2017 Life Logs, Day 81: Visit to the Doctor
Date: Wednesday, March 22, 2017
Weather: Party Sunny and Very Windy; High 45, Low 15 degrees F
Location: At Home in the The Studio, Falmouth, MA
This incessant wind is getting to me. Walking from this apartment to the car feels like a hazardous activity. Actually, just opening my front door feels hazardous because the wind catches the door and pulls it hard away from me. I know March can be a windy month, but I am more than ready for the cold and wind to subside. But that is not in the forecast for the next week. So I guess I just hunker down and wait.
In mid-August last year, Mark and I had annual physicals with a new physician. He is a young man and when he met with Mark, he immediately came into the room where I was and stated that he was ordering a weekly visit from a home health care nurse among other interventions. I was taken back a bit, but less than a month later when Mark died, I understood what Dr. Munir had seen that none of the rest of us had noticed. He explained to me at the time that oncologists notoriously never deal with end of life issues. And he was right about that. I got to thank him today for his interventions and then we addressed the reason for my visit today. For over thirty years, since the first time I started getting annual check-ups and blood tests, I have always had a high bad cholesterol count, but an even better high good cholesterol count. But in August, Dr. Munir did not have access to my previous records, so he insisted that I return in six months for a follow-up appointment. That should have happened in February, but I was in Nashville. So the follow-up happened today, and just as I had reported to him, the bad cholesterol count stayed high, but the good cholesterol number countered it. But the really good news is that the ratio between the two was cut in half between August and now. Good news which might be due to my new low-carb diet or increased exercise, or both. But whatever, it is working. When I mentioned the sinus issues I have had off and on since December and my current cold/flu symptoms, he started into an education campaign to convince me that too many times antibiotics are prescribed when not needed and that in many cases using age-old herbal remedies actually work just as well. He was building his case when he looked in my ears. Then he changed his tune. He said that I have infections in both ears and that I would definitely need an antibiotic, plus ear drops, plus an anti-cough capsule. So I went from herbal treatments to antibiotics in the span of a few seconds. I totally agree with Dr. Muniz that antibiotics are prescribed too loosely, and I am not totally convinced that I need to take the anti-cough capsules, but I did start the antibiotic and ear drops this afternoon. Within five hours, either the medications or just the natural progression of whatever I have, caused me to become a drippy mess. I had been very clear with the doctor that I wasn’t sure what I have is a cold because I have not had a runny nose. Well, now I do, but not bad enough to make me want to take something to dry things up. I’ll wait until morning to see how things are then. Let’s hope a good night’s rest and the new meds kick during the night and that in my morning I awake feeling much better.
