good news, bad news

[arina83]

Good news is I have an appointment with a potential new PCP. And the bad news is I can't get in until January 31. Wish I could get in sooner, since I feel horrible, but at least I've made some progress.

Seeing my dentist on tuesday, and maybe he'll be able to do something for me, medication wise.

Going through a flare now, and running a fever. Yay...

[Carolina]

Hang in there, Arina.

Progress is important, along with patience as needed.

Keep us posted.

Hugs

Elaine

[Meld256]

Arina,

I know it's hard to wait over a month to get into a new doc when you feel awful, but yes, you've made some progress. 
Many times this journey can seem so long and rough, but I hope you can look at the fact that you are taking control and making decisions to help yourself.  Good luck with the dentist; maybe they can help.  We'll keep our collective fingers crossed! 

Try to take care of yourself, and feel better soon.
Melinda

[arina83]

Thanks for the advice. Having a hard time with being patient, because I'm really worried about some of the symptoms I've been having. Edema in my stomach, thighs, lower legs and feet. Not very bad, but noticeable. The occasional difficulty breathing I'll have, which seems to be due to inflammation (only thing that resolves it is an aleve).

Thinking maybe I'll see if I can go to the walk in clinic. See if they can do any thing about the edema. Heck, maybe even mention my out of state ND has diagnosed me with Sjogrens... see if I can get started on plaquenil.

A big part of my stress is that I know too much for my own good. Made it through 3 years of nursing school, before my health forced me to quit... so I know quite a bit about physiology.

Trying my best to be patient, but its really, really hard. Do have an excellent distraction coming up... 3 week vacation!

[A66eyroad]

Yay for vacation! And three whole weeks off --- I'm so jeal!

Yes, a little learning is a dangerous thing. And a little medical learning is not only dangerous, but it scares the dickens out of you!   

What is edema? Swelling? Water retention? Is it something you can treat on your own in the meantime? Like stopping salt and making sure you're doing some walking around? Is it something you could go to the walk-in clinic and get some treatment started?

[slccom]

Edema and difficulty breathing can be symptoms of heart problems. It would be good to check this out sooner rather than later.