1309 November 7, 2025 Jacksonville Mayo Clinic

We got back last night and got ready for bed.  Tim’s hips were really bothering him and he was not able to get comfortable.  At around 10pm, we decided that we should go and get some medical help.  We had talked with our son, David, earlier in the day and he had recommended that we go to the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville if we felt like Tim needed to be seen.  We arrived at the emergency room at 10:40pm.  The waiting room looked pretty quiet and we were hopeful that we would get in to see the doctor fairly quickly. 

We did not realize that this was a 65 bed ER.  After 3 hours, they took us back to a bed…hallway bed #32.  All of the other treatment rooms were full.  We were seen by a doctor who did an evaluation.  After lots of questions and the exam, he thought that the hip pain was a result of some issue in Tim’s back.  Lab work, x-rays, and a CT scan were ordered.  In the meantime, medications were given; a muscle relaxant, steroids, and, an IV NSAID.

Test results showed some arthritis in his hips and lumbar spine, some herniated disks, and most importantly, some narrowing that was causing some nerve impingement which was the source of the pain.  None of this was a surprise after 40 years of what he did for a living.  We left the hospital at 5:30am.  The sky was just beginning to lighten. 

Even though we were in a hallway/makeshift treatment area and we were there for about 7 hours, we had excellent care.  We also were able to rule out lots of nasty things and we had a clear diagnosis.  I am so glad that we went.  The best news was that Tim was actually able to walk, albeit gingerly, from the ER out to the curb, where I was waiting to pick him up.  The medications worked to help to get him moving a little better.

We got back to the RV at about 6am.  Reluctantly, we texted Curtis to cancel our lunch plans and we fell into bed.

Tim got up first.  What a relief to see him up and moving around!  He was able to do some stretching and icing.

I went to pick up prescriptions and a few groceries and I may have found a place to get a pedicure!

Tim did some walking in the campground and even did some pedaling on his bike.

We both had solid naps this afternoon.

We are so grateful that we were in a place where we had access to an amazing medical facility and that things are moving in a positive direction!