Now, that sounds like something from Gilbert and Sullivan doesn’t it? Well, I wish I felt as jolly as those operettas often are, performed as they often are in village hall amateur productions by people with community spirit stamped right through them like a stick of Blackpool rock.
I’ve just had to cancel tickets for tonight’s live stream performance (Shakespeare’s King Lear), beamed from the National Theatre to our local independent cinema – something I’ve been looking forward to for weeks – because I don’t want to be a nuisance to the rest of the audience or get thrown out for causing a disruption.
Can you tell I’m feeling pretty sorry for myself? I’ve had a hacking cough for over a week. From where it came I have no idea but I lost my voice completely last Thursday, much to the delight of a few who shall remain nameless. As it wasn’t getting any better or showing any signs of going somewhere else, I capitulated and went to the doctor.
“Haven’t seen you for a long time,” he said.
Well no, you wouldn’t have because I’m never ill enough to bother you, I thought.
He started typing something into his laptop, half listened to my reason for being there in the first place, waved his stethoscope vaguely in my direction, typed a bit more and said, “there we are, a course of antibiotics. They might not work because I can’t tell if this is viral or bacterial.”
As you can imagine this didn’t inspire me with much confidence but as I was feeling too rough to argue (yes, I felt that bad), I thanked him for the three minutes of his time and on the way out paid the pharmacy a ludicrous amount for two items – the tablets and some foul tasting linctus in a brown glass bottle, looking suspiciously similar to the stuff I pour periodically down the drain to keep the water flowing.
Once home, I opened the packet of pills and the first thing I saw on the box was: “Please read the enclosed leaflet before taking this medicine.”
So I did.
There were reams of reasons not to take the blessed tablets – possible side effects, common side effects, less common side effects, other side effects; the list measured nineteen inches (I actually got the tape-measure out). I couldn’t believe it. I’d end up feeling worse than the reason for which I went to the doctor in the first place.
I swigged the linctus down and cast the tablets aside, determined to tough it out and not take them.
However, after yet another virtually sleepless night (cough, cough, cough), I reluctantly began taking the wretched things (two a day and make sure you finish the course even if you start to feel better), and waited for the first sign of a side effect. Happy to report nothing of significance yet and I’m beginning to feel a bit better. But I might have done anyway.
I don’t like the idea of antibiotics, doled out with not so much as a hope you feel better soon. Why don’t our doctors have an alternative plan or is it all about money? Yes, I suppose it is. How many patients can they get through their practice in a session, prescribe them pills from whichever pharmaceutical lab is the flavour of the month or the one which provides the most funding?
Or maybe I’m just being cynical. Hey! That’s good! I must be feeling better.
Normal service resumes next week when hopefully I’ll be fighting fit and definitely antibiotic free.
This is exactly the reason why I don’t go to the doctor, Jenny. Yes, I go for my yearly physicals and other testing, but when I get sick I stay home. I’ve learned a long time ago that doctors hand out antibiotics like candy. Whether you need it or not, you won’t leave his/her office without that prescription. It’s a racket!
I’m sorry you’ve been sick, but I’m happy to hear you’re feeling better.
You’re right Jill, racket is the word! I hardly ever go to the doctor – the last time was about three years ago when I cracked a bone in my ankle, so not an illness as such. I’m lucky usually that I don’t catch things doing the rounds and the odd cold I can deal with fairly quickly. This latest experience has reinforced for me that unless whatever is wrong is so awful it needs hospitalisation, home remedies are the best. Good old honey and lemon from now on, I say!
By the way – I love your new picture – very pretty 🙂
I am sorry you were sick. I got stuck on hearing about that liquid, similar to the one you pour down the drain.
The entire healthcare system is being revamped over here….I did not go to an infectious disease doctor, my doctor referred me to, because, my immune system tested a little low. I figured he was just trying to give his buddy some business.
No, no Hollis – that liquid is supposed to STOP you getting stuck 😉
It does sound as if our two systems are becoming very similar – although we do still have the NHS (National Health Service) which essentially is free until you nee a prescription – and these are handed out all too freely.
Hope you feel better soon – but do finish the course of antibiotics – otherwise the bacteria learn faster how to resist them. We must be very lucky with our family doctor. We always get at least 15 minutes with him, and he will not prescribe antibiotics unless he is sure the cause is bacterial and severe or persistent enough to warrant the use of antibiotics.
