As I do not want to go off topic on the Weather thread... Health

...this is for @CaroleC

Rivka brought me a 'scrip for Resprim Forte [although I think Olga put the generic name - anyhow it is a sulfonimide and an ant-b I am not allergic to - and it is the only thing that works for me for an UTI].

Only a five day course whereas I usually have ten days but Olga did not know - I will tell her when I next go there, which could be who knows when. But at least she gave me a 'scrip and five days should clear it up.

Problem - how do I get it filled? Phoned Meir [one of my drivers] - hellup hellup hellup, are you working? Yes, sez he, but I am not in town but in Sderot so cannot be with you for half an hour.

Anyhow, he turned up, has taken the 'scrip and my Health Fund card [the cost of the meds will automatically be paid by direct debit on my Isracard when the card is swiped through their computer] - took my hole-in-the-wall card [made him write the number down on his hand] so went off to fill the 'scrip and draw me a thousand shekalim as I was out of cash.

He has just telephoned from the pharmacy - they wanted to make sure I am not allergic to sulfonamides - no, I am not but I am to penicillin and all its derivatives.

So, wivva bitta luck he should be back shortly, but those pills are gonna costa nellofalota dosh.

But what is money compared with the major ouchies?

B"SD I will feeling better tomorrow.

I'm sure you'll now be back on form soon. Remember the mantra, - Keep drinking plenty of water.

Hope your better soon xxx

Five days pills cost 7.50 shekalim - just under £1.25. For Meir to come here, pick up the 'scrip, take it to get it filled [plus my hole-in-the-wall card to draw cash for me], bring the pills and cash back and then go back to town from where he usually works, cost me 100 shekalim.

No way am I complaining. I do not have a car therefore there is no way I could have gone to a pharmacy to fill the 'scrip so I have no choice. I am just lucky that he was working when I called him. Had he not been I would have called David. Had he not been I might have been stuck as they are the only two taxi drivers I use, and trust.

At least Olga, our GP, now knows that if I telephone and ask for a 'scrip for Resprim Forte [although this one is called Diseptyl Forte but same active ingredients] she will give me one without wanting to do a urinalysis and if I say I need them she knows that I do know what I am asking for and why. Although I suppose I had better go and see her sometime in the near future to not only thank her but explain why I know if and when I need them.

I did not even have to go and see her - told Orli what I wanted and Bingo - Orli provided the 'scrip, Rivka brought it straight round, and Meir went and got it filled for me!

UTIs are a curse of chair users and even worse in the winter when so many clothes need to be worn. But yes, I am, and have been, drinking water, water, water and more water for about a week now. Plus mugs of decaff coffee and decaff tea [caffeine tends to aggravate both UTIs and cystitis]. But sulfonamides work extremely quickly so by tomorrow I should be feeling almost back to normal, and a five day course will be fine.

PHEW!

Sorry you're not well, Malka. I've never had a UTI, but I can imagine how bad you must feel. Had a big fight with my ex-doctor not long ago for treating me for a kidney infection I didn't have. Also did a lot of un-necessary tests and tried to refer me to a specialist for nothing. We fought, we argued and in the end it wasn't there. Proven by the second urine test I had to fight for him to order. I'm sure it was contaminated in the lab. Mistakes happen. That's why you check twice when a person has no symptoms. More often than not doctors and I don't get along. But I have met a few great ones over the years.

UTIs are a curse of permanent chair users because you are sitting on "it" all the time so "it" gets no air. Also, because I have Cauda Equina Syndrome from spinal cord damage I have to wear incontinence pads all the time, which does not help matters.

Sometimes it is months before I get an attack, sometimes rather too frequently for comfort, and sometimes just homeopathic products help - but when it hits hard it hurts, oh does it hurt. Not just to pee but my bladder hurts and any pressure round my waist or on my lower abdomen hurts. But - I know that sulfonamides work for for me and start working from the first one taken, so I am already feeling more comfortable B"H

I had wanted to see Olga last Thursday [she is only here twice a week for a couple of hours each time] but Orli had not changed to phone from fax to telephone, so I could not call to arrange to go there. Which is why I have had nearly a week of feeling extremely uncomfortable and very bleugh.

