Amazing

I was in the hospital last week for a nasty asthma attack. It seems I am allergic to the pollens here in Nebraska and my lungs revolted against the invasion of pollen and whatnot they’ve not had to breathe since I was a child.

The FIRST time I was in the ER on Tuesday night the doctor sent me home almost as soon as I said “no prednisone” I’m serious .I had taken 3 breathing treatments at home, with no relief.  When I went into the ER, the asthma had taken my ability to walk or talk. After they ran my insurance, they did vitals..and THEN (15 min after I got there) they started a breathing treatment using a different medication that what I normally use. It helped enough that I could talk, so long as I didn’t actually get up for anything or move around to much.

Dr came in, “I’ll give you some prednisone and we’ll see how you do.”

“Um, I can’t take prednisone, I react violently to it.”

Dr, “well, you have no choice in the matter. You need the steroids. It’s the only way to treat this.”

Me.. “No, it’s not the only way to treat an asthma attack. There are other treatment options. (I listed out 4 or 5 other things she could do instead of steroids) I always get prednisone induced psychosis, and I’m not taking steroids.”

Doctor walked out of the room. A few minutes later she came back in and listened to my lungs.

“You’re still very tight. I think you need  prednisone to break this up.”

me.. “sorry, I do not want the prednisone.”

Dr. “Fine, I’ll give you a shot of epi, and you can go home.”

Keep in mind that by this time, I was almost unable to speak again.

Nurse came in 2 minutes later, gave me a shot of epinephrine and handed me discharge papers. Under her breath, she said, ” when you get bad again, come back and I’ll make sure you get better treatment.”

There is only ONE hospital in our small town. I didn’t have the choice to go to another hospital.

so.. home I went. By the time we got home, I was tight and wheezing again.

Took a breathing treatment and went to bed. I woke up 2 hours later and could not breathe. Took 2 breathing treatments with no relief. So, back to the ER we went.

As I walked in, the same ER doc looked at me, Back, huh. Are you going to take the prednisone now?”

“No,” I told her, “I told you before, I have a nasty reaction to prednisone and medrol — I become violent, and psychotic, and I hallucinate.”

“Then you can go to (the city 30 min away)”

The nurse brought me another shot or epinephrine while the doctor called ambulance transport. The doctor didn’t even come in to see me. I could hear her in the hall way telling the ambulance service that I was being combative, difficult and refusing treatment.

Excuse me?! I was not being combative. and the only treatment I was refusing was the one that my former and well respected pulmonologist advised me to never take again unless I was looking at a respirator.

She treated me like some sort of medical criminal because I refused her standard treatment. So, she sent me to an ICU 30 min away from my home and family. — the ultimate payback… I didn’t do what she wanted, so she sent me as far away as she could get away with. The local hospital had beds open, she could have admitted me there.

And, she did it on purpose. When I arrived at the receiving hospital the nurse informed me that the report she got from my local hospital was that I was on a ventilator and not breathing on my own. Which is why I was now in an ICU unit.

So, here I was taking up ICU space that could have been better utilized for someone who really needed to be there. I should have been on a general floor.

Sometimes the arrogance of doctors amazes me. And people wonder why I prefer to treat my MS with natural and alternative methods.

on and on that note, several of the nurses and even one doctor from the 2nd hospital are now informed,and sold on LDN for MS. .. more on that later.

Tell me your thoughts.