Wednesday, April 11, 2012
LAST WEEK OF CLINIC!
I'm going out with a bang...I have 3 clinic sessions in a row! I would have had four if I had been able to come to clinic on Friday, but I have a wedding. Tuesday, I saw Jennifer K-Z and Marco. Jennifer was fun...I knew her from my credit union days. She was cake. Marco has been a class 3 in the past and the poor soul still has 10mm pockets between his 2nd and 3rd molars, but he presented with marked improvement over the last time I saw him and I was able to complete him in one appt, so I called him a class V. He was one of my favorite patients so I was glad I was able to finish my WSU clinic days with him as a patient. Today Im a CA at VA and tomorrow I come to VA for my last clinic day of the semester! Of ever! Oh my lan! I picked up my cap and gown yesterday...crazy! I am so excited to have reached this time and I'm grateful for the support of those who have encouraged me through the years. I am stronger and better because of you.
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
The Mind is Willing But the Body is Weak.
Well my body is screaming, "I'VE HAD IT!", right in my face. And it's manifesting in all sorts of fun ways.
Plague #1: Esophagitis. I woke up at 12:30am, a month or so ago, with a dull ache (much like the sensation of swallowing your food before you have a chance to chew it appropriately) that spread from my neck to my diaphragm and jetted to my left arm. Initially, I was concerned that it was a heart thing so I saw the school physician. After applying pressure at various areas along my chest her brow furrowed and she innocently asked, "Have you been experiencing any stress lately?" Haha! Huh, well, lets see. Is it possible that in some realm of my life, I have been experiencing some smidgeon of stress? (short pause, as if pondering...then KAPOWEE!) ANY STRESS??? That sweet doctor had posed the question in such a tone as if to suggest that I would have to rake my brain in order to come up with something. Of course I was experiencing some stress...I was in the thick of Boards!!! My body was drunk on stress! She put me on a medication commonly used for GERD, and the sensitivity went away within the week.
Plague #2: Random loss of appetite, with accompanying nausea. Throwing up for no reason. Not fun.
Plague #3: A "pretty" little boil made its debut on my side, right along my bra-line. A boil. Really? Who gets boils? Missionaries in Brazil, maybe?? I only mention its precise location because the constant abrasion makes it particularly bothersome. Ever-present, it serves as a reminder that my body desires to punish me for the stress I put it through during my Board exams. It's finally gotten to a stage where it isn't irritating to the touch, but it needs to be looked at I think because it's still erythemic, indurated, and raised (what's the cool word for raised?). As far as I know it's taken up permanent residence. Soon it will be receiving its own mail.
Plague #4: My retromolar pads started throbbing! (That sounds funny). I felt like I had popcorn kernels stuck between the pads and my second molars for weeks. Man, that hurt.
Plague #5: A flood of cankers (apthus ulcers, professor ;) ) perused my mouth for those same two weeks. Oddly enough, they only manifested on the right side. I can't figure that one out. I think plagues 4&5 were linked to my toothpaste moreso than my stress response. Has anyone else experienced a similar effect with Crest tp (the type with baking soda)?
Plague #6: An insatiable appetite for sugary beverages, particularly sodas. That's **no-no-number-one** in my world. What is my deal?
Plague #7: A painful little sore on the tip of my tongue that I can't stop playing with.
Plague #8: A cold sore in my right commisure. Why is all this crap happening on my right? I can't remember the last time I had a cold sore, but in all fairness, I assumed one would be coming at some point. I just didn't know when.
Plague #9: A full-on cold, with slight temperature increase. Not miserable enough to keep me from typing this painfully long blog entry (sorry readers) but enough to keep me from seeing my patients in clinic today, which I'm not happy about. I've met all my requirements, so I'm grateful I don't have to worry about that, but I'm really trying to build my speed. I had three people scheduled today and I strongly suspected my afternoon patient would have some thick deposits (I was secretly hoping for some fun quality time with my triplebend). Alas, it was not to be.
