My daughter was on her way to work last week and stopped for a milkshake at a fast food restaurant. (bad idea, I know) Within 20 minutes she was violently ill. On the news that night was an expose of the very fast food restaurant location she had been to. They were caught on tape using the slop bucket they used for cleaning bathrooms etc. to empty out the milkshake machine while they cleaned it, and then pour the milkshake mix (in the contaminated slop bucket) back into the machine.
Apparently there was also a group of kids from an after school program that had a party there that same day. Most had icecream, and most were absent from school the next day. So I guess they use the same method to clean the icecream machine as well.
She freaked out, of course, and called the corporate office demanding to know what she had been exposed to. They said little, but she got a return call from the vp of the company over the weekend, who left a message on her voicemail telling her not to talk to anyone else until she talked to him.
She went to her doctor and he did a full blood workup on her. She was very sick for about 5 days. (of course her nerves probably contributed to that) She couldn't eat either. So today she was notified that the test results were in. The doctor told her he needed to see her immediatly. He would tell her nothing over the phone. So of course she freaked out and jumped to the worst conclusions possible. She left work immediatly, and called me. I stayed on the phone with her as she drove, trying to keep her as calm as possible. She sobbed most of the way. The doctor's office is a good 30 minute drive from where she works.
Once she got there, she said she'd call back after she talked to the doctor. I had to be in a meeting regarding changes in the state building code for the next 3 hours. I have no idea what was said in the meeting. Finally, about an hour into the meeting, I excused myself and went outside to call her. She had just left the doctor's office.
The doctor told her that she had had food poisoning (already knew that from the first visit) She will need to return periodically over the next year to make sure nothing shows up that wasn't detected this time. ....and he informed her that she has a condition. Detected early, and it's not life threatening but she will require treatment. (no it's not an std...or cancer....and I'm not posting it because it would invade her privacy.
So the crisis has passed for the moment. I've been on pins and needles this past week...waiting for the results. It's crazy, but I am actually kind of relieved...because who knows what she could have been exposed to. At least this is treatable...
...and the thing is, if she hadn't had that contaminated milkshake, she would not have gone to her doctor to have blood work done...and she would not have found out this early.
I'm still trying to make sense of it.... Not sure what I'm feeling...anger or relief or what...I have pent up energy that I don't know what to do with. I don't think I will sleep well tonight.
Coffee