Larparscopic Appendectomy and other VERY BAD things in NYC
What a contrast a few days make. On early Monday morning (6/8) I felt this pain on the front part of my stomach. I didn't really know what it was. After a another few hours I then started to feel nauseated. I was worried I had food poisoning again. The hell I went through back in Oct 2008 on my work trip to Germany was creeping back into my mind. This time, I wanted to fight it with all that I had. I didn't have that much to give though.
I wanted to be better for the next day as I was going to be at the Atlantic Design & Manufacturing show and on my feet the entire day. I took a bath and the warm water on my stomach felt better. I left the house thinking I was better but walking from the subway to the Javitz Center was a task in itself. I got to the booth and started feeling the nausea again. Around 12:30 or so I went to search for some probiotic yogurt. I had been driking Kefir all day Monday and brought some with me to the show but ran out. I went to a grocery store/eatery and bought a Dannon yogurt and some chicken noodle soup. I began to feel sick again and had no appetite.
I left the trade show around 2pm and I barely made it to the subway. I got in and my co-worker told me I should get it check out since she thought it was appendicitis. I got back to Nathan's apt and slept for a few hours, laying on my stomach since that was the best position to make me feel good. I decided to just go to the ER at St. Vincent's Hospital about 5-6 blocks away.
I checked in and after waiting an hour I was given a bed. A few nurses talked to me about my symptoms and drew blood and urine. I then waited another hour to be seen by a doctor. He said I most likely had acute appendcitis and they would have to have surgery to remove it. I got an x-ray done and was supposed to have a catscan. Within another hour I was booked in surgery and they didn't give me the catscan.
I have never had a surgery before other than my wisdom teeth taken out. It was weird but the whole thing felt like it took 5 min. I simply closed my eyes and then was woken up in the recovery room. I had the nurse call my mother and J*****. My cell phone was already locked away somewhere. I stayed over night and then I was discharged around 11am. The most interesting thing happened was when my doctor (Dr. Justin Steele) who performed the surgery told me that the appendix was in very rough shape and almost gangrene-ish. He said he was surprised I didn't have symptoms a lot earlier than Monday.
Dr. Steele's words made me think about my supposed "food poisoning" sickness I had while in Germany in Oct 2008. Was this related to that? Had I gone untreated for all this time with an appendix that was ready to burst at any moment? If untreated an appendix rupture will result in death after 8 hours. I am so glad I went with my gut, pardon the pun, and decided to go the ER route.
Since I just got my new insurance through work, there was a slight problem getting all the correct information. I will have to pay $250 since I was admitted to the hospital but all other services are covered at 100 percent. Let's see if this actually is the case. Healthcare in this country is fucked up.
It's so ironic that on Monday I watched the shocking Michael Moore documentary Sicko while sprawled out on the couch in pain. In the film Moore showed us how countries like Canada, England and France have it made when it comes to universal health coverage. In England, you not only don't have to pay when you visit the hospital for any service, but if you don't have enough fare for a train or bus, an actual cashier will PAY YOU MONEY! Crazy. I really hope under the Obama administration we can get universal coverage. It's nice to dream anyway.
I wanted to be better for the next day as I was going to be at the Atlantic Design & Manufacturing show and on my feet the entire day. I took a bath and the warm water on my stomach felt better. I left the house thinking I was better but walking from the subway to the Javitz Center was a task in itself. I got to the booth and started feeling the nausea again. Around 12:30 or so I went to search for some probiotic yogurt. I had been driking Kefir all day Monday and brought some with me to the show but ran out. I went to a grocery store/eatery and bought a Dannon yogurt and some chicken noodle soup. I began to feel sick again and had no appetite.
I left the trade show around 2pm and I barely made it to the subway. I got in and my co-worker told me I should get it check out since she thought it was appendicitis. I got back to Nathan's apt and slept for a few hours, laying on my stomach since that was the best position to make me feel good. I decided to just go to the ER at St. Vincent's Hospital about 5-6 blocks away.
I checked in and after waiting an hour I was given a bed. A few nurses talked to me about my symptoms and drew blood and urine. I then waited another hour to be seen by a doctor. He said I most likely had acute appendcitis and they would have to have surgery to remove it. I got an x-ray done and was supposed to have a catscan. Within another hour I was booked in surgery and they didn't give me the catscan.
I have never had a surgery before other than my wisdom teeth taken out. It was weird but the whole thing felt like it took 5 min. I simply closed my eyes and then was woken up in the recovery room. I had the nurse call my mother and J*****. My cell phone was already locked away somewhere. I stayed over night and then I was discharged around 11am. The most interesting thing happened was when my doctor (Dr. Justin Steele) who performed the surgery told me that the appendix was in very rough shape and almost gangrene-ish. He said he was surprised I didn't have symptoms a lot earlier than Monday.
Dr. Steele's words made me think about my supposed "food poisoning" sickness I had while in Germany in Oct 2008. Was this related to that? Had I gone untreated for all this time with an appendix that was ready to burst at any moment? If untreated an appendix rupture will result in death after 8 hours. I am so glad I went with my gut, pardon the pun, and decided to go the ER route.
Since I just got my new insurance through work, there was a slight problem getting all the correct information. I will have to pay $250 since I was admitted to the hospital but all other services are covered at 100 percent. Let's see if this actually is the case. Healthcare in this country is fucked up.
It's so ironic that on Monday I watched the shocking Michael Moore documentary Sicko while sprawled out on the couch in pain. In the film Moore showed us how countries like Canada, England and France have it made when it comes to universal health coverage. In England, you not only don't have to pay when you visit the hospital for any service, but if you don't have enough fare for a train or bus, an actual cashier will PAY YOU MONEY! Crazy. I really hope under the Obama administration we can get universal coverage. It's nice to dream anyway.
Labels: Javitz Center, Kefir, Larparscopic Appendectomy, Michael Moore, nausea, Sicko, surgery
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