Tuesday, December 6, 2016

Tuesday: Taking it One Step at a Time

Today, I called my regular doctor's office and made an appt. for tomorrow morning, which was the earliest they had available.  Since my primary care physician is no longer with them and I haven't been assigned another primary care physician, I will probably be seen by the physician assistant who saw me last week to do my pap test.  I don't think they can do anything at this point, other than weigh me and check my vital signs, but, at least, this way, they'll have a record of what happened, if nothing else.

I also called my office and spoke with my supervisor and brought her up to date on my health issues.  She was most concerned, of course.  I informed her of my up-coming medical appointments and told her I didn't know if I'd be able to come back to the office, as planned, in January.  She assured me that they will accommodate me as much as possible.  She said she never expected me to work full time at the office and we can work out a schedule.  There is also a satellite office, closer to my home, so I might be able to work from there instead of driving all the way to downtown on a daily basis.  I can still take medical leave, if necessary.  I am also weighing the pros and cons of an earlier retirement than I had planned.  There are a lot of things to consider in the next few weeks.  But, for right now, I am going to continue to work from home, in between medical appointments. 

I also discussed my work projects with my supervisor and prioritized them with her.

I called jury service and postponed my jury duty until June 2017.  I asked that they sent me a reminder closer to the date, made a note of it on my calendar, and kept the summons I did receive, in a place where I'd see it, so I'd remember!   Hopefully, I'll be well enough by then to serve.  If not, well, I guess we'll cross bridges when we get to them.

The radiation oncologist's office called in the afternoon to let me know that the MRI has been scheduled for Thursday morning, at 11:30 a.m., but I need to be in the hospital at 11:00 a.m.  My cousin said she can drive me to it, so that will be nice. 

I had originally planned to go for my blood test on Thursday morning (needed for my appointment with the oncologist on Friday morning), but now, I am thinking, I will do the blood test tomorrow, after I return from the doctor's appointment.  I am planning to drive myself to both the doctor's appointment and the lab for the blood test.

The pharmacy called me again, today, to say that yet another prescription refill was ready for pick up.  So, I drove myself to the pharmacy today - it was my first time driving by myself after the fall and I was a little nervous, but fortunately, I got there and back without any incident!  While I was at the pharmacy, I also asked that they refilled another prescription (they probably would have refilled it tomorrow), so I don't have to keep making multiple trips to the pharmacy. 

Last night, my neighbor across the street called me and brought over a HUGE bowl of Armenian rice pilaf and some cheese filled pastries; there had been an event in their family and they had a lot of food leftover, she said.  I ate a little bit of it, last night.  Today, I divided the rice into five packets and froze them.  I will give one to my cousin when she comes to take me to the MRI on Thursday and share the others with my daughter when she comes home for the holidays. 

I also called my sister and updated her about what happened.  I will keep her informed, but we agreed to postpone any visits until after the new year and I am feeling better.

Today, I have been very diligent about drinking enough water.  I realize that I haven't been drinking enough water and was probably quite dehydrated, earlier.  I have already drunk more than 8 cups, so far and will drink at least one more cup when I take my last medications at night.

Tuesday's to do list:
- Call clinic to see if I need to see a doctor - DONE; made an appointment for tomorrow morning
- Call jury duty to postpone service - DONE; postponed till June 2017
- Office work - DONE; called my supervisor and updated her about things; discussed work projects and prioritized them with her.
- Bring trash can in - DONE
- Pharmacy for prescription refills - DONE

Wednesday's To Do List:

- Doctor's appointment in the morning
- Blood test
- Office work
- Write and mail sympathy cards

Today, I am grateful for:
-  Being able to get medical appointments authorized and set up
- Medical insurance!
- Being able to postpone jury service
- A very understanding and accommodating work place and supervisor
- Being able to drive myself to the pharmacy and back
- Pleasant pharmacy staff
- My cousin saying she can accompany me to the MRI on Thursday
- My friend calling to check on me
- Video chatting with my daughter; she asked if I wanted her to come down this weekend and I said no
- All of you who have shown such care and concern for me; I appreciate all your comments, thoughts, and prayers.

I hope you've all had a lovely day, today.  Do take time to take care of yourselves, as you go about preparing for the holidays.

14 comments:

  1. Sending hugs and prayers. I'm glad you're seeing the doctor and getting a scan.

    I'm glad people are looking out for you. Take care x

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    1. Thank you. Spent the entire morning at the doctor's office! She did several tests and I have a follow-up appointment with her, next week.

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  2. Oh, Bless. I just read your last two posts. I do hope you're ok, it must be such a worry for you. It sounds like you have done everything practical to help your situation and I hope your tests will get you some peace of mind. In the meantime take things easy and look after yourself. Xx

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    1. Thank you, Jules. Spent the entire morning at the doctor's office having more tests done. Most preliminary tests seemed OK, so it might not be anything more severe than dehydration and doing too much! Should know more, next week.

      Hope all is well with you and your family.

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  3. I have a hard time drinking enough, so thanks for the reminder of how important being properly hydrated is. I hope things continue to fall into place for you.

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    1. Yes, stay hydrated. I used to drink 6-8 cups a day. When I was on chemo, I was supposed to drink 10-12 8 fl. oz. cups a day! But I didn't like the taste of water during and after chemo, so I haven't been drinking enough. Now I am making it a point to drink more water; trying to get at least 8 cups a day.

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  4. I'm glad you did not get hurt when you fell and that you were able to postpone jury duty and that you have so many people to care and look out for you.

    Hope today appointment goes well. Take care of yourself

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    1. Thank you, Jess. I have many things to be thankful for, don't I? It could have been so much worse! Spent the entire morning at the doctor's office, having various tests done. More to come, but I seem to be OK for now. :)

      Hope all is well with you and Bubby.

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  5. You certainly have a lot of things to consider Bless, but I'm sure if you take your time to think everything through and weigh up the best options for yourself you will find the right answers.

    I sincerely hope what happened was just a case of you being dehydrated and perhaps pushing yourself a little too hard. A fall like that will have knocked your confidence but the fact that you've driven and been out on your own is definitely a major step in getting back to normality.

    Will the results of the MRI scan be discussed with you there and then or will you need to wait for them? xx

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    1. Thank you, Suzanne. Yes, a lot to consider, but I hope I will have the time to consider everything carefully.

      The MRI results will be forwarded to the doctor ordering them and he will be the one to discuss them with me. I have a follow-up appointment with him scheduled for next Wednesday afternoon. Unless something serious is discovered, in which case, his office might call and say to come in earlier? Hope not!

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  6. Sending big hugs your way. I'll be thinking of you with your upcoming appointments. It's so good that your work has been accommodating with your schedule but like you said, maybe early retirement? I really, really hope you start feeling better and things work out.

    Please take care of yourself!

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    1. Thank you, Sharon. I was at the doctor's office, today, and they ran a bunch of tests. Will wait for the MRI results, too, before making any decisions. Hopefully, hopefully, hopefully, it is nothing more than severe dehydration!

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  7. BLess, proud you are drinking the water..[I have such a hard time drinking water.. eeeh..--- I fill up 4 - 16 oz water bottles each night..so that the next day I start working on drinking them,by evening if the bottles are not all empty, I know I have to drink more.. ha If I don't do this, I can't remember if I drank water or not..lol
    Praying for you.

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    1. Judy, that's a good idea! I have some of those bottles. I am going to do that, myself. It's a bit hard to keep track of how many of my 16 oz. glass I've been drinking!

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