"Umm, Pseudo-Doc ... Am I Dying?"

With this stupid illness now going on eleven days and really hampering workouts, I did something I only do about once every two or three years on Saturday ... went to the doctor ... well, sort of.  I actually went to the walk-in clinic at our neighborhood Walgreen's to see the Nurse Practitioner (I think that's the correct term).  Ya know, the "almost doctor" who is qualified to write prescriptions, but can't do appendectomies.  And it was just what the Pseudo-Doctor ordered!

The walk-in clinic is kind of hit or miss.  You either wait in line for seven days behind every sneezing, wheezing, hacking, and dripping sicko in your neighborhood ... or there's no line at all and you sail right in.  Yesterday was the latter & I was elated!  I basically only visit the place when I'm several days into a nagging sickness and just ready for some pharmaceutical help to beat the thing.  Specifically I'm looking for an antibiotic.  In the past, when I've went to a "real doctor", all too often I've walked out of the office with a pat on the head, and a "just ride it out son" type off answer, which is aggravating.  I know my body ... and I went there looking for drugs!   The Nurse Practitioner is exactly the opposite. I feel like I can basically write my own 'script there.

During my "very thorough" - sarcasm - physical exam, I was also greeted with several embarrassing questions ...

     Pseudo-Doc ... "How often do you see your doctor?"
     Me ... "Never"
     Pseudo-Doc ... "Who is your doctor?"
     Me ... "Um, I don't have one"
     Pseudo-Doc ... "You don't have a doctor?"
     Me ... "I just told you I never go to the doctor"
     Pseudo-Doc ... "You really need a doctor, what happens when you get sick?"
     Me, trying to not be a wise-guy, ... "Um, I come see you"
     Pseudo-Doc ... "When was the last time you saw your doctor?"
     Me ... "When do your records show the last time I was here?"
     Pseudo-Doc ... "Three years ago"
     Me ... "Well, three years ago I guess"
   
     Pseudo-Doc ... "Do you workout?"
     Me ... "Yes"
     Pseudo-Doc ... "How often?
     Me .... "Everyday"
     Pseudo-Doc ... "Your heart rate is a little high, did you workout today?"
     Me ... cough, cough, sniff, "Yes"
     Pseudo-Doc, stops writing and looks over the top of her glasses, "If you're sick ... don't workout!"
     Me ... "Okay"
     Pseudo-Doc shakes her head and resumes writing

Here's where it got weird ... like I said, I'm really just looking for an antibiotic to clear up the minor infection I presumably have.  And predictably, she gave me the antibiotic ... but then proceeded with a litany of additional prescriptions.  She also gave me cough syrup, which is understandable.  A nasal spray for congestion, even though I told her that that the OTC decongestant was doing the trick and I wasn't stuffed up.  An inhaler of Albuterol ... since at any point I could apparently become asthmatic.  And a steroid ... presumably for bulky muscle growth after working out.  What the???  Five prescriptions for a lingering cold, or at worst bronchitis?  It seemed excessive, which prompted me to ask her, "Umm, am I dying?"  At that point Pseudo-Doc again stopped writing, titled her head a little and adjusted her focus on me once more over the top of her spectacles and replied, "No, you're just sick."

In all honesty, there seems to be a little bit of an ethical question having a pseudo-doctor's office located in a pharmacy.  I mean seriously ... is ANYONE gonna walk out of the place WITHOUT a little white bag of pills?  Seriously?  And that's not at all  to question the integrity of the wonderful lady who helped me yesterday.  She was great, and just doing her job.  But it just seems it's about making money.  And it seems that this little episode is a microcosm of the health industry problems in this country.  But that's a rant for another day.

Anyway, as far as working out - I did run again yesterday ... or attempted to run.  But there was too much shortness of breath, fatigue, coughing the entire way, and just nothing productive.  So I shut it down after six miserable miles, and decided to take 2-3 days off.  This really hampers my Spring "A" Race training which is only about a month away.  But hopefully a few days off won't hinder what I've already built too badly.  I'll keep you posted.  Have a great week!
... be great today!