My Motorcycle Injuries

Sometimes I feel that I have far too much time on my hands. For what, you ask? Philosophical thinking, self reflection, and generally useless ponderings. I was thinking a few days ago about my life. Not in a big picture way, but rather in an "accident that occurred years ago" way. My thinking centered on the subject of "purpose". I sometimes feel that this accident of mine was more of a directed blessing, as opposed to a random and tragic event.  To explain...there are some positive things that would not have occurred without the accident. One of them involves heart health. I lost fifty pounds as a result of the accident's aftermath. I have a lot of heart related issues in my family history such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol and triglycerides levels, mini strokes, etc. I feel that I would be in fairly bad shape with my heart at this stage in life if I had not lost the weight and started to monitor my heart health years ago after the accident. My blood...

I had the annual CT scan required to check the stent in my chest a few weeks ago. They called me a week later to let me know that there are no leaks and no movements involved with my stent and that my aorta won't be killing me this year (well, I added that last part). Yup, I am the poster child for stability when it comes to internal chest bleeding. I'll be back to the endocrinologist in a few weeks for blood work, an office visit, and a sonogram. It becomes a little frustrating as I continue to pay one copayment and deductible after another with all of the medical people involved with my healthcare. I sometimes feel as though I'm being taken advantage of by going through procedures and visits that cost the providers very little, but affect my personal budget in a big way. To be truthful, I'd drop every one of them if it wasn't for my desire to make my wife happy. She would freak out if I didn't continue to deal with all of the medical things that I've been ...

Yes, that's another photo of my arm. Narcissistic, isn't it? I took that photo a few days ago while having a CT Scan taken of my chest. It's an annual ritual for me and this photo involves the IV needed for the tracer scan that they pump into my body for the procedure. I think that it's radioactive, but I never fully read the warnings that they make me sign before the appointment. Blissful peace of mind until it kills me, right? The story related to this procedure is a little whacky. My aorta ruptured near my heart due to the force of impact during the accident. Something in my circulatory system landed in the hole and caused the internal bleeding to minimize. That same "thing" either dissolved or moved along when they installed the stent and didn't cause me any further problems. Consequently, the staff at the original cardiologist's office called me "the miracle man". Life's a freak show. My current cardiologist insists on having my ches...

  I have a CT scan done of my chest once a year. It's ordered by my cardiologist so that he can see if the stent in my aorta is either leaking or has moved. The stent was placed there because of a force of impact rupture that occurred during the motorcycle accident. I went for the scan this year after a bit of a struggle with my new insurance company, and I received a call from the cardiologist's office a few days later telling me that everything was peachy keen with my aorta. They usually schedule an appointment for me to see the doctor after the scan for the sake of an examination that includes an EKG but...they made no mention of an appointment, and here I am a couple of weeks later and they haven't called me.  I, uh, haven't called them yet and I'm pretty certain that it won't be happening. I hate going to doctor's appointments, and I'm thinking that I'd rather just skip this one. I've been told every year since the accident that I have a hea...

I’m not taking care of my niece this week because her mom is a teacher and the school in which she teaches is on spring break. Today I spent most of the morning working on a sermon for this coming Sunday and I spent part of the afternoon trimming a tree at the church property. My wife and my daughter are both home with me this week so I’ve been able to be with them throughout most of the day. Why do I share the minutiae of my day with you here? Because of this…earlier this afternoon I had to deal with an insurance issue concerning a CT scan that I’m supposed to have already taken. I ended up having to cancel the procedure until my insurance company gives the final OK within a few days from now. The need for the scan relates to a stent in my aorta near the heart that was placed there nine years ago because of a rupture caused by the force of impact in my accident. Am I sounding more exciting? I thought not. My point in typing this blog entry has to do with a quick thought and it’s thi...

It’s the night before Christmas Eve and (all through the house 😁) I’ve gotten everything ready for the weekend. I’ve helped to decorate my house inside and out, the presents are wrapped, and I’ve taken care of everything necessary for the services on Sunday. I had to do a little extra for the services because Sunday is Christmas Day and there were some things to do in preparation beyond the usual. All in all I feel pretty good about the way in which the past couple of weeks have worked out and I’m ready for the things needed to celebrate the holiday. In all honesty, I’m not really big on the whole Christmas thing as far as all of the secular type of glitter and festivity, but it makes my wife happy so, you know… My body has been OK through it all, and I haven’t been hindered in getting things done, so that’s the good part. The not-so-good part is that the pain in the injury related areas of my body continues to get worse in small increments with time. I really don’t know what to do ...

