Went to the ER last night :(

Last night I was having horrible chest pains that radiated from my chest to my back and my arms, even my jaw was in pain.  I of course thought gee those are the signs of a heart attack!  I went to the ER, had an EKG, and an Xray and of course there was nothing wrong. They told me it was probably indigestion.  I told them they could shoot me in the head if that happened again because it felt like I was gonna die!  My EKG was beautiful they said and no pnuemonia ( I was like um, I don't even have a cold)  but OK.  They said OH You're YOUNG, you have nothing to worry about.  I was like um hello? I weigh like 340 pounds! How could I possibly have nothing to worry about????? Idiots.  SOOO glad I am getting rid of Kaiser!! Anyhoo, I am off work today to rest.  Just thought I would share my episode!! Take care! Angela

I had a similar incident once. At the time I was horribly embarrassed that I mistook indigestion (alhough it was plenty painful) for a heart attack. Now that I'm older and hopefully wiser, I know it's better to be safe than sorry. Don't let Kaiser shame you into ignoring possibly dangerous symptoms. When someone clueless doesn't get the impact on your health of being so big ... ARGH! Take care of yourself today. Count the days 'til you are off Kaiser!

Did they check your enzymes?  I had a similar experience back when I was living with the creep -- just turned out to be a lot of anxiety, but they wouldn't let me out of the ER until they got my bloodwork back.  They said that women have heart attacks differently from men, and a lot of times, the only way they can tell is by your heart enzymes.  You might want to call your doc and ask. Linda

Oh noooo, the stupid nurse couldn't even get an IV in me let alone draw blood.  I told her before she even started that I am very hard to get a needle into.  She didn't believe me until she left a huge bruise in my arm and then tried my hand.  She is so lucky I couldn't move cause I wanted to knock her lights out!

Oh Linda, that is SUCH good info!! 

 

That's crazy!  You could have a bladder infection, appendicitis, kidney stones, or a gallbladder attack just to name a few.  It sounds like you weren't even evaluated for ANY of these.  I strongly suggest you go back and get a much more thorough workup.  Just because they ruled out heart attack it sounds like they didn't rule IN what it might have been.  Don't give up.  Any of these conditions can cause further pain or complications which could result in delaying your surgery in the future. Good luck and fight like heck for the treatment you deserve... Lori

I agree Lori - for too long, the medical profession has gone by what is normal for MEN!!  They have to start thinking about what other things could cause this and run more extensive tests to determine risk.  I wasn't real happy having to remain in the ER for a long time, but I was glad they were making sure I wasn't having a heart attack. Linda

Very true!  That and I have personal issues with treatment provided by Kaiser to me and to family members.  They seem to be good at treating the typical broken arm and such but much more than that, well, I have had some very serious situations turn out not so good... As a side note the men thing is part of the reason I've allowed myself to be a lab rat at OHSU.  I'm loved by my endo because I am willing to participate in various pituitary and hormone related studies.  This is really significant because I am a woman of child bearing age -- apparently the most difficult group to get involved in these studies. I know that, when my niece was going through her chemo, my brother-in-law didn't want her to be a participant.  They were only wanting to take general stats on her (height, weight, treatment protocol and reaction mainly) and he balked.  My sister and I assured him this information was CRITICAL to any other children who may develop leukemia and that the information about her would be kept private.  I'm glad he relented (but, then again, I'm not so sure we left him a choice, lol). I do find it interesting that women experience a heart attack different than men.  I can't wait for the medical community to catch up to the other experiences we have that also differ and get the word out for preventative and emergency care -- regardless of whether or not it was Kaiser. Lori