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One night last June I was trying to sleep and had an excruciating pain on my lower left side of my abdomen. So unlike any other I ever had. Tossed and turned and tried to pass stool, gas, burp, etc etc. Nothing helped. Started vomiting. Projectile. Sweating, shaking, weak. Home alone. What to do? No one to call. It was 3 a m.
I drove myself to the ER. Went in the front door and vomited right there. They hooked me up to IV, gave me pain meds, then ultrasound and bloodwork. Dx: diverticulitis. Two days later, back to the ER. Passing blood clots. GI doc said could be perforation. Deadly.
Final bill : More than $8000. I was in ER only 4 hours total. My insurance paid, thank goodness.
Do you want to have this kind of a bill? I doubt it. Schedule a visit with a gastro for asap. No ER needed. What you have is truly not an emergency.
About the doctors, why don't they change their schedules. Instead of working on a friday, where most people are working, why not take the day off on friday and work on a saturday. What's the difference between a friday and saturday, but like I said, they wouldn't do that because their families and people they care about, probably also work monday to friday as everyone else.
No real difference between a friday and saturday, except what people have given emotional meaning to.
It is inconvenient for most people. Doctors don't care, because YOU have to move around your life to connect with them, and it should be the other way around. It is thanks to the patients, that they make a living. They should accommodate themselves to the convenience of patients.
Like on friday when I went for my nail biopsy, even the staff knew very well what I was going for, i called them, sent emails before which they responded, it wasn't my first time in that office either, as the doctor previously told me to return in 2 weeks for a biopsy, the doctor somehow didn't know I was coming in and told me in my face with an attitude "i dont want to do it, is the holidays and this is our last day here" like i was thinking in my head, lazy bastard, is just a biopsy of 20 minutes at most with local anesthesia and it was early in the morning, you're gonna get paid.
Doctors have their schedule. There are other Docs that can fill in
There is always someone available for an emergency.
GERD is not an emergency, unless you are vomiting blood!
Going to ER for minor issues clogs the system for those who really need emergency care
I took an Uber because it takes 4 to 6 hours for local anesthesia to wear off. I could've have driven but why risk it. Local anesthesia doesn't just affect where it was applied locally but it affects your whole body and it can impair motor skills.
LOCAL anesthetics affects only area local to injections. Do you not drive yourself to your dentist?
How did this thread go from GERD tp nail biopsies??
Its the holidays and it would be almost impossible to get an appointment with a doctor and even if I were to see one, what are the chances he has the equipment to do tests to check if I have peptic ulcer, hernia, or something else. How do I know in advance whatever doctor I go to, would even agree to order these tests for me. He would probably sent me to an specialist for tests, for days of waiting and jerking around.
I still have this tender feeling on my left upper abdomen, supposedly where the stomach is It comes and goes, it seems to get worse at night, if I stick out my belly, the burning/pain feeling gets worse, not sure what that means, why would it get worse when I stick out my belly?. It may be an ulcer since I only started experiencing this right after my recent acid reflux episode that was triggered by soda, alcohol, and other stuff
If I go to the ER with a complain of some pain on my upper abdomen, they'll probably do any test imaginable and figure out what I actually have. I would be left with a big bill though, but at least I know for a fact I don't have anything serious
I just can't deal with all this bureaucracy and waiting with a regular doctor. Would a primary doctor even do an endoscopy when I visit him? He would probably just say try these PPI or whatever, that's not good enough for me
You don't need to see a doctor to get proton pump inhibitors. They're over the counter now. Stop drinking alcohol, caffeine, soda. Try to eat a low fat diet comprised mostly of fresh or frozen vegetables and fruit, with a little lean protein. If you're at all overweight, try to lose some weight. And take an over the counter PPI, like Prilosec or Prevacid, every morning, possibly twice a day, and an over the counter H2 blocker, like Pepcid or Zantac in the evening. If symptoms haven't improved dramatically by early January, see a primary physician, and then possibly a gastroenterologist.
Unless you're passing blood from either end, ER will do nothing beyond the above for you. They might however order a CT - to cover their ass - before they let you out. And having too many CTs are associated with inducing leukemia.
You don't need to see a doctor to get proton pump inhibitors. They're over the counter now. Stop drinking alcohol, caffeine, soda. Try to eat a low fat diet comprised mostly of fresh or frozen vegetables and fruit, with a little lean protein. If you're at all overweight, try to lose some weight. And take an over the counter PPI, like Prilosec or Prevacid, every morning, possibly twice a day, and an over the counter H2 blocker, like Pepcid or Zantac in the evening. If symptoms haven't improved dramatically by early January, see a primary physician, and then possibly a gastroenterologist.
Unless you're passing blood from either end, ER will do nothing beyond the above for you. They might however order a CT - to cover their ass - before they let you out. And having too many CTs are associated with inducing leukemia.
I'm already doing that. Taking omeprazole every day, this is my 4th day though. I never liked how pepcid make me feel, groggy the next morning, i don't know why.
What would be the point of seeing a primary doctor first, if he would probably just refer me to a GE. Unless, the primary doctor is going to do tests, how could he be of help? I would go to him and tell him everything I posted on here and he would say, you probably have GERD or an ulcer/hernia, let me prescribe you PPIs, which I had already been taken anyway
That's not a diagnosis, is just guessing and isn't any better than my guessing. Unless a test is done, whether this is GI endoscopy or the barium test, he can't know for certain what is really going on inside my body.
You don't need to see a doctor to get proton pump inhibitors. They're over the counter now. Stop drinking alcohol, caffeine, soda. Try to eat a low fat diet comprised mostly of fresh or frozen vegetables and fruit, with a little lean protein. If you're at all overweight, try to lose some weight. And take an over the counter PPI, like Prilosec or Prevacid, every morning, possibly twice a day, and an over the counter H2 blocker, like Pepcid or Zantac in the evening. If symptoms haven't improved dramatically by early January, see a primary physician, and then possibly a gastroenterologist.
Unless you're passing blood from either end, ER will do nothing beyond the above for you. They might however order a CT - to cover their ass - before they let you out. And having too many CTs are associated with inducing leukemia.
S/he probably needs a workup, not some medical advice from a keyboard physician who has not examined him. You are correct about the ER. Multiple CT scans in childhood and young adulthood are linked to leukemia and brain cancer in later life. https://www.cancer.gov/news-events/p...ediatricLancet "The investigators estimate that for every 10,000 head CT scans performed on children 10 years of age or younger, one case of leukemia and one brain tumor would occur in the decade following the first CT beyond what would have been expected had no CT scans been performed."
Not a major concern for an adult getting a diagnostic CT.
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