Category Archives: health

I’m walking here!

28 Monday Oct 2024

Posted by in health, knees, sevilla

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im walking here

As I become more and more mobility challenged oh boy am I developing not only a lot of extra empathy for people even more challenged than me but I am also not afraid to let stupid and selfish able-bodied assholes know just how stupid and selfish they are being. I don’t know why. Usually I avoid confrontation like it was Covid, but maybe because this is still relatively new for me I still don’t quite personally identify with being “disabled” so it feels like I’m standing up for others? Whatever. This is what has been happening.

I walk down the street, slowly and painfully hobbling along with my crutches, clearly not walking with any ease of motion. And then… PEOPLE GET IN MY WAY. By this I mean a group of people will be walking up a street and somehow expect me to move over for them… or on one of our many narrow sidewalks here where only one and half people can actually walk abreast, some of them think I’m the one who is going to step out into oncoming traffic to let them by. What the fuck is wrong with these people?? I’m hobbling. I’m using two crutches. Going very slowly. And well, since I’m kinda new at this game, it totally pisses me off because I haven’t yet got to the point of accepting this and, frankly, I don’t plan to.

So what do I do? Well, I simply stand my ground. I’m not moving out of the way for fucking anybody. And the result is, of course, they have to move. Good. They have perfectly functional limbs. I guess I’m also thinking that I am taking a stance for all of us who can’t get around so easily… to make other people aware that they should be more aware. And just basically be polite.

The other issue here is on our narrow one-way streets in the centre, many of which have signs posted saying PRIORITY PEDESTRIANS AND CYCLISTS. For the most part cars and taxis expect people to huddle in doorways to let them pass as there is usually no sidewalk to speak of. Twice this past week this happened to me and I was like… what the fuck is wrong with you?? You’re sitting comfortably in a car, you are coming up a pedestrian prioritised street, you see someone hobbling along on crutches and YOU EXPECT THEM TO PAINFULLY CLIMB ONTO A NARROW CURB AND HUDDLE IN A DOORWAY FOR YOU?? Well fuck that shit. Both times this happened I stood my ground. The cars approached when I was already half-way down the street but they just kept coming even though there were several other people walking in the street (and diving into doorways). Not me. I stood in the middle of the street and motioned that they had to back up to the square (because they shouldn’t have entered the street in the first place if they saw pedestrians). And both times I got so much support from onlookers saying “you tell ’em”, “take your time señora”, “they are the ones in the wrong”… which was quite uplifting.

So expect me to be doing my Ratso Rizzo thing all over town for the foreseeable. I’m walking here!

no news isn’t good news

21 Monday Oct 2024

Posted by in health, hospitals, knee saga, knees

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no news

I’m already exhausted about writing this post even before starting it. For a few days it seemed like the sudden and excruciating knee pain I first experienced back in May 2023 (left knee), which then extended to the right knee, and then got worse and worse to the extent that I’ve been painfully shuffling around (you can’t call it walking) on crutches since August, was finally about to be taken seriously and treated.

I knew I shouldn’t have got my hopes up.

I arrived at the health centre fully prepared with a typed-out list of the whole saga including every doctor’s visit, every test, every “non-treatment”, thinking it would be helpful for the traumatologist to see it laid out chronologically because, in my experience, most doctors know nothing about you or your case until you walk through the door and then there is the usual them skimming through your files on the computer and half-listening while you try to explain your situation.

Anyhow, my knees were poked and prodded and it was confirmed that I did indeed have mobility issues and PAIN because of the torn meniscus. Then the doctor said she wasn’t going to recommend a knee replacement (wtf?) but would send me to another specialist to see about getting the meniscus repaired. Well okay, better than nothing. I asked how soon I would get this appointment and was told not until AFTER CHRISTMAS. It was like a punch in the gut.

I got the usual ride a bike – go to a pool – lose weight – take painkillers “advice” and when I asked about seeing a physiotherapist the doctor said physio isn’t helpful for a torn meniscus. SO THEN WTF WOULD GOING TO THE POOL OR RIDING A BIKE DO?

I honestly don’t know what I am going to do now. The right knee keeps getting worse and worse and I fear that soon I won’t be able to walk at all, even with the crutches. Meanwhile not working is taking its toll both emotionally (I miss my old life) and financially (so scared about this). And to think that everything is just on pause, yet again, until January… right now I can’t bear to even think about that because it’s just too much. Fuck.

got the call!

18 Friday Oct 2024

Posted by in health, hope, hospitals, knee saga, knees

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got the call

Well today took a sudden turn! I had planned to go with Peter to see Nice GP because he does better with an interpreter and also because I wanted to ask her what the heck was going on with the “priority” request she made for me to see a traumatologist (made almost a month ago). Then early this morning my phone rang. At first I wasn’t going to answer it because it was an unknown number then I picked it up… and omg I’m so glad I did. It was the Traumatology Dept calling to say I have an appointment NEXT MONDAY. Like wow.

First thing I did was cancel Peter’s appointment. Okay, not really, I moved it to two weeks from now. Why? Well organising medical appointments has become both simpler and more difficult these days as the ease of being able to book some things online is thwarted by long waiting times. For example, the first appt Peter could get is in two weeks, which is fine because it’s nothing urgent, just getting his blood test results and checking his bp meds. And since I go with him the end of October works better for both of us as that’s when I need to ask the doc about my next blood test and also update my bp meds, so then we can do it all at once.

