Tuesday, September 20

Of malaise and maladies

You know the saying, “don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone”? Well, that’s how I’ve been feeling for the past few days. I have been experiencing very great pain in my left knee. It’s a bit swollen, as a result of banging it (ouch!) on the leg of the table. I asked my doctor what to do about it, and he said that all I needed was rest and less walking. Yeah, right. And I just happen to be a rich Madame who does nothing all day but sits at home and watch tv. Along with other people in this world, I happen to work for a living okay….

I digress… So back to that saying, I haven’t been able to walk properly or sit or sleep at ease for that matter. I have constant aching and find the simplest task like walking a tremendous battle. Imagine having to walk to the bathroom from my cubicle. The thought alone is enough to cut down the skips to my loo to three per day. I go up the stairs at home one at a time. This alone takes me two minutes. I cringe and wince every time I ‘misplace’ my left leg. I cannot bend my knees freely and I cannot sit at the desk for long periods. I slouch and lean back and look really lousy and unproductive. I really appreciate my legs now. I miss them to bits...

So why come to work? I’ve already missed yesterday. Since there’s nothing my specialist can do about it, I cannot simply march into a clinic and see another doctor and demand an MC. See, going to a clinic and seeing a doctor who’s not familiar with my medical history would cause several problems for me.

1. The doctor would first freak out upon looking at my pale face and then proceed to demand to know what’s wrong with me. After hearing my explanation, he shakes his head in disbelief and for the rest of the conversation, doesn’t listen to what I’m trying to tell him, because he’s made up his mind about me already.
2. The doctor would suggest I quickly get myself admitted into the hospital for blood transfusion, which I do not need, but is insisted upon by the doctor who doesn’t trust me and thinks as a professional, he would know best.
3. I try to state my points and counter his suggestion, at which point he will call in my hubby and tells hubby to ‘advise’ me to follow his instructions.
4. We feel let down by the so-called professional who doesn’t seem to be in a rational state of mind and refuses to help with the current situation, and instead demands action on past medical symptoms.
5. We leave the clinic, fuming mad at the doctor.

So that’s why I’m waiting till tomorrow to see my specialist. And that’s why I had to come to work today. And that’s why yesterday I had to take emergency instead of medical leave.

And should there be, by any freak chance, any doctors reading this, please know that sometimes, you don’t know best.

2 comments:

narrowband said...

Ouch. Hope your knee's better by now. A visit to the specialist is a must.

mudslinger said...

narrowband,
thanks. it still feels like tearing whenever i move. but i got my specialist to look at it....so we'll see....