Friday, July 8, 2022

Friday, July 8, 2022

Tonight's picture was taken in July of 2004. Mattie was two years old and this was his second summer vacation by the ocean. By this point, Mattie seemed able to handle the sound of the waves and though he still wasn't interested in the sand, he was intrigued. Of course despite being on the sand during a hot day, the milk sippy cup was still in the tow! I never traveled anywhere without a small cooler bag, that contained ice packs and sippy cups of milk. The sippy cup was like Mattie's security blanket. 

Quote of the day: Knocked down but not beaten. Tired but not giving up. I saw the sun peek through the clouds. Sometimes all we need is a glimmer of hope. ~ Jon Gordon

Last night's MRI was a show! I got my mom to the hospital by 8:30pm, as requested by radiology. By the time I got to the hospital ALL the parking garage gates were closed for the night! They actually close at 8pm! REALLY??? I want to know where the hospital thinks patients should park if they come after hours? I was LESS than pleased. My mom was anxious enough, and trying to figure out where to park the car shouldn't have even been on our radar scope. 

I did park outside the hospital and checked my mom into the radiology department. We filled out the paperwork and then had to walk to the MRI area. When we got there, we were called back. I explained to the person that I wanted to go into the testing area with my mom to help her change into a hospital gown and get her situated on the MRI table. I even completed chaperone paperwork for the hospital. 

The tech let me back to help my mom undress, but he refused to allow me into the MRI room. You could see my mom was visually scared and she even told him she never had a MRI before and therefore was nervous. Regardless, he wouldn't let me back, despite the chaperone paper I had with me. My mom was in the MRI room for about 30 minutes. When she came out, I asked the tech for a copy of the scan on a disk. I need that for my mom's doctor appointment next week. The tech refused to give me a disk and said I had to go to the film library in the morning. Which means ANOTHER trip to the hospital. They don't care! They have no idea or appreciation for what I am balancing! 

While in the car trip home, I asked my mom if the tech used an intercom throughout the procedure to talk with her! She said NO! He did not talk with her at all. I have taken MANY MANY MRIs for my migraines. So I know how this works. Typically techs prepare you for each segment of the MRI and tell you the duration of each segment (and what to expect). Level setting expectations is important when stuck in a MRI tube. He did none of this. So today when I received a survey from the hospital, I detailed the tech's LESS than stellar patient centered attitude and behavior. Who knows if the hospital will even read this, but my goal is to spare other patients from such an experience. 

We drove home at 10:30pm and Route 66 was a parking lot. This was the last thing I wanted to face at that hour, after a VERY long day. Literally I could have walked home faster!

This evening, I got the MRI results back and thankfully I do not see anything seriously wrong with my mom's spine and neck. Of course we are still seeing the neurosurgeon on Wednesday, but I am ruling out one issue after the other until I get a handle on what is exactly wrong with my mom. I personally feel it is neurological issue and I reached out to my own neurologist tonight for some direction and a referral.