So, the VA Hospital has to send the appointment request back to the VA Claims Division to let them know that the appointment was canceled so they don't penalize me for not seeing the provider today. The Claims Div will then send a new order to the Hospital to set up my new appointment. While I know that seems like unnecessary steps, I do get it from a budgetary and paperwork perspective, thanks to my job. And while I am frustrated that I have to wait to do this all over again, I understand with the flu running around and whatnot. I'm not mad at the VA or even the doctor, I'm mad at the government for not properly funding the VA such that this problem happened.
As far as my back is concerned, my doc said the x-ray does show further disc degeneration, specifically in L4-L5, as well as a new disc problem at L5-S1, both of which explain the sciatic pain. She put me on prednisone to help with reducing the inflammation so I can do physical therapy to help with the pain. In the meantime, I'm supposed to alternate between acetaminophen and ibuprofen and use ice packs and a heating pad but it could take several weeks to see improvement.
She decided we needed to talk about my weight and how "as we age, our bodies don't cooperate as much and we need to feed them right." Then she basically poked the bear trying to find out about my history with obesity and since I was already in a bad place (she had asked about my dad just before that), I figured fuck it, she asked for it. I explained how my weight struggles started after what happened to me when I was in the Navy, gave her a brief overview without the gory details, let her mind fill in the blanks.
Food is one of my coping skills, among others which, admittedly, are not healthy. While I'm still struggling mentally and now physically, taking away that coping mechanism is not something I am prepared to do.
She took the smart choice and dropped the subject for now.
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