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So, unamazingly, I was attending the ER yesterday. Nothing relevant was going on, it was just another standard day. People consulting with 2 days-long coughs, or fever, or diarrhea, or whatever simple thing that was making them ill. I was on my 20th patient of the day at around 10:00 AM, when all of a sudden, I feel a sharp, intense pain on my right eye.
As most of you know, I'm an ER doctor, so I know my way around a headache quite well. But not only as a doctor... as a patient, too...
You see, I've been under treatment for migraines for over 4 years. Migraines are a very specific kind of headache, in which the pain presents itself on only one side of the head, and may or may not be preceded by random symptoms called 'auras'.
But this pain was different.
![[image loading]](http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2150/2189803492_8ef3b28667_z.jpg?zz=1) Yeah, I know I don't look like Barbie, and I'm a dude, and that's not the most accurate depiction of a migraine...
My headaches are usually on the left side of my head, and before one, I always have a symptom called 'photopsia'; that means I see lights on my visual field, always on the same side in which the pain presents.
![[image loading]](http://www.alsurinforma.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/fotopsia_.jpg) An 'almost' accurate depiction of what photopsiae are
This time, I didn't have any of that. And the pain was on my right side, right behind my eye socket.
Being on the ER, I asked the attending EMT to put me on a saline sollution with Ketorolac and some Hydrocortisone for my pain. He quickly gave me an IV access and started the saline drip with the meds. I called a colleague to cover the ER for me for a few minutes while I recovered... So I went straight to our residency, and laid down on the couch, covering my eyes because the light was just unbereable. So I stood there, trying to rest, waiting for it all to go away...
Or so I thought.
![[image loading]](http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0-6esYIOAmE/T4Qwpq5kzdI/AAAAAAAAAE4/29vNKaos71w/s1600/30-minutes-660x360.png) Thirty minutes later...
... My colleague came into the residency to see if I was ok. I was still in pain, and he lifted the blanket off of my face and asked "how you doin' mat... What the fuck???..."
![[image loading]](http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m7mp8qChY31rttxvx.jpg) My colleague's face. It wasn't a very comforting thing to see...But wait, there's a twist on this...
... I instantly noticed there were only not one, but TWO colleagues of mine. Yes, I was seeing double. That's called dyplopia. He said "dude, your right eye is pointing up and outwards and your right eyelid is partly shut... Are you feeling ok?"
![[image loading]](http://usmlegalaxy.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/face.jpg) That's sort of how I looked. Only the patient on this picture has her left eye partly shut and with a lateral deviation of the stare... Mine was upwards and outwards, and it was on the right eye.
He gave me a quick neurological examination. I happen to like neurology quite a lot (I want to do my residency on neuro)... So my mind was racing thinking of possible diagnosis:
"Carotid synus anneurysm... Carotid synus dissection... Carotid synus thrombosis... Multiple Sclerosis debut... Giant cell artheritis... Encephalitis... Tolosa-Hunt syndrome... Internuclear ophthalmoplegia... Brain tumor... An ophtalmoplegical migraine..."
My colleague then shouted loudly "HEY DUDE! PAY ATTENTION! WE'VE GOT TO GET YOU TO THE CLINIC, YOU'RE GONNA NEED AN MRI, I'M CALLING A NEUROLOGIST I KNOW!..."
For the first time in my life, I became a patient being the attending physician at the ER. And a patient of something that could be potentially, very, very bad... For the first time in my life I felt real fear, actual fear. I knew I could die of some of the things that could be my actual diagnosis.
My colleague hopped into the ambulance with the ER's EMT and rushed me to a private hospital 20 miles away.
Got my neurological consult as soon as I got in the clinic's ER. 10 minutes later I was getting my MRI. An MRI is actually a machine consisting in a giant magnet which generates a magnetic field (duh) of 1.5 teslas, and without using radiation in any way, provides with very high resolution images of whatever you might need. In this case, my fucking scumbag brain.
