Medical

Because I had a polyp last time, I was due for a followup at 5- instead of 10-years. Today that happened. no polyps, am now on a 10-year follow-up.. Most of what I wrote up in 2017 is identical, so I’ll just note the differences I want to be aware of next time I need to know. Nearing the 2/3rds mark. Preparation: I was pretty organized about the process, timing my grocery run to reduce the temptation of having fiber-foods around the house. The GoLytely (mineral salts that make you poop) documents were pretty thorough, but I found it helpful to write specific days in the margin. An interesting addendum to the instructions provided by the doctor was a note that anyone coming into the procedure high, stoned or drunk would be automatically rescheduled. I assume this has problematic interactions with the sedatives. It is interesting that it occurs frequently enough that they feel it worth mentioning. I intentionally tapered back on fiber a day earlier than necessary to make the purge phase easier. That worked, but midway, I was having serious fiber cravings. For breakfast and dinner, I stuck to Greek vanilla yogurt and jarred peaches leftover from my pandemic stash. Lunch was Boar’s Head chicken slices and provolone cheese. For dessert, rice pudding. Next time, I should ask to get the prescription stuff (GoLytley, ondansetron, simethicone) in earlier so I don’t stress out about it. Ice and Crystal Lite lemonade mix helped the solution go down. The IV added used a plastic hose, which meant I could bend my arm. I did not realize this until the doctor presented me with consent forms to sign and he mentioned this. The nasal oxygen cannula was placed underneath my K95 mask, which I kept on all the time. As per last time, i received 100 mcg of fentanyl(IVP) and 5 mg of versed (also IVP). The clinic notes had a nicely formatted table listing precision down to the second: This stuff works quickly! ...

You are standing in an open field west of a white house, with a boarded front door. There is a small mailbox here. It wasn’t that bad. (These are notes are mostly for myself for next time.) Beware of shark **T – 10+ days: Pick up The Kit. **The kit is a 4L container with GoLytley powder, a flavor packet, and a prescription ondansetron, an anti-nausea drug that I would cherish later. Out of pocket costs for this: $2.31. A nurse called to check that I’d done this, reviewed the information packet, and had arranged for someone to take me home on the day of the event. She proceeded to ask me a bunch of odd questions about pacemakers and other stuff that didn’t apply, then asked if I had any questions. I could hear a sigh when I responded in the affirmative… ...