A Plea for all Doctors out There… Subtitled: A Rant for Antibiotics

There are many other important things I could write about right now, but honestly, those things would make me cry, and I am desperately attempting to avoid all crying at the moment. This is due, in large part, to the nasty sinus infection I’ve been fighting for months now. I promise that I’m going to try to keep this from going the route of TMI.

And yes, months. This is why I’m now appealing to all doctors of the United States. But first, a little bit of background is needed.

I’ve told you that Ant has supernumerary teeth. In fact, I realize now that I need to give you an update on his supernumerary teeth, but today we’re going to talk about the cause of his supernumerary teeth—me. I also have supernumerary teeth. Except my extra teeth are in the back of my mouth, and not partying in the front of my mouth, preventing my top central incisors from appearing. Which one has, by the way. Again, more on that at another time. Just know that it completely plays into the same storyline here of my not being an idiot, and knowing my children (and their health) better than most people in the world.

I have extra wisdom teeth. A lot of them. Or, I did, before I had a lot of them yanked. Extra teeth belong in the back, you know. It’s as God intended.

Also, I come from a family of sharks. Damn, I’m way off topic now.

Having extra wisdom teeth can be a problem, and that’s because having two wisdom teeth in the upper right side of your mouth can really screw with the sinus cavity on that side of your face. In essence, those extra teeth created massive problems with my sinus cavity. Which means that when I get sick, I’m likely to get a sinus infection because my sinus cavity has extra room on a downhill slant to hold on to the nastiness that comes with a cold, and let it fester.

Also, another thing a wonky sinus cavity does is allow you to sound like a dying cow when you attempt to blow your nose on the right side. You know you’re in my inner circle if I deign to blow my nose in your presence. I’m not joking around here. I’ve perfected the art of refusing to blow my nose in public. In fact, this used to irritate the Nana to no end—until one day, as a teenager (she thought this was some weird anxiety I developed in my adolescence, and would chastise me for sniffing) I completely embarrassed her in public by blowing my nose—just to prove a point.

I’m off topic again. We’re going to blame the sinus infection. I’m running low on oxygen here.

To sum up, if I get a cold, I then get a sinus infection. I’m VERY familiar with the sinus infection. I’m VERY, VERY familiar with what happens if I can’t get some antibiotics to get rid of said sinus infection. Also? I’m not a damn idiot, and I don’t pop into the doctor’s office asking for drugs all the time. In fact, I probably should go to the doctor more often. I tend to forget to get my checkups.

Which is why I am taking my case to all the doctors in the nation, and telling you, “Please, please listen to your patients when they tell you there’s something wonky with their sinus cavity, they always get raging sinus infections, it will not go away on its own, and they’d prefer the Z-Pac, thank you very much!”

Yes, I understand antibiotics are over-prescribed. Yes, I understand all about super-bugs and herd immunity and all that. I also know that drugs won’t help the viral infection going around town, but I DON’T HAVE THAT THING ANY LONGER—I HAD THAT BACK IN OCTOBER AND I STILL HAVE THE DAMN SINUS INFECTION.

I had the viral thing back during the first weekend in October. Because I’m an overachiever who likes to get things first. You all may be getting it now, but I had it months ago. It cleared up in a week, and then I was fine for a couple of weeks, and then the low grade fever and the painful tingling in my sinus cavity started, and the next thing I knew, the entire right side of my head felt as if it would burst into flames at any moment.

I went to the doctor. They told me that it wasn’t that bad, and sinus infections will clear themselves up in a week or so.

I’m not even going to start on how awful it is for someone to tell you to suffer for the next week to ten days because medicine is over-prescribed in this country. Plus, it’s not like I have anything to do in my life, right? Nah- I have plenty of time to lay on the couch waiting for the pain to subside and for me to start breathing again.

A week and a half later, the place where my wisdom teeth once were abscessed. This occurs every damn time a sinus infection is left unchecked. Whereas my doctor, my son’s pediatrician, and urgent care would not give me (or my son) antibiotics for the sinus infection we’re fighting , the dentist will. So I walked in, asked for my shot (which hurts like a bitch, by the way—thanks doctors) and walked out a happy camper. I thought this would be over soon.

It took another two weeks or so for the pain and infection to finally clear up.

And then the grossest thing in the world ejected itself from my sinus cavity (and that’s all I’m going to say about that) and I thought it was finally over. If you’re keeping track, this means we were heading into Thanksgiving.

Then, I had to take Ant back to the pediatrician for a follow up, because after taking him in for the nasty sinus infection in October (which was so bad the school sent him home, even with a doctor’s note that he was fine, it was just a little sinus infection—yeah, nothing like more time off work in order to keep the rates of prescribed antibiotics down), they noticed the left tonsil was super-swollen, and they wanted to make sure it went down after the sinus infection ran its course.

It had not gone down. Because he’s still sniffly. And probably STILL has the sinus infection.

They wanted to send him to an ENT and have him scoped, and wondered if he had a cyst in his throat, and were asking me pointed questions about “serious childhood illnesses and disorders” in high pitched, chipper voices (as if he’s a dog, and not a nine year old boy, who knows your chipper voice doesn’t detract from the serious nature of your questioning), and I took the opportunity to point out that some ANTIBIOTICS MIGHT HELP THE INFECTION IN HIS TONSIL, and that I would prefer to go that route before paying for specialist and outpatient procedures, and…

That was not taken into consideration. Apparently multiple trips to specialists are okay. Sedating my child for procedures is fine. But, antibiotics are the devil’s work. The specialist was supposed to call me to set up the appointment the following week. That was two weeks ago, by the way.

This post is getting really long…

J and I decided that if worst came to worst, when we went back to my hometown, we’d visit my lifelong doctor and ask about the wonky tonsil and get some antibiotics for Ant if needed, and see what we could do about getting antibiotics with a phone call for all of us in the future, because the old-time country doctors in my hometown understand that I am not an idiot, and can recognize the symptoms of a raging sinus infection.

And that’s when my sinus infection came back. Again. Granted, I knew it’d never truly gone away, but I thought it was just making a slow exit. Now, I’m right back to where I was before I exorcized a demon from my right sinus cavity. And there’s no freaking hope of antibiotics in this mid-sized town with large medical centers and a university hospital. I’ll have to wait until next weekend to make a four hour trip to my hometown in hopes of getting some relief.

Because here they are trained that antibiotics are over-prescribed. And that I’m an idiot who just wants to, oh, I don’t know, take herself into work sometime this semester.

So, please, doctors of the world: We know you are better trained in health care. We know you have more years of schooling. We know you see more than we do. We get that. But, me? I DO KNOW MY BODY BETTER THAN YOU. I’ve been living with it all my life, after all. And if I come in and ask you for help (for myself or for my child) take me seriously, and don’t blow me off. Don’t tell me to waste two weeks of my life. Don’t tell me it seems worse than it is. And start prescribing some damn antibiotics!