The Girl With The Gallbladder Bruises

12/23/2017. Affinity Medical Center Emergency Room. Massillon, OH
“Don’t come back here if you are in any more pain.”

That was what the emergency room doctor told me, in front of my husband, after he told me my gallbladder looked fine.

Me: “But the woman who did the ultrasound said my gallbladder has stones in it.”
Dr. McNasty: “She did?”
Me: “yes…stones.”
Dr. McNasty: “Well it was fine. Just schedule an appointment with a surgeon, but don’t come back here if you are in any more pain.”

12/24/2017 Aultman Hospital Emergency Room Canton, OH
Me:….so long story short I’m not supposed to go back to Affinity, and I’m having another attack.
Nurse: That was completely uncalled for.
Me: (pacing the tiny room because I am in an incredible amount of pain) I know, I am shocked he said that. I’m confused and really upset. I am not a drug seeker you can see it in my file. Dr. McNasty prescribed me Percocet but I’ve taken one and it’s made me sick, along with this attack. (fun fact, only ever took one Percocet out of the 12 he prescribed me. Percocet I DID NOT ASK FOR, by the way)
Doctor: We can keep you and you can get your gallbladder out tomorrow but it’s Christmas so it’s a skeleton crew.
Me: I’d rather be home with my kids, I will schedule an appointment with a surgeon.

Christmas night I have a terrible attack, but I rode it out at home, boss style. (There may have been whining and rolling around my tub like an Orca but there is no proof!)

12/26/17
Make an appointment with a surgeon for a consult for January 8th.
Attempt several times to reach a patient advocate at Affinity. They need to understand how unprofessional and rude their ER doctor was. Left messages. Radio silence.

12/29/2017
Drove to Aultman Hospital Emergency Room, Canton OH at 4 a.m.
I was in horrific pain, worst than my labor and kidney stones (and I have a high pain tolerance)
Am admitted within an hour and a half
The surgeon I was supposed to meet with on the 8th shows up and says “we are doing this today”
Got my gallbladder removed laparoscopically that afternoon
Never had one bad nurse, rude doctor, no one made me nervous or made me feel like I wasn’t supposed to be there.

1/3/2017
Am healing well. Thankful to the surgeon I had never met before who took his time off to come in and remove my gallbladder.
Finally received a phone call from Affinity Hospital, Massillon OH from someone who wants to talk to me about what happened. Missed the phone call, could not get through when I called back.

I have dates and times, but nothing compares to the mental issues I was starting to face. I have several mental illnesses and they were all coming out in full effect as I battled this pain. Being dismissed was incredibly disheartening and made me feel like I was overreacting to the pain. And that I had done something wrong by going into the first E.R. Then my anxiety kicked into overdrive, I ended up having several panic attacks as I battled the pain at home. They would also occur when I was waiting for the pain to come back. I was mentally disintegrating while my body rejected every gentle bland food, even water.

So melodramatic, you may be thinking. When someone like me, who suffers from severe anxiety on top of BP and Major Depressive Disorder, gets dismissed it tends to start invading your mind. Little tendrils of self-doubt.
“Am I overreacting?”
“Is this pain in my head?”
“Is this a symptom of something far worse?”
“Is this ever going to end?”

It becomes a Merry-Go-Round of mental trash.

The fact was: the gallbladder needed to be removed, the pain was not in my head, and the people at the first hospital were, pardon my language, douchebags.

The writing on this post is terrible. I am on some pretty intense pain meds, and I’m still healing. Healing pretty darn well! When I come down from Unicorn World maybe I can come back and lay this all out in a well-written post. For now, you get The Girl and Her Organ Removal Scars.

Also, I will update when I hear from Hospital #1 and their opinion on Dr. McNasty.

Has anyone else been dismissed when their body was telling them something is super wrong here? I’d love to know. Share in the comments.