HOLY COW!!!!!!!

[dizzygirl]

Hello all!

How are you? Hope that you are doing well.

Well here is my beef with the medical community today, they are so infuriating!

As I put in my last post, I came down with walking pneumonia, and I have been sick for over 2 weeks now, and I need a IV of fluids.

So I call my doctors office friday and talk to the nurse, and tel her that i am not much better, since I was in on Monday, and that I feel like I am dehydrated, and that with being sick and having pots on top of that, I feel that I need this. It has helped me feel better in the past.

Well she tels me that My doctor is not in the office, and the doctor that was in was booked solid, so she said to go to the ER, I'm like the Er has no understanding of my illness, I really dont want too.

But however I was feeling so badly, that I went to the ER, and they were so very rude to me, they made me feel like I was wasting there time and inconviencing them. I thought OK, Linda just bite your tongue, and wait for the doctor, well the nurse practitioner comes in, and she is like what is the problem you have been on 2 antibiotics now they must be helping,. you.

Mind you I was running a fever, my heart rate was up, I kept feeling like I was going to hit the deck, and I couldnt breath! ERRRRR!

Then the this NP wants to know what pots is, that she has never heard of, now this I expected, but then she starts talking about how it has to do with ovaries, that what pots is.

I'm like no it has nothing to do with my ovaries, POTS stnads for... and it is an autonomic dysfunction, and as I am trying to explain me health problems to her, she put her hand up, and said well I guess we could do a chest Exray on you, I'm like that is all fine and dandy, but I reallt need to have an IV of fluids started, she said that it wsnt necesssary to have that done,

This lady had such an attitude, I wanted to jump up and smack her in to reality.

OOOOOH! I was so MAD!, I siad for get this and walked out of the ER, they werent even going to try and have an understanding of my pots, or the fact that I have been sick for over 2 weeks, feel horrible, and I know what I need, and then to just totally dismiss me as if I were some fly on the wall!!

HELLO!!!!!!!!!!!

Then i get home and my boyfriend calls me to see how it went, and he has to understanding or sympathy nothing when it come to my illness. He goes off on a tangent of how lazy i am, and if I did more around the house, and blah blah blah blah!

I tried to explain to him more then once about my illness, even tried to give him wensite and info to read, he wont read, he thinks that it is all in my head, that I'm just looking attention.

I tried talking to him about the fact that my legs are getting bad, with weakness/heaviness, pain, and that I think it is time for me to talk to the doctor aout getting a walker or a cane, somethin that can support me and that I can hold on too while I am standing, I said maybe on of those ones that have a seat on them so that if my legs feel like they are going to cave, that i can sit, and not have to worry so much about falling down.

You know what he did, he laughed at me !!

Let me tell you, that hurt my feeling a great deal, and it made me feel very mad too, here I am trying to be open and honest with him, and he laughs. I didnt find it all that amusing.

Well I have about had my fill with that crap!

SO here is my plan for the IV, I am going to call the doctora office again Monday morning, and make an appointment and speak to the doc directly, and explain to her that I need an IV done please set me up as an outpatient at the hospital, I refuse to go through the ER for anything. and if she doenst help me then i will call my cardio doc in pittsburgh, and get things done that way.

Ok I am done venting! thank you for listening to me B**** about everyhting.

How frustrated I am!

Linda

[Miriam Poorman-Knox]

Linda,

Sorry such a sucky day!!!!!!! Perhps you could ask your doctor to issue a standing order for you so that when you need an I.V. its there. I get mine through home heath, they deliver supplies, and there are people who will come to your house to give IV's. It works so much better. As for your boyfriend. I'll just say it. It sounds abusive to me. Remember, we may have limitations however we don't have to accept that kind of stuff. Will write more later. I hope you can push some fluids tonight so you can rehydrate yourself. Miriam

[Jenn202]

Hi Linda - I agree with Miriam... Contact a Home infusion company. All they need is an order from one of your Dr's, and they can come to the house when you need it and set you up... All you do is make a phone call. They teach you how to set up the IV yourself, and run it..... ALso you do not need a Dr in state , it can be any Dr you are seeing from what my home infusion company has said.

I hope you feel better

[dizzygirl]

thank you, I will look into a standing order, and the home health care thing, I think I may call my cardiologist in pittsburgh to see if he can set it up, he is the primary one treating me for pots,

Chug a lug on the fluids tonight though!!

thanks again

Linda

[EarthMother]

Put some salt and a dash of o.j. in the water so your electrolytes stay in tact.

So sorry about the nightmare in ER -- you are so very brave to try and take them on.

I've had iv's at home a few times even on really bad hmo plans. They were a big help.

As for the boyfriend's insensitivity ... it must be the moon because I decided to go down the POTS hole with my spouse this weekend to. So I can relate. Isn't it odd that when we are feeling alone, regected by the world and inadequate ... that somehow it feels we keep creating that over and over again by choosing the wrong person to help at the wrong time. It's like trying to buy ice-cream at the hardware store.

Good luck finding something that works.

EM

[Ernie]

Hi,

I have a standing order for IVs and it sure helps when I go to the ER. Here it always depends if the ER doctor accepts to order it but it is much easier with the standing order.

Ernie

[vemee]

Gee, I never knew I had ovaries but if a doctor says that pots concerns the ovaries it must be true. My wife is going to be really surprised.

[dizzygirl]

I know isnt that funny though! LOL

[Laura]

Hey Linda, What an awful experience. It sounds like the NP was not listening at all to what you were saying, and was confusing POTS with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome - or PCOS. Pretty big mistake. I wish that people would take the time to really listen... you'd think that would be a priority. So sorry you went through this! I hope you are successful with getting a standing order IV. Laura!