So in retrospect, these really can't be considered plagues. I know this. I also know that there are those among us that have experienced worse, and my heart goes out to those individuals. But this is my sob story, and I hope that it humors you to some end. I'm chuckling my way through it.
I have to say, though, my body and I have a pretty good relationship. It carried me through when I needed it most. I wasn't worrying about all this stuff while I took my exams (with the exception of plague #1). My body was kind enough to find a notch of time between boards and graduation to release the tension its been feeling. I guess I can't blame her. I put her through a lot of grief the last couple months. She deserves a rest. You did good body...You did good.
Plague #1: Esophagitis. I woke up at 12:30am, a month or so ago, with a dull ache (much like the sensation of swallowing your food before you have a chance to chew it appropriately) that spread from my neck to my diaphragm and jetted to my left arm. Initially, I was concerned that it was a heart thing so I saw the school physician. After applying pressure at various areas along my chest her brow furrowed and she innocently asked, "Have you been experiencing any stress lately?" Haha! Huh, well, lets see. Is it possible that in some realm of my life, I have been experiencing some smidgeon of stress? (short pause, as if pondering...then KAPOWEE!) ANY STRESS??? That sweet doctor had posed the question in such a tone as if to suggest that I would have to rake my brain in order to come up with something. Of course I was experiencing some stress...I was in the thick of Boards!!! My body was drunk on stress! She put me on a medication commonly used for GERD, and the sensitivity went away within the week.
Plague #2: Random loss of appetite, with accompanying nausea. Throwing up for no reason. Not fun.
Plague #3: A "pretty" little boil made its debut on my side, right along my bra-line. A boil. Really? Who gets boils? Missionaries in Brazil, maybe?? I only mention its precise location because the constant abrasion makes it particularly bothersome. Ever-present, it serves as a reminder that my body desires to punish me for the stress I put it through during my Board exams. It's finally gotten to a stage where it isn't irritating to the touch, but it needs to be looked at I think because it's still erythemic, indurated, and raised (what's the cool word for raised?). As far as I know it's taken up permanent residence. Soon it will be receiving its own mail.
Plague #4: My retromolar pads started throbbing! (That sounds funny). I felt like I had popcorn kernels stuck between the pads and my second molars for weeks. Man, that hurt.
Plague #5: A flood of cankers (apthus ulcers, professor ;) ) perused my mouth for those same two weeks. Oddly enough, they only manifested on the right side. I can't figure that one out. I think plagues 4&5 were linked to my toothpaste moreso than my stress response. Has anyone else experienced a similar effect with Crest tp (the type with baking soda)?
Plague #6: An insatiable appetite for sugary beverages, particularly sodas. That's **no-no-number-one** in my world. What is my deal?
Plague #7: A painful little sore on the tip of my tongue that I can't stop playing with.
Plague #8: A cold sore in my right commisure. Why is all this crap happening on my right? I can't remember the last time I had a cold sore, but in all fairness, I assumed one would be coming at some point. I just didn't know when.
Plague #9: A full-on cold, with slight temperature increase. Not miserable enough to keep me from typing this painfully long blog entry (sorry readers) but enough to keep me from seeing my patients in clinic today, which I'm not happy about. I've met all my requirements, so I'm grateful I don't have to worry about that, but I'm really trying to build my speed. I had three people scheduled today and I strongly suspected my afternoon patient would have some thick deposits (I was secretly hoping for some fun quality time with my triplebend). Alas, it was not to be.
So in retrospect, these really can't be considered plagues. I know this. I also know that there are those among us that have experienced worse, and my heart goes out to those individuals. But this is my sob story, and I hope that it humors you to some end. I'm chuckling my way through it.
I have to say, though, my body and I have a pretty good relationship. It carried me through when I needed it most. I wasn't worrying about all this stuff while I took my exams (with the exception of plague #1). My body was kind enough to find a notch of time between boards and graduation to release the tension its been feeling. I guess I can't blame her. I put her through a lot of grief the last couple months. She deserves a rest. You did good body...You did good.
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