Pain In The Back

48 hours had gone and the back pain was not subsiding. The time tested pain killers were not working. The worry was that in 4 days I was leaving for a week to ten days trip, all by train, bus and car. At the same time, some mason work was going on at home which needed all my time, attention and energy. I desperately needed to get well but there was no time to rest.

It had all started on a Thursday. While shifting and lifting some stuff at home the back got sprained and slowly and gradually the pain spread in the entire right leg. A muscle got pulled or some nerve was getting pressed wrong, whatever, the pain was unbearable and not going away. Right from the backbone epicentre down to the right leg calf, the pain would strike as a lightning in short intervals without any predicative pattern. Funnily enough I could stand, walk and work without much pain but the moment I sat or lied down, the pain returned with a vengeance. Lying down, getting up, turning on my sides were painful acts. By the Friday evening the right side ribs had also joined the pain party. Any small jerk and the pain would shoot up like crazy.

By the time I realised my time tested pain killers were not going to help, another day had gone living life painfully. It was already Saturday evening, most doctors wouldn’t be available on Sunday and I needed professional help desperately. Some quick thinking and I made a call to a neighbourhood pharmacist friend and explained my situation. He suggested some tablets and advised me to see a specialist soon. Assuring him to see a specialist doctor soon I started the medicine. Within 12 hours the medicine worked like magic. By Sunday evening, though not fully recovered, I was feeling better. Considering the healing I shun the thought of meeting the doctor and bought another day’s medicine suggested by my pharmacist friend.

All things ‘too good to be true’ have a rather unpleasant ending. So did this one. Despite 2 days of self medication and 2 days of friendly medication, the pain continued. Sleeping at night was very tough. On Monday night, Tuesday early morning at 4am, the ‘Brahma Muhurat’ time, I got ‘Baudh Gyaan’ and decided to visit an Orthopaedist as soon as possible in the morning.

True to self promise I landed at one of the leading, reputed and recently renovated Orthopaedic Hospital of the city. The young middle aged doctor was a trusted one from a long time both for the family and close friends as well. Quite a nice jovial guy he also happened to be the school alumni. Managing a last minute appointment, I waited for my turn. 

The new unit looked super swanky. Big reception, large waiting area, neatly lined up consultation rooms, well lit and ventilated floor with a good fusion of natural and LED light, insurance claim help chamber next to reception, more than sufficient and nice comfortable waiting chairs, effective air-conditioning, good aesthetics and spick and span ambience; overall a very impressive and professional looking unit. The ground to ceiling open area right in the centre of the building, cutting across all upper stories, gave a nice airy and transparent look. Even the staff was looking smart and behaving cordially and professionally, in tune with overall environment of the unit.

I was suddenly feeling a little guilty that I should have brought a bouquet. Not that I knew the doctor too closely or that I was invited at the inauguration, still, it would have been a nice gesture to acknowledge such an impressive unit in my city. After all, we have been connected for a long time now.

Hearing my name getting announced from reception brought me back to my pain. I entered the doctor’s chamber and instantly noticed the apple computer placed on his desk. ‘They sure have covered all the right bases of creating the right impressions’ I thought to myself. A paradigm shift in the presentation from the old unit to the new, premium was being conveyed loud and clear. This was a brand refresh ensuring enhanced premium imagery by quite a few notches. The 50% increase in the consultation fee, collected in advance at the time of booking appointment, was also in sync with changed premium imagery and definitely towards covering some cost!

After hearing me out, end to end, the doctor made me do a few stretch and bend exercises which I did with ease. He then made me lie down on the patient table and asked to do some more leg movements which again I did with ease. He asked me to get up and as I moved and sat relaxed in the chair opposite his desk he got busy writing the prescription. I was relieved that all looked good. Suddenly he stopped, looked at me and said in a matter of fact tone ‘get an X Ray done’.

Not expecting it, I took a moment to respond. Looking in his eyes I asked ‘is it really needed, all the exercise you made me do looked good’. ‘Let’s be double sure’ he said, ‘it’s a matter of spine’. How I wanted to refuse and how I agreed is the perfect example of how you have to cheat on your gut to trust someone you don’t want to. I had a very strong gut feeling that everything was good, an X Ray was not required and that he was just getting it done to increasing his billing.

I remembered how once my kid had fallen from his bicycle and bruised his hand and how the doctor insisted on an X Ray despite all his arm, shoulder and finger movements being fine. Both I and my kid and even some of the waiting patients could clearly see that the X Ray was being ‘pushed’.  In the end, we had to get it done and as expected the result was all clean.

Similarly a relative was pushed for an ear operation in Mumbai, by a visiting Mumbai ENT Surgeon, when he said ‘the patient is on a time bomb, if not treated immediately, he may have to face worse consequences’. The effect of his statement was that all women in the family succumbed to the threat and lo and behold the family went to Mumbai for the surgery. The same operation could have been done locally or at best even at the neighbourhood big town at 25% the cost.

Like religion, scare tactics work quite well in matters of health. ‘it is your call and responsibility if you don’t want to do this’ is a standard statement that you hear whenever you provide a counter opinion in these two matters.

So despite not liking it, I ‘pushed’ myself to the X Ray room which was also impressively and professionally designed and located. The technician saw the doctor’s prescription, guided me to the room and issued instructions cordially and professionally. As soon as he took the X Ray, I started to get up but he asked me to keep lying down and change posture as, apparently, the doctor had prescribed for 2 X Rays for 2 different positions. I didn’t like the breaking news at all but couldn’t do anything about it so got the other one done also.

After waiting for some more time the doctor called me again and having already seen the X Rays told me ‘not very sure as no nerves are pressing anywhere but you seem to have a slip disc’. Now I know a bit about slip discs. A person cannot get up, forget moving around. A large support waist belt has to be worn. A patient of slip disc is on the bed for almost 3 to 4 weeks. His ‘not sure’, ‘seem to have’ language honestly stumped me. Isn’t he supposed to be sure, at least after multiple X Rays?

He also completely forgot the fact that to meet him I drove down on my own and would be returning home driving all by myself. Can anyone with slip disc drive a car? Though he advised against travel initially but subsequently allowed with a few precautions and caveats. Quite dejected already and knowing he was now simply justifying the X Rays, I left the room after checking all other precautions as well.

On the way out bought my medicines from the store housed within the hospital. A minor fiasco happened there too on the prescribed v/s available v/s alternate medicine and their quantities and prices, but that is a story for another day. Medicine shops housed within the hospital and even attached to clinics are now an accepted format of a doctor’s business model.

It’s been more than a fortnight and touchwood I am all good. I went for my trip as per schedule, travelling in trains and buses and cars and returned safe and sound; had to even climb the top berth in the train.

The help from pharmacist was simply great but definitely not advisable as a norm or at the expense of consulting a doctor. The doctor fleecing and scaring a patient on the pretext of being safe is neither healthy nor in tune with the Hippocratic Oath

The gut said ‘sprain’ and sprain it was. The gut said ‘medicine will heal’ and it sure did. The gut said ‘go to a doctor’ and I did. The gut said ‘X Rays were unnecessary’ and sure they were. The gut says ‘doctors are going to get upset by this write up’, well, let them be. At least I am not writing a ‘loaded’ prescription.

In hindsight, good I didn’t carry a bouquet, I anyway got charged for that!