Gone away

Just a note to say we are off to Kalamos again tomorrow so I won't be around for a while.

I know I owe people emails but I have had so little time the last couple of weeks I am all behind.

The weather is set to be very hot so we'll be making the most of the sea at the end of the patio.

See you in two and a half weeks.

Life insurance medical

I saw my GP yesterday for a medical for my life insurance. I thought it was just me and my poor medical history that required it but I was told that they do it all the time now.

Anyway interesting reading going through my medical notes for the last 20 years and before, and an invaluable exercise for my GP too, as I have only actually been seeing this one for 9 months.

Things I found out:

I have been complaining about my hands for over 10 years.

My then GP in 1997 queried RA but never did anything about it.

They had me down as depressed, but when the GP dug into it, it was just a comment after I had 2 bereavements in the same year, 11 years ago. The diagnosis was removed from my long list of current problems

Another GP had frequently put 'unexplained weight gain' and never followed it up.

That same GP had documented my aversion to Amytriptiline and my refusal to take it on the grounds of weight gain but never tied the two things up.

My heart problems started immediately after I had Parvo virus as did the RA but it was never 'joined up'. The GP put that right too yesterday and said in the report that I had had both things as direct result of the Parvo virus, it being a well documented progression in adults.

If all this had been sorted out at the time I probably wouldn't have remained with the ME diagnosis and other problems I had would have been investigated more.

The GP concluded the report by saying that as conventional treatments had failed to have much effect I was now seeing my Lyme specialist and getting much better on this regime, giving credibility to the 'probable Chronic Lyme' diagnosis.

Interesting isn't it? When someone actually bothers to review all your notes not just the current appointment stuff.

I thought that this government was all in favour of 'Joined-up Thinking', pity it doesn't extend to Ms Hewitt's departments. Or then again it's really no surprise is it?

It's a boy.

He finally arrived by c-section at 1pm on Friday, after 5 failed inductions and 4 days in hospital. Mum and babe doing well when we saw them yesterday. You forget how tiny these little ones are.

New house, new car, new baby?

We got the keys of the door on Monday. I bought a new (second hand) car on Wednesday. On Friday we are still awaiting the appearance of the 4th grandchild.

All week my stepdaughter has presented at her local maternity unit at 9am each morning to be induced. They have tried 5 times. Today she is 16 days overdue and is scheduled for a ceasarian this morning. To date they have had no beds. I hope to God they have one for her today.

She has gestational diabetes and group B strep. She was told she would not be allowed to go more than 7 days overdue as there was a risk she would have a very big baby. She was also told it would be 'out by Wednesday' - last Wednesday. She was told she would have a ceasarian last week. She was told she could not go more than 14 days overdue as it was dangerous. All conflicting and all disregarded as the time went on.

Now my anxious, depressed step-daughter, longing for her first baby, has been living on tenterhooks since last Thursday. Her partner has lost a week from work running backwards and forwards to the hospital each day.

Is this what the NHS calls primary care? Primary nightmare more like.

Read NHS Blog doctor on the subject of maternity care here

Key of the door

We finally got the key to the new place yesterday. Even that didn't go according to plan, we should have been all sorted by 12 noon but the solicitors for the vendors didn't let anyone know that they had received the money and that we could fetch the key so we were hanging round for 3 hours.

Then my car started making a very loud noise again and I decided not to drive it. So tomorrow we have to go and get another one, in a hurry, which is not always such a good idea. The current one had only just been serviced and had it's MOT, sailing through with flying colours. Now it needs 4 new tyres, the radiator has sprung a leak, an oil pump is leaking and the steering has gone. In 5 years I have never had any trouble with this car, now it has decided to repay me big-time. Even WH who likes to keep a car until months after anyone else would have given up said he's not spending all that money on it and it has to go.

Stressed right out

Haven't posted for over 2 weeks, a record of a sort for me. I wasn't even on holiday.

The last fortnight has been almost a nightmare, they say house moving is stressful, well my solicitor has been conveyancing for over 30 years and she has never had a conveyance like it. After numerous false starts, a withdrawal, a re-market, several rows with estate agents, a complaint to the Law Society and numerous other set backs, we *might* exchange contracts tomorrow. I feel like I have taken up residence in the solicitors office and have wasted so much other precious time in the process. 16 weeks since I first viewed and we're still messing about.

Keep your fingers crossed it goes through OK. We need it to. What the heck, keep everything crossed, please.