Saturday 1 June 2013

Update: Keep Taking The Tablets

The receptionists at the private hospital barely looked up from their computers.  The one I chose stretched out her arm and grabbed the forms with my personal and payment details.  “Do you have your card? I need to swipe it.  No money will be taken but your card needs to go through the system.” She handed me a receipt for £0.00 and waved me away. “Take a seat”. She still hadn’t looked at me.

Mr. Mistry was a nice Indian doctor. The higher up the medical food chain you are the less fancy your title. A consultant, an expert in his very particular field, with years of experience, is plain Mister.  Mr. Mistry is a cardiologist; I liked him and was willing to trust him. He read the GP’s letter, my notes, flicked through the test results and turned his professional gaze on me.

Less than an hour of questions and answers later he was ready to give his conclusions. I’ll live. No operation necessary, no drastic treatments needed, an increase in beta blockers will probably do the trick. AFib is very common and although ablation has become fashionable, there are unpleasant side effects and the operation is not always successful, nor is it without its dangers. I am wholly relieved; the idea of having a bit of my heart burnt off was not something I relished. Now I know, and spending whatever it’s going to cost me was worth it. He answered all my questions patiently and exhaustively. For me, knowing is half the battle won.

I’ll go back to the trusty old NHS with its friendly GPs, nurses and receptionists for medication and, if the condition at some time again necessitates urgent treatment or hospitalisation, I’ll know that the NHS will be there for me. And I won’t have to pay a penny.

I’ve been gardening all day today; I am tired now but  have managed to keep elation and excitement within sustainable bounds. Mustn’t overdo the happiness. I’m still allergic to it.

42 comments:

  1. This is great news, Friko! Yay! I know what it's like to be allergic to happiness. The benign virus sometimes can take you unawares. :-)

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  2. A good outcome, for sure. I am relieved for you. As for happiness, I think you should overdo--just a little :) Have a great weekend!

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  3. I'm glad your mind is relieved.
    A pity communication was so bad with the NHS as to give you such anxiety.

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  4. Friko, I am very glad that you had that appointment with Mr Mistry. Having good communication with a doctor really does help. I imagine that Mr Mistry found you to be a wise and communicative patient. You all made a good team.

    Hoping that you'll have a fine rest tonight. Sweet dreams and all that. xo

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  5. Soak up this elation! It's such great medicine.

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  6. Oh, what good news! I'm so glad Mr. Mistry was patient and helpful even though his staff seem to have a lot to learn about customer service. Indulge a little in happiness.

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  7. Wonderful news...you must be delighted. Take it easy with your gardening for a while.
    Balisha

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  8. Absolutely worth it. Peace of mind is just about priceless. I'm glad that you'll be able to get what you need from the NHS now that you have finally had someone to really talk to you about your condition and answer your questions. Money well-spent.

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  9. I ALWAYS enjoy visiting here and am so glad to see you getting a (small) does of happiness! :) Love your sense of humor and I'm off to see what else has been going on in your beautiful part of the world.

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  10. I'm SO with you on the 'knowing' thing. A pity the NHS' ineffectualness (if that's a word) caused so much anxiety for so long. Hope you have a great weekend!

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  11. Excellent. I always go with trust over credentials as well.

    Not sure what the odds are for ablation...maybe 50/50...I know of only two people who've had it...one worked...the other didn't.

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  12. I had to delete my last comment due to auto correct.

    Knowing is half the battle. You have the information, you have made decisions based on that information, now go live your life ( listening to the doctors recommendations). I LIVE with a similar situation and I am not afraid.

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  13. So glad to hear that you need not worry overly much. You have answers, you have info and you'll continue to have free medical care from here on in. Win/win.

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  14. So happy to hear that you are well and need no surgery. Sad to hear that in a time of stress the nurses have little time for compassion.

    Take care of yourself, Elizabeth

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  15. so its good news then eh? and you know what to do...well worth it..glad you got a little happy...

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  16. Wonderful news. No intrusive medical treatment is a HUGE plus. And a little gentle gardening and gentle happiness are always gold.

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  17. That is indeed good news. Take good care of yourself.

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  18. Good health to you! You sound as if you have turned a new leaf and I am glad that your pursuit of information was rewarded with no surgery on the docket. We do sometimes feel as though we are just part of an assembly line of bodies being tinkered with by 'uncaring' health care workers.

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  19. This is great news, Friko. I'm glad you found the answers you have been seeking for. Take care now, and yes, as you say, overdoing it might just jinx it. Happy days to you.

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  20. This sounds like good news, Friko. Good on you for taking matters into your own hands. It must be a relief to know where you stand. And nice to enjoy some gardening.

