I wrote last on Thursday- I think. I fully expected that having my records transferred to Methodist Hospital's Transplant Department would be a done deal by Friday. Wrong. So Monday (yesterday) I tried again- I asked the receptionist who the Head of Medical Records was- she gave me a woman's name but said she wasn't there, so I asked to give me her voice mail. I was put on Eternal Hold. After 5 minutes, I ended the call & called back. This time, I just asked for the Supervisor by name, saying that Voice Mail was fine. So I was transferred- to someone else's Voice Mail! At this point, I just became frustrated almost to the point of tears- and I believe I said once that Pulmonary Fibrosis does not allow one to be emotional: if you laugh, or if you cry, you start coughing and can't quit. It has been quite an effort for me- I tend to be pretty emotional. So I sent Stratton a text & told him that I needed for him to be my feet on the ground. I said I was going to write a letter to the Baylor Medical Records Dept., and I ended up scanning it before emailing it to him because I wanted to sign it- and I instructed him to take his Birth Certificate (which I knew he had, because not too long ago, he needed one & I ordered it from Bexar County & got a copy for myself as well) with him because it says who his mother is. Of course I had a different last name then, but I explained that in the letter also. I simply told them that I had tried for over a week to get my test results faxed to another hospital, and that it was urgent, and that I still hadn't been able to reach anyone who could help. I told them that the letter was being hand-delivered by my son & that he could prove who he was & that I gave my permission for him to have my full medical record. This morning, before I was even up, I had a text message from him- he was on the way to Baylor. It took all day, but he got it done. It's very different to be confronted by a real live person saying that this is a matter of life & death than just talking to someone on the phone. Plus, I was still being nice- I try never to alienate someone from whom I want or need something if I can possibly help it- it is so counterproductive. Anyway, he said that they couldn't have been nicer, and they promised that the entire job would be done today. It took until almost 6:00, but they called him to come pick up my copy- I had requested a paper copy for myself of all results, PLUS a CD of my heart catheterization, which is something the Houston people need. And they wanted me to hand-carry it to them, and not risk having it go astray in the mail. So now Stratton has everything, which he will Fed-ex to me tomorrow, and when Kelley gets to work in the morning in Houston, she should have everything via fax as well. Just knowing that we have moved that little bit towards some kind of action has given me the proverbial "new lease on life". (Since my old one is about to expire, I really needed it!) What I will find out tomorrow is when Kelley can get me in to see Dr. Kesavan again. He will have reviewed all my tests and will be able to send me for whatever it is they need that isn't there. Kelley did say that they have a couple of different things they test for that Dallas does not, and vice versa. So far as I know, there is no "stopper"- I read what several of the doctors said in the narrative that each one writes after having seen a patient, and there was nothing pointed out that was felt to be a hindrance to a successful transplant. According to my friend Kay Johnson, the Methodist pastor who just retired in June, Methodist Hospital has already done 71 lung transplants this year! They are on their way to beating last year's number, which I think was right at 100 for the year.
I have good days and those that are not-so-good. Sunday was a wonderful day, while yesterday I felt total malaise- in fact, after failing to make contact with Medical Records at Baylor, and before I decided to get my rear in gear & send Stratton forth, I slept in my recliner for 3 hours! Like a total sloth- and that happens a lot. In the beginning, and I think I mentioned this, I was given this Rx for .25mg of Xanax, and told to take it 3 times a day. Well, WHOA- I was sleeping around the clock, and was very fuzzy when awake. I'm not into that stuff, so I quit the Xanax except for bedtime, and I have been a bit more able to stay awake. But then there are times like yesterday- and it is a mental thing, I know. And there is a name for it- it is called DEPRESSION. Since I have a pretty good reason to be depressed, I'm not surprised, but I do fight it. If there were anything worth watching on TV, I might turn it on- suggestions are welcome. I do enjoy the news, but we record the 5:30 National News every night & watch it together when Steve gets home- that satisfies my need to know what's going on in the world, and as I have said, I read both the Beaumont & Houston papers daily. The only time I got interested in minute-to-minute news was when that Tropical Storm Bonnie started looming- I do pray daily that the hurricane season skips this area this year. I can't imagine having to evacuate, nor can I stand not having power for the A/C. So I was very grateful when Bonnie petered out. Anyway, I read- and I work crossword puzzles. But I need people! So today, that prayer was answered in the form of one of my oldest friends: Suzanne Carlisle Ryan and I attended school together & were in many of the same classes from the 7th grade on, plus we were members of the same church & both very active in the Youth group. She & her husband David had lived in Austin for most of their marriage, but following her mother's death, they decided to sell their big house there & move into her mother's townhouse here. At the time they were planning the move, their daughter, her husband & their 3 grandchildren lived in Houston, so it meant there could be frequent indulgences in Grandparenting. And then their son-in-law was offered a job in Australia & they moved to Brisbane! Bless her heart- that was such a blow. I know how I would feel if Trilby moved to Australia, even though we haven't been able to see them as much as we would wish this year. Most of the time, it was several times a year, and I just adore seeing those children. But Suzanne is coming to terms with it- and she & David are about to embark on a month-long trip to that place "down under" in September, so she is busy planning for that. Anyway, we had the best visit- it was actually our second time to get together- and getting together means that people come to see me- and I just love it. So the rest of you old friends out there, just pick up the phone & tell me when you can come. Until I have to go to Houston again, which I hope is next week, I really don't go anywhere. I manage to go to our Investment Club meetings, but that's about all. I can no longer be sure that I won't have a coughing fit during church, and so I am not attending worship, and I miss that enormously. Our pastor is wonderful- he comes to see me also. And this weekend, I think my friend Kathy Richardson & her beautiful daughter Alexandra are coming to see us! They have been once before- on Steve's birthday, which was January 29, so it's been while, but we did go to the Alley Theater a couple of weeks ago & met them for Agatha Christie's Mousetrap. I had a hard time, ate a bunch of candy & cough drops & took more cough syrup than I was supposed to, but I sat through it without disturbing the public.
OK- that's all- I think I'm done for tonight. I will try to be more faithful and write more often. Shorter entries but more frequent- I shall try!!
No comments:
Post a Comment