Doc said...

Forgive me if I seem a bit agitated, I am. Just spent the better part of two days in hospital, Early Friday my Heart had a bit of issue and I felt like I couldn't breathe. Oh yea, that was boat loads of fun, waking up and feeling like I am being suffocated. I could not get my breath and it felt like I had a car sitting on top of my chest. Of course I'm here by myself, out on the island through the winter.

Only a person who currently doesn't have health insurance (and just worked his ass almost to death to pay off ALL his debt) would wake up from that and go "umm, well if I don't start breathing normally in half an hour, I'll go to hospital! Ach, pretty dumb, eh?!? Well I didn't start breathing normally and I got really fucking scared so I drove the 25 minutes to town. can drive on and off it.

After 2 days of constant testing, poking and prodding, they sent me home with a hellacious headache from the Nitro they gave me to relieve the chest pressure and bring down the blood pressure.  They don't have a diagnosis but I will admit I felt better about going in. I have come too far to  die now, not when I have a choice today......

One of the Docs in the ER told me that is a huge problem with the health insurance mess, people choose to not spend the $$ or go in debt....and they die. Doc says they see it all the time where people suffer needlessly. That sucks....

I'll be honest, I'm not thrilled with the way this health care deal has been handled by the current administration but I sure wish we could find a reasonable way we all could have insurance. I worked for my last company for 24 years and lost my job. I self paid my own insurance for 3 years at $325 a month. So I'm not some guy who hasn't worked or tried to handle my own health care yet I find myself w/out insurance for awhile...it's hard.

I'm not trying to get in the middle of this health care chaos, it's very emotional for a lot of people...I just wanted to share my story of someone who is w/out insurance at the moment who had really been trying to do this on his own. There is not going to be an easy answer to this question and I wish I could say I had some sort of solution. I guess my hope is that we keep a level head about what is really important, people's lives and well being and try to work it out.

Today, when I got home from the hospital I had a letter informing me that after over 4 yrs my disability came through and I will have insurance very soon. It might well be retro to October 2005 so it could help me some with this. Any way, it's been another 3 very interesting days on the planet....