- This topic has 19 replies, 11 voices, and was last updated 14 years, 2 months ago by
.
-
Posts
-
Will be going to Ida Grove for Feb 15. Any helpful hints about the area would be appreciated. We are driving from Toronto Canada. About a 17 hour drive each way. Leaving on Feb 13, arriving in Ida Grove on the 14th. My appointment is on the 15th.
Which hotel in Ida Grove did you like the best. Just looking for something clean and moderately priced. Thanks for your help. Kathy
My husband and I stayed at the Super 8–clean, very reasonable, and close to the hospital. There's not too many choices for food in Ida Grove but, my husband and I ventured out about 20 miles south to a little city (can't remember the name but, the ladies at the infusion center will be able to tell you–just ask about the good Mexican restaurant everyone goes to, and the coffee/espresso shop). We found better restaurants in that area. There's also a place that's ok (if you have no dietary restrictions) right down the street from the Hotel. My husand had a burger at the bowling alley in Ida Grove–which he said wasn't great, but was good.
Oh…..my husband just reminded me that we went to a cute little Bed and Breakfast, that was 15 minutes West of Ida Grove, that has a 4 star restaurant (reasonably priced) in it! The food was really good, and the owners were fantastic. The french onion soup was great!!
They also have a nice workout facility, if you're up for that–it's near the hospital. Drive safe, and the best of luck to you with your iv's. Let us know how you're doing, and if you have any other questions.
[user=496]kathygirl[/user] wrote:
Will be going to Ida Grove for Feb 15. Any helpful hints about the area would be appreciated. We are driving from Toronto Canada. About a 17 hour drive each way. Leaving on Feb 13, arriving in Ida Grove on the 14th. My appointment is on the 15th.
Which hotel in Ida Grove did you like the best. Just looking for something clean and moderately priced. Thanks for your help. Kathy
Kathy,
http://rbfbb.org/view_topic.php?id=340&forum_id=1
The above link has a lot of information. It's a little outdated but most of the stuff mentioned there are almost unchanged, like hotel, places to eat, things to do in Ida Grove.
Perhaps you can update very thing based on your experiences.
Good luck!
JB
Hi Kathy,
I have an appt. with Dr. S on Feb 15th too! My appt. is at 9:30. I hope I see you there! I live just an hour-and-a-half away from Ida Grove, so am lucky that way. Will you be there about the same time?
Have a safe trip.
Sharon
You two can visit in the infusion room because you don't have appt times there. You just go in twice a day with at least a 6-hr interval.
We WILL be expecting a picture. 😀
Good luck……kim
I stayed at the super 8 and it was clean and nice. some rooms even have a recliner which was nice to relax in after the infusions. as for food, i loved the restaraunt the family table which was next door. drive safe and god bless!
Kim,
I'm not positive I'm going to have the infusions. My husband is against me having them after my regular rheumy told us it could be dangerous for me to have the antibiotics IV due to my ill health. He was okay with the oral, but not the IV. So I'm not going to Ida Grove planning on having the infusion done.
I guess I'm thinking of starting on the oral if Dr. S is okay with that. Will see what he says.
Sharon
[user=1956]sjess[/user] wrote:
I'm not positive I'm going to have the infusions. My husband is against me having them after my regular rheumy told us it could be dangerous for me to have the antibiotics IV due to my ill health. He was okay with the oral, but not the IV. So I'm not going to Ida Grove planning on having the infusion done.
Hi Sharon,
Did your rheumy give you a reason why IV clindamycin would be dangerous to your health? Your hubby sounds very caring and no wonder he is concerned after hearing that.
Hopefully, Dr S can put your mind at rest about this when you go to visit him. He's seen some pretty advanced rheumatic cases and the large majority of all who go to him, go specifically for the IV therapy. He's had patients on the point of organ failure turn their rheumatic diseases around on IV therapy, but please don't take my word for it…he'll be able to share more of his experience with you. 😉
Rheumies who do not believe in infectious causes for our diseases will say the most extraordinary things about antibiotic therapy and we hear them every day here. Just be sure to write down all your questions so you can make the most of your time with this very experienced physician. I should take a leaf out of that book myself! I had two burning questions I meant to ask my doc last week and only remembered them on the drive home!!! :blush:
Peace, Maz
Did your rheumy give you a reason why IV clindamycin would be dangerous to your health? Your hubby sounds very caring and no wonder he is concerned after hearing that.
