Tag Archives: Russel

Frustration with the VA

I really don’t believe this…

but the last visit to the VA clinic could of easily been done over the phone! The main gist being, we were seeing a doctor in the ‘chest clinic’ and he ruled out anything being wrong there, and now we need to start over in the “GI clinic”.

Well, a few choice words and some whimpering helped and he sped up the process that would of taken us another 3 weeks at least if not six. He speeded it up so much that we get to go down there 2x in one week!!

We leave on Monday, spend Monday night in SF, and then the appointment on Tuesday. This time he is scheduled for an Endoscopy and, just for fun, a colonoscopy 🙂

At least this time we may actually get a real diagnosis.

I am just completely fried with all this.

To add to the stress level, my Dad just called with the news that he is footing the bill for us to fly home (Michigan) for Christmas.
Now this is a good thing on one level, but it still takes a lot to get there from here. More on that later, after this last (I hope) trip to the VA.

Getting Ready for the Coming Rains

Today Russel finished insulating all our water pipes under the house. Tight crawl space under there, with his bruised rib and bad back, not really a good time, but good to have it done. I pulled all the dead squash and tomato plants out of the garden. Last weeks rain and coldness did them in. There is still more to do in the garden but no time.

We also need to move the solar panel that powers the battery that powers the little pump that lets us have water in the house for good things like showers and flush toilet.. we had to charge the battery today with the generator. We will be out there all week end so it will eventually get a good charge. Russel also did a pump, (we pump water from a lower gravity fed holding tank) to a tank up by the house. Full tank… lots of showers 🙂

With the bathroom happening there I like staying out there more and more. Power is still an issue. I miss not having my computer there. Once that happens I will most likely shun town and only come in when i really have too.

We leave tomorrow (Wed) for the VA clinic in SF again. The pain is still there. We are leaning towards thinking this is GERDs.. and hope to get some help. Prilosec hasn’t helped. Diet change hasn’t either.

Wish us luck.

Health Updates – Russel

Russel has completed the Prednisone therapy, the first 2 days off it he seemed better, then he had a terrible ‘pain behind the sternun’ attack. We really got worried and depressed that it was all for nothing … which I had been afraid of since the beginning, after all the Prednisone is only covering a symptom, some kind of inflammation.

Well after that one really bad attack, there has been less pain, and some days no pain at all. The last couple of days he hasn’t felt anything like pain in that area.

That symptom, in Google, brings up ‘angina and heart attack’ and GERD, Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease, although he rarely has acid reflex or heart burn, he decided to stop eating some acid causing foods. That lasted about 2 days :), except for his black tea. Wouldn’t it be ironic if all this was caused by drinking 1 cup of China Black Tea (Good Earth Naturals) every day!!!

Any way he isn’t coughing, and not using the inhaler either. He is back at work and except for a very bruised rib from a student crunching him, he is in better shape than he has been for quite awhile. Frustrated though now as the rib is keeping him from his adult Aikido classes and he really misses that.

I walked Monday and Tuesday this week, we are having sunny warm (very warm (90’s) for this time of year) weather. Then I went to Curves on Monday, which I haven’t been too since May! But I did walk and swim almost daily this summer so I don’t feel to guilty. I have put on a few pounds though, stress related I am sure. Eating comfort food as we waited to see just what was happening with Russel.

Russel’s Sister Visits

Carol’s here….

Russel’s sister Carol, from South Carolina, is visiting. We live in a really small one room house in town while we are building our home, so she stays at a local motel.

We walked off dinner Sunday night and I took a few shots.
This one is in front of the the Hemp Connection.

Russel and Carol in front of the Hemp Connection in Garberville

Carol and Russel on Church Street, which is rather odd as there are no churches there, but on the street corner across from the Hemp Connection is this sign:

which points to 3 churches. Only in Garberville.

More later.