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  21. What a relief, to actually find someone knowledgeable and trustworthy who spends time to talk and think through the situation. Such a shame that the NHS could not do this for you: in many ways it is becoming an emergency service in some areas. I am very pleased for you and hope this marks the end of a worrying time.

    As for the non-communicative receptionists, one is sometimes tempted to flood such people with conversation in order to force them to pay attention and acknowledge another human being. But when worried or not well, is not a good time for this tactic!

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  22. Such good news and you are right to be relieved and so happy!! Best pill there is...peace!
    Hugs
    SueAnn

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  23. Great news, and I know a wonderful relief to you.

    Happy gardening ~ FlowerLady

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  24. I'm so glad things are looking up and that ultimately the report was a good one. If you can't make it go away without some risks not worth taking now, then this is the next bet risk.

    You are right about the knowing. At least when you know you have a sense of what to do -- or not -- and why. You can begin to live your life, relish the "as is" in your case or set yourself on a new path if otherwise. But you know. I'm so very happy that things are working out right for you. That's a diagnosis worth paying for!

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  25. So glad Mr. Mistry could put your mind at rest ... in itself worth any amount of extra pills or procedures .
    Now to enjoy the summer , should it ever appear .

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  26. So pleased Mr Mistry gave you peace of mind Friko. How we patients so need knowledge so easily imparted - so sad that you had to pay for it. (I think you should mention to your GP that info would have been welcome from him/her and maybe ask why it wasn't given...)

    May your happiness continue!

    Anna :o]

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  27. So happy that Mr. Mistry gave you answers and a sense of peace. Also a good thing that an increase in meds not anything more intensive will have you all right. Always good to have your questions answered and not just passed over. Oma Linda

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  28. So glad that you got the response you wanted. Ablation has always sounded absolutely horrible, and the idea of an operation to do this - ugh!

    Enjoy your gardening while there is some sun, Friko. In fact, I believe it's set to improve next week actually, and about time!

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  29. Oh, so good to hear positive news!!!!! :):)
    Keep that elation in check. ;)

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  30. Great note. :)
      Yours.

    + Please visit our blogs. :)

    "Everyone needs to dissolve the mean time, not only in words."

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  31. Friko, this is wonderful news. I've been told the same things about the ablation by my doctor. She says she doesn't think I want to go that drastic with the treatment, and she is right. I don't. The beta blockers cause side effects for me. The GI problems are worse that the fluttering heart. I have opted out of medicines for now. I hope the tablets continue to work for you. Some have told me that they are thankful for the ablation. That it gave them their lives back. Like you, I will bide my time and wait until there are no alternatives. I am told a pace maker will have to be included with my condition if I do the ablation. I am in no hurry, and my doctor is really in no hurry at all.

    Elation is a wonderful thing. Enjoy the sunshine, the garden, the dog, and your beloved.

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  32. I'm convinced that less treatment is often better treatment.

    I'm intrigued by the title issue. Here, it's based strictly on your degree. Doctoral degrees (M.Ds, Ph.Ds, DVM, DDS) go by Dr., master's and under go my Mr. or Ms.

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  33. It's good you got the answers you needed. I prefer less treatment to more myself. I do consider gardening and being outside and working in the yard to be healthfully beneficial and spent a good deal of time outside today myself.

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  34. It's nice thing -- knowing you don't need operation!
    And you have a doctor you may trust him, it's very important. Don't know what is NHS, but you've been gardening and felt happiness, so the life is good!

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  35. Currently, I am stabilized on meds and have a horticulturist helping me with my garden. He's great, but the Smithsonian Zoo wants him. To hire him that is. He loves my garden. I'm lucky, I suppose. Heat does me in. We went from spring to summer over night. Dianne

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  36. That's good news. It's a relief, isn't it, to know what you have is not as serious as it could be. Worth a deep breath and a big smile.

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  37. I'd forgotten that about Ireland, the misters, too good to be just a doctor :)

    Good news Friko, harness that elation my friend and forget the ablation - I hear the female veins, etc. don't take too kindly to 'em.

    XO
    WWW

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  38. Yes, knowing is half the battle won, and I am glad you won't need surgery.

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  39. So glad the private consultation has set your mind at rest and you know where you stand.

    Mr Mistry must be a consultant cardiac surgeon, as all consultant physicians are called Doctor. It's a bit of British medical snobbery dating from the days when surgeons were often known as barber-surgeons and seen as mere workmen who got their hands dirty, in comparison with socially acceptable professional physicians who kept their hands clean. Only in the British class system, methinks.....:-)

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  40. My stepfather has A-fib. He has lived quite successfully with it for a number of years. He takes a beta blocker, too.
    Glad you don't have to have the surgery!

    =)

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