Posts by Alex Morales3

velvetbear372 said:Hey there,

I just tried using this new online scheduling system for the first time, but man... they didn't explain a single thing about how it actually works. Like, how am I supposed to know when my appointment is? Where do I even go to see the schedule? My doctor sent me this note:

'Referrals for the clinic and the hospital have been sent. Blood work can be done any weekday between 7-9 AM at the hospital or the clinic—no appointment needed, and referrals are handled electronically.'

So I asked her follow-up questions about the timing, but she didn't really give me a straight answer.

Don't sweat it—for blood work, you don't need an appointment. You just show up wherever you want to get tested, hand your insurance card to the person at the front desk, and you're good to go.

For everything else that actually requires booking (you know, the stuff you *do* need an appointment for), every hospital has its own little way of doing things. Some use email, some have you fill out a form, whatever. You basically just tell them your referral came from the local health center, give them your Medicare ID number, and they pull the digital referral right out of the system. Honestly, even the health center can just book it for you through the portal, so... yeah. There are ways to make it happen.

Honestly, this is one of those rare horror—or mystery, or whatever you want to call it—movies that actually sticks the landing and wraps up the story properly. It doesn’t just leave you hanging. Plus, it dives deep into that psychological territory, looking at how much stuff can mess with a kid's head when they're seeing things they just don't have the context to understand yet.

Look, I totally get why you’re spiraling—when something like this happens, your mind immediately jumps to the absolute worst-case scenario. But honestly? Like we were saying before, it’s probably just some tiny capillaries bursting because your nose has been through the ringer lately. I’m dealing with this brutal cold myself right now—it’s migrated from my nose into my ears, my throat, everywhere—and it just won't quit. My doctor put me on Nasoryl, but after using it for five days, I started seeing blood on my tissue, so I ditched it immediately. When your nasal lining is already all raw and irritated, some of these meds can be way too aggressive for that kind of "terrain," and that's exactly how you end up with those little broken vessels.

Hey everyone! So, I’ve been hit with this nasty sore throat, and now it feels like my sinuses are totally shot—ears are plugged up, and my throat just feels constantly thick and phlegmy, though it doesn't actually hurt. My doctor sent me off for some sinus imaging, and everything looked fine there. Bloodwork was mostly normal too, except for a few things that are acting up:

RBC - 5.88 (4.34 - 5.72)
Iron - 8.8 (11-32)
CRP - 7.5 (0-5)
Neutrophils - 41.7 (44-72)

What do you guys think? She's giving me the whole "it's just a virus" routine, but my ears are still completely blocked. 😢

Sandra Nguyen22 said:Anyway, I'm gonna jump back into my previous post here just in case anyone actually finds this useful.

After dealing with some seriously annoying back-and-forth on the phone, I finally got word from the Mayo Clinic. They said they're doing testing for their own patients—assuming you can actually get an appointment, obviously—but they told me to call back tomorrow or the day after because the whole situation is shifting constantly. It's a total mess.

Yeah, Mayo Clinic has its own little unit for testing their own patients who couldn't snag a regular slot. Luckily, I went about two weeks ago when things weren't such a chaotic nightmare over at Štampar (and that was even on a Sunday!), so everything went smoothly. I have no clue what the wait times for results are like right now or how crazy the scene is today. But honestly, the whole setup is just incredibly awkward. If I were you, I’d probably just head somewhere outside of Chicago to get tested... ☕

bluewolf8 said:Does anyone know if the Mayo Clinic is currently running mammograms for scheduled patients? (My mom got an invite through the national screening program for the Mayo Clinic).

Outpatient clinics are running as usual, and starting Monday, the departments and surgeries will be back in action too. 👍

I was just over at Rebro, and honestly, everything’s running smooth—you just gotta hand them your insurance card or your ID number (it's right there on the card). 👍

Does anyone actually know how the blood draw process works over at Rebro? Like, am I supposed to schedule an appointment ahead of time or can I just show up and hope for the best? Because I shot them an email yesterday—you know, the one specifically for booking appointments—and I haven't heard a single peep back. Total radio silence.

goldenowl15 said:Just a heads-up for everyone, they pushed back my surgery at Rebro. Apparently, they're only handling emergencies and oncology cases right now.

Man, what was your scheduled time?