Unfortunately many doctors have patients that become quite aggressive in demanding they prescribe an AB feeling sure it should work.
Our doc hasn’t figured out how to turn on his computer yet – not sure if that’s good or bad. But we do get his attention. If we both go at the same time (to remember what he said) he looks at us and says “Oh, its my lucky day” very dead-pan!
Thanks – yes I know I must finish them and it makes sense in a way – I just wish I hadn’t started them in the first place! Oh well, we live and learn.
I certainly wasn’t aggressive 🙂
I’d say a doctor without a computer and time to actually talk to his/her patients is a rare thing – so hold on to yours!
Yes I think we will keep him 🙂 Just have to translate his scrawl to the pharmacist when taking in a prescription.
I thought illegible handwriting was a pre-requisite for a doctor … 🙂
I’m with you all the way – medication is doled out far too freely and the pharmaceutical rep waiting in the wings is i’m sure very relevant. Strangely i had a similar experience this week. I was vomiting for 2 days straight and still feeling sick on day 4 so was prescribed something. I, like you read the side-effects and threw them away. Needless to say, i have recovered anyway!
PS Hope you feel better soon!
Thanks Helena.
Sorry to hear that you felt poorly too but good on you for chucking your tablets away. I won’t know now whether I would be feeling better without them – and anyway, I still have a slight cough left, so they’re obviously not the wonder drug that they are purported to be.
Glad you’re feeling better 🙂
Well Jenny, you have hit upon something quite important. As a biologist I can tell you that if what ailed you was bacterial then taking the antibiotic was absolutely the correct thing to do. If, on the other hand, that which ailed you was viral, then taking the antibiotics would have been akin to feeding pigs prophylactic doses of antibiotics which, as we have all read about in the popular (and professional) news, may lead to the development of antibiotic resistant bacterial strains. So, your point is well taken. It would have been nice for the physician to have pursued his/her diagnosis concerning the causative agent of your ailment … but, as you point out, time is money and perhaps he/she just wasn’t willing to take the time to order the test which would have been required to make a more specific diagnosis. Simply providing the prescription was faster and easier. And, as it turned out, it had the desired effect and you are feeling better. Can we then conclude that yours was a bacterial infection – probably. So, all’s well that ends well. But the (larger) problem persists. What to do? I do not know. Glad you are feeling better though … and that’s what really counts. D
Quick question for Pairodox Farm… Do you have any idea what is involved in testing for viral vs. bacterial? I’m curious as to how long it takes for those kind of test results and the cost ? DM
You make a very good point DM. Plating for bacteria on selective media can be done fairly quickly and inexpensively in the appropriately appointed clinical laboratory. But a negative test for bacterial infection isn’t a positive one for the presence of a virus! Although I’m not a virologist I would guess that definitive testing for even common viruses can be fairly expensive, and time consuming, so unless something dangerously pathogenic is suspected, these tests aren’t usually ordered. I’m guessing that prescription of an antibiotic is the easiest and quickest thing for a physician (with limited time) to do.And, I suppose it is the expectation that nonpathogenic viruses wll ‘run their course.’ Having said that, ‘unnecessary’ prescriptions … including those delivered in confinement livestock operations … are what have lead to our current difficulty with antibiotic resistance bacterial strains. D
Thank you for your detailed reply – and I think the tablets may have had an effect because I do feel better than I did but still have a slight cough and no energy which is unusual for me, so I’m not 100% convinced.
I think I went for the quick fix option rather than seek out some of the old fashioned remedies which may have worked just as well … I do believe that honey and lemon is very soothing and I’ve been drinking pints of it. Now I need something to give me an energy boost and I’ll be tip-top 🙂
Rest … and what Joanna called ‘Tincture of Time.’ D
Sounds like wise advice. Where was Joanna when I needed her? 🙂
Terribly sorry you’re feeling blah. And how awful to miss “Lear” (so much one of my favorites that I have the story, if not all the speeches, memorized).
Funny aside–I went to a community production of King Lear once, a staged reading (they all had scripts). A friend of mine was playing Gloucester. Midway through rehearsals, the director decided to add movement and action to the staged reading, so people were walking around acting, with scripts in hand. The stupidest part was when Gloucester got his eyes plucked out, fell to the ground in pain and covered his eyes, gasping and crying, then picked up his script and read the rest of his speech….
