Comment Re:Get Help Now, Maybe? (Score 1) 675
I absolutely agree that Patrick needs to get to a major medical center immediately. My father died 2 weeks ago from a nocardia (another species in the actinobacteria group) lung infection that was left undiagnosed for too long, really got raging in his system to the point of being blood-borne, eating little holes in his lungs, and severely depressing his immune system to the point where a secondary fungal infection put him over the edge. Patrick needs to see a good infectious disease doc, a pulmonologist, and a neurologist immediately.
Another lesson learned for me - that I also communicated to Patrick, and everyone ought to spend a moment thinking about - is this: When you've got something serious going on you can't worry about the doctor's schedule - you can't worry that you're going to bother them, or inconvenience them, etc.. (i.e. you can't wait until Friday for your appointment!!) You've got to be assertive, get your questions answered, and make sure you're getting the diagnostics and treatment that you need. You'll probably never get a 100% clear indication of when it's time to go for broke and check yourself into Mayo/Stanford/UCSF/etc, but there's no prize for politeness if you don't survive your illness.
Also, for anyone who finds themselves facing a situation like this, hopefully you've got a family member or close friend around who can take on this philosophy of assertiveness, in case you get to a point where you are impaired.
that's all from me, get well soon Patrick!
Another lesson learned for me - that I also communicated to Patrick, and everyone ought to spend a moment thinking about - is this: When you've got something serious going on you can't worry about the doctor's schedule - you can't worry that you're going to bother them, or inconvenience them, etc.. (i.e. you can't wait until Friday for your appointment!!) You've got to be assertive, get your questions answered, and make sure you're getting the diagnostics and treatment that you need. You'll probably never get a 100% clear indication of when it's time to go for broke and check yourself into Mayo/Stanford/UCSF/etc, but there's no prize for politeness if you don't survive your illness.
Also, for anyone who finds themselves facing a situation like this, hopefully you've got a family member or close friend around who can take on this philosophy of assertiveness, in case you get to a point where you are impaired.
that's all from me, get well soon Patrick!
