patience is hard Ginnie when it comes to seeing and hearing!  I can
understand that.  Sounds like a bit of a bondoogle - so glad it sort of
turned out okay.  I too am allergic to codiene and all it's derivitives as
well as morphine.  Last time in the hospital one of the doctors decided I
should not take demerol - it was not a good painkiller to take.  i was kind
of out of it and he gave me something else (my brain is not working
tonight.)  Of course within 1/2 hour of a low dose I started the itches and
threw up.  Can you say large dose of benedryl and a sheepish doctor.
Unfortunately for me and fortunately for him I managed to reach the
disposable container - his shoes were saved but if he had been hit I don't
think he would have forgotten that very quickly.

Keep you patience - it will come.  Retraining eyes takes time.

Kelly

Thanks, DeeTee,

Don'tcha feel like the messenger they're gonna kill when you
try to
educate them about your condition/special needs?  I love my PCP
dearly, but with the 20-some specialists I deal/dealt with,
*I'm*
the one who has to coordinate the info that they all need.
He just
doesn't feel the need to wade in there and be the point man for
coordinating my care/needs with all of them.

One thing I've found that increases my credibility with the
different,
and especially the new - specialists, is a very detailed
medical history
that I keep on my computer, and update every few months.
I've had
several doctors express great admiration for this document, and
even if they don't say anything about its scope, *it buys me
a lot of
credibility*!!!

It's a bear to set up, and sometimes a bear to maintain when
I've gone
through a spell of a bazillion medical issues happening.
But there's NO way
I can ever retain all these details, AND some of the 'go
figure' unexplainable
phenomena listed actually came together and made perfect
sense when I
was finally diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue this March.

The whole first page has a table of contents at the very top
(it's 10-12
pages long), and the rest of Page One is an exacting list of
every
current Rx and OTC *maintenance* med I'm currently on, dosage
and strength, initials of who prescribed it, set or PRN
dosing, purpose,
and date that I started taking it.

Then there's a short section that lists the same info for
PRN OTC's
that are rarely used.  And below that is a short list of the
drugs I
recently discontinued, dates I took it, etc.  Basically,
when I move
a med from the current list to the not-any-more list, I just
copy the
detailed listing intact, and just tack on the date it was
discontinued.

The second page has a very concise list of existing
conditions and
anomalies, listed in order of most bothersome first.  Then a
short
section of basic health stats like BC, lipids, no exposures
to whatever,
dates I quit smoking and drinking, and 2 paragraphs, one to
radiologists
about the internal staples and stents I have, and another to
anesthesiologists
that states all the stuff they need to know, like my sleep
apnea pressure
setting, "no narcan" due to fentanyl patches, my own teeth,
need GERD
and nausea meds before being woke up, inhaler if I wheeze
from the
anesthetic, etc.  EVERYTHING an anesthesiologist would need
to know
If I showed up, unable to speak.

Then, there's a section describing very tersely all the
surgeries I've had,
dates, hosp, doc name, listed by year, in reverse
chronology, most recent
first.  Then a similar section of non-surgical
hospitalizations, injuries,
illnesses, again most recent first, dates and dr/hosp name.
 Then a section
of Tests, listing every scan, blood draw, whatever, and
where so they can
retrieve the data.

Then a list of inoculations, including Flu and Pneumonia,
with dates,
including stuff like tetanus boosters and dates.  Then a
two-part list of
allergies/sensitivities, first part are the killing-kind
like penicillin, second
part is drugs that I need to avoid, listing the bad or
questionable reactions
I experienced.

Then there's a very terse Family History of blood relatives,
their health
conditions/causes of death, birth and death dates, and goes
back to my
grandparents' generation.  And listing any genetic stuff
that has been
handed down, like my eye prob.  AND listing the almost total
lack of
family history of major diseases like cancer, early heart
problems,
diabetes, etc.

Then there's a list of all my docs/specialists topped by my
PCP, and
listed alphabetically by specialty otherwise, phone #,
address, hospital
affiliation.  Followed by the name, location, and phone # of
my druggist,
which is also at the bottom of page 1 with all the drug
listings on it.

Then there's TWO (!) pages, double column, listing every
drug by brand and
generic name, that I've ever used successfully.

Then I attach the reports from my most recent lumbar and
cervical MRI's.
Then - when I can get it to *stay the same* from one month
to the other (!!)
is the alphabetical list of every nutritional (etc.)
supplement I take, and the
dosage.  The only two supplements that aren't on THIS list
are on Page One,
because these 2 are taken as though they are Rx medications
for my
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

AND...  after this recent surgery pain med snafu, and
considering the
bunion, THR and TKR I have coming up, I'm going to ask my
pain doc
to write a document for inclusion in my history that
DOCUMENTS my
opiate tolerance problems, with suggestions for pain drugs
ands dosages.
No more Shoot The Messenger for me!

Anyhoooo, for whoever has waded through this long post, if
you have one
already or set up a new history document for yourself, I
hope it helps buy
you more credibility with your docs.

Ginnie     >^..^<

You can catch more flies with funny than vinegar.
___________________________________

Because you're a Gimp and a Fibromite and I myself might have gone from
the hospital to the jail due to not having the needed pain meds. 'cuz I
really do fight for myself. You deal with it better (more rationally) than I
can.

   Callin' ya later and hopin' it rings at yer home.<g>

Gin Hugs from Rosie

heehee, my dad would have loved him!  He was so into puns - loved getting
groans and grimaces from us far more than laughter!

Keep us posted, ok?

Thanks for the Wal-Mart idea, Duckie and Harv.  I'll give it
a try
this weekend.  But one eye reads better than the other, so I
don't
have much hope that their same-same lenses will help.  But I
will try.  Reading with the Rx ones gives me a headache.

Ginnie    >^..^<

You can catch more flies with funny than vinegar.
___________________________________