other-guy: My doctor was giving me an infusion to treat my rheumatoid arthritis, and I had a terrible reaction to it. Put my whole body in the worst pain ever and affected my muscles. I had a hard time moving my arms, and my legs became really weak, so it’s really hard for me to walk now. I can use my arms better, but sometimes it’s like my mind won’t connect with them. Lost about 20lbs of muscle in almost two weeks. Couldn’t work because of it, so that’s why I’m broke, and I just keep going to physical therapy to try and get better. It’s been a long battle.
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Jimmy: What’s the pain issue, exactly? What happens if you don’t take the pain meds?
OCT 13 other-guy: … If I don’t take them, then pain from the Parsonage-Turner syndrome it caused gets a lot worse. It’s basically a pain in my chest, almost armpit area, and down my arm into my hand that feels like road rash or like I burnt my whole arm. Pain from drug-induced neuropathy gets worse—it’s like pins and needles everywhere but way worse than when your foot falls asleep—and mostly a deep muscle pain becomes terrible in my legs and arms. It’s like when you’re working out and trying to get one more rep in, but the muscle hurts so bad like it’s gonna tear or pop.
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other-guy: …It’s hard to trust anything they say these days. The Dr. that told me to get the infusions literally dropped me as a patient after it happened. Prescribed something, told her it’s not working, and she said, “Well, it should be.” I told her it’s not, I need something else, and she dropped me, said I was too difficult, and canceled my appointments with her.
This seems, to me, like horrifically irresponsible behavior by the doctor, in violation of intellectually coherent standards of “informed consent”. Before the treatment there should have been a list of possible consequences like “5% of Parsonage-Turner syndrome” and if there wasn’t, then I think the Doctor should lose her medical license.
That’s what jumps out to me, reading this for the first time just now, before reading the next installment.
I have no thoughts in particular on the assigned homework, but I’m looking forward to reading the second half.
These bits jump out at me:
This seems, to me, like horrifically irresponsible behavior by the doctor, in violation of intellectually coherent standards of “informed consent”. Before the treatment there should have been a list of possible consequences like “5% of Parsonage-Turner syndrome” and if there wasn’t, then I think the Doctor should lose her medical license.
That’s what jumps out to me, reading this for the first time just now, before reading the next installment.
I have no thoughts in particular on the assigned homework, but I’m looking forward to reading the second half.