I guess I need to first explain where it all began. Two weeks ago, I was coming down the stairs at work. It's a painfull labour to walk stairs in the first place but that's a whole different issue and a too longish story for right now.
My foot slipped on one of the steps and I started falling... My first instinct was to grab onto the gaurd rail...but I couldn't risk hurting my wrists, the next was that I would have to try and somehow stop my self falling by trying to run down the stairs...but yet again, my knees wouldn't hold out and I couldn't risk my feet tangling them selves up again causing even more of a problem.
Now falling is one thing...but falling when you are 6 foot something is a scary experience...it's a darned long way to fall and after feeling the momentum of my fall and imagining my self falling on my face, cracking ribs and braking shoulders, I had no alternative but to kinda jump the last two steps. Great idea in principle...if you are a healthy 29 yr old with healthy knees, healthy chest and healthy heart.
After the landing, funny enough almost cat-like, on my feet, I started doing damage assessment...
- Knees... Hurting like hell, yet able to flex... [STATUS - NORMAL]
- Hips... Hurting, slightly bruised feeling, yet able to flex... [STATUS - OK]
- Stomach... Hurting [STATUS - WHO CAN TELL]
(It's always hurting at some point or another)
- Heart... Bouncing like crazy [STATUS - UNDER CONTROL]
(The beta blockers should cushion my BP so it doesn't rise too high)
- Chest... Hurting across the top? Pain is fading fast tho [STATUS - NOT SURE]
So I started limping the rest of the way, not thinking much of the chest issue as it was fading very fast and I am no stranger to ribs moving around and causing chest pains...although this time, it wasn't my ribs that was hurting but more like my upper chest/shoulder area.
For half the week, I was O.K. ... or at least, that's what I thought. When you are used to certain ache's and pains as a daily routine (and 29 yrs of thinking it to be "normal" ... long story), it tends to be difficult to notice "subtle" changes. Thursday morning, however, I wake up with a nasty lump in my throught. The kind that you get when you swallow your pills the wrong way and which causes a "Stomach Ache" kind of feeling in your chest, as if someone is shoving theyre finger down your chest... (Kind of forcefull obstruction feeling)
Saturday, I muster up the courage and go see my GP. He looks at my throught...frowns and says it's "Raw", which is weird, as I don't have any noticeable throught pain. Then he proceeds to push on my chest and as I yelp with pain, and surprise, he says my name in a weird questioning kind of tone that seems to ask "What did you do!?".
Apparently, the fall had jarred my rib-cage, which sent my chest muscles into spasmism...the ache I had ignored... which has...
- Inflamed my costochondritus (Inflammation of my chest wall)
- Caused my asophagus to be out of whack as apperently your chest muscles has a lot to do with your swallowing mechanism (go figure) which in turn...
- Caused acid-reflux which in turn...
- Caused inflammation in my asophagus
Ok, so what does all this mean? Anti-inflamatories and 6 hrly doses of Gaviscon (Man, that stuff's nasty...if you spill it and leave it out to dry, it turns into friggen plastic! ) The biggest issue tho...I would have to swallow a camera if it doesn't clear up in a weeks time...
For the better part of this week, things had been going smoothly and the "lump" had been slowly "dissolving"...then, on Wednesday night, I wake up with the stomach ache of the century, with aching shoulder and elbow and hand and what-not.
I stumble out of bed and to the bathroom, knocking ornamental plates from the wall as I go, but to no avail...nothing... I stumble back to bed and curl into a ball of pain, untill it eventually subsides. The following morning the lump has returned with a vengeance...
Now, getting back to today...
This morning is one of those where everything just decided to ache... I have the lump in my throught, my chest ache's, my ribs ache, my shoulder-blades ache, my lower-back ache's, even my blasted heel's are tender and sore when I step on them. Granted, a lot of the symptoms is most likely due to the friggen roadworks on the highway slowing traffic down to a crawl...but still. With this throught lump and chest ache's all the other ache's and pains is feighting for attention and every small little one is popping it's head out.
It's now obvious that I am visiting my GP tomorrow... and facing the nasty prospect of having to swallow a camera if he's not happy with my progress.
I hate uncertainty...
I hate being unsure of what is wrong with my body...
I hate the fact that it might even be something silly or stupid that isn't even worth worrying about cus then I would end up looking like an annoying cry-baby...
I hate the fact that it might actually be something serious and that I might end up in hospital...
I wish these bodies of ours came with an instruction manual and a display with blinking lights indicating what is happening and where, like on a car's dash-board.
Oh Well, another day... the lump doesnt want to go away... and I am seeing my GP tomorrow... Oh happy day...
Drake, I am going to have to remember your description of what it feels like to have your esophagus out of place. I swear that has happened to me before, from how you describe it, just not for anywhere near as long as you are having to put up with it.
ReplyDeleteIf you do have to swallow a camera, I know you will do a great job of describing that too, though I hope for your sake that it won't prove necessary.