That's What She Said

[Faye Fox]

When I blacked out the face and could see the tops of your glasses, the haircut appears youthful. It seems to work with what I can see of your face.

 

[Beth Gallagher]

I dropped my car off at Safelite at 10 this morning to get a new windshield. Now I'm sitting here dreading going to get it. I just KNOW something isn't going to be right and it's going to turn into a giant hassle. (I like to get my worrying done in advance.) Somehow these kinds of things never go smoothly for me.

 

[Beth Gallagher]

Oh, I forgot to say that in my blood work results, my potassium level has gone up. My PCP messaged me that she wants me to have that tested again next week to see if it's a fluke or something significant. Oh great, something new to worry about.

In the meantime, I have deleted potatoes, tomatoes, cantaloupe, spinach and bananas from my menu to see if that will help. I also read that Lisinopril can cause potassium increases so I'm going to see about reducing that, though my doctor doesn't want to mess with my blood pressure control.

It's always something.

 

[Mary Stetler]

Oh, I forgot to say that in my blood work results, my potassium level has gone up. My PCP messaged me that she wants me to have that tested again next week to see if it's a fluke or something significant. Oh great, something new to worry about.

In the meantime, I have deleted potatoes, tomatoes, cantaloupe, spinach and bananas from my menu to see if that will help. I also read that Lisinopril can cause potassium increases so I'm going to see about reducing that, though my doctor doesn't want to mess with my blood pressure control.

It's always something.

You might consider adding a bit of salt to your diet. Potassium and salt work in tandem like zinc and copper.

 

[Beth Gallagher]

You might consider adding a bit of salt to your diet. Potassium and salt work in tandem like zinc and copper.

I don't know what you mean by 'work in tandem' in this case...? Apparently my kidney function is deteriorating and not filtering out enough potassium. If the concentration gets too high it will affect my heart and I could have a heart attack.

Now I'm remembering that when my mother was on dialysis she couldn't have tomatoes, potatoes, bananas, etc. and now I realize why. She also couldn't have watermelon which was devastating to her; she absolutely loved watermelon. (I think the watermelon was because of all the water, not potassium.)

 

[Mary Stetler]

As I understand it, cells have potassium/sodium pumps The balance is important and the sodium may bring the potassium down through excretion. If I don't take in enough potassium I hold onto fluid too much. Slightly swollen feet. For me, it is not too much sodium but not enough potassium. We need a lot more potassium than people think. Sugar and high carbs (processed foods) is most damaging to my kidneys.
This does not apply to those in stage 4+ kidney disease. Different diet may be required.

 

[Don Alaska]

As I understand it, cells have potassium/sodium pumps The balance is important and the sodium may bring the potassium down through excretion. If I don't take in enough potassium I hold onto fluid too much. Slightly swollen feet. For me, it is not too much sodium but not enough potassium. We need a lot more potassium than people think. Sugar and high carbs (processed foods) is most damaging to my kidneys.
This does not apply to those in stage 4+ kidney disease. Different diet may be required.

It is why people on the older BP meds require potassium supplements.

 

[Mary Stetler]

It is why people on the older BP meds require potassium supplements.

I asked Dave's cardiology nurse practitioner if his bp meds were potassium sparing. She said yes but I am not sure I believe anything they say. They said he should not take potassium supplements any more but then he got some swelling in his legs and I told him to get back on them. Swelling went away. He had put himself on a low sodium diet already.
grrrrrrr...

 

[Beth Gallagher]

Good news from my husband's lung evaluation testing; no issues found. The pulmonary doctor asked him "why are you here?" and he replied that his PCP had set it up. Anyway, that was a relief.

I wrote about Adventures in Cataract Surgery in the Cataract thread. What a drag of a day. I have decided I'm not using that ophthalmologist though he is rated very high. I felt like an assembly line cog today and I don't like that feeling. I will probably have to go through the testing crap again at another doctor unless I can get them to give me all the test results, measurements, etc. I'm too tired to care right now.

