I'd been very sick with major high temps 104+, coughing and sore throat since Memorial Day weekend and finally went to my doctor. I really try to avoid doctor visits so I only go if I'm really bad. I don't cry wolf and always do what they tell me to and try very hard not to be a pain and bother them with stupid stuff. I told my Dr. besides the obvious, it felt like something was stuck in my throat but she didn't see anything so she diagnosed me with pneumonia, sent me packing with a lot of perscriptions, and left the country on vacation that very next day--- with no one on call for her, but she did leave a couple of girls in her office. I'm not one to complain so I really didn't want to say anything that I was getting worse, but I finally got so bad that I did call to report that my windpipe had been shutting closed, I couldn't swallow or get my breath and it was getting impossible to drink..Its been hot. I work hard and I drink a lot. They had me come in for a 20 minute breathing treatment and gave me a sample of a different inhaler. Nothing was helping much and I was a the point I couldn't lay down without gasping for air at all again telling them there was something stuck in my throat so I was sitting up all night in my chair every night as going to bed was not an option.
.It was very hot all the time and I couldn't hardly sip water from a straw as nothing would pass down my throat normally. It would take like 5 minutes for one sip of water to go down and food was out of the question even things like jello and popcycles. Mr Retirement is all over my case about this and kept telling me we had to get to the bottom of this but I'm not liking all this complaining I've been doing and worried I"m making people mad at me. But the problem went on more and more every day and night so once again I called the office and they told me to gargle a lot every day. Then the Doctor returned from vacation so I called her office yet again and notified them I had fainted 4 times in one day probably because I can't eat or hardly drink and I have to function because now I have a sick dog on my hands that needs me and I'm really getting a little bit upset. She increased my RX dosage and added 2 more perscriptions (now I have 7) and didn't really think I needed to come in. Now I was loosing my voice and getting too weak to do anything anymore. Then one night we were up at 3:00 am trying every which way to get me to breathe and we almost called an ambulance but I didn't want to go to the hospital hoping this will resolve itself soon. Reported this incident yet again to the office that next morning soon as they opened and they said they would tell the Doctor and they never called me back at all.
Friday night I knew I was dead.Throat closed solid shut and I had no voice left at all gasping for air again and couldn't swallow once more. This time it was lasting too long again. Two thirty in the morning Paramedics had to come and said if it were another 5 minutes I would have been dead or they would have had to slit my throat and do a trache on my living room floor. My husband showed them my tray of meds and they said I was having an allergic reaction to some of them. In the ambulance they did epinephrine OMG I thought that was going to kill me too..... and there were all kinds of other shots, IV's for hydration and who knows what. Incredible ride down the mountain in a storm with sirens screaming. I was beyond freaked out but loved whatever was taking effect in those IV's except that epinephrine which makes you feel like you are having a heart attack. . By the time I got to the hospital my airways were a lot better. Not normal but better. That paramedic saved my life. He told me he was a Navy Seal paramedic for 30 years and had seen this a million times in antibiotic meds mostly. ER Dr. there was really nice and couldn't believe all the meds I was on and how dehydrated I was. He said I had been overdosed on poor medicine choices, apparently I had an allergic reaction and said indeed there is something wrong with my throat as my neck was huge and beet red. I thought that was because I'm fat and sunburned. They did some blood tests there but then I had to go to Chattanooga emergency room from there because they didn't have a lot of equipment in this little country emergency clinic to see what is wrong with my throat.
Now afer 50 miles I'm in another emergency room and had to go in that big monster thing that eats you up....MRI? I take one look at that spaceship and about lost my mind because I'm totally claustrophobic, but learned that valium was going to be my new best friend to get me through that. It sure didt! I'm trying again not to be a pain but I kept telling them we have to hurry this thing up because my dog has a mystery illness and I can't leave her unattended and I needed to get home. Wonder if they thought they od'd me on vallium? The doctor and nurses there there were very good and examined my bag of meds I had brought with us. They also were astounded at the amounts I was taking and said some of them were notorious for dangerous side effects and swelling up the throat and I was severely overdosed. Allergic reaction for sure confirmed. . Seems that I have an enlarged thyroid/ (goiter) and when the medicine caused my throat to swell up, it hit up against my thyroid and blocked my airwaves. Somewhere along the line they also said I exhibited possible signs of sleep apnea while sedated which added more confusion.
Presently I am not taking any drugs at all and I have to see another doctor for the thyroid problem who can't get me in for 2 weeks so I'll have to deal with that.. I'm still having swallowing issues because of my huge thyroid and frankly scared to go to bed so I'm still sitting up in the chair at night but that's ok . I have to go shopping for some serious insurance really quick. .
So here's the thing: If I had the nerve, which I don't because I'm such a wus, I'd like to say a few things to my former Doctor. I'm sure she doesn't know I had the ambulance or was in two hospitals trying not to croak or that she's fired. I'm not even positive all my messages ever made it past the desk to her. Some of them did of course because she increased my dosage and kept writting more perscriptions, I'm very disappointed and actually very sad in their lack of interest after having my whole family as patients, and knowing us very well for a good many years. I kinda thought they liked me better than that! I don't think speaking to them about this whole ordeal would accomplish a thing therefore I am going to remain silent and anxious to move on and get started with a new doctor somewhere else.
