I hate doctors..

[Hacklemerc]

Last Saturday I was washing the cars. About halfway thru I had to stop becuase it felt like I had pulled a muscle in my back. I was experiencing some serious pain in my right side and could barely move around. I dealt with the pain thaat first night and then on Sunday it became just unbearable and I ended up going to the emergency room. After a 5 hour session at the emergency room I was given a presciption for percocet and 2 days off work. The doctor said there was nothing wrong, probably just a pulled muscle.

SO.. I went my chiropractor on Monday, he xrayed and poked and prodded and found nothing wrong either. He did however setup an MRI for me to make sure there were no ligament damage or anything else squirrelly going on. The MRI was for today at 2.

I took the bull by the horns and made an appt with my regular doctor to get looked at that same day(monday). She was confused. I had all the symptoms of a bad back, limited movement, soreness, but I am vomiting. After every meal I yack back up whatever I eat. I have not eaten and held down a meal since Saturday. I am living off of chicken broth and gatoraid. She gets blood drawn and says we will wait for the MRI results from today.

So today I am at the dealership getting my oil changed and my powerseat fixed when I get a call from my doctor. She does not want to wait for the MRI. She had already scheduled me an appointment for an Ultrasound on my abdomen. She said my liver enzymes or "Off the Chart" and thats not normal. So I go in for my ultrasound today at 2pm and she will meet with me immediately after for the results. She is still unsure as to what is wrong with my innards, and I am starting to get worried. Every movement brings pain and I am super hungry for real food. Man I hope there isn't something hella wrong with me.

thanks for reading,

hackle

[fastblackmerc]

Hope you find out what it is and that it's not serious.

[offroadking208]

good luck sir. Hope you feel better.

[liquid]

My mental image of the ultrasound results... sorry
http://www.horrorphile.net/images/alien-breakfast12.jpg

Hope you feel better soon

[Dragcity]

Best take it easy and have somone else drive you.
Good luck!

[KillJoy]

CLICKY (http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/elevated-liver-enzymes/HQ01011)

KillJoy

[RoyLPita]

Keep us posted.

[Local Boy]

Wishing you ALL the best, Brutha...

ALOHA

[ckadiddle]

Dangit! Prayers sent, Hack. Any history of liver problems in your family tree?

[Zack]

I was gonna bet on Kidney stones.
Get well :up:

[Bluerauder]

Hope you find out what it is and that it's not serious.
+1 ^^^^ Good luck on your tests. Hope that it is a simple, easy to fix issue. Dayum enzymes always starting trouble.

[LordVader]

I was gonna bet on Kidney stones.
Get well :up:

Based on the facts as presented and past experience that is what I would have said too. When I had my stone I had the same symptoms, sick as a dog for four days, with no comfort while trying to sleep. They had to go in after it. So I'll say a prayer for you, that all will be well.

[ckadiddle]

Could be a lot of stuff. Kidneystone is a good guess for sudden onset of pain like that.

I hate being sick and going doctors. I have gone through a couple of major health issues this year myself.

Hack has my empathy and sympathy, well wishes and prayers, utmost wishes for a simple, easy to repair malady.

[Motorhead350]

Man I wish you all the best. At least you're going to a doctor, my mom... where to begin... she needs to be in the hospital and refuses. Sometimes I fear for her life because of her being so hard headed... explains a lot about me doesn't it?

Ok Ok sorry. Get well now!

[KillJoy]

Well....???

:dunno:

KillJoy

[TiTo35]

I hope all is well...

[TAKEDOWN]

Keep us updated on your health, you're in our prayers.

[MADRODER]

All the best, stay positive.

[lucenti]

be well - get well - positive thoughts sent!!

[1stMerc]

Morning sicknes. It'll be over in about nine months.

Seriouly, get well soon. Hospitals are no fun. Spent time in and worked in. Glad i made it out.

