About four this morning I woke up with a pain in my left side. That seemed odd, but I was able to fall back to sleep. By the time I took Emma for her first outs, I was struggling a bit to walk down the road due to the pain. I went into work, but told the others that I just wasn’t up for dancing like a crane with the fifth graders today. I answered the phone and sat in the VC for about an hour and a half, but that was it. Good friend Diana said, “If you don’t feel well, go home. We don’t need a martyr around here.” It was a wake up call for me. The best of friends tell you like it is. So I slowly made it back to the rig to lie down. About an hour later, Diana opened my door to check on me. She had an arsenal of many reasons why I had better get myself to a doctor this afternoon.
She was, of course, right. I found a clinic and went in at 2:00. Result was a diagnosis of diverticulitis. A couple of antibiotics were ordered, and it was suggested that I get a CT scan to confirm the diagnosis, and to be sure that was all that was going on. That’s when more problems reared their ugly heads.
As I stopped at Walgreen’s for the prescriptions, I was told they wouldn’t be ready for about an hour and a half. Then I got a call that the hospital in Ocean Springs had denied my insurance so if I continued to pursue the CT scan there the bill would be $4000-5000. The clinic said they would check other places.
I got back to the rig and called my insurance provider to see what I could do. I won’t go into all those details, but the bottom line is I will be calling providers from a list tomorrow morning to be sure they will cover the procedure.
One of the bad things about this happening right now is that Andy and his family are flying in tomorrow for a four day vacation here. I can’t see that I’m going to be very active with the grandkids this weekend. 
I doubt I’ll be working with the fifth graders tomorrow. I’ve got to find a place to have the CT scan done. Wish me luck with that. I do have to mention that my insurance says I can go wherever I want for service, but the CT people just wouldn’t listen to them.
Thanks for stopping by… talk to you later, Judy
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Geez, that's scary. Judy, is there any way you can go ahead and get the scan and contact the insurance company later? Can you contact your insurance commissioner in your state of residence?
ReplyDeleteDiverticulitis is nothing to fool around with. So, with or without insurance, you need to get the scan. My email is actionnewsat5@gmail.com if there is anything I can do to help you.
Sorry you're not feeling well. It's always an adventure trying to get medical care in new places. Maybe the antibiotics will kick in and you'll feel better by the time your family gets here.
ReplyDeleteWhat a bummer! Especially with the family coming for a visit. Hope you get better soon. And I hope your insurance comes through... like it should! Take Care .....
ReplyDeleteInsurance company's suck I'm dealing with them over some charges my self.
ReplyDeleteHope you get better with no further problems over insurance. Take care of yourself!
ReplyDeleteOh gracious. Hope the meds kick in real fast! Insurance only works for the healthy...because they don't use it.
ReplyDeleteTake care of yourself. Hound the insurance company and get the treatment you need.
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear this latest dilema, Judy. Hope it gets taken care of soon and the medicine helps.
ReplyDeleteIt's always kind of a 3 ring circus dealing with insurance companies over medical issues. We had a bit of a go at it this past winter. Extremely important for you to get that CT Scan. Our thoughts are with you.........
ReplyDeleteSorry Judy, you are having these issues -- hopefully in the morn you can get the scan. In the meantime, prayerfully, you will get some relief with the antibiotics. God bless!
ReplyDeleteAn earlier commenter said "Insurance only works for the healthy". It does seem to me that Health Insurance in the U.S. only works for the WEALTHY!
ReplyDeleteHow terrible for you. After my colonoscopy the Doc told me I should eat more fiber because I had diverticulosis and it could lead to diverticulitis. He scared the heck out of me about it and so I have been on a big push to eat more fiber for several months now. I hope you can find good treatment and you recover quickly. By the way, the doc said almost everyone over the age of 50 has some pockets in their colon. We all have to be more careful. If you were poor and on welfare you could get the CT without a fuss.
ReplyDeleteOh, gosh. This would be the time when I'd have a tantrum in front of whoever would listen. Or I'd cry. Or something.
ReplyDeleteTake care of yourself.
Take care Judy, Diverticulitis is no fun but Merikay is so right...Fiber, Fiber, Fiber and lots of liquids.
ReplyDeleteYou look after yourself and get the tests and do what the doctors tell you.
ReplyDeleteWell, wait a minute people… It’s only “fiber, fiber, fiber” AFTER the acute flare-up is OVER. Tons of roughage is essential for good gut health. But when things are all tender and inflamed, a few days of clear liquids, followed by a very gentle, very LOW fiber diet supports rehabilitation. The last thing a struggling gut needs is a whole bunch of hard work to do! Scrambled eggs, broth, mashed potatoes, pasta, rice, yogurt may not generally be the mainstays of good eating, but they will encourage healing.
ReplyDeleteThe commonly held belief that small seeds and nuts are taboo has mostly been debunked, but if they bother you just don’t eat them.
From the literature:
“One of the largest studies on this subject looked at more than 47,000 men over 18 years as part of the Health Professionals Follow-up Study. The most fascinating finding was that those men who ate the most nuts and popcorn actually had lower risk of infection. In short, no association was found between an increased risk of diverticulitis and eating nuts, popcorn or corn. (JAMA. 2008;300(8):907-914)”
Rest, plenty of fluids and a heating pad on the bad area can aid healing. By the time we’re 60, chances are good that half of us will have diverticulosis.
Every now and then one of those annoying little pouches will get clogged up. In a worst case scenario they can abscess and cause all kinds of grief. Antibiotics should be used if infection is suspected. An elevated white blood cell count is diagnostic.
Hang in there Judy. I’m betting you can clear this up with no dramatic intervention, no thanks to that horrible Sunday buffet. Betcha that was the trigger point. Hope it resolves quickly.
Judy, mbz is right I just got a diagnosis of diverticulitis about a month ago,after being ill since Dec.
ReplyDeleteWatch what you eat durning this healing time, look it up on the internet. I lost 16 lbs with this problem, my first attack. I have made a life change in my eating habit, this is nothing to take lightly... sending healing prayer your way
donna
Take care and get well soon
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