![[image loading]](http://web.securityinnovation.com/Portals/49125/images/MRI-machine.jpg) This is an MRI machine. It's kind of a giant sarcophagus, very tight in the tunnel. And very noisy and loud too, you have to wear ear protection in it...
20 minutes later, I was admitted into the NEICU (neurological intensive care unit), and I was getting a lumbar puncture. Now, as an intern and as an ER doctor I've performed HUNDREDS of them, but never got one myself. I now look at the procedure with different eyes, since it's the MOST FUCKING PAINFUL THING I've ever been through.
![[image loading]](http://www.umm.edu/graphics/images/en/19078.jpg) A lumbar puncture depiction. It's basically when a doctor puts a giant needle through your spine and extracts a bit of cerebrospinal fluid... Yeah, very nice. Very fucking nice indeed... Ouch.
A few minutes later, nurses came into my room to draw some blood for multiple tests.
And here I am, hospitalized. With my right eye covered in order to see the world in a single image (seeing double is the most hideous thing ever!)... With my mom and dad, which brought my my laptop for me to keep studying and writing and to stay in touch with my friends...
I try to keep them calm, because they're scared of what's going on. They don't know a lot of medicine (my mom is a nutritionist, my dad is an agronomical engineer) so I'm kind of feeding them data along with my attending doctors to keep them calm...
Although I'm scared shitless myself. The two worst things were already put out of the question, and that is calming. But there are also bad things which are still on the table. And I'm waiting for the last exam results to come in to be sure...
Being a patient is tough. I forgot how it was like. And being ill of something which nobody is sure of what it is, trying as fast as they can to exclude all the worst possible ones, isn't really comforting at all...
So I'm scared, guys.
What are you supposed to do when you're a doctor who needs another doctor?
Life is very strange indeed. The bitch puts you on a paradox when she's in the mood.
I'll update later when I know what the fuck is wrong with me, as soon as the neurologist and my treating team pay a visit to me with the latest test results... I just thought I should let you guys know... :/
UPDATE:
So my neurologist came this morning to pay me a visit.
Spinal tap turned out OK, all blood tests were OK. He brought my MRI pictures along for me to watch with him, since he heard I'm into neuro...
The first thing I noticed was my right 3rd cranial nerve (the oculomotor nerve) was kind of fuzzy and crushed in my right eye socket. It was precisely that: I have an ophtalmoplegic migraine, which compromised my right 3rd cranial nerve.
So he put me on corticosteroids, upped my Topamax dose, and discharged me with 1 week-leave and rest.
![[image loading]](http://i93.photobucket.com/albums/l42/winters_host/scumbagnerve.png) Scumbag oculomotor nerve...
Afterwards my mom and dad came in to listen to the good news. I'm not a very expresive dude, so giving a long hug to my mom and dad was a really nice, calming thing for all of us.
Luckily, there's nothing so incredibly bad wrong with me. I just happen to be one of those people who have bizarre medical conditions that are very annoying, very painful, but benign.
Thanks to everyone who has expressed their support either here or on my Facebook page, or those here in Chile who have been worried about me. It really warms my heart to know that so many people care for my well-being.
Thank you guys. This is why TeamLiquid is so goddam awesome ♥ ♥ ♥
 
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Oh wow dude... stay healthy damn :/
Hope the results come back showing you're essentially well. I know the feeling when you're just suddenly in an ER and you thought it would never have happened and it's sort of bizarre. I'm not a doctor though so there wasn't that paradoxical feeling.
Spinal taps hurt like $#@! though :X wow hope you're alright T_T
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You're in my thoughts. Get better soon.
As you said, it is worse for a doctor because your mind churns over the greatest hits of the worst horrors. Keep loose.
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It's a learning experience man. You'll come out of this knowing a lot more about how your own future patients will be feeling when they're getting treated. That's a powerful tidbit of knowledge to have as a doctor.
