Another Visit

I haven't been able to shake my cold/bronchitis. It has been going on for over two months. I have been to the hospital ER twice. The first time, they took 2 chest x-rays, and said they looked clear. They gave me an antibiotic prescription, as well as one for a cough suppresant. I couldn't take the cough medicine, because it contained codeine, which makes me sick. After ten days of taking the pills, I was still coughing. Three weeks later, I went back to the ER. I couldn't breathe. They didin't take any x-rays, but they listened to my chest. They said it sounded okay, and gave me a prescription for an antibiotic and one for pain. I had severe pain in my side from coughing constantly. I didn't get the pain medicine filled, since it was expensive.

So, last Wednesday night, I was standing in a line to get a shower at the mission, and I felt like I was going to pass out. I had not been eating much and had lost some weight. I also had not been sleeping much due to coughing and pain in my sides. I left the shower line and got to an empty toilet stall, where I sprawled out on the floor. A nice guy from our group of homeless guys ran downstairs to tell the people to call an ambulance. I had never ridden in an ambulance before, so this was a new experience. They took me the two blocks to the hospital, after running a heart strip and taking some blood, as well as my vitals. We got to the ER, and the doctor and nurses could not have been nicer. They took blood; did an EKG; gave me an IV for fluids and one with antibiotics; gave me some food and a sports drink; did some other tests; gave me two chest x-rays; and let me rest there. After all of that, they determined I had pneumonia. They gave me some high-powered antibiotics that seem to be helping. I also got some strong pain meds that have helped, too. Despite the fact that I made abundantly clear to everyone there that I was homeless, they looked after me, as if I was rich. They didn't blow me off like the first two times. They even let me rest in the bed overnight, even though I couldn't sleep with all the noise in the ER. What a way to usher in a Thanksgiving! But, I thank God for letting me get there when there were competent people there, especially Nurse Latesha.