Back to your dilemma. There’s a lot of confusing talk going on about antibiotics, and you’re right to be cynical. (Plus, you’re funny when you’re cynical, and laughter is the best medicine, they say).
Rod is right about the necessity of finishing a course of antibiotics once started. It doesn’t sound like your doc explained why he was ordering them, but he evidently had a reason. You could always ask him what the exact diagnosis is. Perhaps he heard the start of pneumonia when he listened to your chest (persistent cough, is, after all, not just “a common cold”).
Feel better soon! (I suggest garlic soup–helps boost immunity, plus it tastes good).
Feeling blah is exactly it, Tracy. I was gutted to miss the play – I studied King Lear minutely for A level (Several decades ago 😉 )and can still remember the quotes I used to illustrate points in my final essay!
I love your story about Gloucester ( Out vile jelly!) – that was the part of the play that made the boys in my class sit up and pay attention! I can picture your friend walking around reading his script “blind.” 🙂
Garlic soup – might try. I’m going down the herbal/natural route from now on. I’ve never been a fan of chemistry.
I go with natural until medical intervention is necessary (I’m not against it; it’s saved my husband’s life at least 5 times–seriously, he’d be dead without antibiotics and both of us would be dead without surgery).
But the natural stuff does help if applied early. Rest is the biggest boost, hydration is second. Hard to commit to, though, in our modern age. (And the garlic soup is pretty miraculous, too).
Tracy … the physician has a VERY good reason for telling you to complete the entire prescription. For, only completing a portion of the pills can lead to the development of antibiotic resistance among the bacteria which are causing the infection. And the rise of antibiotic resistance is something we have all been hearing about recently .. it’s a problem of growing and global significance. D
Oh Jenny, I do hope you feel better soon, so sorry to hear this. I’ve been battling sinus problems all week and not feeling great but like you,I’m hoping to ride it out without having to succumb to the dreaded antibiotics for precisely all the reasons you state here.
The doc wanted to put Claire on some meds (for anxiety) and when we both read all the horrible side-effects she agreed, thankfully, that they were not for her. They were just awful.
It’s shocking though the way these antibiotics are handed out like sweets. Still, hopefully in your case they are doing the job and your cough will clear up. Really sorry about missing King Lear though. The worse is when you get that awful tickle isn’t it and it won’t go away? Always seems to happen in a public place too…
The only thing I’ve found that works is cough medicine with codeine if it gets really bad at night, as it’s great for zonking you out so you can at least sleep!! Gosh, that sounds bad doesn’t it? But you know what I mean…anyway, get well soon my friend and I hope you can enjoy a nice up-coming weekend with lots of nice, hot chicken soup and TLC from your, hopefully sympathetic, family… 🙂 x
I would agree that the not sleeping because of coughing is one of the worst effects of a cold, Sherri.
What a shame to miss out on the King Lear, Jenny, but it was very considerate of you not to go.
Yes, I was a bit fed up about it as it’s the play I know inside out, but I’ve heard rumours that the run is to be extended, so all may not be lost.
I’m getting a lot of TLC Sherri, which has been lovely – they know I’m not malingering!
Sorry to hear you’ve got sinus probs – same as my husband – so he and I are probably sharing germs. Hope you win the battle with yours.
I’m feeling better now – just sluggish which is the bit I hate – no oomph – horrible. The linctus I had was the one with codeine in it which helped to a point – except last night I was annoyingly wide awake.
People coughing in the theatre is as bad as the sweet paper rustlers. I couldn’t subject everyone to that. Irritatingly, I spent yesterday evening watching not much on TV – and not a cough to be had.
Have a good Bank Holiday weekend, hopefully sinus free. A dose of sea air, perhaps?
I’m so glad to hear this Jenny, you deserve it. Thanks for your concern, I’m okay thanks, the sinuses are clearing a bit now thankfully…
I know just what you mean, it’s that sluggishness which is so awful isn’t it? I really hope your energy returns and soon…
Got Nicky home this weekend so looking forward to that. Not sure what our plans are yet, who knows, maybe some sea air could be had!! Thanks Jenny, you too…and get well!! 🙂
Feel better! 🙂 Yup, doctors can seem pretty careless at times – shouldn’t he have taken a swab? Takes too long to get the results? There’s an irony.
Thanks Lynette – yes, getting there slowly. I take it as an imposition to feel ill but I guess it happens to us all from time to time.