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This sounds pretty much spot on like what happened to me when I was 12. Was optic neuritis for me, but ever since then I've gotten a similar pain once or twice a year that feels very similar but lasts longer and apparently doesn't have any effect on the size of my optic nerves =/ Hopefully you feel better in a day or 2, but spinal taps really suck  Just make sure you lay flat for a little while so it doesn't suck even more!
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Damn man, best of luck, I'll be hoping for a speedy recovery for you. Your blogs are incredibly interesting, and this one may possibly take the cake.
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Dang... I did NOT see this coming. GL to you! Remember, the most important thing is to stay calm.
Also, you remind me of this quote.
Be like a duck. Calm on the surface, but always paddling like the dickens underneath.
Michael Caine
I hope you feel better some time soon! I also hope this isn't life threatening.
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Wow, I wasn't expecting something like this to happen to you. Hopefully you get well soon.
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Sounds like some seriously scary shit to go through, and I'm sorry to hear that a fellow TLer is ill. Hang in there, man! I'm sure your colleagues will be certain to get you the best care possible.
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Just hope its a good thing you were in that situation and maybe whatever is/was ailing gets fixed now. I'm assuming a lumbar puncture is the same as a spinal tap? If so, I've had one of those.
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What the hell is that good for, anyways? The lumbar puncture.
Also, of course, get well soon!
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I'm hoping for the best for you. Interesting read, thanks for sharing!
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Good luck man, really like your blogs (so don't die because I want more of them.) Also that lumbar puncture just looks fucking awful, did they have to med you up for that or was it a straight needle in needle out?
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i hope you are well,dude.i always enjoy your blogs,even if im a bit scared to read things about hospitals,medical procedures and doctors.
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Get better soon dude. What you do is fucking amazing and inspiring.
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I had an MRI of my shoulder once, and it was a terrible experience.
And I thought the part before the MRI was bad, with this doctor struggling to guide this flexible needle/tube thing from my chest all the way to my shoulder socket, to then inject this VERY THICK contrast substance. But being inside this coffin listening to those loud clicks and bags was very scary. The ear protection was also some sort of headphones, the techs kept telling me all the time it was almost over. Time would not pass. I was trying not to keep my eyes open, as the "roof" was so close to my eyes that it was hard to focus. I kept counting up. From 1 to 100, then back again from 1. And on the next day my chest was full of bruises from the doctor pushing it trying to guide this tube to my shoulder. But hey, at least I didn't need surgery!
BTW, I don't know how to call it in English. Help would be appreciated  . I had my arm frequently fall off the socket, they called it "luxação recidivante" in Portuguese. Is "recurrent discolocation" the correct English medical term?
I always feel very strange being in a hospital as a patient, but I can only imagine what it must feel like to you who is so familiarized to it from the other side, as a doctor.
Hang in tight there, you have my thoughts and best wishes.
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I had some trouble with my eye too almost a year ago now! followed by various nasty neurological symptoms. All went away after getting some b12 vitamin hope yours turn out something not so serious as well!
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I guess your only option is to wear an eyepatch and scare the fuck out of children patients who refuse to take their medication.
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man...it sounds so serious, but you manage to keep a great sense of humor throughout, I loved the pictures XD
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Get better man! I'm sure everything will turn out fine
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I wish my doctor would yell whenever he does something.
Would make my boring hospital visits way more epic.
"I'M GONNA SLAM THIS COTTON SWAB DOWN YOUR THROAT, GET YOUR SHIT PREPARED!"
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intrigue
Washington, D.C9933 Posts
glglglglgl!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Shit man stay healthy!
im sure youl be ok, just stay positive and maybe play some relaxing games on your laptop while you chill.
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UPDATE:
So my neurologist came this morning to pay me a visit.
Spinal tap turned out OK, all blood tests were OK. He brought my MRI pictures along for me to watch with him, since he heard I'm into neuro...