[Hacklemerc]

I've ben layed up in the hospital. Well I found out what was going on.. Turns out that I had gall stones blocking my common bile duct. I also had gall stones inside my gall bladder. So they went down my throat with an tube and camera and stuff and removed about 20 stones from my common bile duct. While doing that they discovered that my gall bladder was absolutely full of stones. SOme as big as 2cm across. It was determined that I would need to havemy gall bladder removed. The surgery was scheduled and while getting ready for pre op stages I had an EKG. The EKG showed a slightly altered heartbeat. Basically it looked like I had a heart attack sometime in the near past. SO I was rushed to cardiac to have multiple EKG's and blood tests and an ultrasound of my heart. Finally it was deteremined that I had not had a heart attack or at least not recently. THey did figure out that the swollen Gall baldder had inflamed my liver pancreas and diaphraghm, and was starting to get into my heart. I was diagnosed with pancreatitus and inflamed everything. When they finally went in to remove my gallbladder it was full of stones and about the size of a softball. Needless to say it was not taken out laproscopically (several small incisions) it was removed by practically gutting me and pulling my inards outards. This hurts a great deal.

So 32 staples later and two drains, one for excess blood to leak out of my body cavity and the other hooked to my liver to handle the excess bile because I still have stones blocking one of my bile ducts. It took 3 doctors to remove the gall bladder and they still cannot figure out why I had so many stones for a person my age. All told they removed close to 60 stones and there are still about 10 lft inside me.

I have been layed up since the day I posted the first part of this thread. I am still in the hospital but just now able to get up and walk around and hit a computer. THe doctors cannot figure out why I displayed no signs or symptoms until just before I got violently ill. They are also at a loss for why I had so many stones. I was informed that had I blown off the pain and stomach illness as a common cold I most likely would have been dead in a week or two.

As it stands I should be out of the hospital in a couple of days. I will be off work for about 4 months while the rest of the inflamation and pass (hopefully) the rest of the stones. The drains will be inched of but remain for a bout 2 months so they can scar up and the doctor can use them to go into the liver area later and check the status of my liver and the stones. THeres probably more to the story but I cant remember all of it, Morphine is really good.

So thats my story. Hopefully I will be out of here on sunday. I miss my car and really miss my bed. Thanks for all the well wishes guys.

Later,
Hack

[Dragcity]

Holy Moly, What a story. Really glad you got to the doc when you did. Get well soon.

[SWOOSH]

Hopefully things will be fine. Just as a reference only, www.webmd.com (http://www.webmd.com) can assist in trying to give you an IDEA of what's wrong. Here in MD they have offices called Patient First. I went there, instead of the emergency room, for a painful ear ache. The set up there was cool, went in signed in in 5 minutes, had vitals checked 5 minutes later, 5 minutes later saw the doctor, got my results, and presciption fromt here also and rolled out shortly thereafter, total time, less than a half hour. I hope they have something like that in your area. Best of luck anyway and I hope things will be fine.

[Bluerauder]

I've ben layed up in the hospital.

Later,
Hack

What no Pics? :rofl: General rule around here is to show pictures of any major modifications and/or body work. This seems to qualify. ;)

Glad to hear that you are doing better. Sounds like you went through a real ordeal. Know that you are looking forward to getting out of the hospital and getting back into familiar surroundings.

Get Well Soon !! :up:

[ckadiddle]

Geezamundo! So, like, now you're a Stoner, fer shure, dude.

Best wishes for good healing.

[Hacklemerc]

Oh I've got pics of my guts and pics of the incision stapled shut. I can post them if you want....:puke:

[TAKEDOWN]

Happy to hear you're better, sounds like a healthy recovery has already started!

[MADRODER]

Wow....good to see your recovering :)

[Windsor58]

Get well soon, but don't over do it once you start feeling better (especially while still on pain meds - been there done that). Glad they got them out when they did.
Heal fast. Prayers on the way.

[Davesvt2000]

WOW !!!! :eek:

Unreal, get well soon... :beer:

[lucenti]

had GB removed several years ago. They can be 1 royal pain in the arsh. :eek: with tht out, your body will heal. ahh good drugs are the perks of operations
:woohoo:

get well soon !!!

[Davesvt2000]

OMG, can he be one in the same, right here on our very site ? This is too coincidental if you ask me:



Surgeons successfully removed gallstones from the Dalai Lama on Friday, an operation that will not prevent the Tibetan spiritual leader from traveling again by the end of the month, a top aide said.

