Today was a red letter day as we say in the U.S. A banner day, for many reasons. When I read my horoscope for today it was depressing. It said I would have this information thrown at me, and not to worry. I would have time to think about it before making a decision. Considering the current status of my body, all I could think of was being chained to that stupid wheel chair another month or two.
First stop was the dentist. Most of you don't know this, but part of the reason I did not move here sooner was because my illustrious dentist in San Francisco (a past president of the San Francisco Dental Society and a teacher at UCSF) screwed up big time. In the words of one lawyer who looked at my chart "She shouldn't be allowed to practice anymore."
Fast forward and after 2 years at UCSF in the postgrad school, 4 bone transplants, grafts, and two failed implants, I had enough of them. Hasta la vista baby and onward to Buenos Aires. OK, I wrote a spam about this (In my old Yahoo Group TangoSpam). The dentists here were blown away by the procedures they used at UCSF. None agreed that I could not have an implant.
Soooo here I am after 9 months with my dentist Lucas with the dreamy blue eyes. He thinks I have enough bone to try another implant. Good news. Another procedure was used, I had a zillion different types of x-rays never given to me at UCSF, and he thinks in a couple of months I will be ready. At least I stopped holding my breath on this one.
Unlike most American health care providers Argentines tend to go all over the globe for further education. Lucas has taken classes in the U.S., Spain, and France. The same with some of my other doctors. He has reconstructed the mouths of some of our art work in Iraq. People who have lost their teeth to ....use your imagination.
After this good news, a hug and kiss from Lucas' mom (also a dentist) I felt fortified to see my new orthopedist. There is a clinic in Club Amigos that is highly regarded. They are sports medicine for cardiology and orthopedia.
As the remise drove onto the grounds of Club Amigo I felt like I was in a small city or a college campus. It is gated. The grounds are beautiful. Beautiful brick buildings house different types of activities. Tennis courts, swimming pools, squash, rugby, futbol, are just a few of the things happening here. There is even a store, restaurant, and gas station.
We pulled into the parking lot of the clinic. The front had a small gym for rehab. It is supervised by highly trained people. (Something not usual here.) Me and my crutches pushed through the door. Unlike all the other doctor's offices I had been too, this one was really nice. It was almost like being in the U.S. again where doctors spend more time picking out their waiting rooms than seeing their patients.
I had to fill out a form for my health. Something else unusual. This was the first time for me. But then this clinic is affiliated with one in the U.S. I was escorted back to a consulting room by a short chubby doctor who introduced himself to me as "Manuel." I was surprised because I had an appointment with the director.
He is a friend of one of my other doctors. It was the only way to get in to see him. Manuel told me he was basically doing the legwork for the other doctor. He asked me lots of questions. He didn't seem to like my answers. Unfortunately I could not make up new ones, as these were the truth.
Time for the exam. He beat up my knee. Then he proceeded to twist my leg in several directions. At least he stopped before I kicked him in the face. He got all excited. Maybe he is sadistic and likes to inflict pain. Who knows. I love it when they ask "Duele?" (Pain) No, I always feel like this when I am having fun, what the hell does he think? Then I had to do all these reaching things which I could barely do. He took my x-rays and said he would return with EL DOCTOR.
Enter EL DOCTOR with the "el doctorito" following. EL DOCTOR introduced himself. He proceeded to also kill me, only he smiled when he did it. These guys must get extreme pleasure twisting my leg in ways it does not want to go. We sat down at the desk after he was done torturing me. "You are a very lucky lady" he tells me. "Most women who fracture their hip in this place need surgery and are down for 6 months to a year. Because you dance, walk and work out, you are very strong. The fracture never separated."
I am hanging on every word. "So what does this mean?" I ask him. He gives his best concerned doctor look and leans forward. "You can start to resume your life. You can walk, go to the gym and use the stationary bike." I cannot believe I am hearing this. "When can I dance?" I ask. EL DOCTOR looks at me and says "You can start to walk gently. Most likely in a month you can start your steps of tango."
"I can walk? Really?" I ask him. EL DOCTOR looks at my crutches. "Yes, but on four legs. You must use the crutches for support." I break into a big smile, "Dos por cuartro!" Puedo bailar.....
Thank you for sharing this story. It is very interesting life you had there at Buenos Aires. I don't have much money as young designer for the moment, but always hope that someday I would have the money to see the world.
Posted by: Dental Marketing | May 06, 2008 at 03:51 AM