The first thing I noticed was my right 3rd cranial nerve (the oculomotor nerve) was kind of fuzzy and crushed in my right eye socket. It was precisely that: I have an ophtalmoplegic migraine, which compromised my right 3rd cranial nerve.
So he put me on corticosteroids, upped my Topamax dose, and discharged me with 1 week-leave and rest.
Scumbag oculomotor nerve...
Afterwards my mom and dad came in to listen to the good news. I'm not a very expresive dude, so giving a long hug to my mom and dad was a really nice, calming thing for all of us.
Luckily, there's nothing so incredibly bad wrong with me. I just happen to be one of those people who have bizarre medical conditions that are very annoying, very painful, but benign.
Thanks to everyone who has expressed their support either here or on my Facebook page, or those here in Chile who have been worried about me. It really warms my heart to know that so many people care for my well-being.
Thank you guys. This is why TeamLiquid is so goddam awesome ♥ ♥ ♥
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Glad its nothing too serious!
get better soon umbra
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soooooooooooo glad to read that!
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Phew, good it's nothing serious. Get better soon !
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Glad you're living on :D
Out of curiosity, how will this (if at all) affect how you do your job/treat patients?
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Good to hear man.
Hope it doesn't affect your work too much.
Does this condition worsen with age? And from now on will this accompany your migraines or is it possible for it to occur separate to your usual migraines?
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Woo that is scary. I go absolutely ape-shit if anything happens to one of my eyes, it drives me totally nuts, I hope you were a little less squimish than me. Its good to hear that it was nothing serious, best of luck with your migraines.
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intrigue
Washington, D.C9933 Posts
love the scumbug hat on your nerve. should be new standard in teaching anatomy
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That lumbar puncture is just terrifying to me. I fucking hate needles in the first place, even if it's something painless like anesthesia at the dentist. They scare me more than anything else. So imagining one... piercing your spine.. jesus. I honestly think I would rather die.
Anyways, I'm seriously glad you're okay. Seeing the update was a huge relief.
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WE LOVE YOU UMRAAETERNUS! Glad you aren't dead or in any kind of problem since I saw the update.
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Maan was some scary stuff reading through your blog, luckily it turned out not too bad. Stay well umbra!
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Ares[Effort]
DEMACIA6550 Posts
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Glad you ok! Made me laughing at that scumbag hat so much easier
Get some rest, hopefully you can watch some MLG, and here's to a speedy recovery!
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Thanks again, guys.
For those asking how this will or may affect my work, my neurologist gave me 1 week off night-shifts since sleep deprivation induces migraines, and if I ever have another episode like this again I will have to stop pulling night shifts completely. Also, I will have to use medication for the rest of my life.
And yes, of course I'm watching the MLG and commenting with my clanmates on TeamSpeak. And will be back playing games next week, too. Got to get that SC2 LA account back to masters... and try to find a way to get my hands into a Kr/Tw account... The only way to improve is to play against better people :D
And on a sidenote, now that I remember... god, I wish Artosis would go back to streaming, I miss modding his stream chat
It will not be very disrupting of my ordinary life... Unless it happens again.
And of that, I'm kind of scared. I have to keep low on cheese, coffee, chocolates, I have to sleep well... Basically all of the things I like or don't do because of work
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Geesh, that sounds scary. Please never watch the movie "Pi", unless you did already, I had migraines from when I was like 12-20 and that movie still scares the shit out of me. :o
Glad you sound okay. =)
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Oh whew, glad it was just an extension of previous symptoms I guess ><
Hope there isn't a recurrence man. Guess you're forced to take the good with the bad in this case. :[
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I've heard how much a L.P. hurts, never had one, never want to have one.
Take care dude
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Now that I know you are okay, I'll go ahead and correct you a bit:
Aura happens BEFORE the pain. Migraine is usually divided into:
1) Prodromal phase
-typical symptoms being altered mood, food cravings, hypersensitivity, stiff muscles etc.