During the marathon wait in the main waiting room, two women came out of the exam room area. One of them was screaming and ugly crying...rubbing at her eyes with a towel and howling "This huuuuuuurrrts!! I'm not going through that again. They can't make me." The other woman was vainly trying to calm her down. It was quite a scene I gotta say. I don't know what they did to her but she wasn't having it. I have never seen a grown person behaving like that and I'm sure the office staff was glad when they exited the building.

 

[Beth Gallagher]

More about my cataract frustration. The opthalmologist yesterday said I have "significant scaring" on my retina from the previous surgery and that even when he removes the cataract my results won't be great in that eye. When I got home I looked up "ERMs" which is a type of scaring/wrinkling in the retina. Apparently a retinal specialist can perform YET ANOTHER SURGERY to try to smooth that out, and when that is healed I can proceed with the cataract removal.

Soooo, today I called my original ophthalmologist to see what he thinks and naturally I had to make another appointment to go in so he can see how critical the issue is. Last I saw him in May, the scaring did not appear significant and he had cleared me for cataract surgery.

Maybe I should spend the money on some sunglasses and a cane. I'm discouraged.

 

[Hedi Mitchell]

More about my cataract frustration. The opthalmologist yesterday said I have "significant scaring" on my retina from the previous surgery and that even when he removes the cataract my results won't be great in that eye. When I got home I looked up "ERMs" which is a type of scaring/wrinkling in the retina. Apparently a retinal specialist can perform YET ANOTHER SURGERY to try to smooth that out, and when that is healed I can proceed with the cataract removal.

Soooo, today I called my original ophthalmologist to see what he thinks and naturally I had to make another appointment to go in so he can see how critical the issue is. Last I saw him in May, the scaring did not appear significant and he had cleared me for cataract surgery.

Maybe I should spend the money on some sunglasses and a cane. I'm discouraged.

Sometimes all this crap of trying to live better is a pain in the kester

 

[Beth Gallagher]

This is the saga of my Cataract consultation yesterday. I posted it in the Cataract thread and then decided it was too wordy, so I'm moving it here. Feel free to scroll on by this since it is a bitch-fest.

We drove across town to the ophthalmologist's office where we got to sit in a waiting room set up like a small auditorium. We were early, as we usually are. Hard plastic chairs in the "audience" configuration, and it was crowded. TV was dialed to "General Hospital" for your viewing pleasure.

Next to the receptionist window was a hopeful little sign that said "notify us if you have been waiting longer than 15 minutes." We sat there squirming for an hour and 20 minutes; they were very sorry. Just before my butt went numb they called me back to start the exam. But first... I had to sit in yet another "waiting area" for another 15 minutes.

Got dragged from one exam room to another, having at least 7 different types of tests, eye drops, and enough flashing lights to give me epilepsy. Of course my eyes were dilated which is its own form of torture. Then back to another Waiting Area for 25 minutes with a few other frazzled looking individuals, all of us squinting from the lights.

Then a doctor-in-training came in to take me to an exam room so she could explain cataracts to me like I was 5. She questioned me about my eye health history which I had advised them of in the 29-page Patient Information Forms that I had to fill out until I had writer's cramp. Do they even look at that stuff?? I must have signed, printed and dated my signature 80 times. Then she left, advising me that the doctor would be "right with me," but there were two patients ahead of me. Of course there were. I waited 48 minutes.

Finally His Majesty, Dr. Big Cheese arrived and came in guns blazing, barely letting me get a word in. He was obviously knowledgeable but would not meet my eyes which I really hate. He said my 'previous eye conditions' and scar tissue on my retina would disqualify me from any lens choice except the basic monovision. He also mentioned that I have "slight" astigmatism which I have never been told in my entire life. He said he would recommend toric lenses and blah, blah. Also put the push on for laser surgery which I had been considering until he made it seem like an upsell. He ended with the great news that all of this would probably NOT yield the "result I was hoping for." What the hell.

