Sure don’t want this to become a habit, but I had my second visit to the local ER here in Mount Peculiar, Ohio, in a time span of a month. Both because of my serious COPD and the fact that my lung capacity is less than 21%.
The first trip to the ER came when I was having a problem breathing. A serious problem! And my oxygen concentrator wasn’t helping. Fortunately the nearest hospital is only a mile away. When I got there the only thing I could gasp out when the lady at the reception desk asked what was the matter was “Help me.” I was close to collapsing.
The nurses and the respiratory tech did a decent job. I saw the on-duty doctor for less than a minute. Really. He didn’t do squat!
I left a couple of hours later with a diagnosis of “Chronic bronchitis.” No new meds and just told to follow up with my GP. Since I switched out of my coverage “network” I have a different doctor. The first one they gave me turned out not to be accepting new patients. The second one doesn’t have an open slot for an appointment until June 6. Oh, well.
I was getting along well until late Thursday evening. I had an occasional twinge of pain across my chest from one side to the other and a little towards the back. I knew it wasn’t a heart attack. Had one of those about 18 years ago. Friday the pain was more intense but not a problem if I remained inert. Lying in bed reading wasn’t a problem. Moving around was. It was the kind or pain you get when you’ve cracked a rib. I know that pain. Cracked ribs a couple or times and even separated my sternum once. Definitely not fun. I told myself if I didn’t feel better in the morning I’d go to the ER.
Though I slept well Friday night the pain was ferocious when I woke up. I negotiated the staircase to the main floor in three stages, resting twice on the way down for oxygen to get my breathing back in order. I didn’t think I could negotiate the few steps from the living room, down four steps to the sidewalk and then to Vicki’s truck. We called an ambulance. The EMT asked if I wanted to go to the local hospital a mile away or the larger hospital in Bryan about 9 miles away. I needed help ASAP!
I have nothing but heartfelf thanks to the ER team at Montpelier General Hospital. I was in EXTREME pain. Only when passing the four kidney stones over my lifetime have I been more miserable. And think of this…I got hit by a car once while I was walking on a sidewalk!!! The concussion and two broken legs were a piece of cake compared to what I was feeling at the Mount Peculiar Hospital ER. If there would be any peckishness to find it would be how long it took them to get the morphine coursing through my veins. AHHHhhhh…
Everyone was very attentive. The front desk lady brought me paper work to apply for financial aid without even being askeda . The doctor saw me at least a half dozen times. I had a chest Xray and a CAT scan. The scan says there’s a 7mm “nodule” on my right lung. Who knows what the hell’s going on there? I’ll have to schedule another CAT scan in six months to see if there’s any change. I had a good session with the respiratory therapy lady and received a thing-a-ma-jig for improving the rescue inhaler.
Bottom line diagnosis is: Pleurisy occurs when the pleural lining — two large, thin layers of tissue that separate your lungs from your chest wall — becomes inflamed, causing chest pain.
One pleural layer of tissue wraps around the outside of the lungs. The other pleural layer lines the inner chest wall. Between these two layers is a small space (pleural space) that’s usually filled with a very small amount of liquid. These layers act like two pieces of smooth satin gliding past each other, allowing your lungs to expand and contract when you breathe.
If you have pleurisy, these tissues swell and become inflamed. As a result, the two layers of the pleural lining rub against each other like two pieces of sandpaper. This causes pain when you breathe in and out. The pleuritic pain lessens or stops when you hold your breath.
Went out and stocked up on all my meds and on the way back to Mount Peculiar I remembered why I only stop in at Taco Bell once every couple of years.
One More Good Adventure 