A visit to our friendly local hospital

We have a fine tradition on our travels, a visit to a local emergency room or urgent care. In this case we decided we would like an opportunity to visit the Family Hospital at Millard. To make the visit more cozy, allowing us to have time to meet and talk with the staff, we decided that a visit at midnight would be just the thing.

Dang kidney stones!

I suddenly started getting a pain in by back on the left side about 10pm. It was bad at first, and I was pretty sure it was a kidney stone. I had a kidney stone back in 2016 while visit Laurie and John at Christmas, so I had some idea what a kidney stone felt like. We were already tucked in bed for the night, and I thought I could tough it out until morning. But by 11:30 I began to feel nauseous and wondered if we had a bucket in the trailer. Since the pain had gotten that bad, I figured it was time to see where the closest ER was. This woke Heather up, and after a very short discussion:

“Gordon, are you ok?”

“No, I think I have a kidney stone.”

“Alright, lets go the Emergency Room.”

I wanted to drive, but Heather decided that her driving with cataracts was safer than my driving in pain. Probably a wise decision. Of course it was because Heather is very wise. No comments about old wives and the such, please.

So off to the hospital.

We got me signed in, or at least started on the paperwork. Then the nice lady tried to tell us that Heather was suppose to wait in the car, but maybe it would be ok if she waited in the waiting room. After Heather explained the need for someone who was not in pain to be there to answer questions and to remember instructions, the nurse stuck her head out and said it would be fine for Heather to come on back with me. One of the advantages of coming at midnight when we were the only patients in the ER.

The nice nurse stuck an IV in me and gave a big dose of an anti-inflammatory. In 15 minutes the pain was very tolerable.

Then off for a CAT Scan. It was a new machine that took 64 slices at one time. It only took three scans of 6 seconds each and I was done. The tech showed me the scan right there, three or four stones in the kidney and one stuck in the tubes trying to get to the bladder.

The nice doctor suggested that the best course of action was to let the stone pass and just manage the pain until then.

I feel better this morning, and am taking comfort from the truism that, “This, too, shall pass.”Read more