Pneumonia strikes again!

Wednesday, I woke up in agonizing pain. I crawled out of bed and told Osaka "I hurt all over, I don't think I can go to work today." She raised a brow (with good reason, sometimes I have a nasty case of the "don't wannas") and told me to give it a proper try. So, I got dressed, and got really and continued to just really feel like hell. Finally I told here I just could not deal with this pain, even with a short shift, and she countered that if I felt that bad, I really should go to the hospital.

I argued at first because I didn't have the money to see my GP that happens to work through an Urgent Care clinic and we agreed I'd go to the ER, because I wouldn't be expected to pay upfront, and I could get the treatment I needed and pay it back later.

So, we got two all day bus passes and headed for the ER of the nearest Hospital (Sentara Princess Anne) and I got admitted. 6 hours later, and a whole lot of whining on my part (because honesty matters) we had a diagnosis of bi-lateral aspiration pneumonia, which is incredibly rare, incredibly aggressive, and tends to happen to people with a history of acid reflux. People at risk are those with compromised immune systems, people who take long term steroids, people with asthma, etc. I can check every box there.

The doctor wanted to have me stay for overnight observation (which I argued against) and after Osaka spoke sense to me, I grudgingly agreed to.

I swiftly learned that I was MUCH sicker than I thought I was, and that I really should have come in weeks ago, because symptoms I was attributing to my migraines and my hypothyroidism were the early stages of this pneumonia.

So.. basically I don't listen to my body well enough and I'm lucky that I have Osaka to make me be reasonable.

Which brings me to this. I work part time. I am ineligible for state insurance and can't afford insurance off of the government network. I also am not eligible for it through work as a seasonal employee. So, taking into account the estimated cost of an uninsured person in the hospital for two days and nights, I have started a crowd fundraiser for medical expenses through You Care.