Thursday, March 13, 2008

Doctors should not be allowed to use the word 'but'

I think doctors should not be able to use the word 'but', or the word 'and' in place of 'but' or even a verbal comma in the same kind of pause. I went to see my radiation oncologist for a follow up yesterday as all my crisping is done. First of all she checked me out and said I was recovering fine. I asked her when the pain would go away and was told that some people the pain stops relatively quickly BUT some people the pain takes a long time to go away. (Now we aren't talking about severe opiate-required pain levels here. But every so often it feels like some one is grabbing, twisting, and squishing while sending electric jolts through the crisped areas - focusing on the surgical scars. What do you think of that?) She didn't define a 'long time' either. Now I am not sure I expected a specific number of days here. Anyhow, I expect it will continue for a while. I go back and see her in September and if it still hurts then, we will have a different conversation.

She also got the preliminary report on my MRI from the computer, which was very nice of her. Also, I must say it is not her specialty to decipher a report from an abdominal MRI but she did give me some information (using the word 'but'). The thing on my liver does appear to be a hemangioma (I am finally comfortable spelling and pronouncing it - he-man-gee-o-ma) which is nice and benign and stays benign and only needs to come out if it causes pain. BUT there is something going on with my gall bladder/bile duct that needs to be better explained to me. She couldn't really say - maybe galls stones/blockage/another thingy. It was very nice of her to tell me this and I know she couldn't really tell me more but now I have to wait until next week.

So when I go to the GI doctor I have a new list of questions: What is the plan for the hemangioma - do we monitor it, remove it, check it? What is this other thing with the gall bladder/bile duct/thingy - do we do more tests, monitor it, remove it? Which of these thingies (thingy is a very technical term, similar to the descriptive word crappy to define how one is feeling) could be causing the pain I have been complaining about? Do we finally have any ideas or is it just classified as 'weird abdominal pains that lots of people get from indeterminate causes'? It is good news about the hemangioma but of course I have to find out about the other thingy before I can finally start to relax. But that is next week and I will just have to deal with it then.

Yesterday after the doctor, I worked at home for a while and then went for a walk. I am very happy that the new season of Top Chef started and I taped it. I will fit watching it into my very busy schedule today. I have been waiting for a new season to start since October. This morning I will go for a walk and then work. I also have to prep for my oh-so-important job interview tomorrow. I need to iron (big fat sigh) and then I need to come up with a list of questions and points of discussion. I think the ironing is the bigger pain in the butt. Maybe I can just find another shirt that doesn't need ironing...

Anyhow today's exciting news is that we are having ostrich for dinner. (Stop saying yucky things!) It was on sale in the grocery store and I figure we can eat anything once. It is supposed to be a very lean red meat. Unfortunately I told Walter what we are having and now he thinks he can smother it with ketchup because it will taste bad. We are living dangerously here! If it is really yucky - ketchup is a good cover-up. But I will be prepared to enjoy it plain as I can be very brave about edible things - as long as they are dead. (No live snakes, bugs, worms, etc for me!)

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