Gatewood Press

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Cornered

While I’ve got you metaphysically cornered, I’m going to tell you a crazy uncle story. Stay with me, at least I haven’t cornered you at a family gathering, leaning in close, slightly drunk, with garlic on my breathe and operating under the impression I’m more witty, charming, and handsome than I really am. But it’s still a crazy uncle story because it’s about my medication, which is like, oh, seriously? Here goes.

During my Covid scare I got a steroid, and while it’s helping me get better, it’s also making me perky and sometimes at the wrong time of day. Like last night when I woke up at one and had the devil’s own time getting back to sleep. Plus, I had a touch of acid reflux, which was uncomfortable and may be tied to the drug or the tomato I ate on my bacon and tomato sandwich I had for dinner rather than the fried fish I was going to have because my daughter on the phone opined, as I was driving home to fry it, that it might be a bit late to eat fried food.

Even given all that, I’m still glad to have the steroid because it did make me feel better, and for that I have my doctor to thank. Because even though I was in for a Covid test, she’s seen me so much that she also knows I have sinus problems and a cough with a slight fever is hardly unusual. Which is where I tell you that everyone should have a family doctor who knows your history, because history is important in medicine and helps get you taken care of. At which point, you can now slip out from the corner, say thank you, Uncle John and go back to the party.

John W. Wilson is the author of The Long Goodbye: A Caregiver’s Tale