My week

Over the last week I have been quite unwell, culminating in an

emergency appointment at the doctors surgery yesterday. As

is usual for me it wasn’t clear what exactly was wrong. I had

severe abdominal pain in the lower right quadrant - I’m no

stranger to abdominal pain, I have suffered with it for as long

as I can remember. I can remember countless home visits by

the gp where I was yet again diagnosed with a grumbling

appendix.

I don’t think what I had yesterday was my appendix - its still sore

today ( just not as bad). I think it is actually a cyst on my ovary,

the doctors found one in 2015 but as it was only 2cm in size

the protocol was not to monitor it. For years every few months

I would get a pain in my lower right side. Loads of times I was

convinced it was my appendix but after they found the cyst

I realised that this made more sense. I started to track when I

had the pain, it was always between the 20th to the 28th of each

month and would last a few days. However over the last six months

every two or so months the pain ramps up. I have a reasonably

high pain threshold and it takes a lot to make me go to see the

dr, let alone ring them up and demand an appointment. Normally

I’m the patient running in the opposite direction.

Yesterday I couldn’t stand up straight when it was at its worst

and when I was on the phone to the duty doctor I was curled

up in a ball on the bed. I didn’t just have pain on the right side

but the whole of my insides felt sore and were burning.  Thankfully

the duty doctor agreed that I did need to be seen and set an

appointment for an hour later. Thankfully Mr Myasthenia Kid

was day off so he could drop me down there. I also had a

pot to piss in ( ha ha ha ha!) my old gp used to give me a sample

pot to use when I suspected I had a UTI. I forgot yesterday to ask

for another one to replace it.

By the time I got to the doctors appointment the pain was

already decreasing. I felt a bit of a fraud to be honest. Whilst

I am typingthe pain is ramping up again, I’ve taken pain

killers so hopefully it will settle it again. I haven’t got a

temperature and today I am not feeling unwell. I don’t feel

right - I think all of us with a chronic illness or condition

know when our bodies aren’t feeling right.

Mine hasn’t felt right for a few weeks, initially I put it down to

anxiety, stress, then the heat. But I know in my heart of hearts

it’s more than that. It’s like the time I kept telling my old hospital

consultant that I felt terribly unwell, I didn’t know what it was but

he needed to listen to me. The arrogant twat didn’t, he sent me

reluctantly for blood tests. Five days later I got a snotty letter

telling me all my bloods were normal. Three days after that letter

he had to backtrack because my prolactin levels were stupidly

high. See I knew that something was wrong, never ignore

your instinct about your health.

My urine was dipped and nothing was showing. I then had to get

up on the couch and be examined. I knew it was coming, I made

sure that front and back bottoms were scrupulously clean as

I feared gloved fingers could be inserted into either orifice.

Luckily I avoided that one! My stomach was palpated, as is

usual the doctors always ask about the scar on my stomach.

I’ve had a scar on my stomach since I was 3 and a bit. It’s been

there so long that unless someone draws my attention to it

I don’t remember it’s there. Now that will probably seem

strange as it’s a horrific looking thing all thanks to EDS.

If I wasn’t such a lard-arse at the moment I may have taken

a photo to show you. The scar runs from around an inch

above my belly button to the top my pubic bone. It has healed

very wide around an inch or more at the worst places and the

skin is paper thin. I also have no sensation / feeling at all in my

stomach about 2 inches either side of the scar as the nerves

were cut ( I have had multiple surgeries). It’s caused me

problems in the past due to burns. A few times I have ended up

seeking hospital treatment as I have given myself a serious

burn injury and not noticed until the skin has gone black. Like I

said I have no feeling there.

The scar has also tethered at the end near my pubic bone. This

means the scar tissue has adhered to the muscle underneath.

It causes me no pain but means my stomach is divided into

two parts due to the tethering.

I showed the doctor on my abdomen where the pain was, she

felt it and I had to be peeled off the ceiling. At this point she

told me that she wanted to ring the surgical team at the local

hospital for advice as she felt it could be my appendix or

it could be an ovarian cyst torsion ( meaning the ovary was

twisting because of the cyst). Personally I thought with both I’d

be in more pain than I was. I declined the call to the surgical

team basically because I hate the local hospital. If I had

been in severe pain, vomiting etc obviously I would have

gone, I’m not an idiot. But I knew what would happen,

lots of tests, no sleep, idiot medical professionals

and sent home after being made to feellike a time waster.

At this point all I wanted was my bed.

I made the doctor a solemn promise that should the pain

intensify overnight that I would ring 999 and if it was bad

tomorrow(now today) I’d ring them. She wasn’t totally happy

but sheknew I wasn’t going to hospital. I have to add here

that even in that severe amount of pain my blood pressure

reached thedizzying heights of 115/80 with a pulse of 95,

oxygen 98%.

When my blood pressure is normal ( doesn’t happen very often

these days) when in pain I am normally in the 130/90 territory.

So that just goes to show you how low my blood pressure has

been of late.

Its not desperately low but I am 5ft 8 tall and not petite. Most

doctors take my blood pressure and you can see that they are

looking forward to giving me a lecture about my weight and

high blood pressure. You can see the disappointment in their

eyes when it comes back low! If my blood pressure is below

around 115/80 I can be hideously symptomatic, every time I stand

up I feel faint. This week I have been drinking expresso's as it's

the only thing that gives my blood pressure a boost, even if it is

only temporarily.

Around 2.30pm the doctor I saw yesterday rang to check how

I was. That was really kind of her but I feel guilty for making

her worry. It wasn’t a quick call either, she had a huge list of

questions to ask to ensure I wasn’t brushing her off and telling

her what I thought she wanted to hear. This is why I love the

small practice I use as they have the time to care about their

patients, it doesn’t feel like a conveyor belt. If you need longer

than your allotted time then you get it and none of the other

patients mind as they also know they won’t be rushed out the door.

My plan is when feeling slightly better that I will make

a doctors appointment and ask to have this pain

investigated. Personally I wouldn’t be surprised if my

ovary is stuck to my appendix due to all the adhesions

I have.  

I've been so rough over the last week or so I haven't done very

much in the way of sewing. I tried some hand sewing yesterday

but couldn’t concentrate so gave up. Today I finished a Travis

bag for one of my Instagram friends. Thankfully that was a quick

bit of sewing as I had started it well over a week ago. I can’t put a

photo up as she hasn’t received it yet. Jamie will be sending it

tomorrow for me. The lovely lady and I have chatted a few

times on IG and she asked me if she could send me one of her

bags and give her an honest critique of her work, which is a bloody

brave thing to do. The bag would be mine to keep. I couldn’t let her

just send me a bag, as I knew she had a dog I thought I would

send her a Travis bag.

This is the bag she sent me

I   Love this bag!