last time I was there, and I mentioned that my arm was still tender from the shot I'd been given to counteract it (despite the fact that it's been a month since they gave it to me, which worries me a bit.). I was told that I 'cannot be allergic to cortizone' because 'there is no documented case of it anywhere.' So I must be allergic to something else that was in the shot, which he wrote down for me for later use. He pushed my arm in a couple of places to test my strength, watched me wince because it still hurt, and asked questions about how I deal with it at home.
Then he declared that he doesn't know what's wrong with me, because my MRI is clear and there's no tear or break. So he released me back to work without restrictions. No more appointments, no more physical therapy.
When I eventually said that it's not the first time no one's been able to figure out what's wrong with me, he called me 'The Mystery Woman' like it was a compliment and sent me on my way. The insurance representative who's been accompanying me to my appointments walked me out and kept assuring me that it's a good thing there's no physical damage, and that I just need to keep doing my physical therapy stretches at home and it'll get better.
....
In otherwords, if I wish really, really hard, my arm will magically stop hurting after five months of constant pain?
To put this politely, I AM FUCKING ROYALLY PISSED. Because this guy did NOTHING. Every single piece of paperwork I've filled out since I injured my arm, the *only* request/expectation I've ever asked is for the pain to stop. All he did was prescribe me muscle relaxers that didn't work, order an MRI, send me back to physical therapy after my physical therapist said it wasn't working*, and then throw his hands up and say 'I don't know, so you must be fine'.
An hour of physical therapy had me fighting tears. I picked up a *wooden chair* on Sunday to move it - leaning the weight on my left arm and just bracing with my right - and cringed. Hell, I've had a random stab of pain in my shoulder just sitting in a restaurant. And I'm supposed to be able to work an eight hour shift? WTF? DID YOUR MEDICAL LICENSE COME BY MAIL ORDER?
-Takes a slow breath-
I don't know what I'm going to do now. I really don't. I can't go back to work at the factory. I'd sue if I thought I had a case, or at least get a second opinion if I had the money to *go* to another doctor. (Not that there's a lot of options in this area; he was the only specialist available from what I've been told. >.<) So ... I don't know.
Right now I'm just ... trying to keep my head together. Violently killing things in FFVII so stay calm and keep from thinking about it. I'm not expecting an answer to fall into my lap, but right now I don't even know where to begin.
* I called my physical therapist yesterday to let her know how the appointment went, because she'd been concerned about it. She was upset on my behalf because she knows I'm still in pain. Then she wished me good luck, and I thanked her for for everything. I'm going to miss her.
I showed up. I told him that yes, I am still in pain, and no physical therapy has still not helped; for that matter it left me barely able to move my neck for three weeks straight. We talked about the allergic reaction I'd had to the cortizone injection the last time I was there, and I mentioned that my arm was still tender from the shot I'd been given to counteract it (despite the fact that it's been a month since they gave it to me, which worries me a bit.). I was told that I 'cannot be allergic to cortizone' because 'there is no documented case of it anywhere.' So I must be allergic to something else that was in the shot, which he wrote down for me for later use. He pushed my arm in a couple of places to test my strength, watched me wince because it still hurt, and asked questions about how I deal with it at home.
Then he declared that he doesn't know what's wrong with me, because my MRI is clear and there's no tear or break. So he released me back to work without restrictions. No more appointments, no more physical therapy.
When I eventually said that it's not the first time no one's been able to figure out what's wrong with me, he called me 'The Mystery Woman' like it was a compliment and sent me on my way. The insurance representative who's been accompanying me to my appointments walked me out and kept assuring me that it's a good thing there's no physical damage, and that I just need to keep doing my physical therapy stretches at home and it'll get better.
....
In otherwords, if I wish really, really hard, my arm will magically stop hurting after five months of constant pain?
To put this politely, I AM FUCKING ROYALLY PISSED. Because this guy did NOTHING. Every single piece of paperwork I've filled out since I injured my arm, the *only* request/expectation I've ever asked is for the pain to stop. All he did was prescribe me muscle relaxers that didn't work, order an MRI, send me back to physical therapy after my physical therapist said it wasn't working*, and then throw his hands up and say 'I don't know, so you must be fine'.
An hour of physical therapy had me fighting tears. I picked up a *wooden chair* on Sunday to move it - leaning the weight on my left arm and just bracing with my right - and cringed. Hell, I've had a random stab of pain in my shoulder just sitting in a restaurant. And I'm supposed to be able to work an eight hour shift? WTF? DID YOUR MEDICAL LICENSE COME BY MAIL ORDER?
-Takes a slow breath-
I don't know what I'm going to do now. I really don't. I can't go back to work at the factory. I'd sue if I thought I had a case, or at least get a second opinion if I had the money to *go* to another doctor. (Not that there's a lot of options in this area; he was the only specialist available from what I've been told. >.<) So ... I don't know.
Right now I'm just ... trying to keep my head together. Violently killing things in FFVII so stay calm and keep from thinking about it. I'm not expecting an answer to fall into my lap, but right now I don't even know where to begin.
* I called my physical therapist yesterday to let her know how the appointment went, because she'd been concerned about it. She was upset on my behalf because she knows I'm still in pain. Then she wished me good luck, and I thanked her for for everything. I'm going to miss her.