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Family
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hey guys
long time, no type
how's it going (rhetorical)?
with the new year, i was thinking of upgrading the name of the "bupdate"
to the 2005 model. i was thinking maybe 'the journicles of bobby' or something
to that effect (i couldn't decide between journal and chronicle, so i joined
them) let me know what you think.
lots has happened since the last bupdate. i started my family practice rotation
and have been through 3 weeks of it. 1 week was in the hospital and the rest
of the time is just outpatient clinic (great hours, 8ish to 5/6ish).
outpatient has been really good. i'm working with a fabulous doctor (who is
strangely like me, cajun fellow with lots of crazy cajun relatives still in
louisiana but grew up in texas, german last name, went to a&m undergrad
and med school, makes gumbo, etc) and i'm really enjoying the work. it has
a great mix of ages (babies to oldies, i'm doing well-checks and telling grandpas
their blood pressure is high, and everything in between), plus there are interspersed
procedures (cutting things off skin and sewing them up, pulling off ingrown
toenails, freezing off stuff) which aren't as exciting as huge surgeries,
but are still very fun. so now, i'm really starting to think i wanna do family
practice (and i know, you've heard this after every block), but it seems really
likely this time. i love the variety (it's the 'spice of life', you know)
and the patient interaction (for the most part). plus when i think of 'being
a doctor', this is really what i picture, being able to do a little bit of
everything and handle everyday stuff. plus for any future missions stuff,
there's no better area that would equip me for any situation. with family,
though, i'd have to be in a system/group like it is at this scott & white
clinic, where i can do the variety (and share call and have great comprehensive
insurance and not have to worry about financial stuff). and that might not
be too hard to find. while in the hospital, i worked with a doc that i had
worked with previously doing a 4-week summer thing back between 1st and 2nd
year, who is also the head of family practice there and head of some classes
at the med school. and as far as doctors go, he's probably the closest thing
that i have to a mentor (and i, his protégé) and a guy i totally
respect and emulate in a lot of ways in my bedside manner. anyways, he was
talking up family practice to me and saying how it was perfect for me because
of my interactions with the patients and how i fit in well with all of the
docs here. basically saying that he could make/hold a spot for me to come
back to when i'm done with residency. so that was wicked cool.
inpatient was great for many reasons (writing that sentence gave me déjà
vu of writing a persuasive paragraph for my TAAS test in 7th grade). first,
i got to work at st. joseph's hospital, which meant free food, and i loves
me some free food. plus working with the aforementioned doctor. plus being
in charge of some really cool patients. and there was great variety there
again too. one day i circumcised a one day old (yep, i've still got it (and
for the sick minded people, by "it" i mean the ability to circumcise,
not the foreskin)) and talked to a 85 year old woman and her family about
her eventual death (which turned out to be that night). as far as funny stuff,
we had a kid that tried to get high on cough syrup (it contains dextromethorphan,
an opiate) and bought himself a night in the icu. apparently that's the latest
rage for the kiddoes. the actual act is known as 'robo-tripping' (i'm assuming
named after robitussin) and the ones that do it are known as 'syrup heads'.
just a little fyi. he had told his parents he was going to the drug store
for some chapstick, then came home and skipped dinner. his mom found him out
of it on the floor in his bedroom. we also had another overdose, a college
kid studying for finals who took some of his roommate's ritalin (amphetamine,
used for ADD). it was the long acting, 12-hour version and he was taking a
few every couple of hours to stay awake. i think he came in with his heart
pounding and a blood pressure of like 240/150. kids are stupid, but it pays
my bills (or atleast it will once i get to bill them)
Christmas was fabulous. we had about a week off, so i got to go to louisiana
and see all of the kinfolk. i did have one little evening of multiple vomiting
episodes (and a crummy day afterwards), but i did hold off some of the Christmas
weight gain and really worked my abs out (for those interested, i did about
5 sets of 10 retches; but remember not to start any workout regimen before
consulting your physician). and it was nice to actually have a couple days
of non-70 degree weather for Christmas, so that it felt kind of normal. unfortunately
the snow somehow got a hold of my itenerary and managed to be everywhere i
was not. cold does weird stuff to my brain, though. it's very memorigenic
(i.e. i get lots of flashbacks with it). and it's not the cold by itself that
does it, just the cold plus a song, or cold plus a smell, etc. on the downside,
whenever it's cold and dry, i get majorly static electrical. i get charged
up constantly, and it's especially bad when i get out of my car and touch
the door to close it. i'm surprised i haven't spontaneously combusted. for
new years, i spent a few days up in dallas, mainly to see the aggies play
in 'the bowl which we do not speak of'. so that part was a downer. but i still
had a wonderful time hanging out with some cool people and going to some cool
places. plus it was exciting because i ran into like 30 people randomly throughout
dallas. some were current friends, but a lot were ones i hadn't seen in up
to 4 years or that i went to high school with, so that was neat. and i had
the godiva chocolate cheesecake from the cheesecake factory. if there's a
better way to spend 134,000 calories, i don't know what it is.
