I had kind of a scary experience yesterday.
I've been fighting off what I figured was some kind of minor urinary/kidney infection for the past week or so. (I won't go into details, but I've had some experience with them before. I was experiencing some of the unpleasant, but minor symptoms. They're not really
that bad.) Anyway, by Saturday, I had a pain in my lower right back that got more intense as the day went on. I took some pain reliever and was feeling better by Sunday.
Monday, I felt sort of off.
Tuesday, I started feeling feverish and achy, like I had the flu. And my lower back was killing again. I kept drinking water, and added cranberry juice to my regimen (a true sign I was taking things more seriously, right?!). By Tuesday night, I was a sweaty, shivering mess. I could not get warm all night but I was sweating through my clothes. It was awful. So yesterday, I called a few doctor's offices and, after being unsuccessful at picking up any last minute cancellations, I resigned myself to go to the urgent care center.
Oh, the horror.
I'd been to an urgent care center once before, and I felt like it was a total waste of time and $60.
But, I was feeling pretty desperate. So off I went, still feeling feverish and ready to get a prescription written for some antibiotics. Of course, this wouldn't be a blog post if I had simply gone to an urgent care center and had a prescription written. BORING! So stick with me. I had the usual vitals taken and had to give a urine sample, and then chatted with the doctor. She said I had a pretty nasty infection, a high fever, my pulse was extremely elevated, and I was dehydrated, and so she suggested a fluid IV to get my system "flushed out."
I had never had an IV before. They sat me in my own little room with a TV, and put the IV in. They also gave me some blankets, because they said I might be cold because of the water pumping into my system. But the scary part was, I got really, really cold. And I could not stop shaking. And it went on for at least half an hour. I had this horrifying feeling I might die in that room alone, but I sat there watching dumb shows on afternoon TV. When I saw the bag of water was about half empty, I decided to get up and go to the bathroom. I had to wheel the IV thingy with me, which made me feel like a really sick person. One of the nurses saw me in the hall and asked if I was okay, because she noticed I was shivering. I just told her I was really cold. She brought me some tea. It actually helped.
The nurse took my vitals again and my temperature was at 103-something. Yikes! I don't think I've ever had a fever that high. Granted, I was drinking hot tea and covered in multiple blankets, but I was terrified to go back into shivering-shaking mode so I begged them to let me keep the blankets on.
The best part was when Chad came. He had finished his test at school and gotten my text about my needing to cancel appointments with clients and not having their numbers, and he called. He came walking in with his student doctor name tag and his scrubs, earning instant credibility with the nurses, who made jokes with him and let him look after me. He always looks handsome when he comes home in his scrubs, but sometimes he just looks amazing. And having him show up right then was such a huge comfort. He was also able to give me a Priesthood blessing. I felt so grateful for him and everything he does for me.
I was supposed to go home after the first liter of water, but my temperature wasn't going down so I got a second IV. I was already feeling better--in large part because Chad was there, and we were making dumb jokes and watching cooking shows and . . . I dunno, it was just more fun after that. Oh, and I almost forgot to mention the part where I got three shots IN MY BUM!! Wow, I can't believe I almost left that out.
The doctor and nurses who helped me were so kind and if I knew they were on duty next time I needed a doctor's care, I would definitely go back to the same place. And in the end, I did get a prescription for an antibiotic--isn't that what I went in for? Only took me 5 hours, a couple of IVs, three shots, and some lame soap opera TV to get it. :) I'm already feeling a lot better, although I have been commanded to act "like a noodle" for the next couple of days. I won't complain about that!