One less trip to the (maskless) health centre is always a good thing.  Especially as Peter was already there yesterday to get his Covid-Flu booster (yay!) and I should be getting mine next week. And now I also have this new appointment on Monday. At first I was worried I might get the same awful traumatologist as before but it’s at a different health centre, so hopefully not. Last time they asked me if I wanted my appointment at Fleming or Marqués de Paradas and I chose the latter as it’s five minutes from my house. I’m starting to think that was a big mistake as both the Evil Endo and Dismissive Traumatologist appts took place there. This time I wasn’t given a choice so fuck convenience. Fleming is about a 40 minute bus ride from my place, but the bus stop is on the corner so that’s okay (the trusty 32 bus, which we may be losing to make Sevilla more TOURIST FRIENDLY).

Anyhow, I feel like I only have this one shot left to get the help I actually need. So I will be arming myself with the entire timeline of THE KNEE(S) SAGA, which began back in May 2023 (though I’d been having knee issues for years, this was the first time it affected my ability to walk).

May 2023 – sudden acute pain in left knee which continued to get worse
July 2023 – X-ray both knees
July 2023 – GP request for MRI (had to plead, wasn’t taken seriously)
Sept 2023 – MRI on left knee (though by this time right knee pain was much more severe)
Oct 2023 – Emergency hospital visit for severe right knee pain, was told that as there is osteoarthritis in left knee then obviously it’s in the right one too (ER doctor looked at previous x-ray not MRI), said I did not have a Bakers cyst, refused to do any further testing – was sent home with a prescription for Nolatil, a drug banned in 20 countries.
Oct 2023 – Started using a cane, could no longer walk without it
April 2024 – Appt with Traumatologist who admits I have Bakers cysts behind both knees but won’t recommend physiotherapy and refuses my request for an MRI on the right knee, tells me to ride a bike, lose weight and prescribes more drugs
June 2024 – GP (a new one) requests an MRI on right knee
August 2024 – Unable to walk anymore without using crutches, pain unbearable, at best I can shuffle-walk
Sept 2024 – MRI on right knee
Sept 2024 – GP requests appt with Traumatologist (again)
Oct 2024 – I guess we’ll find out

Meanwhile I have not been able to work since July and, aside from the physical and emotional stress (I miss my life!), I am also under a lot of financial stress wondering how I am going to make ends meet. Especially as this doesn’t look like there’s a quick solution, even if I start getting proper treatment asap.

Anyhow! One step at a time, so to speak. At the moment it all hangs on the Monday appointment and whether I get a sympathetic and not-too-overworked doctor who actually wants to help me. Let’s hope so. I’m a bit annoyed with myself for not being a better patient advocate for myself all this time but sometimes it’s really hard to stand up for yourself when you’re in pain and being told nothing is really wrong and it’s all because you’re old and fat and otherwise being dismissed as not worth their time. But now I’m angry as fuck. And I really need Monday to work. Wish me luck.

we are doomed…

07 Monday Oct 2024

Posted by in coronavirus, covid, health, health & happiness

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no vaxx

This is such bad news. Downplaying that an airborne vascular virus that affects multiple organs and the immune system is only dangerous to so-called at-risk “vulnerable” people is a total bullshit response to the ongoing pandemic.

It also feeds into the THEM vs US mentality, with people erroneously believing that because they think they are fit and have a healthy immune system that Covid poses no risk to them, and then treating so-called “vulnerable” people with either pity or disdain while totally denying that Long Covid exists (until it happens to them) and behaving, well, selfishly.

I’m still not sure how much this year in Spain actually differs from the previous Covid booster shots (winter 2022/2023), as those were also available with a roll-out programme that started out with the elderly but eventually covered everyone. So it’s not clear if this year the usual Flu shot campaign will include getting an updated Covid booster, or if you will have to belong to one of the “target groups” to be eligible. In any case, the Covid boosters have never been mandatory and I don’t even think the initial vaccines were either, other than being required by certain industries.

The danger is if Covid vaccines and boosters are denied to people who want them simply because they don’t fit into this random and ever-changing criteria of who are perceived to need them. They don’t do this with the Flu jab. Anyone can get one. So why would it different with Covid? Why do you have to somehow prove you are eligible?? It’s not like most countries don’t have enough of the booster shots to go around.

I think that THIS particular sort of “official” disinformation/misinformation (see quote below, from the article) irks the most because it downplays the actual reality of SARS-CoV-2 and is still trying to convince people that it’s “just a cold”. It’s pretty clear by now that Covid is much more than a respiratory illness, let alone “just a cold” and it’s also clear that nobody develops immunity to Covid (just like with Flu, hence annual boosters!) and that the “let ‘er rip” global approach to Covid continues to enable new strains of this novel coronavirus to basically get better and better at making us sick and rendering previous vaccinations and boosters useless.

What if I haven’t been vaccinated against Covid for two years?

If they do not meet any condition of vulnerability and do not belong to the target groups, vaccination is not recommended for those under 60 years of age this year. “At this time, considering the epidemiological situation and the acquired immunity of the population, vaccination against Covid-19 in people not included in the target groups is not justified,” the ministry of health said. In other words, the vaccination two years ago and the infections of the disease during the last four and a half years have generated sufficient immunity not to make mass vaccination necessary.

We are ALL vulnerable. Denying or downplaying the need for an updated Covid vaccine booster to the general public in the midst of an ongoing pandemic is unconscionable. Honestly, all of this makes me sick. I only hope it doesn’t end up actually making me (or you!) sick too.