Mark McNease

Being Well is a regular feature at LGBTSr highlighting health and wellness.

It started with sharp recurring pain in my abdomen and ended with a three-hour visit to the emergency room at 2:00 a.m. I waited four days for it to go away, thinking it was related to the acid reflux (GERD) I’ve been treating with medication the past three years. I’d had a virtual visit with my gastroenterologist on Monday to set up my next colonoscopy. He asked how my acid problem was doing and I said fine, because I hadn’t yet experienced any problems. Then, because life works this way, it hit me on Tuesday. Bloating, pain, and the bowel problems usually associated with those symptoms. Was it food poisoning? I wondered. I kept thinking back on what I’d eaten the past couple days. And then it went away … only to return every few hours.

Finally, on Saturday morning just after midnight, I woke up in excruciating pain. Was my esophagus rupturing? Was I having a heart attack? I called the 24-hour nurse line provided by my insurance company, spoke to a very helpful nurse, and it was decided I should go to the emergency room.

Three hours after arriving, and an hour after a CT scan, I was diagnosed with acute diverticulitis. Course of treatment: antibiotics, clear liquids only for two days, and a list of mitigating measures provided in the paperwork they gave me when I left. As it turned out, the doctor was the daughter of our forester, who takes care of our annual filing to keep our property designated as a tree farm. It’s a small world.

Being Well is a regular feature at LGBTSr highlighting health and wellness.

It started with sharp recurring pain in my abdomen and ended with a three-hour visit to the emergency room at 2:00 a.m. I waited four days for it to go away, thinking it was related to the acid reflux (GERD) I’ve been treating with medication the past three years. I’d had a virtual visit with my gastroenterologist on Monday to set up my next colonoscopy. He asked how my acid problem was doing and I said fine, because I hadn’t yet experienced any problems. Then, because life works this way, it hit me on Tuesday. Bloating, pain, and the bowel problems usually associated with those symptoms. Was it food poisoning? I wondered. I kept thinking back on what I’d eaten the past couple days. And then it went away … only to return every few hours.

Finally, on Saturday morning just after midnight, I woke up in excruciating pain. Was my esophagus rupturing? Was I having a heart attack? I called the 24-hour nurse line provided by my insurance company, spoke to a very helpful nurse, and it was decided I should go to the emergency room.

Three hours after arriving, and an hour after a CT scan, I was diagnosed with acute diverticulitis. Course of treatment: antibiotics, clear liquids only for two days, and a list of mitigating measures provided in the paperwork they gave me when I left. As it turned out, the doctor was the daughter of our forester, who takes care of our annual filing to keep our property designated as a tree farm. It’s a small world.