The follies of Dr. McC's staff, part....Uh, well, who knows!

I'm home again from work... Sick again. With what, you ask? We "think" strep throat, but since I actually never got swabbed for it, it is just speculation and I am on antibotics for it.


Please, let me back up and explain from the beginning...


I finally got over the sinus/double ear infections as chronicaled in Whish, whish... Ring, Ring... Took a while for the Levaquin to work, but it finally did and I was able to get back to walking, work, life, etc.

But, then, things started to go down-hill on Tuesday night. While putting Christopher to sleep, I fell sound asleep too. So asleep, there was no way in hell I was going to take my make-up off (I did manage to at least pry out my contacts, though). Of course, falling asleep like that is not uncommon these days because of the Hashi's...so I didn't really think of it, until...

I woke up Wednesday morning with a rip-roaring, raging sore throat. Could barely swallow. I couldn't see anything red in there, the pain was too low in the throat at that point.

Despite the pain and burning, I went in to work. I pulled the full day, but as the day progressed, I started to get achy, tired, feverish. By the time I was at my mother's house to pick Chris up, I wanted to just get home. Once we did, I made grilled chicken, rice and peas for dinner - I was lucky to get some peas and rice down my throat.

To try to head things off at the pass, especially since I had just finished antibiotics for the last adventure, I called Dr. McC's office and left a message explaining what was happening. I barely slept the entire night - every time I fell asleep, I woke up with my throat screaming and burning.

Thursday morning, I called out sick from work. My MIL came to pick up Chris to take him around the corner so I could get some rest. But, despite my best efforts to not breathe on him, Chris was already getting a fever.

Crap.

By 10 o'clock in the morning, I still hadn't heard from Dr. McC - and, Chris puked up the milk he had a little while before. His temp was way up, and he didn't puke up his breakfast, so I think the fever was what caused the puking. My MIL gave him motrin since tylenol didn't so a damned thing, and he was beginning to perk up within a half hour.

I decided to call Dr. McC again to see what he wanted to do...had to leave another message. Then, the follies began...

One of the nurses called back around 11 o'clock and said that, since I left in my message that I could potentially be pregnant, Dr. McC didn't want to treat anything without knowing. He wanted me to go for a beta. So, I tried to clarify with the nurse that I was only 4 DPO and that a beta test would absolutely come back negative right now - I wanted to let him know that I could potentially be PG and to give me something safe so if it turned out I was, I would begin to feel better without hurting anything. She put me on hold and explained to him what I said - he still insisted on the beta.

So, off I went to his office, half in a coma, to pick up the lab slip. It was CLEAR from the nurse on the phone that he wanted me to have the beta done at the lab down the street to do the test - they could not do it in his office. When I got there, I asked the nurse that, since I was there anyway, did he want to take a look at my throat - by 1 o'clock, my tonsils and eppiglotis was swollen, huge and scarlet red, and white spots were forming all over the place. NASTY!!!! She said no, he wanted the beta done.

I walked out with the slip, went to the lab, had the worthless beta drawn, and went home. Hour by hour, my throat was getting worse - I couldn't eat anything other than sherbet, and drinking was very difficult. I figured out this morning that I managed to lose about 3-4 pounds from the illness-induced diet). More phone called passed between me and Dr. McC's office staff - I was miserable, Chris puked a second time at my MIL's house (after his afternoon nap, when his fever spiked again - but, he kept his lunch down, only barfing the milk he drank a little while before), and I just couldn't help my son while he was sick.

Finally, around 4:30, I spoke to Dr. McC's office again (have I mentioned yet that I still HAD NOT talked to Dr. McC myself yet???) and asked could they call my ob/gyn and ask him what he would suggest? I couldn't keep going on like this.

Hubby called me around 5:15 to ask if Dr. McC's office had called back - I said no. So, he called Dr. D personally to ask him what to do. A few minutes later, Hubby called back and said to watch for a Dr. K to be calling - Dr. K is the head of the practice that shares space with Dr. D. He also had been listed several times in New York Magazine's Top Doctors list:



He called me around 5:45 and asked me what was happening - what my throat looked like (nothing short of a horror movie at this point), if I had been swabbed for strep yet, etc. I explained to him that Dr. McC was insisting on this beta, which I KNEW would come back negative right now since it just wasn't long enough past ovulation to show anything. I was miserable and could barely keep my head up, between lack of sleep and lack of eating.

He then asked me, quite jokingly if my GP refused to treat women for anything for two weeks out of every month just because they could be PG?? He said that if this was strep - which it certainly sounded like to him, but of course we could never be sure since the swab was never done - that it was WAY more important to treat it now than to let it go waiting for a beta that would not show positive yet. So, he asked for my pharmact number and called in a Z-pac for me immediately.

What a nice guy - it is no wonder now that Dr. D moved into the same office space with him.

I started the antibiotic last night. After I took my first pills, Dr. McC's office called again to ask me where I had the beta done. Uh, WTF question was that???? The girl said Hubby had called in between sometime and had thought it was done in his office. I told her, no, I was told to go to the lab and have it drawn - and, while we were at it, I told her I KNEW it was going to come back negative because impantation doesn't occur for 5-7 DPO, and it takes a little time for the HCG to show. But, she replied with this is what Dr. McC wanted. So, I responded that she might as well tell Dr. McC not to worry about it now - I had the Z-pac and I had already started it.

I am feeling slightly better, but not by much yet.

Of course, I finally get a call from Dr. McC himself at 8:15 this morning... He said the beta was negative (SHOCKING!) and that he would call in an antibiotic. So, I asked him if he got a message from the nurse last night. He said no, why? I proceeded to tell him I already had the Z-pac from my ob/gyn's office and that I didn't need it.

Then, the irony of it all statement happened:

Dr. McC said, "That's good. I would have preferred your ob/gyn handle it."

Uh, WHY, oh WHY didn't you SAY THAT at 11 am yesterday??? I could have had the freakin antibiotic hours before!!

Oi! I am beginning to wonder if I should look for a different GP practice.

So, I am not pregnant...at 4 DPO. Anyone surprised about that?

ETA: My strep and Chris' was confirmed on Saturday. Chris' pediatrican swabbed my throat after saying "EWWWWW!" when he looked at it. Chris is on antibiotics now (his first time!). I just finished mine. Let's hope we ALL stay healthy!