Hi Maz,
To tell you the truth I'm pretty distressed over this. My rheumy said that I shouldn't be placed on a high dose of IV antibiotics. So I questioned him about how high was a high dose. Then he said I shouldn't be on any IV. Then he said if I were “normal” (which I think he meant healthier) it would be okay. He said something about the antibiotics killing off something in my system that was needed so I wouldn't be open to other problems. I was so full of doubts and didn't take him seriously so I didn't think to get more details (he was walking out of the room when he said this!), but my husband heard it loud and clear. I thought, “he doesn't even know what Dr. S would give me, how can he say that?”
I'm really distressed because I want to do this the way others have had success and I read that article Dr. S wrote about starting with the IV is better. I don't think I can change Steve's mind. The only person who can do that is Dr. S (or my reg. rheumy and that ain't gonna happen). I asked my hubby to stay open to the possibility of me getting the IV. He didn't say anything, so I don't know whether he is remaining open to what Dr. S says or not. He is not a very verbal person so it is difficult to talk things over with him. :headbang:
The only compromise I could think of was to start out with the oral and see how it goes. Not my first choice if Dr. S recommends IV. I'll see how it goes. Steve has told me that it is up to me what treatment I do, so he would go along with it…not very happily though. I'm REALLY hoping Dr. S can help us work this out.
Thanks for your suggestion on writing down questions. GREAT idea. Hadn't put that on my list.
It is really good to have you guys to talk things over with!
Sharon
Thankyou everyone for your input. will call super 8 today for a room.
Sharon I will look for you. Dr. S said to be there for 9;30 or 10;00.
Eggs we downloaded the menu from the family Table resturant. The plans are coming together.
Hopefully the weather will be good. Kathy
[user=496]kathygirl[/user] wrote:
Will be going to Ida Grove for Feb 15. Any helpful hints about the area would be appreciated. We are driving from Toronto Canada. About a 17 hour drive each way. Leaving on Feb 13, arriving in Ida Grove on the 14th. My appointment is on the 15th.
Which hotel in Ida Grove did you like the best. Just looking for something clean and moderately priced. Thanks for your help. Kathy
Kathy,
It's been quite a while since I went to Ida Grove every six months for 2-1/2 years. There was only one motel then, but the owners endeared themselves to many of us.
I found an older post I did a year or two ago, and am pasting it below. Good luck on your journey. To go there (all the way from NE Texas) those 2-1/2 years was one of the best decisions I ever made!!!
Excerpt from the older post (a search on the name of it will probably give you an 800 number if you'd like to call both; if you don't find it, just PM me and I can find the #):
I went there soon after I was diagnosed with RA or Lupus or MCTD (was the MCTD, I'm pretty sure — labs showed RA, but diagnosing rheumy where I live said it was not RA… go figure). I went every 6 months over the next 2-1/2 years. I had amazing results which began about 4 months after the initial period of die-off and herxing. I had read the book, and knew that these trying things would happen. It was, no doubt, one of the best decisions I've ever made to go there.
I believe reading the experiences of others who've gone there will reassure you. The [highlight= #ffff88]Delux [highlight= #88ffff]Motel was the only one in town when I was going. It was immaculately clean and the owners very helpful and friendly. Regardless of where you stay, you might like to stop by there and sit in the little lobby and read some of the composition books filled with patients' stories who stayed there while having treatment. I started the first one (at about my 5th trip there), but never had to return and never got to read them.
Good luck to you,
AF
[user=1956]sjess[/user] wrote:
To tell you the truth I'm pretty distressed over this. My rheumy said that I shouldn't be placed on a high dose of IV antibiotics. So I questioned him about how high was a high dose. Then he said I shouldn't be on any IV. Then he said if I were “normal” (which I think he meant healthier) it would be okay. He said something about the antibiotics killing off something in my system that was needed so I wouldn't be open to other problems. I was so full of doubts and didn't take him seriously so I didn't think to get more details (he was walking out of the room when he said this!), but my husband heard it loud and clear. I thought, “he doesn't even know what Dr. S would give me, how can he say that?”
Hi Sharon,
I completely understand why you'd feel distressed. I had a similiar experience with a orthopedic doctor who had come very highly recommended for sports-related injuries for my daughter. He had me in tears (ridiculing me in front of my daughter) driving home from an appt that wasn't even for me, but this doctor made the appt about me and my choice of therapy. I fired him and never took my daughter back there!
