FOLLOWUP TO MY ADVENTURE...

 I want to share some details about my hospital visit this week, just to bring everyone up to date. Sorry, no pictures, but I did carry off the whole "hospital gown" thing with great style!
 FIRST A WARNING...
 Never ignore an injury, no matter how small. I know that most of us old timers believe in the "just walk it off and get back to work" theory, but that does not work once you get over a certain age.
 IT ALL STARTED WITH A SIMPLE THING...
  I whacked my shin on the trailer hitch of my truck while working with the scouts around Christmas and just "walked it off". My left shin was tender and swollen, like a golf ball under the skin. A little ice and some excercise made the main injury go away, but then my whole foot got a bit swollen and turned a nice shade of purple/blue with a hit of yellow/brown, sort of like an old bannana.
 I had no real pain, and I was able to walk around just fine so I just kept going. Soon the foot and shin were just fine and I went about my business. The shin still had a bit of a lump, but it seemed like that was just a reminder of the incident that would soon disappear.
THEN IT HAPPENED...
 Early wdnesday I was awakened by a soreness and stiffness in my right shoulder. Of course we have all had that annoying "stitch" in our shoulder blade  from sleeping wrong, so I ignored it. I tried to go back to sleep but the "stitch" persisted. I got up and started to get ready for work, but a hot shower just seemed to make things worse. Now I had a tightness and pain right through my chest, in the sturnum. Every breath hurt and the pain was sprading. I took a couple of aspirin and tried to remember what I might have lifted to cause such muscle pain.
 OFF TO WORK...
  I was pretty comfortable on the drive to work, maybe the comfy seats in the JEEP helped. I was still winded when I got to work, but I pushed on. Soon I noticed that I was really hurting, and so did a few of the guys I work with. When I realized that I could not get a full breath and that my shallow breathing was not letting me get enough air.
 GIVE IT UP STUPID, CALL THE DOCTOR...
  I called in and got an immediate appointment at the doctor's office and set off. I had a 2 pm appointment so there was time to stop for a haircut; I know, same old mindset. When the doctor checked me out he got nervous. An EKG was inconclusive and a few other checks seemed to say heart trouble. I disagreed, but he reminded me that he had been to medical school and I had not. He told me he was calling an ambulance to take me to the ER right away. I asked if there was a return ambulance to retrieve my car later? He said no, but that I needed to get to the emergency room quickly. I told him they could call him and I drove the two blocks to the ER.
NOW THE FUN BEGINS...
 I called Sue from the car and had her meet me at the emergency room. Then I started the process of figuring out what was up. Since I was in a teaching hospital I was visited, poked prodded and listened to by a whole crew of doctors. They did a good job with all the paperwork, bloodwork, EKG, CT scan and much more.
  By the way, when you are being wheeled around from test to test, the transporters do not appreciate when you sit up and pretend to drive; not funny. After all was said and done I got a nice room; at 2AM!! Then everyone on the night shift dropped in to visit on a fifteen minute schedule. Take more blood, clear the port, check the heart, listen to the lungs. All the while I am hooked up to a bunch of wires, tubes and gadgets. The first visitor was the night nurse. She kicked in the door and snapped on the light like a SWAT team entering a crack house. I came up out of the bed and was half-way to the door before the wires and tubes stopped me. Her entries were a bit more calm after that.
  ANYWAY, THE FINAL RESULT WAS...
  That I was treated for a blood clot in my lung. The last doctor (and attending class of students) said that I actually had no real clot, but that I was suffering from "soft clotting" in my lung area. I recieved a blood thinner (whose long-winded medical name I can not pronounce) and sent home with a clean bill of health.
 FINAL RESULTS ARE...
  I left the hospital with a blood pressure of 120 over 75. I have been fine ever since. The tests show that my heart is very, very healthy and that I was cleared for any activity. I am also cleared for blood donation in one week. That makes me happy, since I am chairman of the blood drive in February.
DON'T IGNORE A SIMPLE PROBLEM...
  Take care of your health and stay away from the doctor. I will share more hospital stories later, when they are a bit more memorable.
Until next time, I'll be seein' ya'...