michele Posted June 15, 2007 Share Posted June 15, 2007 Sax, where's that old Cogger gone to ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted June 15, 2007 Share Posted June 15, 2007 Good, I'm glad that's over, then. Hope there are no reocurrances, Frank.As a matter of fact, I heard of someone who had a very similar head pain some years ago. He went to his doctor and had all the various tests without conclusive results. However, in his case, he still had the headache.The doctor was convinced it was all stress related and, knowing his patient was fairly well off, suggested he indulge himself with someting luxurious to help take his mind off things for a bit. Thinking this might be a good idea, and having to visit London from time to time, the patient decided to get himself a really good, lightweight, Saville Row suit for summer.The tailor measured and re-measured, discussed fabrics and cuts, linings and half linings etc and when all was settled said "Oh, just one last thing, Sir, which side do you dress" His customer answered, as was his habit, "Ah, one each side"."Oh dear", said the tailor, "I'd strongly advise agianst doing that Sir, it tends to cause the most terrible headaches". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derek500 Posted June 15, 2007 Share Posted June 15, 2007 caraprof - 2007-06-15 12:03 AMI don't know anything about tablets and things as I'm never normally ill but once when in France I didn't feel well and they gave me something called suppositories.I have to say that they were absolutely useless. I took three a day as prescribed and for all the good that they did I might as well have stuck them up my *rse.That reminds me of the lyrics of the Ivor Biggun track 'My Brother's got piles"The doctor gave him suppositories, but a cure it did not come, for all the good they did him, he might as well have stuck them up his bum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest caraprof Posted June 16, 2007 Share Posted June 16, 2007 As I said earlier I had an appointment with a top doc on Thursday evening who, despite my negative blood test said that the only logical cause of my headache is temporal arteritis. He reckoned that it very often does not show in a blood test.He fixed me up with a vascular surgeon who slotted me in at 8.00 a.m this morning and at 8.30 a.m. I was on the operating table having a slice taken out of an artery in my temple. It was only a local anaesthetic, nothing dramatic and the superb private hospital is only a couple of hundred yards from home.I will get the result of the biopsy on Tuesday and hope to go away on Wednesday after the stitches are removed. If it's not TA then I don't know where we go from here but we've decided that we probably won't go to Europe as planned but may just go to the south-west and bum around for a couple of weeks.The speed with which I've been dealt is brilliant but it will be a bit annoying if it's not been TA and just a really severe headache that's lasted for days as, so far, it's cost me about £1500 for appointments and the minor op this morning! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michele Posted June 16, 2007 Share Posted June 16, 2007 Frank, can you get gout in the head ? All these poss luncheons that you keep having I'm suprised you aint got gout :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michele Posted June 18, 2007 Share Posted June 18, 2007 Hows the head :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest caraprof Posted June 18, 2007 Share Posted June 18, 2007 michele - 2007-06-18 12:01 PM Hows the head :D Hell of a lot better actually. My biopsy result is in tomorrow but I'm beginning to think that it was all a huge headache, but as my doctor said, it would have been stupid to go away for three weeks if there was a chance of temporal arteritis.Anyway, come what may, we're on the ferry to Zeebrugge on Wednesday evening. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michele Posted June 18, 2007 Share Posted June 18, 2007 Why will TA limit the things that you can do in life ???like not going away confined to England ???sorry ignorance 8-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest caraprof Posted June 18, 2007 Share Posted June 18, 2007 Michele, thanks for asking but no, it's no big deal really. If it's untreated it affects the optic nerve and you can lose the sight in one eye and then the other eye may follow soon.But that of course is if you do nothing. If I am diagnosed with TA it will have no effect on my normal life. I shall have to take cortisone steroids for up to two years and my biggest worry will be weight gain. I really have to watch my weight as I'm one of those people who has a good appetite and a slowish metabolism. Steroids can make you gain weight I believe. However, yesterday my headache went away and I'm wondering if it's been one big false alarm and I've just had my first ever huge stress headache.I'll get the result tomorrow and if it's not TA I'll be delighted but also sad that having to get the diagnosis in a hurry so that I can go on holiday, will have cost me £1500 in medical fees! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted June 18, 2007 Share Posted June 18, 2007 FrankDon't know if you've found this, but it may be of interest/use if not: http://tinyurl.com/2jqp73 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest caraprof Posted June 18, 2007 Share Posted June 18, 2007 Brian Kirby - 2007-06-18 6:06 PM FrankDon't know if you've found this, but it may be of interest/use if not: http://tinyurl.com/2jqp73 Thanks Brian but I've already researched it. The wonders of the web.Six years ago my wife was diagnosed with a malignant melanoma (she's OK so far) and the doc said: "Don't go looking it up on the Internet."What's the first thing she did? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John H Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 Come on Frank, don't keep us in suspense! How did the biopsy go? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest caraprof Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 I don't know yet. On Saturday the surgeon told me that it will be today, but the path lab at the private hospital now says that they can't do this kind of histology and it has been sent to the local NHS hospital. Right hand and left not knowing what the other is doing!I'm waiting for a call from the doctor to see if he can get it for tomorrow. If he can't it's back to Plan B, which is me going on holiday tomorrow evening and taking a load of steroids with me. He will phone my cellphone and if I've got TA I start the treatment and if I haven't I throw away the pills!What a cock up! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davenewellhome Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 I hope you're going to ask for a partial refund Frank >:-) . D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John H Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 Frank, I don't want to make it any worse than it already is but if the NHS are involved, I think it will be at least a week before you get the results. I had a biopsy on New Years Eve 2002 and didn't get the results until the 8th January and that was in the same hospital. I hope i am wrong but as you have made plans to go away, Murphy's law says that it will take twice as long as it normally would. Good luck! John. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michele Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 No it won't Frank used BUPA and the man from delmonti he say yeah!!!! Its called pays your cash gets a service that Consultant will be on the blower straight away ...You'll see .... ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest caraprof Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 Quite right Michele. My consultant has just phoned me and apologised for the delay. He is going to phone me as soon as he gets the result and tell me how I can get the necessary pills in Germany, should I need them. As my headache has now gone he is coming round to the fact that I've just had a really severe headache and that it's not TA, but we can't be 100% sure of course until the result of the biopsy is in.I'm sorry to say that BUPA hasn't paid and it's little ole me who has had to shell out over £1500 for what may be a very expensive headache. I do not have private medical insurance, however..........Five years ago I thought that BUPA was becoming too expensive so I opted out. As an experiment I opened a second Internet savings account and each year put in the sort of money that BUPA would charge me. Currently I'm allowing £3000 p.a.In the last five years I've deposited £13000 in this account and with interest it's at about £14000. Even with all of this possibly wasted money on my suspected TA, I'm still £13000 better off!If I can get to 70 without any major problems, and my health is otherwise fine, I should have over £40K saved, which will pay for a lot of private treatment and of course for emergencies and cancer etc. it's the NHS anyway.The only drawback with self-insuring like this is that if you develop a problem fairly soon when you've only a smallish amount saved, you could have a problem. I am lucky in that I'm fairly well off and have loads of capital so it wouldn't have been a problem for me anyway.Nevertheless, I would strongly recommend that anyone else paying large sums for private health insurance should consider my scheme. Add up what you may pay over 20 years, add the interest and it's megabucks!And as I said, there's still the good old NHS to fall back on!Anyway, If I don't speak to anyone again it's because we're off tomorrow afternoon for three weeks. I think we'll do a nice tour of Germany.Thank you for your interest and I'll be back in July! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michele Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 Have wonderful time ;-) Hey remeber be safe out there! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davenewellhome Posted June 20, 2007 Share Posted June 20, 2007 Have fun Frank and don't spend it all in one place now. ;-) D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Jones Posted June 20, 2007 Share Posted June 20, 2007 Frank's "self-insurance" sounds good sense to me. Let's face it, insurance is one of the most profitable sectors of our economy, the thing EVERYONE wants to sell you, no matter what their real business is supposed to be (travel, electrical goods, vets, dentists). Which means that in total, insurers are taking in far more than they're paying out. Which means that for you & me, the opposite must be true - ordinary people pay out MUCH more every year in premiums than we get back in claims. So if we never bought ANY insurance for ANYTHING, but put all the money away together instead, we'd be well in credit over a lifetime. As Frank says, the only problem would be if your "claim" came before you'd saved up enough for it - but even borrowing it & paying interest would probably be cheaper. Tony Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest caraprof Posted June 20, 2007 Share Posted June 20, 2007 I never buy extended insurance on goods and with health there is always the fallback of the NHS, you you're still covered.I think that the main exception is your home because if that burned down it would be a huge part of most people's capital.Another good example is Warburtons' Bakers, a Bolton-based but national chain. They have thousands of vans but only insure them for the absolutely legal minimum third party cover. In effect they act as their own insurers and it saves them thousands apparently.Off at about 2.00 p.m. Can't wait! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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