Scary Day

I woke up early this morning with a really weird disorienting feeling of whirling around, and when I went to the bathroom, I felt like I was going to fall. I went back to bed and to sleep, hoping that when I woke up all would be well. It wasn't. Either I was spinning or the room was spinning, and I promptly threw up my morning coffee. As you can imagine, that's not a comfortable feeling. I was still hoping it would go away, but I (of course) googled the symptoms, found that what I was experiencing was vertigo, and that I should see a doctor.

So we headed to the computer to find out which internists in our area accept our insurance and called the first one. They said I could come in tomorrow morning at 9. The second one said come in right away. We found ourselves at the Castrillon Family Clinic, where we were the only Anglos among a large group of people waiting to get in. Fortunately the intake person asked for us to be expedited, so I got in pretty quickly. I was a bit surprised to have a Physician's Assistant (Erika Gonzalez) come in to check me out. She said something along the lines of the doctor has a very heavy accent and likes her to interpret when he sees patients who don't speak Spanish.

I never did see the doctor, but the PA was very nice and seemed quite competent. She ordered several tests. I had blood work, a urinalysis, a VNG (Videonystagmography) test, hearing and other ear tests, allergy tests, and sinus x-rays. I'll get the results of those tests on Friday, but today she said that I had fluid buildup and a sinus infection. I am also allergic to several trees, lots of animals, and molds, but the reactions weren't severe, so they're apparently mild allergies. I got prescriptions for Singulair and a Z-Pak, and samples of Sibelium (flunarizine hydrochloride) to take and instructions to use Afrin nasal spray for three days. The diagnosis was Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV), which doesn't sound nearly as scary as stroke or brain tumor 8-)

Meanwhile I was feeling better, and the PA suggested that it was because I had been upright for a while and that would relieve the pressure . . . By the time we got home, I figured I was feeling well enough to go to the C-1 lesson. Ken went too, and our appearance really surprised Doris and Bob, who had happened to call while we were at the clinic. Actually, it rather surprised me too. Ken did very well at the lesson. He has danced most of the early C-1 calls before, so only a few were new. He attended Randy's session before his surgery, and Romney and Darryl have called lots of C-1 directionally.

Today was a really beautiful day, with blue sky and sunshine, but my encounter with vertigo made me aware of how contingent all our plans are.

I am still feeling a bit odd, so I'm a bit worried about lying down to sleep. I may end up in the recliner tonight.