So Tired!

So following the gallbladder, 10 more pounds gone, and all that "number 2" business, I'm deep into a new system at work.  I have to get it all built, tested and ready by mid-June when we freeze the code before going live on July 6th.  I'm working crazy hours and most weekends and just really start dragging.  Seems whenever I would sit down for more than a minute without my mind focused on something I would fall asleep.  At the one month post-op I mentioned to the doctor how tired I was.  He sent me for lab work but I was certain it was just because I was overworked.

Two days later I got a call from the doctor's office on a Thursday advising that they were going to refer me to another doctor for some abnormalities in my blood work.  Here's the number, call and make an appointment.  So I call and they answered the phone "Center for Cancer Care may I help you?".  Uh, what?  Cancer Center?  No, I'm just tired, I'm not sick.  In that brief pause and through a stuttered and stunned speech I asked if this was Dr. Haganstad's office.  Well of course it was.  Then I guess I need to make an appointment.  Of course they were closed Friday and the first available was Wednesday.  Now, here's the thing doctors need to understand.  You cannot refer a hypochondriac to call a CANCER CENTER and make an appointment and then make them wait 5 days.  Do you have any idea how many cancers I imagined I had in those 5 days?  Or how many ways I might die?  Or when?  You must tell the person why they are being referred so they don't freak out.   So I had my freak out then decided I just couldn't worry until I had something to worry about.

That Wednesday I was diagnosed with Iron Deficiency Anemia.  When looking at my numbers the doctor was surprised I was even able to walk from the car to the office.  That I had any color in my skin was apparently impressive.  There are several things they measure in red blood cells including size, color, and quantity.  Apparently I was well below average, at dangerously low levels, and this was not the first time my iron counts were low.  They were also low following my bariatric surgery, but not alarmingly low.  Now it was time to take action.

So the following Wednesday I went back to have an iron infusion.  I'll cover that in the next post.