Day 8 of the WEGO Health ‘National Health Blog Post Month’
“The best doctor’s appointment”Although I am pretty sure this prompt is intended to describe a hypothetical Doctors visit, I have a real world experience that was *that* good that I can use it instead.
My favorite Diabetic, my Wife, that has one of the many co-morbidity's (related health issues) that diabetes brings...with a twist. She was actually diagnosed with Neuropathy (nerve disease) in her feet, BEFORE she was diagnosed with diabetes.
I will not go into the details, however, in a nutshell this nerve damage can not only cause numbness, but also a very painful situation that she describes as "A little stabbing man in my feet". Now I know it sounds funky, but along with this pain & numbness she also get's Ulcers (wounds) in one foot in particular. It has gotten so bad that at one point a couple years ago, when we had NO coverage and everything was out of pocket ($$$), she came *THAT* close to having her entire left foot amputated.
The main problem is that like diabetes, these Ulcers are not curable...yet. Even though we know that this one particular part of her foot has a cycle of about every four months. Until very recently, we never had all the resources & tools to effectively battle the situation in the best, and timely manner.
Our insurance offers us two very effective tools that we have not had in years. First being the opportunity to have a Podiatrist to see, and secondly transportation to and from any visit. Although we have to follow the 'chain of command' which means first seeing her GP, getting a 'stat' referral & authorization to see the Podiatrist, getting an appointment (Tuesday's only), then arranging transportation.
On our most recent visit, mainly because this Ulcer episode concerned us, we first learned it was NOT anywhere close to being as serious as we thought. Actually, I found out after the visit that both my Wife and I really thought we were going to end up at the Hospital. Instead, the Podiatrist not only assured us that it looked fine.
Now we have to keep things in context here. "Fine" didn't mean there was not an issue. There was still a little open wound, ALL her lab work related to white blood cell counts were elevated, so there were still antibiotics she is taking. Infection & antibiotics affect Blood Glucose Levels so it becomes a multiple battlefront situation. Then something happened that was AMAZING...
The Doctor asked the NP to get another stool from another room for me. He then put the stool right next to him and told me to sit there. I was then given gloves and some very funky glasses with ultra high magnification. Doctor M then said "Watch what I do, how I do it, and listen VERY closely as you watch what I am about to do, because when we are done you will know EXACTLY what to do, and be able to do it at home.
What happens is over time, the foot naturally grows callous material especially in the one spot on the ball of the foot, under the big toe...kinda. When the callous becomes larger the body try's to fight this by pushing the callous out. Underneath the callous not visible to the eye initially is a little wound, so when the callous material is removed (by cutting it away), one can then take care of what remains of wound by covering and dressing it daily, until; eventually closes.
We left feeling ever so empowered and educated like never before. With the proper [preventive] maintenance & care, we not only can minimize what happens, but avoid the infection part and Doctor visit we usually have to go through.
So take *THAT* diabetes, we can now eliminate most all of the associated issues we normally have to face. The even better part...I can hopefully now pass along this bit of knowledge, and hopefully help others do the same. Even if that means I also now become an amateur Podiatrist...