I came across this video on YouTube last night and you might find what this lady says very insightful and comforting. I don't know who she is and just stumbled on her video, but she talks about how sick people with autoimmunity must become their own advocates, because the physicians only give bleak prognoses and more meds that only make us sicker in the long run. She offers very wise advice as someone who had been sick for many years and learned the hard way.
Many folk have got well again on just oral therapy (myself included and I was very severe). Brown actually recommended and used IVs for folk who had longstanding disease and were very severe with excellent results….so that probably speaks for itself. I do wish I could have had access to IVs in the beginning, as I think it would have jumpstarted my therapy and may have sped up the process…but I still got well on just orals. Dr S. is a lovely man, from what I understand, and if anyone can explain IV therapy to you and its benefits for rheumatic disease, it will be him. His success rates really speak for themselves.
What is so hard not to take to heart is the attitude of doctors (whom we are taught to hold in high regard) who make off-handed proclaimations to patients as if they were some kind of prophet! Everyone who has been around on this forum for any length of time has heard every permutation of every excuse not to try AP….it only works in mild cases, it's just a weak DMARD, it only works in early cases, it only works in late disease, its only worth trying as a last resort, it's dangerous (but safe enough to give to kids for acne? :shock:), blah, blah, blah….the list is endless. I was looking through past RBF newsletters from about 10 years ago yesterday and nearly every story that was documented had very sick patients who had doctors who all told them these things….but these same folk all got well and were telling their remarkable stories of recovery on AP…some who had been sick for decades before finding the therapy.
The only thing I can imagine that your rheumy was alluding to is that is that IV antibiotics may kill off your gut bacteria, which is true. This is why we all take probiotics! 🙂 Have you ever been prescribed antibiotics by your doctor? Does he/she ever recommend taking probiotics to protect your gut? I don't think any doc (other than my Lyme doc) has ever told me to take probiotics with an antibiotic…for me or my kids when we've had strep or some other infection. In fact, many of the other DMARDs affect gut bacteria (sulphasalzine, methotrexate, etc), too, but they don't tell anyone to take probiotics with those drugs either. :sick: I think the trouble is that docs who don't understand AP and its rationalehave these fears, because they don't know how to manage patients on AP. Fortunately, you are going to one of the absolute best AP docs in the US and he's also a good, kind man…so even if you don't decide on IVs right away, he should be able to put your mind at rest about their efficacy and the rationale for their use.
Have a good trip to Ida Grove, Sharon, and enjoy every moment of the caring, nurturing environment that Dr S and his staff provide. I have a feeling that you'll feel very uplifted and hopeful after having spoken to this doc. Hope is very important on our road back. 😀 You have the hearts of many here going with you.
Peace, Maz
edited to remove doctor's last name
Hi Maz,
Thanks so much for your words.
I had to smile when you talked about what people have heard from their doctors about AP. This same rheumy I saw very politely looked at me, smiled, patted me on the back and said, “It won't help you.” I suppose he was thinking I was deluded and needed to be pitied. 😕 I really like him and fortunately I had enough confidence in AP that I didn't take what he said to heart. I just figured he has his biases just like all of us. But to say that to someone…wow. You would think by now they would know enough to know they don't know everything!
I would do the IVs right now if I didn't have my husband's feelings to consider. I had an appt. with another doctor today and he said exactly what you said, that the antibiotics can kill off the helpful bacteria and then the unfriendly bacteria can cause problems. I think that is what has my husband so concerned. I told him about taking the probiotics. He just listened and didn't say anything. Hopefully when we see Dr. S he will explain that to my husband.
I'm not afraid to go against my husband, I would just prefer him being on the same page with me. It sure makes life easier. And I want to acknowledge his thoughts and feelings.
I really appreciate the attitude I am getting from this board which is so true. These doctors act like they need to save the antibiotics in case we get something really bad we might need them for, and we already are really bad! Hello 😯
I'm so glad to know you got better on just the oral. That's so encouraging to me and to know others have seen their disease turn around after being ill for a long time. That is great to hear! :roll-laugh:
Sharon
Please, please have your husband read Scammell's book it is absolutely the best and when my husband and I read it there was no doubt what our decision was, AP was the only hope we had for recovery. He has been on AP oral only since april of 2009 and we see signs of reversal every day. Please read the book.
The topic ‘ Where to stay and eat in Ida Grove.’ is closed to new replies.