Got my laughs at the doc's office today. It's been a month since the doc took me off some of my high blood pressure medicine and I was back for a quick check. Since my last meeting, though, the doc retired. I met w/ a new nurse practitioner and she wanted to go through everything in my file. She started by asking how I was. I told her I was fine except for my recent falls. She asked what I was taking for the pain. I looked at her blankly. "Why would I take anything?" I asked. Her turn to look blank. "Well, I might be a wimp," she said, "but when I'm in pain I take something for it." It honestly hadn't occurred to me to take something for pain that I found tolerable. In fact, I found it rather a funny idea. She said I was up on all of my tests and that I soon wouldn't need to take anymore pap smears. "Studies show that after age 65 people don't usually have sex w/ strangers." she flippantly said. "Unless you live in Florida where they are having a large number of swinging oldies parties." A silly smile flitted across my face. I don't think she noticed. Finally, she handed me some forms. "This is a Living Will and can be used to authorize termination of life-sustaining procedures." OK, asking me if they could "pull the plug" when I was just there for a routine blood pressure checkup was too much. I started giggling. In fact I couldn't hold back the laughter. My new nurse practitioner was a little concerned but the more she asked why I was laughing the more I couldn't stop. So maybe it wasn't a great first meeting but at least she took me off another med.
Friday, December 12, 2014
Winterberries
Got my laughs at the doc's office today. It's been a month since the doc took me off some of my high blood pressure medicine and I was back for a quick check. Since my last meeting, though, the doc retired. I met w/ a new nurse practitioner and she wanted to go through everything in my file. She started by asking how I was. I told her I was fine except for my recent falls. She asked what I was taking for the pain. I looked at her blankly. "Why would I take anything?" I asked. Her turn to look blank. "Well, I might be a wimp," she said, "but when I'm in pain I take something for it." It honestly hadn't occurred to me to take something for pain that I found tolerable. In fact, I found it rather a funny idea. She said I was up on all of my tests and that I soon wouldn't need to take anymore pap smears. "Studies show that after age 65 people don't usually have sex w/ strangers." she flippantly said. "Unless you live in Florida where they are having a large number of swinging oldies parties." A silly smile flitted across my face. I don't think she noticed. Finally, she handed me some forms. "This is a Living Will and can be used to authorize termination of life-sustaining procedures." OK, asking me if they could "pull the plug" when I was just there for a routine blood pressure checkup was too much. I started giggling. In fact I couldn't hold back the laughter. My new nurse practitioner was a little concerned but the more she asked why I was laughing the more I couldn't stop. So maybe it wasn't a great first meeting but at least she took me off another med.
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2 comments:
Be careful of those falls,especially in the winter,as I would hate to have to come to WI in Jan/Feb to take care of you.JVM
So we have to have pap smears every year because we are prone to have sex with strangers? Another interesting tidbit of information, the medical world keeps from us.
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