Getting Worried in 2020s

I’m starting to go from frustration to worry with this fatigue. I don’t know how much more my brain and body can take. I feel very overwhelmed, especially with not knowing exactly how much of this or that is causing the fatigue and what to do about it.

It’s going to be months before I can get into an ENT who hopefully won’t cancel on me, plus other specialists. On Tuesday and Wednesday nights, I felt like I had breathing issues in my sleep where I was short of breath. I didn’t have as much trouble last night, but I still kept waking up.

I’m also back down to 155 lbs. I’m definitely having conflicting symptoms regarding my thyroid. My weight dropping and having trouble staying asleep are consistent with my TSH being lower, but the fatigue and feeling cold are not. It’s definitely cold now in Florida. Yesterday was chilly and windy, and this morning it’s down to 72 degrees in the house. For the next few nights, it’s getting down into the 40s so we’ll definitely have to kick the heat on.

I also have that cramp-like pain again in my lower left stomach near the pubic area. I took ibuprofen a little while ago, but it’s not helping. Since it’s unlikely to be related to my lady parts, I’m guessing it’s intestinal, muscular, or maybe related to my hip joint. I don’t know why ibuprofen isn’t helping.

Anyway, we were gone for nearly three hours yesterday because it was quite a wait. The girl at the desk warned me they were behind. She said it might take an hour, and I wasn’t surprised because I was tired. If I had energy, I would have been in and out. Luckily, we didn’t quite have to wait an hour.

However, I still wasn’t in and out of the exam room quickly. They would do something with me and then tend to other patients, come back to me, and then leave me alone again for a while. The dentist said there was a slight chip in the crown and, while it wasn’t ideal, it was sufficient enough to re-cement it. There are no guarantees on how long it will stay on, but she said it should last for years. That and the copay totaled $25.

I go back in a couple of weeks for my cleaning. If it turns out I have any cavities, I’ll go back to using an electric toothbrush. I’ll just make sure to get a soft brush.

We began to wonder if the guys next door were friends of Ray’s who were staying there because they had storm damage, but no one spent last night there, which makes me think Ray is on his way back. Either that or their place is livable again. It was weird because they would be gone all day, and we couldn’t imagine where they were, especially since one guy was likely long retired.

Unfortunately, the dream I had about Tom wanting me to call an ambulance was a sign of trouble for him. Luckily, it’s nothing serious enough to call an ambulance for, but he’s been having shoulder pain. I guess I passed my shoulder pain onto him because mine has been a little better lately.