Up until now I wouldn't have cared if I croaked because I want to see my son so badly. But now that I have my beautiful grandaughter, I think I'd like to stick around for a while longer.
I'm sure there's a message in this somewhere or a heads up.
.It was very hot all the time and I couldn't hardly sip water from a straw as nothing would pass down my throat normally. It would take like 5 minutes for one sip of water to go down and food was out of the question even things like jello and popcycles. Mr Retirement is all over my case about this and kept telling me we had to get to the bottom of this but I'm not liking all this complaining I've been doing and worried I"m making people mad at me. But the problem went on more and more every day and night so once again I called the office and they told me to gargle a lot every day. Then the Doctor returned from vacation so I called her office yet again and notified them I had fainted 4 times in one day probably because I can't eat or hardly drink and I have to function because now I have a sick dog on my hands that needs me and I'm really getting a little bit upset. She increased my RX dosage and added 2 more perscriptions (now I have 7) and didn't really think I needed to come in. Now I was loosing my voice and getting too weak to do anything anymore. Then one night we were up at 3:00 am trying every which way to get me to breathe and we almost called an ambulance but I didn't want to go to the hospital hoping this will resolve itself soon. Reported this incident yet again to the office that next morning soon as they opened and they said they would tell the Doctor and they never called me back at all.
Friday night I knew I was dead.Throat closed solid shut and I had no voice left at all gasping for air again and couldn't swallow once more. This time it was lasting too long again. Two thirty in the morning Paramedics had to come and said if it were another 5 minutes I would have been dead or they would have had to slit my throat and do a trache on my living room floor. My husband showed them my tray of meds and they said I was having an allergic reaction to some of them. In the ambulance they did epinephrine OMG I thought that was going to kill me too..... and there were all kinds of other shots, IV's for hydration and who knows what. Incredible ride down the mountain in a storm with sirens screaming. I was beyond freaked out but loved whatever was taking effect in those IV's except that epinephrine which makes you feel like you are having a heart attack. . By the time I got to the hospital my airways were a lot better. Not normal but better. That paramedic saved my life. He told me he was a Navy Seal paramedic for 30 years and had seen this a million times in antibiotic meds mostly. ER Dr. there was really nice and couldn't believe all the meds I was on and how dehydrated I was. He said I had been overdosed on poor medicine choices, apparently I had an allergic reaction and said indeed there is something wrong with my throat as my neck was huge and beet red. I thought that was because I'm fat and sunburned. They did some blood tests there but then I had to go to Chattanooga emergency room from there because they didn't have a lot of equipment in this little country emergency clinic to see what is wrong with my throat.
Now afer 50 miles I'm in another emergency room and had to go in that big monster thing that eats you up....MRI? I take one look at that spaceship and about lost my mind because I'm totally claustrophobic, but learned that valium was going to be my new best friend to get me through that. It sure didt! I'm trying again not to be a pain but I kept telling them we have to hurry this thing up because my dog has a mystery illness and I can't leave her unattended and I needed to get home. Wonder if they thought they od'd me on vallium? The doctor and nurses there there were very good and examined my bag of meds I had brought with us. They also were astounded at the amounts I was taking and said some of them were notorious for dangerous side effects and swelling up the throat and I was severely overdosed. Allergic reaction for sure confirmed. . Seems that I have an enlarged thyroid/ (goiter) and when the medicine caused my throat to swell up, it hit up against my thyroid and blocked my airwaves. Somewhere along the line they also said I exhibited possible signs of sleep apnea while sedated which added more confusion.
Presently I am not taking any drugs at all and I have to see another doctor for the thyroid problem who can't get me in for 2 weeks so I'll have to deal with that.. I'm still having swallowing issues because of my huge thyroid and frankly scared to go to bed so I'm still sitting up in the chair at night but that's ok . I have to go shopping for some serious insurance really quick. .
So here's the thing: If I had the nerve, which I don't because I'm such a wus, I'd like to say a few things to my former Doctor. I'm sure she doesn't know I had the ambulance or was in two hospitals trying not to croak or that she's fired. I'm not even positive all my messages ever made it past the desk to her. Some of them did of course because she increased my dosage and kept writting more perscriptions, I'm very disappointed and actually very sad in their lack of interest after having my whole family as patients, and knowing us very well for a good many years. I kinda thought they liked me better than that! I don't think speaking to them about this whole ordeal would accomplish a thing therefore I am going to remain silent and anxious to move on and get started with a new doctor somewhere else.
Up until now I wouldn't have cared if I croaked because I want to see my son so badly. But now that I have my beautiful grandaughter, I think I'd like to stick around for a while longer.
I'm sure there's a message in this somewhere or a heads up.
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