Sunday, October 4, 2009

The literal pain in my ass

I had quite the scare this week, and in some ways, my fears have not been fully addressed. Last July, I was quite sick with the flu and like I mentioned then, Chuck had taken me to the doctor's office to receive two shots that seemed to clear things right up. The shots were of Toradol and Phenergan. I only know the names of these drugs because I had the wherewithal to insist that the nurse practitioner write them down for me, knowing that I was in no shape to remember these things myself and Chuck wouldn't consider this stuff important enough to place into memory. At the time, I was told that the Toradol was to battle the flu symptoms and Phenergan was to help with nausea typically caused by Toradol. Let me say here and now: I know very little about prescription drugs and have little interest in taking them. That is part of the reason why I patron my doctor: she tends to go for more homeopathic approach to problems. Unfortunately, that is part of my current dilemma.

The shots in July were administered, I guess, on each of my upper gluteus. Over the past month, I've felt an on-and-off soreness at the location of the right-sided shot; and, more recently, have felt a small lump (dime/nickel-sized) form there too. Being totally freaked out, I decided to schedule an appointment and insisted on seeing the doctor for the appointment. The earliest I could get in with her was this past Friday. I also insisted that Chuck go with me just in case it was something that concerned her too. Needless to say, I showed her where the lump was, and using the same technique as with a self-breast exam, she found the lump also (so there Chuck, it really wasn't all in my head). She went on to tell me about how some people can react poorly to physical act of receiving a shot, and that is what she believes is going on. Her "prescription" was to (and in this order):
  1. Apply a warm rice sock to the lump
  2. Massage the lump area nightly
  3. Rest in a hot tub
  4. Take an Epsom salt bath
I left her office not fully satisfied, but didn't want to at least give her advice a chance. She is the medical professional in the room, right? So, I'm going to try these remedies for a week or two. (Well, actually, I'm going to skip #3 because I don't happen to have a hot tub handy and have gotten nauseated every time I've sat in one.) But, seriously, she can bet that if nothing is happening over that time period, I'll be back in her office and insisting on having a little more of an intensive analysis done. Being the worrier that I am, I've immediately thought of the worst; so, I'm sharing this with you now so that you can side with Chuck and tell me that I'm worrying over nothing.

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