ProPatient Rides Again!

I am in ProPatient mode again! So we will have a lot to talk about. I find myself, more than anything else, going to see labcoats when I go out. I have the patient versus consumer philosophical discussion fairly often both out loud and in my head. I am sharing personal information with strangers a lot, and you know how much I enjoy that sort of thing.

I have a lot in my head about medical information: how it is shared, used, what direct input I have as a patient, all that sort of thing. I think that this is a terribly important thing tha we almost never discuss, and I want to be a part of fixing that problem.

I am going to have open carpal tunnel surgery here soon. I am in PT for my back, which is a necessary step to get the insurance to do something for my bulging disks, but we are getting a lot of other work done. One rheumatologist has confirmed lupus, another calls fibromyalgia, my GP and I think that, sadly, they are both correct. I am cutting down on caffeine and cigarettes. Or trying to, anyway. 

Since the carpal tunnel surgery is coming up first, it is what I am preparing for the most. I am beyond aprehensive about losing the use of my dominant hand for a while. And hey, if you know of any low cost or free speech to text software, I would greatly appreciate knowing about it! Please share it below.

This has triggerd a long delayed house reorganization. The basement is undergoing the worst of it, because it had become a place to simply store things, and the ablity to work there was lost in piles of stuff. The same was true for my desk: it was buried in all kinds of paperwork not deemed an emergency at the time.

Of course, politics have been formost in my mind as I go through all of this, and the discussions of entitlements and the Affordable Care Act have emphasized the truth: politics are real life! And we need to talk about them. Here, politics are life and death and quality of life.

Welcome Back

Hallo, welcome back! Things have been busy lately, and I have neglected my charge here. For that, I apologize. Good news for the blog: I am back in semi-professional patient mode, and that has given me quite a lot of material.

I never stopped writing, but I caught a vicious case of the Little Hater:

I am sure you know what I mean. So I have virtual reams of stuff written, almost none of it fit for public consumption, I thought. Turns out, a lot of it is all right, and if it is still relevant in any way I am going to share it with you.

The political landscape is malicious and confusing. I am more likely to talk about issues than politicians, except in the case of the special folks we have running out here in Indiana: Mike Pence and Richard Moudock.

Strap in! Around these parts, it is about to get interesting.