2) Aura phase
-Per definition develops over a couple of minutes (makes it distinguishable from SAH - in reality, not always so) and lasts for less than 60 minutes.
-the symptoms you described
3) Pain phase
-should be rather obvious
4) Postdromal phase
-the "hangover" so to speak. Interestingly enough, cognitive deficit is rather normal in this phase (which is probably also part of the reason for the leave besides the sleepdeprivation thing)
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Didn't see this at first but glad to hear you're okay and hope you stay that way! :D
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Glad it wasn't something horrible! I hope you get a good rest
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Glad to hear you are doing alright.
I've been suffering from migraines for years so I feel for you. I've never had anything like that happen though, I just get the "normal" symptoms of pain and vomiting.
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Hi, happy you are feeling better. I have some questions:
As a doctor meeting new doctors, do you think it helps that you in fact are a doctor when you describe your symptoms? As you might be using a different language to describe your symptoms other than what the other doctor is used to hearing from a patient? (hope you understand what i mean)(might be a stupid question  )
All people that are hospitalized are afraid that something bad will happen to them. However, being a doctor i assume that diagnosis are quite interesting for you. Do the interest in the possible diagnose keep your mind occupied that you don’t worry as much? Or are/were you affected by your knowledge of all the possible diagnoses that it makes you more worried?
Have you noticed that you've got some special care due to the fact that you are a doctor? Do they spend more time on your case and do you get prioritized in some way?
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I'm a migraine sufferer, and so is my doctor. I think you'd be surprised how common it is.
When I was first diagnosed it was scary - they really didn't know much about them. They tell me people experience migraines differently with different triggers - even I have different symptoms with different migraines.
Usually first I'll get drowsy. Then a finger will start getting numb, and spread to my whole hand, then usually my face. By then I've usually taken my Naratriptan. Sometimes this will end the migraine there and go straight to the hangover phase. I also try to do some strenuous excercise at this point. Could be an old wives' tale but it seems to work sometimes.
If I don't or the Naratriptan decides it's not going to do it's thing, next comes the aura. Blurry vision, starting from a spot in the middle and spreading. I'll start having trouble thinking and communicating. Time to try and sleep it off, which the Naratriptan helps with.
Next comes the crushing pain.
In about an hour I'll be functional again, but still not thinking straight. I'll be very sensitive to light, sound and smell for the next 24 hours (and acutely aware of my brain moving inside my skull), and not 100% for a week.
My triggers are bright light, neck pain and caffiene/stress/sleep dep (those tend to all come at once). I used to drink tea every breakfast and red bull for early starts. These days, nothing, which as a student is a bitch. No caffiene also means no chocolate, which is a bummer. Before I started managing my triggers I'd get two a month, now it's down to every 6 months or so.
My doctor told me he suffered migraines multiple times a week in his teens. How he managed to complete his education is beyond me.
Good luck!
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On August 25 2012 13:29 Ghostcom wrote:
Now that I know you are okay, I'll go ahead and correct you a bit:
Aura happens BEFORE the pain. Migraine is usually divided into:
1) Prodromal phase
-typical symptoms being altered mood, food cravings, hypersensitivity, stiff muscles etc.
2) Aura phase
-Per definition develops over a couple of minutes (makes it distinguishable from SAH - in reality, not always so) and lasts for less than 60 minutes.
-the symptoms you described
3) Pain phase
-should be rather obvious
4) Postdromal phase
-the "hangover" so to speak. Interestingly enough, cognitive deficit is rather normal in this phase (which is probably also part of the reason for the leave besides the sleepdeprivation thing)
Thanks for that, I didn't notice that mistake. Corrected as of now.
On August 25 2012 20:11 VB_WhiplashJC wrote:
I'm a migraine sufferer, and so is my doctor. I think you'd be surprised how common it is.
