Do We Have Any Doctors in the House

[VTRDark]

Out of curiosity I was wondering if we have any Doctors on the forum. I've got to go and see my GP and chase up an appointment I am supposed to getting from a specialist for bone injuries. My ankle has been real bad recently with work and everything. Going to ask the GP for prescription for some 10mg Oxycontin, I doubt I will get them but their is no harm in asking. I will most likely get Tramadol and Diclofenic. I don't do Codeine well as is gives me bad stomach pains unless it coated in Phosphate. Dihydrocodeine is the worst.

Anyway you know how difficult is is to explain things to doctors especially within the time constraints. I thought it a good idea to write down what I am feeling and where I think my issues are. What do you guys think of this.

Cuboid Tarsal feels bruised at the base where I walk and where most of my weight is on and I get pains around the Articular surface for cuboid and along the side of the Calcaneus Tarsal. At times I get sharp shooting pain like a fairground strike the bell with the hammer that shoots up from around this area right through the Fibula, possibly a bit of entrapment of the Lateral Malleolar Network between the Tib and Fib or nerves around that area or maybe the shooting pains run up through the Fibular Artery/Veins more towards the back around the Sural Nerve / lateral Sural Cutaneous nerve, which when it happens brings me almost to the point of collapsing as the pain is that intense for that moment and makes me shout OW along with fear of putting weight back on the foot. When I do eventually get over the shock and gently put weight back on I am instantly limping extremely bad and can barely walk until it starts to recover and I can start to fully weight bare once again with only a slight, what I call an everyday standard limp for my condition I live with on a daily basis. Other areas where I get a lot of pain is around Talus Tarsul, especially towards the rear and Articular Surfaces of Superior Surface of Talus

When I am sitting down and relaxing with no weight on my ankle I get tingling pains around the right side of the Posterior Tibial Artery / Veins around my scar and up. The rest of my ankle also starts to throb. At times around the Calcaneus Tarsel I get similar feeling pains that I had when my bones where healing from being fractured if that makes sense. Like they are repairing themselves. After about 30mins of rest and when I go to stand up and weight bare I can barely put any weight at all on the foot and very gingerly have to start to put weight back on it. I tend to hold onto furniture or whatever is to hand to help hold me up and walk with as flat foot as possible (not my normal walk where my ankle is off the ground and I walk on the ball of my foot) but with my leg. extended outward and foot as flat as possible until I can gradually start to put full weight back on it and walk or rather limp on the ball of the foot once again. At times when it’s exceptionally bad I have been known to get down on the floor and crawl to the bathroom at night or if that is too much hassle, I prepare myself with a bottle so there is no need to get up in the night and I can allow my ankle maximum rest without it being disturbed too much.

I used a nice little application called Essential Anatomy 5 to help me. Fantastic application and easy to use. I can highly recommend it for anyone that is interested in an in-depth exploration of the Human anatomy.
http://applications.3d4medical.com/essential_anatomy_5/

[Wicky]

Forget trying to impress your quack with jargon - a GP has done the hospital rotation and either failed to qualify / progressed in hospitals as a specialist / had enough of really sick folk that need a bed / failed to learn latin cos they went to a comprehensive school or chosen to work on the NHS frontline Mon—Fri interfacing the fine line between between sickness & health. Keep it simple and describe what's wrong without the latin (unless your confident of the pronounciation and have written in latin with permanent biro on the areas of anatomy on your person for your and (mainly their reference) and how it affects you in the allocated time slot.

Hopefully rather than sticky plaster tablets you'll be referred to a consultant Orthopod (and might know a bit more latin than the GP) or a physio (who could well be latin if you're lucky)...

Rather than whizzy 3D animated graphics learn medical slang so when you catch a glimpse of your notes in front of the doc you can see how he/she has you pigeonholed ;)

Doctor slang is a dying art > http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3159813.stm

* American but some are applicable in UK > http://messybeast.com/dragonqueen/medical-acronyms.htm

PS According to http://applications.3d4medical.com/essential_anatomy_5/ my vascular surgeon must have messed up doing my fem pop as my scars are no nowhere near my internal plumbing

[popkat]

Do you have screws/pins/plates ?.. I do in the same area, fib and tib broke, separated and split, I have screws. This was 31 years ago and for the first 2 or 3 years after I had similar symptoms to what you describe, I put it down to muscle damage and repairing, if I knocked it a cycle would start where I would have pain, tingling, slight odd numbness etc, then after a few days all would be well and then I'd get it again for a few days. I put it down to screw movement, it moves a little, breaks into the muscle then moves back. So 31 years later and still from time to time I get slight issues (screws should have been removed 29 years ago but I was self employed and couldn't afford the time off work, so they stayed) a couple of weeks ago I had a shooting pain, felt like there was a knife twisting in there.. Other things I suffer if I'm walking around a lot I still get a slight limp, my leg ashes but also my other leg aches as bad, this is due to subconscious compensation. I'm used to it now and live with it, not really a big problem. Although due to possible bone crumble (can't think of a better term) around the screw it's still possible I may wake up one morning with one of my screws poking out of my leg

For the first few years after I could not keep a job that involved being on my feet for the shift, I needed to rest it often which employers didn't like so I ended up a despatch rider so I could sit on my butt all day.


As for pain relief just Ibuprofen or Paracetomol or both depending how bad, I've never needed more. the Ibuprofen helps as an anti inflammatory but not good long term as can cause some stomach problems, also don't take on an empty stomach.