Just wanted to give you guys a heads-up. I was at the local clinic today getting a bunch of referrals sorted out because I’ve got some stuff I need to take care of. Here’s how the whole thing works: You hit up the clinic, they plug all those referrals right into the system, and then—boom—you just call whichever specialist you want, give them your Social Security number and info, and they set you up an appointment. That’s exactly what the official notice says on the Rebro website, too. I haven't heard back from anyone yet, but I'm pretty sure that's the drill. Basically, you handle everything in person using the ID number on your insurance card, and the rest is all handled digitally through the backend. 😁

I was poking around WebMD earlier, but it seems like their site doesn't update instantly—it takes a bit for things to show up. From what I can tell, that’s where you’re supposed to be able to see all your referrals. It should also show your old test results, any meds they've prescribed, and all that good stuff. For me, it actually shows my upcoming surgery date right now. 😁

cosmicdriver42 said:Hey everyone,
I've got this red referral from the doctor dated August 19, 2020—it's supposed to be good for three months, right? Does anyone actually know for sure?

Yeah, exactly. 🙂

So, I’ve got a question for Rebro. Since they’ve switched over to this whole email ordering system—where you basically scan your prescription and send it off—how is that actually going to work in practice? Like, can you just view your prescription online? I was poking around WebMD and saw stuff about listed meds, scheduled appointments, and all that, but I’m dying to know if anyone here has actually tried navigating this new setup yet.

Also, I’ve got surgery scheduled for October 20th—just found out yesterday—and now I have to hunt down blood work, urine tests, a chest X-ray, and an EKG. Honestly, I'm stressing out because Rebro is always such a chaotic mess. Am I even going to get all this done in time? Or does the way they handle pre-op clearances change now? My surgeon gave me the rundown and told me to handle everything through the local clinic.

It’s nothing like when my mom was at the Mayo Clinic. Back then, they asked her for a specific referral for her pre-op stuff, but she managed to get the whole thing sorted in a single day using internal referrals.

Sandra Johnson78 said:That’s awesome news because I’m actually heading back there tomorrow. What time did you guys go?

Look, I was there last week around 10:00 AM. The line looks massive—you’ll probably have at least 50 people ahead of you—but they’ve got three triage stations running, so things move way faster than you'd think. 😁

From what I’ve heard from everyone chatting in the queue, those three spots are the fastest way to get seen, and tons of people head straight for them even if they don't end up going inside the main white building. 🤔

I swear, I was barely paying attention at first, but then I checked my watch—I’d been standing there for maybe 10 minutes, and suddenly we were already turning onto the next street, cutting along the other side of the building.

David Flores68 said:I'm planning on switching dentists, and they told me I need to fill out some paperwork at their office first and then take it over to Medicare. I was wondering if the process has changed at all because of everything going on with the pandemic? I know some of the Medicare stuff is being handled electronically now.

Honestly, just try hitting them up via email—they'll get back to you with the details. I had to sort some stuff out back in March, and I just scanned all my documents and sent them off—everything got cleared up without a hitch. 😁

There isn't a single soul left who hasn't been absolutely blasted by his sarcasm, insults, and straight-up nonsense regarding this topic.

It’s honestly pathetic—people come here to vent about something crappy that happened to them during their day, looking for a bit of empathy, and instead, they get hit by someone acting like Pontius Pilate, just kicking them while they're down, mocking them, and flat-out humiliating them. I’ve reported a whole string of his posts a while back, but nothing ever happens... ☕

He drags every single debate into these absurd, toxic extremes, dodging any actual logic when he can't back himself up, and then has the nerve to label everyone else as idiots or blame them for everything... Why are we even allowing this level of unchecked arrogance toward an entire group of people? This harassment has been dragging on way too long, and at the end of the day, we all look like fools for putting up with it—all because of one single user.

Seriously, it’s like every single thread I stumble upon where Pilatus has chimed in somehow morphs into "everyone vs. Pilatus." This guy joins a forum that’s literally built for exchanging ideas, debating, and just hanging out, yet all he does is stir the pot, provoke people, try to force his "correct" opinions down everyone's throats, and just straight-up disrespect folks—both directly and through those annoying little jabs. Look, it's totally normal if two users get into it and bicker over different topics now and then, but this isn't that. This is one specific user who targets a certain group of people. Everywhere he goes, he leaves a trail of chaos behind him. So, honestly, what's the actual problem here? ☕

I am 100% with you—it's ridiculous to expect us to just "not overreact" or to just ignore his comments and move on... The guy is fundamentally breaking the forum and ruining the experience for everyone else, and then we're the ones forced to defend ourselves only to end up getting banned or whatever.

Signed. ☕

Hey everyone.
So, I’ve been dying to know—does anyone actually know where I can get my hands on an Iron Cross?
Look, I have this buddy of mine who is a total, unapologetic COD addict—like, we're talking "doesn't sleep, lives in Call of Duty" levels of obsessed—and his birthday is coming up. I figured this would be the absolute perfect gift for him.
Seriously though, if you know anything, hit me up in a PM ASAP. Thanks in advance! 🙂