lapierrefamily.org

By now you’ve probably heard of the Oklahoma State Troopers pulling over an ambulance on the way to the hospital for “failure to yield”. If not, here’s the link.

This story makes me nuts! Are all of our police going crazy? Are they racist, or just unable to keep their tempers and egos in check? If I had any say at all every law enforcement officer involved in this would be in jail for 90 days solid. Period.

There is no excuse. Kids being killed by taze-happy cops, other cops walking after killing unarmed men. Law enforcement agencies need to do some serious re-training on their officer’s roles in society.

OK – I know there are some good cops. But they are getting almost as hard to find as a good lawyer or mechanic. Really, how much self control would it have taken to follow the ambulance to the hospital and take care of any charges there, in a civil manner, like a civil servant should do? What bothers me even more is that there were several so called “law-enforcement” officers that apparently all thought this was OK.

Saw this in the June 2009 Wired Magazine…  She signs my paycheck.

In this picture it looks to me like Brodie is already planning the pranks he’ll play on big sister, Reese, as soon as he is able! To my own sisters dismay, I always had a prank in the pipeline waiting for them. Jeremy followed suit, but I still think Melissa won the ultimate prank contest with the “German Class Project”. It’s all in love; just the way us boys are wired.

I’ve actually been thinking a lot about my big sister the last few weeks. She was so good to me growing up and I really was a handful. I suddenly feel like I need to tell her how much I love her.

Take care little Brodie… whatever you do, do it in love.

I’ve been on the ‘roids for nearly a month now and had improvement initially, then again when the dose was restarted at a higher level. As soon as the dose is tapered off (which is how they prescribe steroids I guess) the symptoms return.

The feeling I get is exactly like my heart is being squeezed a little bit. It’s a constant pressure, worse with exertion or when reclined. The most debilitating thing about it is not the pain, which I’m learning to live with; but the fact that my brain is constantly telling me something is wrong. That “feeling” is impossible to ignore, it’s affecting the way I think and work, and I’m not very sure how to deal with it. One day at a time I suppose.

I will be seeing a new rheumatologist soon, hopefully the cause will be determined and treatable.Does my face look fat?

BFG on roids

The first thing any tech, nurse or doctor assumes when they see me is, diabetic, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, etc… can’t blame them I guess, but it gets old. My cholesterol levels have always been normal, blood sugar always normal, blood pressure is typically 115/65. My ticker has a clean bill of health from every angle.

But for the last 8 weeks I had been getting progressively weaker and a pressure was building in my chest; about a 10 inch square area over my heart. The pressure was more intense when reclined. It was recognizably progressing a little each day, but did not get bad enough to cry uncle until Apr 23rd, when I visited the Emergency Room. They kept me for 24 hours, said my heart was perfect, I was fine, go home, go to work. Except it hurt worse by then than when I first went to the ER.

I stayed awake in pain all night that Friday night, called my doctor and made him work early on Saturday. He checked me back into the hospital, did a CT scan, and found swelling of the pericardium (lining around heart) and that I had Tietze Syndrome (inflammation of some costal cartilages). They put me on steroids and an IV anti-biotic for good measure. When I got out on Tuesday, I felt some better. Wednesday, a little more but still too weak to do much. I did work from home on Thursday and Friday but the steroids were making me agitated and crazy, unable to sleep. The doctor had prescribed Amitriptyline to aid in sleep, so by Friday night, I really needed it and tried one for the first time. (Amitriptyline is used for migraines, chronic pain, sleep aid, and anti-depressant, among other things)

About 5:30 AM Saturday morning I felt odd, not nauseous but definitely bordering on losing consciousness. I tried to get up (why?) and that was the last thing I remember clearly until I woke up with Wendy holding a cold towel around my throat yelling at me. OK, that’s not too far out of the ordinary. Then somehow I went from that point to waking up on the floor in the next room with my head using the treadmill as a pillow. (enter your treadmill joke anywhere… thanks) This whole episode lasted about 30 minutes apparently. The 3rd time I came to I had EMT’s hovering around me. I wondered what I was wearing.

1st Ambulance ride. Good news is no one was yelling “Clear!” Bad news is, 1st ambulance ride.

In the ER they drew blood and it was pitch black. (ewww.) Apparently I was dehydrated. That coupled with the Amitriptyline probably caused the vasovagal episodes.

Then it happened – just like on TV. I “presented” my symptoms again right in front off the doctor. I remember Wendy saying my lips were turning blue, and that’s about it until I woke up again, by which time they had me turned almost on my head.

So they filled my tanks up with water and actually let me leave that afternoon.

The next day (Sunday) and continuing through now, I’ve been getting better a little each day. About the same rate that the pain came in, it’s leaving. I just hope it keeps going this way.

What can cause all that? Heart trouble (ruled that out), recent surgery or trauma (none), viral infection (possible), rheumatoid arthritis (also possible).

If I could only get in to see Dr. House, I would be cured about 5 minutes before 9:00 PM on the same day.