Then he hustled out and I was escorted to the scheduling/financial up-sell department where first I sat outside the office in another uncomfortable chair, listening to a woman barking loudly in Spanish for what seemed an eternity. Just before I hoofed it out of there, she opened the office door and escorted me in. She urged me to decide ASAP and get on the surgical schedule, then she revealed the prices. I asked for a copy of the pricing and told her I would be in touch, and I GTFO of there. FIVE hours. Five.

 

[Beth Gallagher]

Sometimes all this crap of trying to live better is a pain in the kester

I just want to SEE. Is that too much to ask??

 

[Mary Stetler]

More about my cataract frustration. The opthalmologist yesterday said I have "significant scaring" on my retina from the previous surgery and that even when he removes the cataract my results won't be great in that eye. When I got home I looked up "ERMs" which is a type of scaring/wrinkling in the retina. Apparently a retinal specialist can perform YET ANOTHER SURGERY to try to smooth that out, and when that is healed I can proceed with the cataract removal.

Soooo, today I called my original ophthalmologist to see what he thinks and naturally I had to make another appointment to go in so he can see how critical the issue is. Last I saw him in May, the scaring did not appear significant and he had cleared me for cataract surgery.

Maybe I should spend the money on some sunglasses and a cane. I'm discouraged.

Maybe the second doctor was just covering his butt in case he screws up. I never heard anyone cry from pain of examination in all the times we were doing whatever for hubbys several eye procedures.
Too bad we have to be our own advocates now.

 

[Beth Gallagher]

Maybe the second doctor was just covering his butt in case he screws up. I never heard anyone cry from pain of examination in all the times we were doing whatever for hubbys several eye procedures.
Too bad we have to be our own advocates now.

I have no idea what kind of procedure that woman had, but she was howling like a 4 year old. She was probably in her 60's.

I was just telling my husband that within 3 minutes the cataract surgeon told me that I wasn't a "candidate" for specialty lenses, then turned around and offered me the toric lens for astigmatism. I found that my astigmatism is .75 in my bad eye, so barely a thing.

The scheduling person told me that the toric lenses are only available if I upgrade to the laser package. So if I don't want laser surgery, no toric lenses. I felt like I was buying a new car, especially when I saw the pricing on the "packages." They hold people over a barrel and I find that disgusting. Apparently it's the business model for a lot of ophthalmology practices these days.

 

[Krystal Shay]

I have no idea what kind of procedure that woman had, but she was howling like a 4 year old. She was probably in her 60's.

I was just telling my husband that within 3 minutes the cataract surgeon told me that I wasn't a "candidate" for specialty lenses, then turned around and offered me the toric lens for astigmatism. I found that my astigmatism is .75 in my bad eye, so barely a thing.

The scheduling person told me that the toric lenses are only available if I upgrade to the laser package. So if I don't want laser surgery, no toric lenses. I felt like I was buying a new car, especially when I saw the pricing on the "packages." They hold people over a barrel and I find that disgusting. Apparently it's the business model for a lot of ophthalmology practices these days.

That is interesting that the doctor would not give you a Toric lenses unless you upgraded to laser surgery. I don’t recall anyone saying there was an extra fee if we “insisted” on having laser surgery done. My husband and I both had our surgery done with the knife. Our ophthalmologist told us that his Eye Institute likes to use the knife because the healing of the eye is much quicker. I found some that surgeons will tell you just the opposite. I think it boils down to what they want to do.

Our ophthalmologist said Laser surgery is like a burn. He said some people complain about their eyes burning or hurting too long after laser surgery, plus all those drops one has to put in the eyes for a month can burn a little and then people stop putting the drops in, which can cause an infection.

I don’t recall what my astigmatism number was. I believe he said if it was 0.7 that was border line for getting the toric lens. Mine was over that by a lot. I had a toric lenses in one eye and the other was regular lens.