Nina, the lovely GP that was here when I first moved onto the Moshav [she was originally from Poland] always gave me an extra 'scrip so I had a spare course that I could start taking immediately the first symptoms started - and they were quite frequent at one time. Now all I have to do is convince Olga [Russian] to let me keep a spare course here. And maybe she will, maybe she will not, but she issued the 'scrip without even seeing me let alone saying I had to have a urinalysis first. Heck, I know if I have an UTI or not, I do not need my urine tested to prove it!

But as I said, I told Orli [also Russian] our nurse what I needed - she spoke to Olga [GP] who issued and signed the 'scrip, and then Orli gave it to Rivka [neighbour about four houses down] who brought it to me. And Meir came and picked it up and went and got it filled for me.

Booger - first tablet yesterday evening and pain and frequency stopped within hours. Second tablet this morning and all seems well and back to normal regarding bladder/UTIs/peeing.

BUT - I now have a swollen face due to an allergic reaction - and yet I have never had any allergic reaction to sulfonamides before.

Not quite sure what to do. I took a couple of extra anti-histamines [I have to take one each day as a "just in case" due to food allergies] and so far it is just my lower face affected. My tongue and throat are, so far, OK and it is not affecting my breathing, BUT the second my tongue starts swelling I will be pressing my emergency button.

Trust me to not have an up-to-date Epiphen auto-injector.

Given up and pressed my emergency button and spoken with a doctor. They will send a doctor here but it might be two hours. If things get worse before he arrives I must press the button again and they will send me to the ER -

Swelling is spreading round my mouth and my lips but so far my tongue/throat not affected and I can breathe and swallow OK, and hell has to freeze over before I will agree to go to the ER because I cannot leave Pereg unless it is an emergency. So far it is more uncomfortable and unsightly than an emergency.

Please keep everything crossed for me.

Oh Malka, I'm keeping everything crossed, and hoping a shot (adrenaline?) will sort you out, and you can stay at home. Keep us posted with what develops.

Doctor still not arrived but they did say two hours. The extra antihistamines have stopped the swelling in my upper lip from spreading and B"H my tongue and throat are still OK so I can breathe and swallow OK.

But I have to finish this course of anti-b because I could not go on any longer with the UTI.

IF - with capitals - I had some prednisone I would have taken then at the first sign of trouble. but not having had a bad allergic reaction for quite a while, I do not have any.

And I have told them that the door will be open although only partially, but the storm has arrived [so far just wind and not rain] and the rope across the doorway has already ripped out two humungous screw hooks from the door frame because of the wind.

Would your neighbour sit with you until the medic arrives? Just to keep a kindly eye on you, and deal with the door.

I have no idea where my neighbour is but she is definitely not at home so cannot come in and wait with me..

Found two new mahoosive hooks for the door rope to go over so I can keep the door open enough for Pereg to to out and in and somehow managed to get them screwed into the door frame.

Still no sign of the doctor but am debating whether to cancel as the swelling has partially gone down. Still looks revolting and I MUST take the full course of anti-biotics for the UTI so have no idea what the next one will do.

Well, I say "partionally" gone down but that is my upper lip - jaw both sides still ginormous and now my lower lip has started swelling. So I definitely need something stronger than a couple of antihistamines, but I will NOT let them send me to the ER.

Booger booger booger.

You can always say you had botox in your lips, if any unexpected visitors turn up.

Seriously if swells anymore off to hospital no ifs or buts xxxxxx

Or you got into a punch with one of your delumptious men!

But seriously though I agree with Tina ... my son was allergic to hornet bites and always had to carry anti histamine wherever he went after he nearly died after only one sting and his throat swelled up and he nearly choked.

Oh, Malka! I know you really don't have to be told, BUT, you have to seriously watch that allergy swelling! I am very allergic to bee stings and just about anything else that stings. And I have every airborne allergy known to man. I can understand not wanting to go to the ER, but there are times we all have to do things we don't want to do. I know leaving Pereg is the worst. I was thinking though that maybe it would be better to leave her for a few hours now. 'Cause if you wait until your throat swells, etc. it could be for a few days.

B U G G A

Gotta big problem now. The doctor came, eventually, gave me two tablets dunno what, plus letter for my GP [ha ha, when will I get to see her?] said no more of the sulfonamides even though they were working fine with the UTI and left a 'scrip for dunno what.