Spokesman Chhime R. Chhoekyapa called the surgery "a simple, routine procedure."
The Nobel Peace Prize-winning Buddhist elder was hospitalized in New Delhi on Thursday. He had arrived earlier in the week for a checkup, his second in as many months, and aides said afterward that the 73-year-old had been cleared for foreign travel.
However, an aide said Friday that it was at that second checkup that doctors suggested the removal of gallstones, which the Dalai Lama has had for more than a decade.
"He will probably spend two days in hospital, then a few days in Delhi while he recovers. At the end of the month he will resume his schedule," aide Tenzin Taklha said.



http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=6000028

[1stMerc]

Hey Hack sounds like the title of this post needs to change. Glad to hear you're on your way to recovery and looking forward to the good things. There are instances when drugs do a body and mind good eh.

Take care of yourself.

[Blk Mamba]

This is exactly how so many returning Viet Nam veterans became addicted to hard drugs, a very sad ending to a lot of men.

[jonroe]

It's great to hear you are healing - good luck! I lost my uncle back in 1978 from this because he waited too long to act and he was too far away from a decent hospital (way out in the sticks). Take care of yourself.

[Ken]

Get Well Soon :beer:

Ken

[Hacklemerc]

1srMerc, I guess you are right. I shouldn't hate these doctors. THey did give me the hook up by pulling all my bad stuff out.

My regular doctor told me that I would be out of here this weekend. I need a few tests yet but I should be good to go. THat was yesterday. This morning the On-Call doctor came in this morning and said htat I can expect to get out of here on Monday or Tuesday. I got the deffinate feeling that he just didn't want to do the tests this weekend since he is the On-Call. Kind of irritating but oh well. They took me off my Morphine drip yesterday as well. I am taking motrin for whatever pain I have now.

I just sneezed and about killed myself... OWWWW..

Oh and Davesvt2000... you found me out.. you'll have to be eliminated now...:D

[jgc61sr2002]

Glad to hear you are feeling somewhat better.
Get well soon.

[BlackIce]

Hack,

Glad you got treated when you did. Best wishes for a full and speedy recovery :beer:

[Cobra25]

Glad to hear that your are on the road to recovery. Get well soon.

[Aren Jay]

Don't watch anything funny for a while.

Beware the comments to come like:

Amazing we all though you would be shot but no you were almost stoned to death.

or

He was given leave for being stoned on the job.

or

Just call Hack a stoner...

[oldekid]

I just sneezed and about killed myself... OWWWW..Oh crap! That hurt me! Don't do that!

Glad you got it taken care of and hope this is something you will be able to laugh about in the near future.

Take care.

[Hacklemerc]

Alright guys, I'm home. I still have two drains stuck in me, one to remove excess blood from the body cavity and one plugged into my common bile duct. I also still have "multiple" stones left inside as well. They are backed up into the bile duct on the liver. These will be removed in roughly 8 to 9 weeks or whenever I am healthy enough to suffer through another operation. The docs are hoping that they will eventually work thier way out of the duct in the liver and out through the common bile duct. The drains will stay in for probably another 3 weeks. All the doctors are satified with my recovery so far and said that it was a good thing I am in shape, otherwise the infection and inflamation of all the organs and heart would have probably killed me. I have to follow up with the cardiologist as well, turns out he does think that I had a heart attack sometime in the near past in relation to the gall bladder thing. He is going to check my heart again and we'll go from there. During this whole deal I have lost about 25 pounds, a gall bladder, and a bunch of rocks out of my guts.

THanks for all the well wishes and thoughts. Its much appreciated. The first thing I did when I got home was fire up the big black car and listen to her purr. I'm not allowed to drive for another couple of days so She won't get to roll around until this weekend. She's all dirty and covered in tree sap. Kinda sad. And to think this all started while I was washing both MM's.

[Bluerauder]

Alright guys, I'm home. I still have two drains stuck in me, one to remove excess blood from the body cavity and one plugged into my common bile duct. I also still have "multiple" stones left inside as well. They are backed up into the bile duct on the liver. These will be removed in roughly 8 to 9 weeks or whenever I am healthy enough to suffer through another operation. The docs are hoping that they will eventually work thier way out of the duct in the liver and out through the common bile duct. The drains will stay in for probably another 3 weeks. All the doctors are satified with my recovery so far and said that it was a good thing I am in shape, otherwise the infection and inflamation of all the organs and heart would have probably killed me. I have to follow up with the cardiologist as well, turns out he does think that I had a heart attack sometime in the near past in relation to the gall bladder thing. He is going to check my heart again and we'll go from there. During this whole deal I have lost about 25 pounds, a gall bladder, and a bunch of rocks out of my guts.

