More Tests

I went and had three more vials of blood drawn today. No wonder I'm so tired...they keep taking my blood!

Looks like a bunch of worthless tests to me: more thyroid tests (the last one came back normal), an arthritis panel (why?), and a test for celiac. Good luck to them with that last one. I've been off wheat and gluten for nearly 2 months now. So, of course that one's going to come back negative. If I'd have known beforehand what they intended to test me for, I would have put that one off until I was back on wheat. Oh, well.

I used to be able to watch the whole blood draw from the needle insertion to it's withdrawal. I think I've figured out why I can't watch the technician take my blood anymore. Back in college, I had a professor who told the story about when he was released from the army after WWII. Everyone wanted to get out of there and go home. But, before they could go, they had to go through a medical release process. The line to the nurse was long. She was hurrying along trying to get everyone's blood drawn and send them on their way. Her procedure went like this: poke the needle into the vein at the crook of their arm, draw the blood, pull the needle out, slap a cotton ball on the site, and bend the arm up to hold the cotton ball in place. When it was my professor's turn, the needle broke off in his arm as it was being pulled out. The nurse, being in the hurry she was, didn't notice, and proceeded to slap on the cotton ball and bend his arm up. Ouch! That must have hurt! You'd think this story would make me WANT to watch the process to make sure everything goes well, but instead it's made me a big chicken of blood draws.