April Foolery
When the doctor tells you he wants you to have an "upper GI", there are two things that could mean:
- An upper GI endoscopy -- a little camera that goes down your throat and looks around your stomach. Sounds just lovely, doesn't it...NOT!
- Or a series of x-rays where you drink down fizz crystals and a barium shake. Not exactly pleasant, but completely non-invasive.
Naturally, I assumed the worst -- that the test I was to have was the former. When I called to make the appointment, I asked (hopefully), "Now by upper GI, do you mean the one with the barium drink?" No, I was told, it was the other one.
Now, I know people who have had the endoscopy, and they told me they were sedated. So I asked the person who made the appointment if they would sedate me. She said no, that I would have to talk to my doctor about being sedated.
What?
So I called my doctor, and he wrote up a script for a Valium drip and sent it to me in the mail. His office told me to present it when I go for the procedure.
Meanwhile, I've been full of anxiety over this whole thing. It sounds just awful. I get my sister to give me a ride to the hospital, since I would not be able to drive after being sedated.
My upper GI appointment was this morning. I presented the script to the receptionist and she looks very puzzled. She says I will have to talk to the technician when she arrives. **sigh** I knew this would happen. And I'm thinking, "There's no WAY I can do this without being sedated!"
I talk to the technician about what the procedure entails, I find out that this upper GI is in fact...the non-invasive barium and x-ray procedure. No need for Valium drips. In fact, the department where my appointment was at doesn't even do endoscopies.
So I was very relieved. The procedure wasn't bad. The worst part was drinking that barium shake. It was nasty!
However, I feel guilty that my sister had to take time out of her busy life to give me a ride when it wasn't necessary. And I'm irritated that I was given bad information in the first place.
How fitting that this happened on April Fool's Day.