For those of you who follow me on Twitter, I'm not dead. For those of you who don't, I had serious enough stomach pains last night to consider going to the hospital. I didn't because I don't have insurance, and figured that if I was still in agony this morning, then I'd go. After all, a few hours of pain could be something random that might go away on its own, but a solid day would probably require medical attention.
Fortunately, it seems like nothing(ish) after all. I'm still not feeling great, but the scary pain has faded. Hey, I'm even having a piece of toast.
So, efore this turns into an angry screed on the sorry state of US healthcare (and how, if I had been dead this morning, it would have been entirely because I wasn't willing to go bankrupt over what I figured was just a bout of the stomach flu, and yes, even just the tests to figure out what was wrong would have cost thousands of dollars I don't have), let's move on to much more exciting things than my gastrointestinal health. Like Anchored :D Which released yesterday, yay!
The tour is still on, of course, and today's two stops are both Reader Q&As. People sent in questions, I answered them, and my gracious hosts Alan Chin and Marie Sexton posted them. Check them out, say hi, and as always, comment to enter the drawings for a free book and a free swag bag!
Hope you feel better soon! Don't blame you though, I won't go to the ER either unless I know that I am dying!! Have a great day!!
ReplyDeleteThanks kindly, Dawn :) FWIW, I wouldn't have minded going to the ER if I wouldn't have to mortgage my house to pay for it. Last night I was justhisclose to going, if only to get something to manage the pain with. (And that's when you know it's really bad, because narcotics make me violently ill, so most of the time I'd just rather be in pain.)
ReplyDeleteBut, things are looking up :) I'm catching up on work and hopefully I'll even get some writing done today on Crescendo.
Jesus - I flippin' hate your health care system!
ReplyDeleteHope you're on the mend and whatever's wrong pisses right off and leaves.
Yeah, I'm none too thrilled about it either. I've been uninsured for about 8 years now. And since it costs about $150 just to walk through the doctor's door--nevermind the sky-high cost of medical testing--I don't really even get routine or preventative care anymore. I'm only seen when something's wrong, and then when something is so SERIOUSLY wrong that I know there's no hope of it getting better on its own. Which makes it much more likely that I'll one day end up with some issue that costs taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars to treat--like, say, late-stage cancer that would have been caught much earlier by a simple (but multi-thousand dollar) screening test that I can't afford--and that I am incapable of paying for on my own. It's really f*$king stupid. If you're not over 65, under 18, or pregnant, you can't even get government assistance to buy health insurance. And in my state, private insurance costs about $800 a month. How am I supposed to pay for that?
ReplyDeleteWhoops, angry screed :-p Sorry folks.
Just to query. Did you eat something fatty last night? If the pain comes back after you eat something greasy or fried, it could be gall stones or a problem with your gall bladder. I'd never felt such awful stomach pains as I did before I was diagnosed with gall stones. It was on a par with labour, I kid you not.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, if you get them again, I'd go to the doc and get checked out. A visit to A&E won't help at all with gall stones, you just have to bear the pain until it eventually goes away, unfortunately.
Anyway, glad all is well now :).
I actually did eat something fatty on Sunday afternoon, and it was the first time I'd eaten fried food in at least two months. Which also made me think it was maybe a gall bladder issue, given my family history (my mom, sis, and aunt all have had their gallbladders taken out). At one point I was in tears the pain was so bad, but it's faded down to an irritant today, thank god. Hopefully if I avoid fatty foods it won't come back, because unless I magically become a bestseller overnight, there's no way I can afford gall bladder surgery.
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ReplyDeleteOh, and I'm glad the tour is going so well. That thing is sure full of the awesome still. =)
ReplyDeletelol, didn't want to leave you just a comment full of suck. Need some not suck too. Those ones are better. =)
Oh hun PLEASE move to England before the NhS sinks entirely???
ReplyDeleteStill love your book, as ever xx
Caz
I'm glad you're feeling better and I hope it continues to be nothing. Mysterious pains are terrifying o.o
ReplyDelete@Amara, dear, you're a font of not-suck :D So, no worries on that front.
ReplyDelete@Rainbow: Alas, if I were going to move anywhere out of the US, it'd probably be Canada. Love you dear :D
@Alex: Thanks kindly. I'm still a little off, so who knows, maybe it was just some kind of bug. Fingers crossed . . .