Health and Efficiency


When I had a bath last Thursday morning something didn't feel right with my left leg, if that makes sense, but I put it down to the after affects of a heavy cold I was just getting over. My leg felt heavy and yet numb at the same time, bets described as the sort of muscle tiredness you get after a burst of running (or cycling in my case), so I decided not to worry too much about it.

On Friday and Saturday the feeling was just the same but on Sunday morning having spent some time on the computer working on photographs and a video I couldn't help noticing that my leg seemed 'more numb'. I collected Janis from work at around 1 o'clock and said that I thought I should go to A & E, it seems dramatic but the chances of getting a doctors appointment on the Monday seemed remote.

Half an hour later we were sat in A & E, my details logged on the computer, along with about twenty other people. You'd think Sunday lunchtime it would be quiet but football and rugby matches seemed to account for most of the other incidents together with somebody who had been stabbed in the back of his leg with a glass.

Anyway, four and a half hours after seeing the Triage nurse I was being assessed. Blood was taken, reflexes checked, a diagnosis formed and then a second opinion sort. The nurse said he thought I had suffered a mild stroke, a TIA (transient ischaemic attack) and that I would be contacted by the Hospital within twenty four hours to arrange to come in and have some further tests carried out, this was followed by a junior nurse arriving and taking some blood. He then added that in cases of a suspected TIA I wouldn't be allowed to drive a car for forty days! Obviously some sort of St.Chirstopher-St.Swithun joint effort going on there.

This morning at just after nine o'clock the Hospital called and an appointment was made for tomorrow (Tuesday). I'll post about the outcome of that visit once I know exactly what has happened.