As some of you may know, on November 2nd, I hurt my neck at the gym. It didn’t feel different than other times in the past when I turned it the wrong way, but after two days, I ended up going to the Emergency Room. BIG mistake. Growing up, playing sports, I had many trips to the emergency room. Throughout college, two more that I can remember. While living in Boulder, another two that come to mind. In our first five or so years in LA, I had been accident free… or perhaps I just toughened up and dealt with issues myself. I don’t know why I decided to head to the ER at Cedars-Sinai on November 4th. The doctor, who I won’t name, was your typical doctor. To be honest, I haven’t cared much for any of my doctors in the past. I give credit to one chiropractor and one eye doctor that I’ve worked with; everyone else seemed like a robot, or some kind of societal drone. This man was no exception and did nothing other than tell me to be careful, write some useless prescriptions and order some tests.
One of the prescriptions was written incorrectly, so I never got pain meds. The muscle relaxants and anti-inflammatories lasted for about 5 days, seemed to do nothing other than cause worse side effects and my trip to the ER was nothing more than a waste of 2 hours, some test results that told me what I already knew, no good advice from a doctor that seemed to know no more than I do and a bill. Well, actually there were two bills. The first bill came from Cedars-Sinai quickly after my visit. It was about $500 and my insurance, Cigna, covered half, so I paid the remaining $250. (I don’t like owing money.) To be honest, it seemed low, but was provided in a vague way that made it seem like it might actually be all the expenses. Well, I was wrong, and just received a second bill… for nearly $12,000. Cigna covered about $10,000, which left a balance of $2,000 to be paid.
Apparently, the first bill was just what I owe the doctor. It is unbelievable to think that he made $500 for his three minutes of uselessness, but I guess he needs to pay off his student loans somehow. It is equally unbelievable to know that one CT scan was nearly $6,000 and being in the ER for between an hour or two (about 95% of the time we were waiting or alone) cost another $6,000. The drugs… the few painkillers they gave me in the ER were only a few hundred dollars. I’m not sure if every hospital is as expensive as Cedars, but I know I won’t be returning there. The staff was nice, but not very helpful. As I mentioned, I left in no better shape, with almost no more information than I came in with. The CT scans showed herniated discs, but I knew that was the case. I could feel it. The doctor recommended that I follow up with a spinal specialist in a week or two and I am glad that I did not waste my time or money with that.
My instincts steered me in the wrong direction that first time but kicked back in afterwards. I avoid doctors for the most part and think that we’re best suited and most responsible for taking care of our own mental and physical health. I, with Alana and the animal’s help, nursed myself back to health. I created my own PT, administered my own massages, researched supplements to help and have recovered a lot. My November was absolutely awful as a result of this injury, but now my December is starting off on an awful track due to this ridiculous bill. I’ll pay it and never return to Cedars or that doctor. I’ll also try to avoid any other instance where I’ll need to use my Cigna insurance, since it really is not very good. I’ll continue to work out every day, eat healthy, supplement properly, take care of my mental health and focus on recovery. That is exactly what got me through this. The doctors, insurance and hospital did nothing, which I’ve found is almost always the case… at least with all of my injuries, accidents and illnesses.
Focus on taking care of yourself and prevent yourself from falling into these traps that exist in our society. I would have much rather used those $2,500 to buy more gifts for people during the holidays or donated them to my favorite charities, but I’ll take a loss on this one. Lesson learned; just don’t repeat the same mistakes twice. Stay hungry and fit!
Editor’s note: Some people DO need to go to the emergency room to get help, so if you’re in serious trouble, do what you gotta do!