When I was first diagnosed it was scary - they really didn't know much about them. They tell me people experience migraines differently with different triggers - even I have different symptoms with different migraines.
Usually first I'll get drowsy. Then a finger will start getting numb, and spread to my whole hand, then usually my face. By then I've usually taken my Naratriptan. Sometimes this will end the migraine there and go straight to the hangover phase. I also try to do some strenuous excercise at this point. Could be an old wives' tale but it seems to work sometimes.
If I don't or the Naratriptan decides it's not going to do it's thing, next comes the aura. Blurry vision, starting from a spot in the middle and spreading. I'll start having trouble thinking and communicating. Time to try and sleep it off, which the Naratriptan helps with.
Next comes the crushing pain.
In about an hour I'll be functional again, but still not thinking straight. I'll be very sensitive to light, sound and smell for the next 24 hours (and acutely aware of my brain moving inside my skull), and not 100% for a week.
My triggers are bright light, neck pain and caffiene/stress/sleep dep (those tend to all come at once). I used to drink tea every breakfast and red bull for early starts. These days, nothing, which as a student is a bitch. No caffiene also means no chocolate, which is a bummer. Before I started managing my triggers I'd get two a month, now it's down to every 6 months or so.
My doctor told me he suffered migraines multiple times a week in his teens. How he managed to complete his education is beyond me.
Good luck!
Now there are preventive treatments you can take on a daily basis that prevent migraines from appearing altogether. Of course, you have to avoid the triggers, but it's a lot better than, let's say, 10 years ago.
I started on Topamax about 5 years ago and it has done wonders for me. It made me functional again. My neurologist back then decided to put me on triptanes to help with the migraine crisis, but my blood pressure skyrocketed because of it, so I had to stop using it altogether and that's when he put me on Topamax. It was such a change. Of course, treatment isn't like a cooking recipe; patients are not equal to other patients and treatments are different depending from the severity of the migraines, their frequency, etc.
On August 25 2012 18:38 TheSwedishFan wrote:Hi, happy you are feeling better. I have some questions: As a doctor meeting new doctors, do you think it helps that you in fact are a doctor when you describe your symptoms? As you might be using a different language to describe your symptoms other than what the other doctor is used to hearing from a patient? (hope you understand what i mean)(might be a stupid question ) All people that are hospitalized are afraid that something bad will happen to them. However, being a doctor i assume that diagnosis are quite interesting for you. Do the interest in the possible diagnose keep your mind occupied that you don’t worry as much? Or are/were you affected by your knowledge of all the possible diagnoses that it makes you more worried? Have you noticed that you've got some special care due to the fact that you are a doctor? Do they spend more time on your case and do you get prioritized in some way?
I think it actually helps being a doctor when you describe your symptoms. You tend to be more accurate when delivering the information your colleague needs, because you know what he needs to hear and don't mince around.
I was also a bit more worried because I knew some of the possible things that could have been wrong with me and that worried me more, since a lot of them weren't good at all. Luckily I got the best possible scenario, phew.
And I'd be lying if I didn't say I think my treating team didn't pay a little more attention to me because I am a colleague. I mean, the neurologist was there waiting for me, got a super-fast MRI, only a few minutes after being admitted into the ER.. . You know what I mean.
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I am so happy you're ok <3
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Indeed. Glad you are okay! Don't die on us man, or on your patients! People need you! :D
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well shit. glad you're better
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Real happy to see everything seems to have worked out okay.
I'm just about to start 2nd year of Optometry school and your story fascinated me and I was trying to come up with the diagnosis as well as I read. I'm thinking of posing your scenario to the rest of the class and seeing if they can come up with it.
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Your post... was.... STELLAR. So fucking funny. Hahahah.
thanks man.