Anyhow whatever he gave me caused even more facial swelling, plus lips. Tongue OK though and could breathe and swallow but had to press my button again because it was getting ridiculous so they said ER and they will send an ambulance but I said Do Not Send An Ambulance because I Am Not Going To The Hospital.

But they did send one and I have just had three paramedics here for most of the evening. Thorough check over, including an EKG [my heart is fine - coulda told them that]. BP OK - systolic high at 155 but what do they expect with all the balagan? But diastolic, the important one, only 70 which is great.

Was given Solu-Medrol by IV - [have previously had it by IM when I have had to call the emergency doctor out], told hospital, NOW. No way. Face still swollen but looks worse than it feels, and my lips have gone down. A bit. But they are sending another doctor to give me - well, I do not have a clue what, but there is no way I am going to the hospital because they do not have any knowledge of allergies - been there many times in the past and more than a few times I was sat in the ER and had to jab myself with my Epipen because even though they could see that my tongue was so swollen it was sticking out of my mouth all they kept saying was that it was toothache?

What I need is Prednisone and I always had a stock of it - Nina, the beloved GP at the clinic here used to make sure I always had a goodly supply. But I ran out of that yonks ago - probably before my two Epipens were out of date, and as I had not had a serious angioedema attack or gone into anaphylaxis I just left things.

I actually feel fine B"H although my face does not look so good, but B"H my tongue has not been affected so I can swallow OK and my breathing is not affected.

But I Am Not Going To Go To The Hospital.

Oh, and Pereg, Bless her, was absolutely wonderful. Three paramedics - one young man, one young woman, and a senior woman - plus all their equipment cluttering up my very small salon, and once she realised they were ignoring her [which I told them to do] she just sat beside me. Even let both the two younger paramedics stroke her head!

She did not even move when I was having clothes pulled up for the EKG [that is what they call an ECG here] wotsits stuck on me - seemed to know that these were Good People and not going to hurt me.

But now I have to stay up for who knows how long for another doctor who will, hopefully, give me some Prednisone and a 'scrip for more. Or maybe just another letter for my GP who will not be here again until early Thursday morning.

And yet another argument where I say I Am Not Going To Go To The Hospital.

I do not know - a week of agony from this UTI - one good night after the first of the sulfonamide pills - a good day after the morning one and then Bang - major allergic attack.

What is the point in going to see my GP, taking all these papers that first the doctor and then the paramedics wrote out and left, when it is not even in my notes that I have major allergies? Well very little was transferred when GPs hand-written notes were computerised so there is no record of my spinal injuries, no record of my rectal surgery, no record of my allergies - what is the point in going to see my GP when after all these years on the Moshav the previous GP [not our beloved Nina who had then retired] asked me why I was in a wheelchair?

Oh dear! Another sleepless night. Hope they get you sorted out soon Malka.

You be careful Malka & if they say hospital you go do you hear me,

Coming up to 1.40am and a phone call about ten or so minutes ago saying that a doctor might be here in another couple of hours. I am so exhausted and now the UTI has flared up again, and sorry Tina, but I will NOT go to the hospital so said do not bother with a doctor as I have to go to bed and try to get maybe a couple of hours sleep if I am lucky.

Got another telephone call from the emergency service saying a doctor will be in an hour. And that was at 3am when I had finally managed to get a bit of sleep. Told them I need sleep and I am not prepared to wait yet again.

With the weather as it is [we are a few days into a two-week major storm] there is no way I will be able to see my GP when she comes tomorrow 8-10am as neither Xanadu nor Tontoo can be used in the rain as if their electrics get wet it will blow the motors. Rain flooding everywhere and sewers cannot cope. Wheelie bins blowing down the road - trees down - and I am expecting the power to go off any minute.

But there is no point in seeing Olga as it was never transferred from the hand-written notes when they were computerised that I suffer from UTIs. Been luck in that not had a bad one for ages and the homeopathic stuff has sorted them. Not this time though which is why I wanted Resprim Forte and luckily she did issue a 'scrip without seeing me, but the pharmacy filled it with a different brand.

So the stuff I got had same active ingredients [Sulfamethoxazole and Trimethroprim] but was a different manufacturer [Rekah and not Teva] and I think one of the inactive ingredients caused the major allergic reaction as I never had a reaction to Resprim Forte and this one probably has different inactive ingredients.

UTI calmed down a bit - face still swollen but lips just puffy.

I am just so fed up with my stupid body.