it's good to be done with the holidays, though, because i'm kind of sick of
all the driving. the only good part of driving lots is that it's the only
time i can sit and memorize scripture. i'm too impatient and my mind wonders
too much if i try to just sit at home and do it. but it gave me a chance to
finally finish 2 peter (which i've been dillying on since this summer), so
for that i'm thankful. now i've got three more weeks in college station, working
at the outpatient clinic and bouncing around from house to house. and thanks
again to everyone who has/will host me. i won't throw out any names (for legal
reasons), but the accomodations thus far have been nothing short of superb.
the hospitality has rivaled that of the greeks (and i think they are really
known for hospitality, because i had to do a project on it in 12th grade english).
and lastly, in the spirit of Christmas (and Boxing Day in canada!), i'll finish
with a short anecdote and some awesome verses. i was listening to paul harvey
the other day (as i often do when in college station, near a radio, at noon)
and he ended his little spiel with what seemed like a nice little message
about Jesus at Christmas time. but what irked me is that he basically said
Jesus came and lived a good life to just show us that it could be done. and
there's some truth to that, but if you stop there, it's wrong and dangerous.
He wasn't just a model that we try our best to live like, because we can't.
i've seen lots of women give birth, so i know that geometrically it's possible,
but i'll never do that (and a big 'praise God' for that); in my current state
it's just impossible. anyways, the point of all that (and the fallacy that
paul harvey made) is that Jesus' life and death weren't just meant to be a
nice little template, but they actually accomplished the atoning of our sins
and the ransoming of the lost sheep and everything else pertaining to that.
not just the goal, but more importantly the means, motive, and opportunity
(sorry, too much law and order) to get there. and all that was said beautifully
800ish years before Jesus through isaiah, which is what is below (chapter
53).
1Who has believed our message? And to whom
has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
2For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, And like a root out of parched
ground; He has no stately form or majesty That we should look upon Him, Nor
appearance that we should be attracted to Him.
3He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with
grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we
did not esteem Him.
4Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves
esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted.
5But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our
iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging
we are healed.
6All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way;
But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him.
7He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He did not open His mouth; Like
a lamb that is led to slaughter, And like a sheep that is silent before its
shearers, So He did not open His mouth.
8By oppression and judgment He was taken away; And as for His generation,
who considered That He was cut off out of the land of the living For the transgression
of my people, to whom the stroke was due?
9His grave was assigned with wicked men, Yet He was with a rich man in His
death, Because He had done no violence, Nor was there any deceit in His mouth.
10But the LORD was pleased To crush Him, putting Him to grief; If He would
render Himself as a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong
His days, And the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand.
11As a result of the anguish of His soul, He will see it and be satisfied;
By His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, As
He will bear their iniquities.
12Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great, And He will divide
the booty with the strong; Because He poured out Himself to death, And was
numbered with the transgressors; Yet He Himself bore the sin of many, And
interceded for the transgressors.
b
---bonus feature---
random stuff:
on nfl primetime, chris berman has always made one of his little name puns
for chad cota which i never got, but i was flipping through the radio and
i finally heard the reference - 'momma don't take my kodachrome'; paul simon
song. i love references/allusions in books, especially when you understand
them.