Good News – No News

The short version of the visit with the doctors at the VA:
– the chest xray that originally was read to ‘see a spot on his lung’ was either faulty or an infection that went away before the CT scan got done.
– the CT scan was clear 🙂
– his lungs, heart, and airways are goodM.

They have no clue what the ‘pain behind the sternum is’ or why he has a cough. So they are treating the symptoms with Prednisone and Albuterol (inhaler) — (no he has never had asthma).

Google Prednisone sometime if ya really want to get scared! But it is a heavy anti-inflamentory, and the doctors hope the pain is an inflamation, so we will see if this works. Between the reaction to the prednisone and the vicodins for pain, he is a mess.

Time will tell the tale.
I won’t be near my computer for awhile, lots to do at the land. I will check email every few days is all.
Thanks for all the good thoughts as we work our ways through this healing.

Packing for trip to VA

We finally have an appointment with the ‘chest clinc’ at Fort Miley VA hospital tomorrow (San Fransisco). We will leave here about 6:30am and go down.

Russel had to make this appointment last week, after tiring of waiting for them to call and make one with us, which is their usual standard of operation.

This whole ordeal has been filled with ‘people mistakes’ which have resulted in our not knowing what is going on, and not getting the treatments or appointments he needs.

Fortunately i have kept a log of all our contacts ..maybe that will help. If they still haven’t found the CT scan he had done on Sept 8!! tomorrow they will just send him up for one then.

I am so nervous. And Angry at the ineffecientness of everyone we have had to deal with so far. My god, its been 6 weeks since we have know something is WRONG. He is taking lots more pain killers as the ‘pressure-pain’ in his chest is increasing and he is coughing more.

I hope tomorrow we get some answers, what it is he has and how to deal with it. I swear to god i am not leaving there without that. No more, well we will do these tests and get back to you in another 2 or 3 weeks!

If I have to turn on really bad bitch mode to get results i will.

Moving On – Home Improvement

Fire Update…and other stuff

The fires have been contained, although they’re still burning and the smoke is still a major problem.

We finally have an appointment for Russel to see a doctor at the chest clinic at the VA hospital in San Fransisco, Fort Miley. This is on Wed the 8th. Please pray for ‘good news’ and something fixable.

After waiting the whole summer and not getting it done, our builder Alan finally agreed to come out to the land and hook the water up to the house and put in and hook up the propane hot water heater. We rushed out yesterday to get a bathroom vanity and top and faucet, as since he was gonna be there, it seemed prudent to have him put that into place at the same time.

What this means is… we will finally have a flush toilet!!! and hot/cold running water to the shower and a sink in the bathroom. This is really cool. It elevates the time spent there from ‘hi-end’ camping to a low budget motel. 🙂

The timing couldn’t be worse, as we leave Wed and i have to pack Tuesday, but he will be out Monday and Tuesday…and so it goes..

Today we go out and paint the bath room. Russel wanted blue, not my color at all, but we have settled on a pale sky blue for the whole thing and later i will come back with either darker blue accents or maybe deep violets/plums type accents. At this point it just needs to be done before the water is hooked up.

Russel is really not feeling well for most of the time now, so i will mostly be doing this. More later, and maybe pictures this week.

Last week one day i started trying to figure out what photolog package i really wanted to use, Amy’s or Gallery. No time to learn Gallery now, and i think i can make Amy’s guide work without using the tables as layout… if i have any spare non-crunch time i will be working on that.

I Learned how to run and action and batch process in Photoshop5, it’s what i have 🙁 which i needed to do cuz i have lots of folders full of photos and wanted something quick and dirty to get them to size, until i have time to really work the ones i want to keep and frame.

More fires..more waiting is

Well the fires closed down school today.
There was no school on Friday either.
This is because the particulate matter in the air is too great, or so says the Air Quality Control people. Yes it is smokey. Some days worse than others… today wasn’t nearly as bad as yesterday.

They say no school until maybe Thursday. This means no work for Russel, of course.

Just more of waiting is…. 🙁

On My Beat

Living in the hills of southern Humboldt