I am so sick of this!

I finally decided to vent about this. I am going to go ahead and put a disclaimer, that this is a long story, and will therefore make for a long post, and more than likely a pretty boring post, but as I said before I really need to vent. This all started about 5 months ago when I was in Shreveport. Anyone who knows me knows that I often struggle with fatigue. One day, though, I woke up from an average night sleep, and was exhausted. I was so tired I felt like I could barely move. I had no other symptoms but some aches and pains. I decided to go see a doctor to make sure it wasn't anything that needed treating. The doctor I saw there was very nice and decided to draw some lab work. I started feeling better in a few days, and then I got extremely busy trying to finish up my assignment in Shreveport. I never heard from the Dr. about the lab work, so I truthfully just forgot about it.
I came home spent some time with my family and then took off again to Iowa. After I had been gone about a week, my Mom got a letter in the mail informing me that I had some abnormal labs, and that they had been trying to contact me. This was a complete fabrication. I would have noticed someone calling me from a Shreveport area code. I finally get the nurse to call me back and she informs me that I need to come back in. Well I told her that would be difficult considering I was in Iowa! She told me that the labs that were abnormal were my Blood Sugar was low, my TSH was high (which means you could have hypothyroidism), and my ANA was positive (which is a test for autoimmune disorders). At that point I didn't know what to do because the Dr. who had drawn that labs was in Louisiana, I was in Iowa, and my general practitioner was in Alabama.
I called my general practitioner who requested me to fax the labs to her. I called the Dr. in Shreveport and requested she fax the results and she said she would do it right away. We went a week with me calling every day and them saying they would send them, only to find out they hadn't. Turns out they weren't sending them, because they didn't have a release (You've got to love HIPPA), but they failed to call me to inform me they couldn't send them. Once the labs got to my General practitioner, she said that it was nothing that was such a big deal that we couldn't wait 8 weeks for me to get back into town and redraw labs. I was very relieved, but as you can imagine continued to be slightly stressed out and concerned.
Over the 8 weeks that I was in Iowa. I continued to be achy, I had a generalized rash, and continued to have periods of fatigue, and just feel over all crappy! I then randomly took my temperature one night when I was at work, and it was 99.5! hmm, that's weird. I continued to take it, and it kept staying in the 99's. It lasted for 3.5 weeks. After I finally got home I had an appointment with my general practitioner. She ran more labs, and now it was time to wait again.
After 4 days I got a call back from my doctor. She told me that my TSH was still elevated, and that I needed to get started on Synthroid (a medication for hypothyroidism). As we were on the phone she realized that my reheumatology panel (a lab that can help us to figure out about an autoimmune disorder) had not come back and that she would call the lab and call me right back. I never heard from her, over the next 4 business days we called and harassed everyone in her office until we got them to call in the Synthroid to my pharmacy. Nobody new anything about the labs. I finally get a call from someone in the office who proceeds to tell me that the outside lab who was supposed to run the rheum panel had in fact run something entirely wrong! It was a lab for Syphilis! Thanks, that's really helpful! At this point I lost it. I was so frustrated. I then had to go back to the doctors office to let them draw more blood, so they could send it back to the lab. Everyone kept telling me, well we aren't going to charge you for the lab work. I thought, "Well I should hope not! It's not my fault someone is incompetent. " So, this is where I am now. I am waiting for this lab to come back. I still feel like crap, I have started to run a fever again, my joints and back hurt sooo badly, and I am so exhausted I could sleep all day. Hopefully I will hear back from my doctor early this week. I could find out a number of things. It could be all this is just caused by my thyroid, and I need to give the synthroid some time to work, or I might need to go see a rheumatologist, or it could be something else entirely.
Well, Thank you for listening to my rant! As you can tell nothing has gone right throughout all of this. I just hope we find out what is making me feel this way! Yuck! I just want to have more energy, and not be hurting, so I can't truly enjoy being home with my friends and family.

Crazy Week!