.

[VTRDark]

I agree no good for the GP but defo the specialist who will understand and have a little model sitting on his desk. Interesting that about the doctors abbreviations. Very clever and gets them out of legal situations. I once got hold of my patent notes when I had to take them with me from one department to another and while sitting in the wheelchair waiting I had a nose through them. I came across the file that counted the amount of swaps in and out of me while in the operating theatre. The GP was supposed to sort out an appointment with a specialist almost 2 months ago and I have heard nothing. Time to chase them up as things are worse now so hopefully may push things forward a little faster.

All I want is some decent pain control / relief so I can at least go and do a decent days graft without having to suffer so much. I get home from work and I am crippled to the point where all I am doing is sitting down, relaxing and taking the weight off so things can repair enough for me to go back and do another days graft the next day. I don't even get the chance to cook a decent meal for myslef or look after other things on my time off because of it. The problem is it's starting to have an accumulative affect so rather than fully heal it only has so much time and then I am putting further damage on it. Here comes the conundrum. It a good thing that I can feel it so the pain is not masking over it and creating further damage without me realising it, so therefore rather than have a continuous sustained pain relief, I prefer to accept so much pain but want to be able to pop a pill for instant gratification and relief from it when it's either been nagging me for too long or I am crippled to the point where I can no longer weight bare and walk without support.

The work I do at the moment is not right for me as I am on my feet for 8 hours continuous along with a lot of heavy lifting and walking about. I've handed my months notice in because It's at the point where it is damaging my health physically and mentally. I said to my line manager that it's a modern day version of a slave ship and he looked at me and reluctantly agreed Another reason to see the GP as I want to get some time off so need a docs certificate. I may have to settle for part time work somewhere instead but there is a good chance that will require at least standing on my feet for 8 hours. Don't know, but I do know going back to the GP to talk to them is the right thing. It's depressing me too and I am sitting here now dreading the thought of having to go back today for another shift between 2 -10, then the wombles want me there again on the 7 -3 shift in the morning when it's a real busy Monday morning and lot more heavy lifting. Luckily tonight wont be so bad as it's the night shift but it's still time on my feet. Then I Have Tuesday off to try and get a few things done if I am not crippled to point where I can't I've given them enough chance to employ more staff but they either can't get the staff or they are not interested in paying out more wages and expect the rest of us to do more. Taking the piss they are and no consideration for disabilities because they don't have enough workers so someone has to do it. Stuck in a constant cycle right now.

[VTRDark]

Malc I had screws holding it all together down there after the initial operation and popping the ankle back into what is left of the socket. The screws where removed later on. I still have the bar running through my fema which is the only metal in me. Half my ankle bone on the right side is missing and there is one big scar there which was an open wound. I am left with very minimal movement in my ankle so can't swivel the foot about much. I'm lucky it wasn't fused and they managed to save it. If I do swivel it about which at times can relive the pain and stiffness it clicks and grinds. I vary my meds from Nurofen plus for over the counter stuff or when it's real bad then 50mg Diclofenac and 50mg Tramadol so yeh NSAID's do work combined with some opiate based pain relief. I always eat something even if it's a slice of toast before taking any NSAID's as they are lethal when one has been taking them long term. I don't take them on a regular basis but as and when needed.

[Wicky]

What to do if you become disabled > https://www.gov.uk/if-you-become-disabl ... e-disabled

And might be an idea to get a Blue (Peter ;) ) Badge as proof of your disability (handy to wave under employers and Kafkaesque officals' noses if any of them should query your disability > You should do this if:

you have problems walking that are permanent, or that your doctor says are likely to last at least a year

Council dept should hand it out under discretionary provision.

Plus it'll be handy for parking in and around London when the bike's back on the road.

https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consu ... lue-badge/

[MacV2]

Re notice period...Fek 'em just don't go in...what they gonna do sack you...You have already quit.

Just hobble away & find something else.

[agentpineapple]

Re notice period...Fek 'em just don't go in...what they gonna do sack you...You have already quit.

Just hobble away & find something else.

would be a good idea to keep your employer sweet, as they'll provide you with a good reference...

[MacV2]

Re notice period...Fek 'em just don't go in...what they gonna do sack you...You have already quit.

Just hobble away & find something else.

would be a good idea to keep your employer sweet, as they'll provide you with a good reference...

Wrong they are not alowed to give direct bad refference...Just word it sutbly...

[Wicky]

I said to my line manager that it's a modern day version of a slave ship

You'd be so lucky as all galley slaves did was sit around all day...

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[Mav617]

Re notice period...Fek 'em just don't go in...what they gonna do sack you...You have already quit.

Just hobble away & find something else.

would be a good idea to keep your employer sweet, as they'll provide you with a good reference...

Wrong they are not alowed to give direct bad refference...Just word it sutbly...

We can't even give good/bad ones anymore, just job title, length of service and any criminal convictions on our watch.

[VTRDark]

I seriously did think about walking but the wombles kept the first weeks wages which one gets when they leave. Kind of like a deposit. That's something else that pissed me off. It's OK though because I shall get a doctors certificate and go on the sick. That will screw them up because they still haven't got enough staff. Just a shame that some of the good guys in the department will suffer too but sometimes one has to cruel to kind. The extra workload may push them over the edge into leaving. Ankle is throbbing at the moment and I am back there again at 7. Hoping to get a docs appointment for Tuesday.