Doctor, Doctor

A breast surgeon. The name seems self explanatory, but what do I know? I am not a doctor, definitely not a surgeon, and this entire subject, diagnosis and next steps are all foreign to me.

I get the name of a breast surgeon as recommended by the Solis Mammography. I call to see what's next, what I should do, schedule an appointment. I really don't have an inkling. 

I make an appointment with this breast surgeon, Dr. Beth Anglin of Complete Breast Care (  https://www.teamcbc.pink/ ) for February 1, 2022, just 6 days after I received my diagnosis. Well, this is moving right along. Perfect. Just the way I like it. No bullshit, no waiting 3 months to "get in to see a new provider" or any other absurd excuses. I don't have time for your shenanigans. I have shit to accomplish, and quick. Let's just get to it. Time is of the essence.

I go to my appointment and meet Dr. Anglin as well as her Nurse Practitioner, both of whom are incredible. Everything about these two doctors is more than I could have ever hoped for. Dr. Anglin is extremely detail orientated, well spoken, concise, thorough and has the best bed side manner of any doctor I have met in recent years. I am glad to be under her care.

My appointment goes well. Quite frankly, I am on information overload. Like serious information overload. FML. She tells me the "mass" is 1.2cm. How big is that? Again, no idea. I don't measure anything in cm. How am I going to remember everything she has mentioned? I should have had a tape recorder, because later in the day when I am trying to repeat this information to my husband, it is going to appear as if I have amnesia. 

Fortunately, she gives me a binder with all the pertinent paperwork and everything I need to move to the next step in this seemingly never-ending process. At this point, I have decided after much discussion, that I will have a lumpectomy, followed by radiation. Ok, I can get behind this. Yes, it'll be super inconvenient and disrupt my life, but I will have a life and won't be six feet under. There's a pro to add to my pro con list (more on this later).

Here are my next steps, as discussed with Dr. Anglin:

• Bloodwork today (for genetic test, in her office). Easy.
• Schedule an MRI for a in depth look; she provides referral information (thank god!)
• Schedule an appointment with an oncologist, which she also provides a referral for, again, thank god!

So wow, back to the drawing board. I just went through a similar situation, and I felt like a damn telephone operator because all I did was spend hours upon days making phone calls, to turn around and schedule appointments for the same, and here it is all over again! Like Christ! That's how I want to spend my days, because who wouldn't? Who needs sleep? Ya, not me, on all aforementioned.

Now on to making more appointments. I start making calls as soon as I get in my car. I am not even waiting until I get home. I need to move with a purpose. No answer at the oncologist's office. Coincidentally, his office is in the same parking lot, and I consider just walking in to set something up, but I feel that may be a bit of overkill, which I will determine in just a few days, that is indeed what I should have done. I reach the imaging center, but they have not yet received the order that was just faxed over. FAXED? I didn't realize this was still a "thing". So, I will "get a call back when they receive it." I am relentless and call first thing the next morning. I don't receive any calls back. I call again that afternoon. Again, no answer and I leave a second message. Odd, right? Are my expectations set way too high when I suppose that asking someone to actually do their job, that very thing they get paid to do, to actually do it? Yes, yes is the correct answer.

It is Wednesday afternoon in this ghost town of doctor's offices. Thanks, thanks for leaving me hanging you douche bags. I live in Texas. Honestly, it's a great place to live, but some things are ridiculous. Being from Chicago and living in the north 34 years taught me things I never knew until I moved here. Some good and some bad. And then the absolute laughable bullshit. Texas, basically as a state" is preparing for the storm that is coming." Is it a hurricane? Is it a tornado? It is a tsunami? Is it an earthquake? NO. No to each of these preposterous thoughts. It is going to rain!! Watch out. Not rain! Keep in mind with this, that people can't drive here when it is warm and sunny. So rain comes and it's shit show city. Granted the rain was due to come and then the temperatures were also expected to drop down to around freezing later that evening, so we are in a crisis situation. What happened? It rained (it's a miracle!!), and the temperatures did drop, and the rain froze. No one worked the remainer of the week or left their houses. Schools were closed. And because of this nonsense, I now must wait until Monday to make any potential progress. Fuck You Texas for disrupting my agenda!