I went to my annual appointment with a cardiologist this morning. It coincides with a CT scan that checks on the status of an aortic stent near my heart. I was told that the stent in my aorta remains solidly in place with no leakage, everything on the EKG looks good, my BP and pulse are great, and my heart looks to be in good shape. He seemed genuinely satisfied with my condition and wished me well until I see him again next year. The only weird thing about the visit was that he told me to contact him immediately if I experience any chest pain and/or shortness of breath. M'kay...so how does this align with the rave review of my health? I mean, praise and joy followed with a dire warning of the potential for absolute doom? See what I'm saying?  This was my last medical appointment related to my accident injuries until July. It feels liberating, but I've had enough appointments over the past couple of months to leave me tired of it all. The aftereffects of my injuries are a c...

I'm finishing off the last of my medical appointments in a couple of weeks. I go through several of them at the start of every year, and I've had nothing but good news thus far. My A1C is at 5.6 (prediabetes begins at 5.7 😎). My CT scan showed that there is no movement involved with the stent in my aorta, and all of my bloodwork results came back squeaky clean. So yeah, my body's doing great. Except...I pinched something in my lower back that I think relates to the sciatic nerve. It's at the top of the leg that I injured in the accident, and I can't help but to feel that it's related to the way in which I must compromise the use of that side of my leg and hip in everything that I do. Sciatica is totally painful, but it does go away in time. I've had it for a while, but I really aggravated it on Saturday afternoon while lifting a heavy box. Today is Wednesday, and the pain is significantly less than it was this weekend. I'm pretty certain that the pain w...

So yeah, today marks the beginning of a new month. Consequently, it also marks the end of a long January that was filled with medical stuff; things that involved blood samples, big machines, exams, and doctors who barely know me but control a lot of things in my life that include pills and money. Sounds like a cheesy made-for-tv movie, yes? The end result for all of my January adventures involves good health, happy doctors, and nothing changed within my mortal existence. I get tired by midday often, and my leg is feeling brittle at the knee, but overall I’m in pretty good shape…you know, despite the whole aches and pains thing. Strange, but lately I think about riding from time to time when I see someone on a motorcycle. I know (intellectually) that I really have no desire or need to ride at this stage in life, but my mind takes me back to the point that something was taken away from me through the carelessness of another driver six years ago. I feel so stupid when I think this way, bu...

January will be a little busier than usual for me concerning medical visits. I went for my annual CT scan last week, and I will need to go for a five vial bloodletting within a week from now for the sake of diabetic testing. I’ll then have to go for an appointment with my endocrinologist to make certain that the numbers related to the blood tests are acceptable. I’ll finish the month with an annual appointment with my cardiologist that involves an electrocardiogram along with a general physical exam that will involve things related to heart health.  I’ve already been informed by phone that the CT scan showed that the stent in my aorta shows no sign of movement or leakage. Good news, yes? I realize that all of these things are a necessity, but I grow tired of it all. It interferes with my schedule, involves needles and sticky things attached to chest hair that are pulled off with a sense of disregard, requires money because of insurance deductibles, and serves to remind me that the ...

Early appointments grant quicker exits! I went to have my annual CT Scan today. I need to have one done every year because of the potential for movement or leakage with the stent in my aorta. It was placed there because of a rupture caused by the forced impact of the accident. My heart is quite healthy, but the stent needs to be monitored in order to ensure that there isn’t a leak. I set the appointment for early in the morning because they wanted me to fast for three hours before the appointment and I figured that it would be easiest to go before breakfast and eat something afterward. Also, I didn’t think that the wait would be as long if I scheduled the procedure for the earliest possible time. I set the appointment for their opening hour and I was right about the wait. Everything went as well as I think it could have with my visit to the imaging center today. In a sense it all started a few days ago when I had a blood sample taken for the sake of today’s scan. The...

                                So…I received a call today from someone in my cardiologist’s office informing me that everything is A-OK with the stent in my aorta. The term she used was “no significant changes”.  That phrase threw me off a little, but my wife assures me that it’s a common way to speak within the medical and scientific communities. I don’t think that you can really use terms like that in the rest of the world with any rate of success.  “Hey, did my investment pay off well?”                                                                                                                      ...

                                                                                               My Innards! Gruesome photo, yes? I took my annual CT Scan this morning to check on the stent that was placed in my aorta. It was placed there in order to fix a rupture caused by the force of the impact from the motorcycle accident. I always ask for a DVD copy of the images, not because I can actually read it with any sense of discernment, but rather because my insurance deductible for this procedure is astronomical and I want my money’s worth (Yeah, stickin’ it to the man). I’m not quite certain what the photo above means, but it’s just one of a series and I expect that within a week or so I’ll receive a call from my cardiologist’s office informing me that t...