5/5
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On August 24 2012 17:51 VenomBRA wrote:I had an MRI of my shoulder once, and it was a terrible experience. And I thought the part before the MRI was bad, with this doctor struggling to guide this flexible needle/tube thing from my chest all the way to my shoulder socket, to then inject this VERY THICK contrast substance. But being inside this coffin listening to those loud clicks and bags was very scary. The ear protection was also some sort of headphones, the techs kept telling me all the time it was almost over. Time would not pass. I was trying not to keep my eyes open, as the "roof" was so close to my eyes that it was hard to focus. I kept counting up. From 1 to 100, then back again from 1. And on the next day my chest was full of bruises from the doctor pushing it trying to guide this tube to my shoulder. But hey, at least I didn't need surgery! BTW, I don't know how to call it in English. Help would be appreciated . I had my arm frequently fall off the socket, they called it "luxação recidivante" in Portuguese. Is "recurrent discolocation" the correct English medical term? I always feel very strange being in a hospital as a patient, but I can only imagine what it must feel like to you who is so familiarized to it from the other side, as a doctor. Hang in tight there, you have my thoughts and best wishes.
Been to MRI twice, I really don't understand why exactly you're saying it's a terrible experience. Actually I thought it was kinda comfortable in there. So comfortable, that druring the first time I fell asleep. the noise isn't THAT loud, and it doesn't make you feel anything now does it? everything you do is lie still. You're just claustrophobic aren't you?
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With all the shit that's been going on lately it's great to hear you're doing well :D
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owww that sounded painful, but good to see that you have kept your sense of humor.
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if i was a migraine sufferer, i'd surely have a dose of psilocybin containing mushrooms at my house all the time.
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Glad to hear you're doing better, was a good story with a good use of pictures. Nice to see stories that aren't all ragefaces.
I don't mean to be rude, but from one person who likes to know/explain how things work to another (I'm a chemist), I have an issue with this part
On August 24 2012 13:19 UmbraaeternuS wrote:
An MRI is actually a machine consisting in a giant magnet which generates a magnetic field (duh) of 1.5 teslas, and without using radiation in any way, provides with very high resolution images of whatever you might need.
MRIs do use radiation. They just use radio waves instead of x-rays, or other high energy waves commonly perceived as 'radiation'. It's (very) low energy, as dozens of radio waves are passing through us right now, but it does use electromagnetic radiation (light). Wayyy less harmful than something like a CT scan
Again, just trying to help. Now you can explain it to patients like me who ask how all the instruments work =D
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Just wanted to chime in: very happy to hear that it wasn't too serious.
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On August 26 2012 00:44 UmbraaeternuS wrote:
And I'd be lying if I didn't say I think my treating team didn't pay a little more attention to me because I am a colleague. I mean, the neurologist was there waiting for me, got a super-fast MRI, only a few minutes after being admitted into the ER.. . You know what I mean.
Sounds like a good idea. Make way for a doctor and he can go back to saving people faster
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nice to know nice to know,
great storytelling as usual, and the pictures :D
On August 27 2012 16:59 Cyber_Cheese wrote:Show nested quote +On August 26 2012 00:44 UmbraaeternuS wrote:
And I'd be lying if I didn't say I think my treating team didn't pay a little more attention to me because I am a colleague. I mean, the neurologist was there waiting for me, got a super-fast MRI, only a few minutes after being admitted into the ER.. . You know what I mean. Sounds like a good idea. Make way for a doctor and he can go back to saving people faster
.....There I was thinking of something else :D
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On August 27 2012 03:51 Piste wrote:Show nested quote +On August 24 2012 17:51 VenomBRA wrote:I had an MRI of my shoulder once, and it was a terrible experience. And I thought the part before the MRI was bad, with this doctor struggling to guide this flexible needle/tube thing from my chest all the way to my shoulder socket, to then inject this VERY THICK contrast substance. But being inside this coffin listening to those loud clicks and bags was very scary. The ear protection was also some sort of headphones, the techs kept telling me all the time it was almost over. Time would not pass. I was trying not to keep my eyes open, as the "roof" was so close to my eyes that it was hard to focus. I kept counting up. From 1 to 100, then back again from 1. And on the next day my chest was full of bruises from the doctor pushing it trying to guide this tube to my shoulder. But hey, at least I didn't need surgery! BTW, I don't know how to call it in English. Help would be appreciated . I had my arm frequently fall off the socket, they called it "luxação recidivante" in Portuguese. Is "recurrent discolocation" the correct English medical term? I always feel very strange being in a hospital as a patient, but I can only imagine what it must feel like to you who is so familiarized to it from the other side, as a doctor. Hang in tight there, you have my thoughts and best wishes. Been to MRI twice, I really don't understand why exactly you're saying it's a terrible experience. Actually I thought it was kinda comfortable in there. So comfortable, that druring the first time I fell asleep. the noise isn't THAT loud, and it doesn't make you feel anything now does it? everything you do is lie still. You're just claustrophobic aren't you?
