An increasing number of people are having their NHS rose tinted spectacles smashed into painful fragments. Trusting that the doctor and the system he or she works in will be there for you and provide adequate care has become an act of deluded self harm. However even the most hardened and vociferous critics of the NHS like myself tend to expect that one would get some help with a medical emergency in a hospital emergency department. The clue is in the name right? Sadly my recent experience proved to me that the NHS uses language akin to Orwell’s Big Brother, I.e. totally detached from reality.
So sorry to read this Romy.....my mum is currently having tests for bowel cancer, having been fobbed off for 18 months with "oh it's just piles". I could scream. Time to tell the truth. The nhs is shit.
Saying the NHS is broken doesn’t even come close to the appalling state of affairs our healthservice is in! I’m so sorry for your poor Mum 💔 Hope she will be ok xx
Just a thought - your pain, is it like jolts of electricity through your upper jaw? If yes, then it could well be Trigeminal Neuralgia (TN). Otherwise, check out Temporomandibular Joint Disorders (TMD, TMJ). I hope you get a diagnosis and effective treatment soon!
Forgive the intrusion but I had a similar pain in my upper left jaw for ages, over 3 years. Eventually my dentist offered to drill in to a tooth and sure enough there was an abscess in the root. This is not meant to alarm you. The root and abscess was removed and I had 2 courses of antibiotics but it was a massive relief. X-rays etc had not identified this. Later the tooth broke in half and was tidied up to a stump awaiting an implant. It is still like that because I won’t go along with pandemic restrictions or spend my savings in these uncertain times.
No intrusion at all! Thank you for your comment. Actually the second dentist I saw thought it might be a persistent infection. I have been on very strong antibiotics and the tooth was removed a few weeks ago. Unfortunately the pain has persisted. I have recently learnt that there may be a way for me to get a scan on the NHS without waiting weeks, months or longer. If that doesn’t work I will have to fork out for a private CT scan as the pain really is intolerable.
Actually I am sure my pain was not as bad as yours! but a constant dull pain. I was of course private. A wonderful practice with a Bulgarian married couple who were also qualified doctors. I don’t think they practices as doctors here in the UK though. Hospital Car Parks are indeed nightmares. I just can’t understand why there is not competition to the NHS in general health here. I just remember how much better private dentistry was than NHS where there were always standing room only long waits in waiting rooms and much more stressed staff. The NHS is a crisis service and overall a most horrible experience always I feel. It can not possibly be reformed. I have raised blood pressure, surely an area where the private sector could easily offer a much better service quite reasonably like dentistry.
So sorry to read this Romy.....my mum is currently having tests for bowel cancer, having been fobbed off for 18 months with "oh it's just piles". I could scream. Time to tell the truth. The nhs is shit.
Saying the NHS is broken doesn’t even come close to the appalling state of affairs our healthservice is in! I’m so sorry for your poor Mum 💔 Hope she will be ok xx
Thanks Romy, we're crossing everything. Hope you get sorted, constant pain is dreadful x
Just a thought - your pain, is it like jolts of electricity through your upper jaw? If yes, then it could well be Trigeminal Neuralgia (TN). Otherwise, check out Temporomandibular Joint Disorders (TMD, TMJ). I hope you get a diagnosis and effective treatment soon!
Forgive the intrusion but I had a similar pain in my upper left jaw for ages, over 3 years. Eventually my dentist offered to drill in to a tooth and sure enough there was an abscess in the root. This is not meant to alarm you. The root and abscess was removed and I had 2 courses of antibiotics but it was a massive relief. X-rays etc had not identified this. Later the tooth broke in half and was tidied up to a stump awaiting an implant. It is still like that because I won’t go along with pandemic restrictions or spend my savings in these uncertain times.
No intrusion at all! Thank you for your comment. Actually the second dentist I saw thought it might be a persistent infection. I have been on very strong antibiotics and the tooth was removed a few weeks ago. Unfortunately the pain has persisted. I have recently learnt that there may be a way for me to get a scan on the NHS without waiting weeks, months or longer. If that doesn’t work I will have to fork out for a private CT scan as the pain really is intolerable.
Thank you for reading my substack! 🙏🏽
Actually I am sure my pain was not as bad as yours! but a constant dull pain. I was of course private. A wonderful practice with a Bulgarian married couple who were also qualified doctors. I don’t think they practices as doctors here in the UK though. Hospital Car Parks are indeed nightmares. I just can’t understand why there is not competition to the NHS in general health here. I just remember how much better private dentistry was than NHS where there were always standing room only long waits in waiting rooms and much more stressed staff. The NHS is a crisis service and overall a most horrible experience always I feel. It can not possibly be reformed. I have raised blood pressure, surely an area where the private sector could easily offer a much better service quite reasonably like dentistry.