I have been home in Alabama for a week today. I have been so busy it feels like I have been home a month. My drive home was quite an adventure. It took me 13 hours of absolute boredom. I spent most of my time talking on the cell (I know, I hate people that do that too!) or jamming out to some tunes. I got close to Memphis and the sky fell. It was raining so hard I could barely see the road. I didn't know if I should stop or keep going to try to out run it. I called my Dad and told him where I was and got him to look up the radar on the Internet. It was not reassuring when he said "oh, crap you are in the middle of it". I said "Dad, am I going to get blown away by a tornado", and his response was "I hope not!" We decided together that I should keep going and luckily I out ran it. I also want everyone to know that I have a new found love for Corridor X. For those of you who don't know that is a newer highway that runs from Jasper to Birmingham. It keeps you from stopping at a ton of red lights. It also is nearly deserted, and flat. So you can absolutely fly. It helped me to cut an hour off of my trip. woohoo! I have had so much fun this week being home and getting to spend time with my family or friends.
Another thing I have had going on this week, is I had an interview at Brookwood Hospital. I have been saying my prayers that God would make whatever I was supposed to do work out. As I have talked about before I didn't know if I wanted to continue traveling or not, so I let God make the decision for me and went with what worked. I got the call this morning from Brookwood saying that I got the job. I am excited. It is a PACU night shift position. For those of you not in the medical profession this stands for Post Anesthesia Care Unit, or what the used to refer to as the recovery room. It sounds like a very interesting job, and the other people that work there seem very nice. It should be a great adventure. I very happy to stay home, and settle down a bit.
We also had Father's Day this week. I was so glad that I could be home, and actually be with my Dad on Father's Day. My Dad, Stepmother, and I all went to the lake. I haven't been to the lake in almost a year, which is a record for me. I have missed it soooo much. Overall we had a great weekend. We lazed around, took boat rides, got some sun, and grilled out. Very relaxing, and my Dad seemed to really enjoy it even though it has been so hot. Since I have been home it has been at least 97 degrees, very humid, and the heat index has been about 108 degrees. It can really drag you down, but I am glad because it finally feels like summer to me. Everyone try to stay cool, and have a great week!

All my bags are packed, I'm ready to go....

Ok, so my bags aren't packed, but I'm ready to go! I just finished my last night at work at Greene County Medical Center. I am very excited to go home. I have missed all my friends and family at home so much. I am also sad about leaving here. I have made some really wonderful friends here, and will miss them. I am sad I didn't get more time to spend with them outside of work! We could never work out times to get together. Everyone here has made me feel really good, and like they are going to miss me too. I have learned two things here, the first being that I could never live in a small town. The second is that there are some great people here in this small town in Iowa, and I can understand why someone would want to live here. I am definitely a city girl! I love having everything that I could possibly ever want to do right at my fingertips. Never having to go to far to find what you need, and having lots of options. There are some great things about living in a small town. Everyone knows everyone, and you can really rely on your neighbors and friends. So in short...I will definitely miss Jefferson, IA; but I can't wait to be back in Birmingham. My own personal piece of heaven.
Now to look forward to the long drive home. I plan on taking pictures and posting them, so ya'll can feel like you were there for all the boredom. Then I need to make a list of all the things I have to do when I get home. Is it sad that the majority of the things on that list are places I want to eat? It's a miracle I don't weigh 400 lbs. I will keep you updated on all my adventures at home, including the search for the next job! Good night now. I need to get some sleep, before I pack.

Extention!

No, I am not going to come home looking like Nicole Ritchie, with her long stringy hair extensions! I am talking about my travel assignment. I have decided to extend my assignment by a few days. A few weeks ago I asked the hospital if I could extend my contract by two weeks. I thought this would be a good idea, because then I would be home right before 4th of July. Then I could make sure I would be at the lake with my family on the 4th. Which is my absolute favorite holiday. Unfortunately at the time, they told me they wouldn't need me to stay. So, I accepted that, and started to get very excited about getting home.