I guess I am, a little bit. I didn't have a panic attack or anything like that, but I could not wait to get out of that thing. The noise was not that loud, but I found it very annoying. I think some better ear protection or noise cancelling would have made it much easier.
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These were many tests for such begnin and common thing.
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On August 27 2012 23:43 Boonbag wrote:
These were many tests for such begnin and common thing.
Really? How common is ophtalmoplegic migraine, then? Illustrate us...
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On August 27 2012 23:43 Boonbag wrote:
These were many tests for such begnin and common thing.
benign is not the word I would use to describe this >.>
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Firstly, glad to hear you're okay! Secondly, I'm not in medicine but I am a biologist and I'm kinda curious as to how migraines can crush the optic nerve? From what I understood migraines can dilate vessels but it would take something more like a mass or really bad inflammation to cause that much damage. It sounds like you got steroids for inflammation? Just a bit confused on how migraines can do that.
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On August 28 2012 11:55 ZeaL. wrote:
Firstly, glad to hear you're okay! Secondly, I'm not in medicine but I am a biologist and I'm kinda curious as to how migraines can crush the optic nerve? From what I understood migraines can dilate vessels but it would take something more like a mass or really bad inflammation to cause that much damage. It sounds like you got steroids for inflammation? Just a bit confused on how migraines can do that.
It's not about migraines dilating vessels, but how they can contract them; the risk in this case is vasospasm.
The pathophysiological phenomena behind this is thought to be the vasospasm in the vasa nervorum of the 3rd cranial nerve, which in term can cause temporary nerve damage and inflammation; hence, you're given steroids, which are known to reverse inflammation and prevence recurrence of vasospasm.
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Man, I always loved your blogs.
This one is no different and yes being a patient does suck. X_X
On the bright side, doesn't sound like you had to wait too long.
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United States10328 Posts
Hmm, I wonder if it's more scary to have a good idea of what's going on, or to be clueless like the average patient.
Good luck on the recovery ^^
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China6327 Posts
I remember a line from the Trauma Center game series:
"The fatal flaw of a doctor is that you can not operate on your own."
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On August 28 2012 14:38 digmouse wrote:
I remember a line from the Trauma Center game series:
"The fatal flaw of a doctor is that you can not operate on your own."
Ever heard of Dr. Leonid Rozogov?
He is, perhaps, the most badass person in the history of the universe.
This motherfucker opperated on HIS OWN appendix...
With NO ASSISTANCE WHATSOEVER...
... In Anctarctica...
While AWAKE.
In case pics are required:
![[image loading]](http://www.badassoftheweek.com/rogozov1.jpg)
Not that I want to disregard your quote, but, meh, this guy deserves props. I mean, look at the man holding his damn appendix in his hands!
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thedeadhaji
39489 Posts
Out of curiousity, what color was your photopsia? (I get yellow-white'ish ones)
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Wow, that photo of the guy operating on himself is crazy
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EPT
