My Wife Has Lupus » emergency room

2009? Already?

Jeff — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 23:42:09 +0000

The holidays are always such a blur, and this year was no exception. There were a few times that I sat down to post something, but blogging seemed like a big cold pool that I didn’t even want to stick my toe into, much less wade in and write something meaningful. I’m ready to get back into the pool now, I think. I’m working on a few things right now.

One of the best things about this holiday season was that for the first time in four years, Jenny didn’t spend any holiday time in the hospital. This made all of us happy. She’s being better about getting rest and didn’t commit to any huge activities in November. I think it made a huge difference. Not that there weren’t some problems, but none of them required a trip to the emergency room, thank goodness.

More soon, and a belated happy new year!

Still Here

Jeff — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 13:50:49 +0000

I’ve had a hard time writing lately. I’m not sure why, because there’s a lot to write about. I just can’t seem to get much of it together. I know I’m tired, but I’m always tired, so I don’t see that making a difference.

After writing all those suggestions last month about being prepared to go to the doctor or emergency room, I was kicking myself yesterday for not having information about all of Jenny’s doctors. She had just had an MRI and was pretty sedated, and they were asking about where to send the information. I should have that information with me in my wallet, but I don’t. I’m going to try and figure out some way to do that without making my wallet look like a Big Mac. I’ll let you know what I come up with.

Jenny was recently sent some sun resistant clothes to try, and she likes them a lot so far. I’ll let you know more soon. I’m really glad summer is on its way out. The sun makes Jenny’s lupus flare like crazy.

I promise to write something useful soon.

Emergency Room 101

Jeff — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 23:10:09 +0000

We probably make a trip to the emergency room at least once every three or four months. We made a trip last week because there was some concern that my wife could have had a small stroke. That didn’t end up being the case, but we did have to make a trip to the ER for an MRI just to make sure.

Over the years, we’ve gotten pretty good about dealing with the ER. Here are some of the things we have learned:

Bring a copy of all of the medications currently being taken and a list of all known health conditions.
Make sure that your primary care doctor and/or rheumatologist is informed about your visit to the ER.
Try and get a copy of all of your test results sent to your primary care doctor and/or rheumatologist so that they don’t have to order the same tests when you go in to see them.
Bring a book or something to read, because it you may be there for quite some time.
If you can, try and get on a fast-track so that you can be seen quickly, because you don’t really want to hang around with a bunch of sick people when you are immuno-compromised.
Sneak in some food and water if you can.
If you wear contacts, take them out before you go.

That’s all I can think of right now. If you only remember one suggestion, make it the one about bringing a copy of your known health conditions and your medication. That alone has saved us a ton of time and grief.