Well, last week I find out that they have decided they do want me to extend. My initial reaction was "no". At that point in time I was so pumped up about being home I couldn't imagine staying here one more day, no one more second, than I had to. I'm glad I didn't go with that initial knee jerk reaction. I decided to think about. The more I thought about it the more I thought I can do this. It's just 2 weeks.

I started to think about other things, and decided that the only way it would be unbearable to stay would be to have to stay in the Super 8. I have really gotten settled in at the Limburg House, and didn't want to move around. (Read more about this decision in a previous post.) So, that made my decision for me. I told On Assignment that I would extend as long as I could stay in the Limburg House. So, it looks like the house is booked for the weekend after I was supposed to leave. So I am going to extend my contract by a little less than a week. Yeah! So I will only be here about 5 more days than originally planned, but hopefully will get in another full week of work!

I think I have decided to buy myself a treat for extending even when I didn't want to. I know I am trying to save money, but I can't help but treat myself every once in awhile. Anyone who knows me knows that I am a purse-aholic. I could buy a new bag everyday. I love all shapes, sizes, colors, and brands. So this is what I was thinking....

It's Dooney and Bourke. It's cloth. I think it is sooo cute and casual. I figured it would be great for the summer, and I could even carry it into the fall since it's Red and White. It is close to Alabama Crimson Tide colors. Roll Tide! So, what do you think? I am sad it is going to be longer until I get home, but I am really just relieved that a decision has been made! woohoo!

Bloggers Block

I haven't written in about a week, because I haven't known what to write about. I thought maybe I would just write an update. I am still here in Iowa for 2 more weeks. I am really getting antsy to be home. I absolutely love summer. I love spending time with my friends, laying out, going to the lake, going to the pool, and cooking out. I have felt very out of sorts because it is already June, and I have not layed out once! I have not swam once! Thanks to Jergen's I am not completely pale, but I think I need some Vitamin D. Working nights and being in Iowa away from my friends, has led to me having a Vit D deficiency. haha.
I am still on the job hunt. I am still considering traveling or staying home. I am just trying to put it in the Lord's hands and letting him to do what is best for me. I am not very good at that. I let myself get all worked up, especially when I can't really decide what I would rather do. I guess the important thing is having a job!
I have also worked the past 4 nights. As most nurses do I work 12.5 hour shifts, which means we only work 3-4 days a week. Usually your schedule works so you work 2 days in a row with some time in between. So, working 4 days in a row exhausts me. I get very emotional when I am tired, so me being this tired has led to a lot of tears over the future. I am just nervous. Hopefully I will get a good night sleep tonight and have a new prospective in the morning.
Another interesting thing I did during my four night stint, was I got the opportunity to help the emergency room nurse in the ER. I have never thought about doing ER nursing, but it was really kind of nice. You basically help the patient and admit them or send them home. It is kind of nice to have them for a short period of time and then pass them off. It is constantly different, which keeps you interested. Hmmm... have I found something else I'm interested in? Nope, I don't think I would want to do it full time. So, that is pretty much all that is going on with me! To all my friends and family I can't wait to see you soon!

On another note, thanks to all those people who have let me know they are reading. It has really kept me going to know that someone out there finds it interesting. Please ignore any misspelling or typos. My mom has made it her job to point out all my errors! (thanks, mom!) My problem is not spelling words wrong (spell check is great), but having wrong words in the wrong place. I for some reason have an issue with there and their. I promise I do know the difference, but sometimes I just get typing too fast. When I check it over before I post, I still miss things because I know what I was trying to say, so I think I read it in my head correctly even when it is still written wrong. I hope I don't offend any thing with my grammatical missteps. If so you are reading the wrong blog. If you see errors just keep in mind, I do know what is correct it just may not come out in my typing. (Does this disclaimer make you feel better mom?) So, if you enjoy reading please leave me comments, I love to read them, and join as a follower!