It’s been a long freaking five weeks and a ‘charlie fox” of a day that started off well and went to hell in a heartbeat but Ursula told me some had wondered what happened to me. And given events I should tell the tale. A longer description of navigating five weeks of Trumpian efforts to deny me getting medical care from the VA (which I’ve had for decades) is too much for now. Perhaps this weekend. One of the issues I got hit with upon getting home was getting TV and more importantly internet restored. The former came back quickly but internet might not be fully functional until tomorrow. It keeps going a little weird but seems solid enough for the moment.
I didn’t include the pictures the EMTs took on my cell phone of my untreated head wounds but thought the 34 staples wasn’t too gruesome. (There were a bunch of stitches including several spots on my forehead too) No, I was not ‘assimilated into the Borg (Star Trek Next Generation fans will get the reference) despite what you see. Or maybe like Picard the Federation rescued me and turned me human again? The second picture is from earlier this week. One of my physical therapists looked down at me while I was sitting and said I had a heart shaped scar on my head now. Later I took a selfie of my head and due to some not yet gone bruising (another long explanation) I realized with some cropping and editing a circle drawn in the right spot was like those images we got of Pluto! “Pluto Head” some called me. Anyway here’s the short version:
On the evening of JUNE 24 I took a bad fall and couldn’t get up again. Fortunately my cell phone was in my pocket and after too long trying to both stop the bleeding and get up I called 911. Luckily my apt. door was unlocked. The EMTS refused multiple requests to take me to the Durham VA Hospital and delivered me to a civilian hospital where it turned out my head wound (although spectacular – described as scalping) was the least of my concerns. I spent two weeks confined to a hospital bed and was transferred to a rehab where I spent another three weeks. If you’re wondering the head wound didn’t hurt nearly as much that night or in days after as you might think. In a way I was lucky to get hurt because it turned out I had three other significant medical issues going on. Who knew ‘scalping’ yourself could turn out to be a good thing?
Today I finally got home. It’s a long story and since I’m up with the dawn patrol for a day at the VA tomorrow I won’t get into much more than that right now. The main thing is that over the weekend I can be back writing again. With only my cell phone for five weeks (Heather from PT loaned me a charger) I was unable to do anything on PZ. And with my new glasses sitting in my mailbox at home reading it was difficult.
The lesson folks is DON’T let your life get so small that you don’t have a person you can trust to give your apartment/home key to (if you don’t live with anyone) who can bring you things you need. Like a CPAP machine. The ones at both the hospital and rehab didn’t have masks that fit my face. (Never a problem when hospitalized at the VA!)Tonight for the first time in five weeks I’ll be able to get decent sleep! I will have more to say about that down the road. The entire saga is quite the tale and the reason Ursula thought I should tell the whole story is so much of what I went through is because the EMTs refused my request to be taken to the VA even though I wasn’t in life threatening medical distress.
THAT folks relates to Trump’s and the GOP’s longtime desire to kill off the VA Health Care System entirely. Wake Med tried like hell to ‘poach’ me from the VA including this afternoon when I got a call about a test revealing I’d developed a new bladder infection – one which had been cleared up before I was transferred to the rehab place with a catheter! They said my prescription for a ten day course of antibiotics had been sent to their ‘WakeMed Pharmacy’ AND there’s the issue of all the medications they changed. I was sent home with enough to get through the weekend! WTF?
I raised hell and supposedly I’ll at least be able to pick up the antibiotic at the VA Pharmacy tomorrow. Still an open question on medications after that. They don’t seem to want to communicate with my VA physician. So yes this IS a political issue I’ll be addressing.
For now I need to get some stuff organized for my trip to the VA tomorrow. From the bottom of my heart I say THANK YOU to those who reached out to Ursula to ask ‘what happened to Denis?’. That means more to me than I can express even if I had the writing gifts of Shakespeare. I’m assured my modem/internet will be properly functioning tomorrow so as I said I’ll be able to weigh in here again. It drove me nuts not being able to comment on so many goings on these past five weeks.
I still have a lot of recovery ahead both physical and with an issue with my living situation but I’m back.
Glad to see you back, Denis! I’m sorry for all the grief you’ve been through.
So glad you are back with us, Denis. You have been missed!
Welcome back, Denis! Can’t wait to read your outstanding commentary again.
Your update is MUCH appreciated. I was going to demand a proof of life from Ursula 🙂
Seriously, great to have you back. PZ is not the same without you.
Yes, Steve, I thought the same thing! Denis, send us a photo of you in hospital pjs with Mitch McConnell’s wife so we all know you are alive! Not funny! Good to have you back and please take care of yourself!
A vet caught in the crossfire of a turf war! As if your health issues were not enough to contend with. Murican health care at its best. Keep on getting well.
Punch on through, Denis!
Glad you are recovering Denis. We have all missed you and look forward to having you back. I know that I have missed your articles! Stay strong, we are all here for you!
I empathize, having been through a four-week hospitalization (for what the vascular surgeon said would be a one-day procedure) and then seven weeks of inpatient rehab after being bedridden at the hospital and recovering from blister-related wounds to my left foot. I spent my 80th and 81st birthdays hospitalized followed by inpatient rehab stints. Whoever called these “golden years” was lying through their teeth!
Glad to know you’re recovering. Godspeed!
An indictment of the modern Murican health system: a vet caught in crossfire, potentially every bit as dangerous as the crossfire you trained for but, this time, you are only a pawn in the game. I wish you good and improving health and victory in the Kafkaesque battle. Noli te bastardes carborundum.
Yes, getting old ain’t easy. I just went through rehab, 4 6-wks, a broken hip! Talk about painful, the whole procedure is traumatic. I was getting along nicely at 83. What a radical wake-up call for me. Like “they say, could’ve been worse” but I don’t know how. Plus the cost, even with INS, what a crock of s..t! Glad I’m still here, want to VOTE BLUE & bring this Nazi BS to an end. TY for all the reporting & info you share, much appreciated. Take care all, stay safe & take it easy, I had to slow down, a lot. Love & peace
Welcome home, Denis,. You’ve been missed. 🙂
We’re all delighted you’re with us again, Denis. I suggest you write your experiences with Trump’s version of VA in detail, and contact veterans’ organisations which are anti-Trump to see if you can get your story widely circulated. Start with the EMTS refusal to take you to a veteran’s hospital and carry on from there, naming names along the way. Your tale won’t be unique but your ability to narrate it will be. Looking forward to the return of your access to the world.
Welcome back Denis