Swab? Good heavens, no time for that 🙂
I would have started singing “I’m called little buttercup…” except I, too, have lost my voice! Not completely, but if I overuse it, it goes from raspy to faint and icky-scratchy, so I try not to overuse. It’s made teaching writing groups difficult, but my husband doesn’t seem to mind all that much. 😉
My diagnosis is supposedly seasonal allergies and sinus drainage. The best thing that seems to help is warm brewed tea (just regular black tea, cooled enough to gargle) with a heaping teaspons of salt stirred in…then gargle away. It’s helping, but the cough is still determined.
Sorry you had to cancel. Good luck to us both.
Ah Marylin – hope you’re feeling better soon too – as you say, good luck to the both of us.
I’ve never heard of gargling with tea; warm salt water, yes. I might give the tea a try.
I thought mine was a seasonal thing to start with – our son suffers with hay fever – but when it wouldn’t go away I went to the doc. Should have stayed under the duvet 🙂
Sorry you are poorly Jenny. I think doctors are a bit hit and miss. You either get a good or a bad one. I am fortunate. Both of mine are superb. But even they have busy days when they will be very specific and quieter days when they will chat. Both always explain what I am taking and why. I don’t know what you pay for an NHS consultation these days but unless you are willing to queue for hours in HK most people who can afford it go private. That means £100 to walk through the door. So you go only when you really need to. I do think you are wonderful though not spoiling the performance with your cough – so many people would be selfish and go anyway. Top woman.
NHS consultations are free – hence the brevity of them. As I don’t usually need to see a doc I obviously don’t know the ropes. Even making an appointment is fraught with difficulty. You have to phone at 08.00 on the morning you’d like to see someone and if you are lucky, you get an “emergency” appointment. When I queried with the old dragon receptionist how all these other people managed to get in to the waiting room she told me that they were routine (regular) appointments. So it seems that unless you have some on-going condition which requires several follow up consultations, you take pot luck with being actually ill when you want to see a medic. I can’t work it out – but I know I won’t be bothering with them again unless I’m at death’s door – and then hopefully someone will get me straight to a hospital 🙂
I’m hoping there will be a repeat performance of the play – I’ve heard rumours – so all is not lost, 🙂
Ah, now I have scrolled through the comments I see that you do have the same abysmal service that I have. As I said, you need to know in advance when you are going to be ill so you can book on-line. No wonder so many people go straight to ER when they really only need to visit the GP.
Oh Jenny, I’m sorry you’re feeling under the weather, but what an entertaining post, great to read over my morning coffee (sorry, was that a low blow?) When I lived in Germany, our kids came down every year with a similar cough. It was religiously passed through the playgroup and went round and round and never seemed to clear up until summertime. My playgroup friends and I nicknamed it “The Dusseldorf Cough.” Your post made me think of it immediately. I hope you’re doing better, and grateful you made time to entertain your blog audience!
The only low blow Gwen is the fact that you’re enjoying a morning coffee. Whenever I am under the weather I can’t take coffee at all and usually it’s one of my favourite things 🙂
I love the Dussledorf Cough. Have you heard about English Cockney Rhyming Slang? This sounds just like it. Cockney is the name given to true East Londoners. They have their own rhymes for things and often speak using the rhymes so that the rest of us non Cockneys have no idea what they’re talking about. For example – Apples and pears = stairs; Bubble bath=laugh. A Cockney might say “I’m having a bubble” meaning that he’s having a laugh.
So now, instead of using the word cough, I’m just going to say that I’ve got a Dussel. 🙂
Funny, here in Jersey you pay quite handsomely to see the doc. This is hard on some of course, and some people try going to A&E, which is free. But it does mean that the docs generally take a bit of an interest and the service is good. Prescriptions are then free.
Anyway, well done on your sacrifice and I hope you’re OK by now Jenny.
Ah thanks Roy. That’s interesting that you pay for consulting. Ours is free but then we pay £8.05 for each prescription which seems mad as buying stuff over the counter from a good pharmacist can often cost a lot less.
Definitely feeling better with the weather we are having this weekend – hope it’s as lovely on Jersey 🙂
Jenny you have long weekend to recover.. Unfortunately I see many doctors.. cant say it helps.. if the first did not make that mistake it should have been a better story today… a good suggestion is avoid them!