My husband’s eyes was right on the border; 0.7. Our doctor told him sometimes dry eyes can cause the number to go up and since he was borderline, he told my husband to put artificial tears in eyes for one week, and then come back to be retested. (My husband rubs his eyes a lot, which can cause all sorts of problems to the eyes.). He didn’t want to put a lens in his eye that wasn’t needed. Sure enough, after a week, his number went down. He had the 2 regular lens put in.

It might have been all BS he was telling us, but we bought in to it. But he didn't balk at anything that we wanted to double check on. One thing we asked about was if we could get an Insurance predetermination. He said, sure!

 

[Don Alaska]

That is interesting that the doctor would not give you a Toric lenses unless you upgraded to laser surgery. I don’t recall anyone saying there was an extra fee if we “insisted” on having laser surgery done. My husband and I both had our surgery done with the knife. Our ophthalmologist told us that his Eye Institute likes to use the knife because the healing of the eye is much quicker. I found some that surgeons will tell you just the opposite. I think it boils down to what they want to do.

Our ophthalmologist said Laser surgery is like a burn. He said some people complain about their eyes burning or hurting too long after laser surgery, plus all those drops one has to put in the eyes for a month can burn a little and then people stop putting the drops in, which can cause an infection.

I don’t recall what my astigmatism number was. I believe he said if it was 0.7 that was border line for getting the toric lens. Mine was over that by a lot. I had a toric lenses in one eye and the other was regular lens.

My husband’s eyes was right on the border; 0.7. Our doctor told him sometimes dry eyes can cause the number to go up and since he was borderline, he told my husband to put artificial tears in eyes for one week, and then come back to be retested. (My husband rubs his eyes a lot, which can cause all sorts of problems to the eyes.). He didn’t want to put a lens in his eye that wasn’t needed. Sure enough, after a week, his number went down. He had the 2 regular lens put in.

It might have been all BS he was telling us, but we bought in to it. But he didn't balk at anything that we wanted to double check on. One thing we asked about was if we could get an Insurance predetermination. He said, sure!

I am interested in your experience with the knife cataract surgery. My ophthalmologist told me the same thing about laser, but my brother and his wife both had laser and did very well. One of our friends had the knife procedure and did not do well. She had to have it re-done with a laser. I just don't know what to believe.

 

[Krystal Shay]

I am interested in your experience with the knife cataract surgery. My ophthalmologist told me the same thing about laser, but my brother and his wife both had laser and did very well. One of our friends had the knife procedure and did not do well. She had to have it re-done with a laser. I just don't know what to believe.

Our knife surgery went well! But I think whether you have knife or laser, it depends largely on the skill of the surgeon. I asked several people in my area that I knew who had cataract surgery, who their ophthalmologist was. The one we used had the best praise from people.

After my surgery, my eye felt a little gritty for the rest of the day, like I had something in them, but that soon disappeared. I didn’t really have any pain. I had 3 bottles with different drops I had to put in my eye(s) after surgery. One of the bottles of drops burned a little in the beginning but that too, soon stopped.

My brother had laser surgery. He had one toric lens put in. His didn’t cost any more than my knife surgery. He doesn’t live near me so he had a different doctor. He said his went pretty well with no problems but he thought he should have been able to see better than he did. I think he was expecting to have his 20 year old eyes again.

 

[Don Alaska]

Our knife surgery went well! But I think whether you have knife or laser, it depends largely on the skill of the surgeon. I asked several people in my area that I knew who had cataract surgery, who their ophthalmologist was. The one we used had the best praise from people.

After my surgery, my eye felt a little gritty for the rest of the day, like I had something in them, but that soon disappeared. I didn’t really have any pain. I had 3 bottles with different drops I had to put in my eye(s) after surgery. One of the bottles of drops burned a little in the beginning but that too, soon stopped.

My brother had laser surgery. He had one toric lens put in. His didn’t cost any more than my knife surgery. He doesn’t live near me so he had a different doctor. He said his went pretty well with no problems but he thought he should have been able to see better than he did. I think he was expecting to have his 20 year old eyes again.

Thanks.

 

[Hedi Mitchell]

@Beth Gallagher - get a second opinion,maybe?