Examination

A few weeks ago my doctor found a couple skin growths he wanted a specialist to examine. He did his best to assure me this was standard procedure and there was little chance they'd find anything wrong. Honestly, I wasn't really worried. One of the benefits of dealing with a chronic medical condition and having good insurance is that I see my doctor on a regular basis (well, I guess you can call it a benefit). Most issues are discovered, diagnosed and treated quickly. And if there's one thing I've always been grateful for, it's that there have been very few of those issues.

My appointment with the specialist was on the 17th. I spent more time in the waiting room than I spent with the doctor (that's often the case, isn't it?). He walked into the examination room in his white coat with my chart attached to the clipboard in his hand. There was little conversation - it pretty much went like this:

Doc: "I've reviewed your chart. Would you show me the area your physician is concerned about?"

Me: "Ok."

He took a quick look , said he wanted biopsy, assured me it was standard procedure, there was nothing to worry about and asked if I had any questions.

Me: "What's involved in the biopsy?"

Doc: "We just remove the tissue then send it to a lab for examination."
Me: "How long will it take to receive results?"

Doc: "Seven-to-ten days."

Me: "How long will it take to heal?"

Doc: "A few weeks."

Me: "Okay."

I'm not one to get stressed out about something like this. No need spend time worrying about something that's a "possibility" when I will have a factual answer in seven-to-ten days. So I went out, made an appointment for the 24th for the in-patient procedure and went back to work.

The procedure went quickly but wasn't exactly pleasant. He provided a local anesthetic but, honestly, it didn't seem to do much. Well, it probably kept me from screaming but my jaw was clenched the entire time and I think I may have yelped once. Like I said, it was over quickly though. Thankfully. In those few minutes, I came to understand how easy it would be to tell an inquisitor anything under the duress of torture.

Fast forward another week and the results were in (I know, I know, the only reason you've read this far is to find out if they found anything, right?).

All clear. Nothing to worry about. Just need to keep an eye out for any irregular growth in moles and stuff. Hoping I don't find another though - I really don't want to experience those few minutes of pain again. Yes, it's true... I'm a wimp.

Still healing though and, to my dismay, that has kept me out of the saddle. I'm hoping to be riding again in another week. Fingers crossed.