THanks for all the well wishes and thoughts. Its much appreciated. The first thing I did when I got home was fire up the big black car and listen to her purr. I'm not allowed to drive for another couple of days so She won't get to roll around until this weekend. She's all dirty and covered in tree sap. Kinda sad. And to think this all started while I was washing both MM's.
Glad you are home and feeling better. I didn't start to get :puke: sick until I read the part about your MM dirty with tree sap. :puke:

When we finally meet, remind me to tell you about my 2nd collapsed lung, removal of the upper right lobe, three drains, ribs spreaders, and a 16" incision from front to back. :rofl:

[jfclancy]

WOW
Hack glad to see you made it home, remember Doctors are just mechanics with more education but less bulit in diagnostics and damn few spare parts.

Hope you continue to do better


Joe Clancy:beer::beer:

[Aren Jay]

Just as a side note: We all have to have a will. If you don't have one get one.

You are never too young to need one.
(unless you are truly too young...)

[Hacklemerc]

Just as a side note: We all have to have a will. If you don't have one get one.

You are never too young to need one.
(unless you are truly too young...)


Oddly enough the wife and I have been talking about getting one for a long time and have just not followed thru. We'll be contacting a friend who is an attorney to help us draw up a will, living will, and a power of attorney. This whole event helped put that all in perspective.

[KillJoy]

:beer:

Glad to hear all is "well"!

To a speedy recovery :beer:

KillJoy

[Hacklemerc]

When we finally meet, remind me to tell you about my 2nd collapsed lung, removal of the upper right lobe, three drains, ribs spreaders, and a 16" incision from front to back. :rofl:

Okay anytime rib spreaders are involved something must be seriously wrong and it generally doesn't sound positive.

Guys, I am up and about. I have been to the surgeon for a check up on all that has been going on. The general concensus is that I am healing way faster than thought. I should be back to work in early Dec not Feb. (good thing, because I run out of sick time on Dec 8th). I will have to have one more procedure to remove the remaining stones and that will take place mid November and will require no cutting. They are going to go down my throat and remove them that way. Not a pleasant way to do it but it beats being cut open again. The drains should be taken out in a week or so pending the results of my next test done on Oct 31st. The incisions are healing nicely and itch like a mofo. I have already put 7 lbs back on, all of it through ice cream and cookies and not being able to exercise.

I'm gonna have to do some checking because according to my platoon SGT in the Army National Guard not having a gall bladder makes me non deployable and eligable for a medical discharge. Not sure how I feel about that. I've got 12 years in and 4 years left on my current enlistment. I don't want to get chucked so close to having my 20 and a retirement.

Thats about it. Thanks for all the well wishes and good thoughts.

[rayjay]

Thats great news Hack! Its always good to heal fast, just don't push. If your gonna lie to the doc about how you feel don't tell the wife. I was comp'd up for a seperated collar bone and my better half dropped a dime on me to the doc. I was out another two weeks because I was going to tell him I was ok to go back on the road. :shake: She didn't think so... and won.

[1stMerc]

I have already put 7 lbs back on, all of it through ice cream and cookies and not being able to exercise.

Hey Hack, glad to hear you're mending nicely. When you're truly up and around, let's roll :burnout:over to Red Robin and add about another 5 lbs to that 7. :food: :beer:

[Hacklemerc]

I will let you all look at the picture and take a guess what it means!! I am returning to full duty tomorrow morning. I have SWAT practice in the AM and at 6 pm I'll be hitting the streets again!! My return is a whole 2 months ahead of what the doctors thought would be. I have been medically cleared to return to full duty with no restrictions. :bounce::rock:

Looking forward to getting behind the whell of my good ol black and white!!

SO over all I have lost 1 gall bladder, 70+ gall stones:eek:, about 25 #'s, all my sick time, and every bit of vacation time I have.

[rayjay]

Thats great Hack! I know exactly how you feel, been there, done that, have the scar from my colon surgery. I'll take the M4 if you don't need it. :D