ksquest

My hands don't always look this awful.

The middle joints on the first two fingers got huge red swellings a week ago. The rheumatologist thinks it's infectious. The dermatologist thinks it's arthritis. So do I, but I won't place a bet. The big lumps aren't showing much in this pic, they're on the left side of the knuckles.

There's a big swollen area toward the outside of the hand, below the pinkie. A big vein shows. That's from an IV a week before Christmas. It got infiltrated and spasmed. I can't use the pinkie, the tendon is affected from fingertip to mid-forearm. It was so huge and red for a while that I ran off to the ID doctor, worried I had MRSA in the tendon sheath again. But no. Just a spasm. For six weeks now. Does it hurt? Like a sonuvabitch. My right hand is nearly useless.

I tell phlebotomists, --I know everyone says this, but I'm a hard stick. Don't even think about using the arm, there's nothing there for you. The hand veins usually work but they'll roll, shrink, collapse, spasm, and try to dive under the nearest muscle or tendon or bone. And say horrible curse words at you, too. Just ignore that. Tell 'em who's boss.

OTOH: If I say Stop, then stop.

I almost never do. But if I do, and they don't, they're fired. I politely but adamantly ask for someone else. Brick wall time.