Boy, My Back Hurts

The last few days have been interesting to say the least. Monday I get to work (my first Monday in a few weeks) and I was looking forward to a great week. I love my job and enjoy going to work everyday - taking time off is hard for me. But I noticed something over the weekend - my back began to hurt and increase in pain each day. I didn't really think about it much because I deal with back pain on a regular basis (that's another story). But on Tuesday afternoon, after getting up from my afternoon nap, I could barely make across the room! Kathy, my lovely bride, said it was time to go to the doctor. So off to the "doc in the box" and have it checked out.

After running some tests and having an examination, the doctor said it looked to him like it was kidney stones. Are you kidding me!! I was not happy with that diagnosis. The doctor said that I would need a CT-scan to know definitively. They would call in the morning to the hospital to make my appointment. Until then, they prescribed some pain medication to help me sleep.

The next morning is when the adventure really begins. The doctor was having a hard time getting my appointment set because: 1) my insurance wasn't recognized by the hospital, and 2) it wasn't an emergency (from their point of view - to me, oh yeah!). Well, I finally got in and the scan showed no kidney stones. Well, Praise the Lord! That is what I wanted to hear, but my back pain was getting worse. The doctor finally suggested that it was a pinched nerve that came about from tubing last week. He prescribed even more powerful pain killer and sent me home.

The pain killers are definitely working but making me feel pretty groggy. I will be back to work in the morning and all is well. The process of getting pre-certified for the scan proves to me that the health industry needs to change. I was sitting at home all day waiting for my appointment while the insurance company and the hospital were holding things up. My concern is that if the government becomes more involved in this process that it will take longer and become worse.

We need to pray for those in the health industry, namely the doctors, nurses, techs, etc., who are caught in the middle. Thanks for those of you who have been praying for me over the last few days during The Morning Show prayer time and thanks to my co-workers (especially Kevin and Paul) who have pitched in to keep things running for my show and my other duties at WRAF