I totally agree with your suggestion – I won’t be going back any time soon. A lovely long weekend – sunny weather – good for recuperation and of course, for painting au plein air. 🙂
Jenny, we start this week… I am suffering so will give it a short visit… mind you that is my best medicin at the moment… 🙂
Get well soon Jenny – but again, what hasn’t been funny for you to go through was funny for us to read! I don’t often go to the doctor, though I have noticed that they often seem now to want us to make the decision for them about the course of treatment – an effort to give patient choice I suppose, but when you’re ill you usually just want the expert to give you what you need!
Well it’s good to see the funny side – laughter is supposed to be the best medicine after all.
You’re so right – all you want when you feel rough is for someone to make you feel better (as soon as possible). I’ll remember this experience for future use and try and find sympathy and some natural remedies elsewhere!
Somewhere in the description of your visit it occurred to me that you could do with a more personable doctor! Yes, we all have our own particular situations but it seems to me that one thing we all need from the visit is straightforward information about what is the diagnosis and the basis on which it was obtained. While you are perfectly capable of reading the information sheet I also seems reasonable for the physician to outline the good and the bad for you too.
While we all should be careful to make informed decisions about when we should visit the doctor it seems that this was one of those times when it was a good idea, eh? Sounds (to this non-medical-person) like walking pneumonia, something that modern medical science is good with.
Too bad you missed Lear. Shakespeare is one of those cultural phenomena that’s always worth the effort. Each and every time I think about him I am struck by just how remarkable an individual he was 🙂 I say this having only recently discovered Cymbeline (I thought I’d seen them all) and still trying to figure out just what it’s all about! Lots of “cymbolism” in there LOL!
Yes, a little bit of the old-fashioned “bedside manner” from a doctor wouldn’t go amiss when you’re feeling poorly! Perhaps they’re not taught this at med school these days 🙂
It was a shame to miss Lear – I’m hoping to catch it later in the year now.
I know what you mean about Cymbeline. I saw a production at Stratford decades ago now (when I was a student) and had absolutely no idea what was going on. Far too confusing 🙂
Gosh, you are so lucky to get an appointment with your doctor! I had an infection before I was due to go to Cornwall, after three days of it not improving I phoned the surgery for an appointment to get the antibiotics I knew I needed.
Receptionist at 10 am. ” We have no appointments for this afternoon, call back at noon to see if there are any cancellations” At noon: “Sorry all appointments are taken, call tomorrow morning.” Me: “Can’t I make an appointment for tomorrow morning? I just need a prescription” Receptionist: “No you need to phone in the morning” After several minutes of my protesting she finally agreed that I could drop in a sample for the nurse to check and if there was signs of an infection, then I’d get my prescription. I did and I did and I did get my prescription, but oh my, what a farce! So now I need to know well in advance when I am going to be ill, because when I am it is impossible to get an appointment! And my GP gets paid £500 a year for me on his books? (Probably more than that now). And I have seen him, er… no, I haven’t seen him in the three years I have lived here. But I did get a prescription, eventually. Oh and one GOOD thing about turning 60 is that it was free!!
It’s shocking Jude, isn’t it? I had to struggle to get my appointment because we can only ring the surgery on the morning at around 8am and then it’s a lottery as to whether you can get through. When I asked the receptionist how all these other people managed to get appointments she told me they were all routine ones – so not for those who actually feel ill. I know my mother (obviously fairly elderly and also recovering from breast cancer) has the same issue where she is. You’d think there would be some sort of concession to the frail and elderly but it doesn’t seem so, does it?
I shall definitely stick with seeing a pharmacist in future – the one at our local Boots store is marvellous – she takes time to listen to what you are describing and spends time discussing and deciding what would be best. National Health Service – don’t know what’s happening to it – I’m sure it never used to be like this.
It’s the same with children! Which is madness because when they are ill it is usually immediate. OK there might be time-wasters, but then make a charge for them, as it is I can see many people opting for private insurance in the future. Here it is beginning to feel like the third world.
I’m not sure where my chest rot came from (in my house, however, we have a default policy of blaming my husband because not only is he in a classroom regularly, but he flies all over the damn planet, so I figure he’s the intersection for every disease vector). The one plus? I didn’t lose my voice but for several days sounded like a particularly sexy Marlene Dietrich. So there was that…
Sadly the husky bit bypassed me this time, the antibiotics didn’t work and I’m still barking. I’m just going to have to be patient 🙂