In the movie Shakespeare in Love the Philip Henslowe character has a line which is invoked several times to explain how incredibly bad situations always turn out for the best when it comes to theatrical performance: “It’s a mystery.”
I’m hoping I have something similar happen to my current situation.
Because that’s basically the word I got from my doctor this morning, about my ongoing chest/lung pain: it’s a mystery.
The CAT scan I had last week didn’t really turn up anything. Oh, I have a small spot of calcification in one lobe of my lungs where the pneumonia had settled, but that’s not really sufficient to account for the pain and shortness of breath I’ve had. But there’s nothing else indicated from that scan.
Good long discussion and examination (who gets more than a quick 5 minute consult these days?) by my doctor didn’t really point up anything else. She’s having some blood work done, just to be thorough, but the area where I have been experiencing pain doesn’t really make sense for anything like liver function or heart problems (both of which looked normal on the CAT scan, anyway). About the only thing that makes sense is just ongoing soft-tissue damage, which is being slow to heal. I’m going on another course of Prednisone, which should help with that if it is the problem. But even that doesn’t really make sense, because it has gotten worse in recent weeks, rather than just slowly improving.
So. Treat symptoms. Try the Prednisone. Get on with life. Hope for the best and see how everything works out.
It’s a mystery.
Jim Downey
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Communion Of Dreams 
How about scar tissue or adhesions? I had terrible pain in my abdomen from adhesions. There is a homeopathic for them that I took that really helped. Have you thought about going to a homeopath or an acupuncturist? I got a ton of help from them after all my car accidents.
Comment by S.B. Rowland October 27, 2010 @ 11:07 amScar tissue or adhesions might answer for the pain, but if it were serious should show up on a CAT scan.
Sorry, I don’t do homeopathy or acupuncture.
Comment by James Downey October 27, 2010 @ 11:13 am[…] under: Alzheimer's, Health, Science, movies Got a nice note from an old friend, chiding me for my comment in my post yesterday. (It wasn’t from the author of the comment I was responding to.) My […]
Pingback by “Life is pain, Highness!”* « Communion Of Dreams October 28, 2010 @ 10:48 am[…] an aside: I think that the Prednisone is helping. Now I just have to resist the urge to try and make up for all the stuff I *haven’t* been […]
Pingback by Habanero Happiness. « Communion Of Dreams October 30, 2010 @ 10:27 amI guess I see acupuncture and homeopathy as the human equivalent of typing on a keyboard to affect a computer. The correct sequence could definitely bring on change, and, any tradition based on subtlety might well have a lot going for it. Your book, by the way, is utterly awesome, and, from my experience, in a league of its own. From the ceramic bullets to the falling spaceship to the gel burl to the interface between the spirit and gravity, man, righteous!
Comment by Dan Foresman October 31, 2010 @ 1:22 pmDan – thanks for your comments and kind remarks – very much appreciated!
One fun little secret I don’t think I have ever mentioned before, but if you consider the tech I stipulate for the “falling spaceship” it is essentially the first step towards a Star Trek type of ‘warp engine’. Just a little hint . . . đŸ˜‰
Comment by James Downey October 31, 2010 @ 3:25 pm[…] a bureaucratic black hole somewhere. I’m still waiting to finalize the book contract. The residual pain from the pneumonia I had this summer is still there, and while I have decided to just get on with […]
Pingback by A “How To” manual? « Communion Of Dreams November 27, 2010 @ 3:10 pm[…] – wide awake. It’s the damned Prednisone (I’m taking another course of it for ongoing efforts with my rib/lung pain) – a common side effect, and one which seems to be hitting me harder […]
Pingback by I blame the Prednisone. « Communion Of Dreams February 13, 2011 @ 12:21 pm[…] Which is good – there’s nothing serious going on. But also somewhat frustrating, since it doesn’t show what is causing the lingering pain I feel in my ribs on my right chest. I see my doc next week to […]
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