remember that weird eyelid spasm i had? well that's still there (but not as
bad), but now i've got this spasm in my thigh (left side, front pocket area)
that convulses all the time, and i think my cell phone is vibrating. very
annoying (and disappointing when i check it and no one is calling :(
pound for pound, there's no better Christmas carol than 'carol of the bells'
(which was originally a ukranian folk song). i like the way they're singing
about bells, and their voices sound like bells. that's also the reason i like
when people write poems about trees and the words are shaped like a tree,
there's been some weird monkey theme in my life lately (and by 'monkey', i
include apes, chimps, gorillas, etc.). it seems like everyday i see one either
on tv or a stuffed animal, or a 30 foot blue one on the side of the road or
whatever. and then somehow i wound up on a webpage saying how this is the
end of the chinese year of the monkey and everyone's trying to have a baby
so they have 'monkey babies'. if my life was a book, it would probably mean
something, but it's probably just one of those kooky things.
sup, kids?
quick note: bupdates are now online - you can go to bobby.feaster.us if you
want to reminisce about the good old days of surgery or anything else. it's
all archived there. i'll keep doing the emails though, because it's a lot
funner to get stuff than to go looking for it, and some weirdos only have
email and no internet.
well, the family practice rotation is over, and like a good Jewish boy, i'm
back in temple (texas, that is. sorry, i like starting out with bad similes
:) it's been like 7 weeks and it's nice to finally be back in my own bed and
showering with my own water pressure and all the other little things i'm used
to. don't get me wrong, the 5 families i stayed with were spectacular (and
much appreciated), but they just weren't mine. the only weird thing is that
when i got back, all of my ice was shrunken and there was fungus in my ice
trays??? really strange/gross. i didn't even know that fungus could grow in
a freezer off of ice. and i don't know if it's my freezer or water that is
nasty. otherwise it was a nice homecoming.
the family practice rotation ended nicely. i got to see a bunch more people
and do a bunch more procedures. i love procedures, all the fun of surgery
except not life threatening and a few minutes instead of a few hours. one
lady had gotten a sewing needle shoved into her leg, but most were just taking
off moles/precancerous lesions or removing ingrown toenails, or the somewhat
gross incision and drainage of abscesses (i.e. "lancing boils").
the funny thing about abscesses is that none of the patients know what they
are. they are little infected areas of skin (red/warm/swollen) with some pus
under them, and everyone assumes they are spider bites and they got them while
sleeping. so any time the schedule said "possible spider bite",
i always knew i was gonna get to poke something and squeeze out some nasty
junk. we had one kid (11ish) come in claiming he had gotten a "spider
bite" on his chin, and i recognized it right away, but i let him tell
me all about it. he said he was squeezing out "poison" and that
since he got "bit", his vision was blurry and he couldn't talk as
well or run as fast; it was hard not to laugh while listening. i also really
loved the nurse that worked with us (and the other nurses on our hall; it
was very sad to leave after 6 weeks :( she really took care of me. she would
even button my sleeves up after procedures (i had to unbutton them to roll
them up so they wouldn't get bloody, and i can't button with just one hand
very well) she also changed the "NEXT" signs on the hallway to remember
me by {background story of that last sentence: we had a woman come in with
depression (and she was very much so) who was wearing an "eeyore"
shirt (the donkey from winnie the pooh) and i commented that no wonder she's
depressed, eeyore is the poster child for cartoon clinical depression (for
the argumentative types out there, i will concede that droopy is also a very
depressed character, but he is often seen enjoying work and passing time with
the ladies, plus his tail doesn't fall off). anyways, one of the other nurses
had a pooh coloring book and they made and colored little eeyores to put as
the "NEXT" sign (the sign that tells the doctor which patient is
next) for patients who come in with depression. probably a longer story than
the value it was worth to you, but i thought it was sweet. and it's nice to
feel like you've left your mark somewhere} another thing i loved about family
is the teaching aspect. i come from a bunch of teachers in the family, so
it's probably partially genetic, but i really enjoy being able to explain
stuff to people. and every visit involves helping the patient understand what's
happening to them, what the drugs do, how to treat themselves, etc. and it's
fun when y'all ask me stuff and i'm able to tell you about it. to me, knowing
cool stuff isn't enjoyable unless you can share it with others (or use it
to win lots of money on jeopardy). plus being in college station, there's
the opportunity to work with the med school and teach people like me.
oh, and another thing that always made me laugh while working was watching
the women get weighed as they come in (and no, ladies, i didn't stand behind
and watch - i know enough about women not to do that. the scale was at the
end of the hallway). but when men would get on, they just step on, no big
deal. with the females, there was a drawn out process of taking off shoes,
every piece of non-essential clothing, taking chapstick out of the pocket,
etc. every little thing to take off that extra ounce. hilarious.
