October has been a busy month thus far, and we’re only in the second week!
Many medical appointments are taking up a lots of time, as our doctors are located in St. George, Utah, which is an hour up Interstate 15 from our home. It’s a beautiful drive, up the Virgin River Gorge, but each appointment is a minimum three-hour commitment.
Last week, I had cataract surgery on my right eye in St. George. It went well. Then, I had to return the next day for a post-op check. But, before we saw the eye surgeon, Charlie had an appointment with her OB-GYN doc. About four hours after my visit with the eye doc, Charlie had an appointment with a gastroesophageal surgeon re: her issues with a hiatal hernia and GIRD.
It was one LONG day.
However, it was a GOOD day, as well, because Charlie got some hope about resolving her stomach problems. The surgeon was very thorough and went over the potential surgical options, identified all of the benefits and risks, and answered every question we asked. Going into the consultation, we were probably 80 to 20 percent against surgery, but Dr. Watson’s confidence gave us hope. We’re now probably 80-20 in favor.
This coming week will, again, involve a lot of traveling to-from St. George. Charlie has a pre-surgery exam via nasal-esophageal tube on Monday (at 7 in the morning, requiring us to leave home at 5 a.m.!). Then, on Tuesday, she has an Upper G.I. exam under fluoroscope. Then, on Wednesday, I have cataract surgery on my left eye. Then, on Thursday, I have my post-op follow-up with my eye surgeon .
(BTW, I can now, with only one eye fixed, see well enough to ditch all of my prescription glasses. For years, I have had three pairs: one for reading, one for watching TV, and one pair of prescription sunglasses for outdoor activities. I can hardly wait until they fix my left eye on Wednesday. It’s like being 15 again!)
We’re basically “on the bicycle” four days this coming week. Lots of driving up and down the beautiful Virgin River Gorge, which is very lush right now. At least that part of the ordeal will be pleasant.
I’ve been doing a lot of landscape repair to our property. The Summer was a hot one and quite a number of plants didn’t survive. I’ve replanted at least a dozen specimens in the soil and about a half-dozen in pots. We had a grub problem, evidently, as many of the root balls of failed plants showed evidence of the little root munchers. I’ve purchased a drip irrigation infuser which, when installed, will meter-out fertilizer and insecticide into the water that’s dripped into every plant. This should make the grub problem disappear and the fertilizer will give the plants a better chance to remain healthy year-round.
I have been walking around the neighborhood in the mornings with my good friend Mac. Six months ago, the guy was in great physical condition, hiking, biking, playing music, and generally enjoying life at age 70. Then, he developed chronic vertigo and general dizziness. His doctors have yet to figure out what is causing this. Mac is seriously depressed, while he sees various specialists to determine what might be going on in his head. He’s now seeing some EENT docs in Las Vegas and they are running a bunch of tests on him. Hopefully, they will stumble onto the cause. Let’s hope that it is fixable because, as Mac says, he “can’t live like this”.
A bad part of Mac’s ordeal is that he needs to do his own “bicycling” up and down Interstate 15 to his specialists’ offices, which are 90 minutes away in Las Vegas. With his condition, he can’t drive, so his wife is having to act as chauffeur, making numerous 3-hour round trips while her husband’s head is spinning. If you’ve ever suffered from vertigo, you know what a nightmare Mac is going through.
Our remoteness is a problem when we are ill, for sure. However, it is a very wonderful time of year right now in the desert, with daytime highs in the 80’s. Typically, October and November (and March and April) are splendid, weatherwise; it’s a time when we get a lot of use out of our backyard pergola and barbeque, and the dogs get to enjoy their wading pool.
Hopefully, by the time we get to the holiday season, Charlie and Mac will have received the medical help that they yearn for and we can all go back to carefree living.