Medical Advocacy

I’ve been an emotional wreck for a while, but no more.

I went to meet our friends to walk our dogs yesterday morning, but I bailed half-way through because I was so incredibly tired. Plus, now that I know that’s my heart that’s the problem, I’m less inclined to tackle the hill or to do anything that makes me pant and heave. It can’t be good for my heart to push myself.

When I got home, I wrote a letter to Jennifer, my nurse practitioner, and took it to the clinic. I showed it to the receptionist and asked if I could have an appointment in less than a month—usually, it takes a month to see her—and to my delight and relief, I have an appointment with her this coming Wednesday. And then, just like yesterday after talking with Dr. Dorscheid, I started bawling as I walked back to the car. Relief just explodes out of me.

I’ve been living like a medical detective/advocate since June, and now I feel very, very close to getting a diagnosis and treatment. I plan to discuss my lack of confidence in Dr. Chen with Jennifer and I want to know why I haven’t recovered from this attack. After my past heart attacks, I’ve quickly recovered without intervention. But now it’s coming to a head, this investigation, and I’m very relieved. My upcoming echocardiogram and profusion scans should lead to a plan for treatment. That’s my hope.

After a lovely nap and escape from everything, I made myself yet another big batch of seafood curry yesterday afternoon. It’s become my go-to comfort food, and I needed lots of comforting after all the stress over my health and conflicting messages from the specialists. It felt so good to be on the chaise, but soon it was time for our afternoon walk, and we walked together in the rain.

The evening was lovely and relaxing. I’m watching A Gentleman in Moscow (that is not nearly as appealing as the book). And the fire is keeping is nice and warm. 

It’s wet and very, very windy this morning. All the ferry crossings are at risk today because of the wind. I shall pray that I don’t have a power outage.

And more good news: Finally, the postal strike is being ended by the government. It’s about time!