Just got home from the ER

Apparently I have been bit by a spider of some sort. All I know is today I was at the computer and my arm was hurting when I touch the armrest. I looked, nothing there, just figured my arm was sensitive to the leather.

So we go to the grocery store and my arm hurts when it touches something, no biggie. Then I put my arm on the arm rest and man did that hurt! I looked and there is a huge area with an obvious bite of some sort. When we got home I put some cortisone with pain reliever on it hoping it would ease the pain. Nothing.

My dad came over for hamburgers for my 14 year old brothers birthday, he looked at it and everyone else spotted it across the room, in the dark!

He said it was a bite, probably a spider bite. It was warm, hard and big.

By this time it is pretty much hurting all the time and then my arm starts to tingle and kind of go numb around my fingers. So I try to pop it with a needle, nothing. So I move it and keep my fingers moving and it continues to hurt and tingle. By this time the pain is shooting up and down my arm. We decide to go on to the little incompetant emergency room here in town.

When we arrived, I got checked in. Then I sat and sat and sat and watched the nurse walk all around me. Finally the doctor walks over and takes a look. THen he asks what the scars are on my arms and legs. Then he asked if I was on any meds and listened to my breathing. Asked if I has asthma. He wanted to know what meds I was on and I told him. THen he asked how many children I had. I said, "None." He said the bite was probably pushing on a nerve and that was the reason for the tingly. Keep in mind I am still waiting in the waiting area. I have no idea why the number of children I had was significant, but he asked nonetheless. So, an hour later, the nurse finally comes and take my blood pressure and oxygen level. Then I wait and wait and wait and wait. Still in the waiting area in front of God an everybody. Finally the nurse decides to give me a shot. She takes me to a room, gives me a shot. Then tells me I have to wait 15 minutes. Over an hour later my husband goes to see what the problem is. He waits for at least 15 minutes while she is talking on the phone to a friend of hers. THen she says, "I have to go let someone go." Never asking what he needed.

She comes in and apologizes for it taking so long, then she asked if something was wrong. I had a water bottle tapping it and I had been wandering the halls. lol I said, "OH no. I'm OCD and can't be still." SHe tells me to clean the area with saline and soak it. Then my discharge papers say to do the same and cover it with gauze bandage.

Now, I am a little perturbed by this point. One- because I am restless. Two- because it is 1:00 in the morning and I have to teach Sunday school in a few hours. Three- because they gave me meds and never asked if I was allergic to any, which indeed I am! Four- I never saw the doctor except in the waiting room and for what that's worth I think it was a little inconsiderate to do all of this in the waiting area, which was more of a chair in front of the desk clerk with a screen so that people couldn't see coming in the door, but left you wide open to everyone else. Five- If they wanted me to clean and soak and wrap with gauze, why the heck didn't they do that while I was there. And Six- The did not take my discharge BP or Temp. lol (silly I know) And the big thing- I bought a water out of the machine and then I noticed on it it said NOT FOR INDIVIDUAL SALE. lol I don't know why but that just buttered my toast. Come to find out it was part of a twelve pack.

Anyway, so I am home now and my arm still hurts. All they gave me was a steroid shot with anti-inflammatory. The dr informed my dh that I would still have pain and swelling for several days.(This was told while I was in the abck and my husband was out front) Thanks for nothing! So, again I have no faith in our health system and they wonder why we want to close the hospital! I was there a few weeks ago for a broken finger, which they did nothing for, except some drugs and now my finger will not straighten all the way and hurts like the dickens. Ok, off my soap box.

Have a good night.