and i also had a little change of heart about the patients that continue to
wreck their health. i met some people who smoked 3 packs a day or drank a
6-pack of beer a day, and frankly i was impressed. it seems like it takes
a lot more work to kill yourself than to be healthy. think about trying to
smoke 60 cigarettes in 16 hours while working and not being able to do it
at any place you go to. and on one of my 36 hour surgery days, i drank maybe
6 dr. peppers. i have a whole new respect for them (but not for the morbidly
obese, because eating lots is really easy)
so what did i not like about family? one was the hemorrhoids. not fun to look
at or touch or (i assume) to have. another was people that don't wear underwear
(especially men); ideologically i just have problems with it. but the worst
was(were?) the feet, especially diabetic feet (no offense to the diabetics
on the list, i'm sure you have beautiful feet :) i'm not a big fan of most
feet anyways, but i can usually stand them. but diabetics always have dry,
crusty, swollen, smelly feet, and usually with lots of non-healing ulcers
on them. to get an idea of what i'm talking about, you can go here:
http://www.circulatorboot.com/casehistory/case2k.jpg
or for an even worse case:
http://www.looklocally.com/media/10114/image-bbhealprogress1.jpg
but it's really gross.
for the rotation, we also had a few other non-office things. one was spending
a day with hospice. for those who haven't heard of it, hospice is a program
for people who are terminal and dying within 6 months, their loved ones, and
other grieving people. basically they have nurses that go out and take care
of people at their home and make them as comfortable as possible for the rest
of their lives. great program. i had a lot of exposure to it 1st and 2nd year
of med school. anyways, i went on a ride along with on of the nurses and got
to meet some cool people. one guy had lung cancer and smoked about 3 cigarettes
in my 15 minutes with him (and the nurse smoked with him too, i just inhaled
the left overs). we also had an afternoon of classes on "alternative
medicine". we learned a little about herbs and accupuncture and all the
weird stuff that works for some people. we also had a DO (doctor of osteopathy,
like an MD, but they also do a little "chiropractor-like" manipulation)
and he taught us a few things. unfortunately i was volunteered for the hip
manipulation. i had to lay down and he checked my hip alignment by feeling
for my anterior superior iliac spine (the big bumps on the front top of your
pelvis). now i don't know if you're aware (and hopefully you weren't up to
this point, because it's not very manly), but i'm excruciatingly ticklish
pretty much everywhere but my hands (especially hips and back of the neck).
and it doesn't even have to be touch, just a nearby hand with the possibility
of touch can do it (thank you very much, hoover). and whispering in my ear
is the absolute worst. anyways, so this doctor is pushing down and feeling
over the bone and i'm fidgeting and giggling and that only makes him try harder.
and then my other 6 classmates get a chance to try. it was agonizing. about
15 minutes of trying to stop writhing on the table with slow breaths and thinking
of unticklish thoughts. and to add insult to injury (yes, i consider it emotional
injury), he told me that my right hip was high, and my right leg was shorter
than my left. so there's another thing to be self-conscious about. i used
to be really pigeon-toed, and even after that got mostly better, it took another
10 years til i could walk around without feeling people behind me were watching
and having to concentrate on every step. now i feel like i'm waddling all
the time.
anyways, then we had a few tests, and now i'm all done. 2 more rotations to
go.
on a hygiene note, i got a new razor this past week. i've been a gillette
mach 3 user for many many years, but i saw the new mach 3 turbo and had to
try it. if you haven't seen the commercials, it's like a regular razor, except
it has a battery in it and vibrates. now conceptually, it did seem a little
scary to me to have 3 sharp metal objects going side to side really fast on
my face but it promised to give me the closest shave ever (and worst case
scenario i have a nice little law suit and some cool scars). plus the fast
vibrating technology seems to be pretty effective in my toothbrush. but i
think it actually does work, unless it's just the placebo effect. either way,
i'm happy.
ok, i have more to write, but i'm very much tired right now and i wanted to
get this out because it seems like it's been a while. hopefully i'll get to
write this weekend, plus there might be some fun psychiatry stories waiting
night
b
