On our way to the airport in Houston to begin this incredible journey, I lifted a very heavy suitcase and heard something snap or tear in my right shoulder but at the time didn’t think much of it and went on with loading and unloading.
After getting settled on the plane and beginning the trip I began to have some pain especially when lifting or carrying anything on that right shoulder(backpack or purse). Thank God for Ibuprofen and ex-strength Tylenol!! They both became my best friends.
After about 6 weeks Anderson and I took to the streets of Campinas to find a doctor that would see me. After about 2 hours of roaming the streets we stopped at an office of an orthopedic doctor. Now we all know that in the USA one would not get anywhere by just stopping in one of these highly sought after physicians. We would have had to call for an appointment and wait for about 6 weeks or more maybe we would be lucky to obtain an appointment.
God is a good God and He had my best interests at heart this day,(well, really every day) not only did we get an appointment that same day but when he saw my shoulder he immediately said I need an Ultra Sound of that area. This was news to me as normally they order an x-ray but I now hear that they use ultra sounds for this type of injury. The secretary made a call and I was scheduled for an appointment, again, that same day, for the test.
The test revealed a torn rotator cuff, not a bad tear but a tear nonetheless. He said it would take a long time to heal because, lets face it, we just cannot not use the right arm, especially where I was and what I was doing! He gave me a prescription for an anti-inflammatory. Now, I don’t know about you but I’m not real excited about taking a medication that I can’t read and understand the side effects. But, I took it knowing I had the protection of the almighty on my side, no problem!
Doc also said there was a possibility, very small, that I might need surgery. Ummm NO! That is not happening in Brasil. I would suffer through pain until I get home and then see what my doctors say. After taking this medication for several days, I began to have stomach issues and found out that was one of the side effects of this medication, so doc gives me another medication a medication that had to be injected. The medication was Mobic, go ahead and look it up and tell me that my life is not valuable to my God!
Taking an injectable medication crated a whole new set of problems. Who is going to inject me? None of my teammates were comfortable doing it but Pauline and I would have had her do it but we did find a clinic in the area that would do it. The nurses were students and they were very happy to have a willing “pin cushion” in which to practice, ME! They did a great job and were very friendly. Andre was my translator and the nurses we happy to see him each and every time we walked through the door (he is a good looking young man)Andre was also happy to accompany me as well because the nurses were all very cute!
I must say, the medication helped but it was only a 5 day prescription and soon the pain returned. So then the doc ordered me physical therapy. So, 2 times a week we hopped the bus and trucked downtown for PT.
So all the above doctor visits, ultra sound, medication and PT were not free. So here is a break down on the costs for my torn rotator cuff:
Orthopedic doctor visit= 250. Reias for unlimited visits for 30 days. US $175.
Ultra sound= 125. Reias US $50.
First medication= 25. Reias US $15
Second medication(injectible)=75. Reias US $25
Prilosec( for stomach issues)= 25. Reias US $15
Physical Therapy=25 Reias US $15 per visit.
Actually when I had my initial appointment with the PT department her charge was going to be 50. Reias per visit. Anderson stepped in and began to tell her that we were missionaries and couldn’t afford that much per treatment so she bumped it down to 25 per visit. Now I could never see something like that happening in USA. Pay or hit the road,,,
The above is all estimated amounts but I’m sure they are pretty close to the correct amounts.
I want to thank my contributors to my trip it was because of your generous donations that I was actually able to take care of this situation.
At this point in time, I have had an MRI, and that is a whole other story I may tell sometime. And I’m getting PT by LaBorde Physical Therapists and on my way to complete recovery and NO surgery required!!!
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