DOT Physical

Those of you who've been following this blog will understand why I found the Dr.'s comment so funny. But first, a little background.

In order to drive commercially, I am required to get a DOT physical every year. Normally it's every two, but since my blood pressure is being medicated, I'm required to do it every year. Lately our company has been really attentive to the date when the renewal is due, and if a day lapses, tough luck, you're out. Bring in the proof. Last night was my date to stop in.

My vision was checked, the one thing I had been a little unsure of before last weekend. Road signs had been getting blurry, and I figured after about 5 years I was due to get new glasses. The questions for the optometrist were whether I would now need glasses to drive (not yet), and whether the blurriness was the first signal of my own onset of macular degeneration, a particular nightmare of mine with Dad's history. Luckily, no sign of that, but I've gotten an astigmatism and the barest inkling of cataracts starting, something likely not to be noticeable until years after retirement. WHEW! I went into the physical without concern.

They take vitals, check hearing, go over your illness and injury history. I had to do knee bends to prove that I was still capable, even with my handicap status, of checking the undercarriage of my bus during the safety check. I explained my bus was a hatchback, but he persisted in thinking I drove for the school system. Whatever. I passed.

His particular concern was my rotator cuff injury. Could I really handle a steering wheel with enough strength to maintain control of a vehicle? We went through some strength and range of motion tests, which I also passed, though not without pain. Yesterday had been a relatively good day, the first one in three weeks where I had started to think it was finally healing. Good enough that I'm starting to back off on the ibuprofin levels.

But before going through the testing of my arm, while noticing I was holding it in a least-painful position and reading my chart for what was going on, he turned and asked me, "Are you sure you want to take your DOT physical today? Don't you want to wait until after you've recovered from the surgery?"

Surgery? My young doctor got a quick lesson in the facts of life.