Stranded and frustrated

After being stranded here in Rhodes by my ex wife to avoid me contesting the divorce , the dwp stopped my ESA so I was stranded without possibility of returning to UK or buying my Meds for c.o.p.d so for three years six months I had nothing and obviously my c.o.p.d got progressively worse to the point of me blacking out repetitively I've finally be put on Brimca and Milfinide inhalers which initially worked for around a month and stopped my hypoxic attacks but now their back with vengeance . Feel isolated and frustrated .

[Troilus]

I’m not at all surprised you are feeling lonely and isolated! What a terrible position to be in. Have you contacted the British Embassy? I understand they can be very helpful in getting people back home. You could also try writing directly to the Foreign office here in England.

[Hidden in reply to Troilus]

Hi , yes I contacted the consulate here on the island without much success ,it's taken me three years of fighting the ESA to get it reinstated they finally realized that my ex wife had specifically lied to make sure I couldn't return to fight the divorce, her view was if I'm here I can't get legal representation which worked for her but caused my health to deteriorate . If I had returned to the UK I had no home nor family to live with to support me through this mess then obviously the virus sprang up out of nowhere and really screwed everything up .

I'm having some test run here at the moment to get the hypoxia under control otherwise I can't fly .

I will try again with the foreign office though thanks for that I hadn't thought of them only the consulate who are as much use as a chocolate fireguard .

[Troilus in reply to Hidden]

I am pleased you are getting the medical help you need. That is good news. As for everything else, if you are ok there, it might be an idea to wait a while before you head home, depending on the Covid situation there. Cases here seem to be on the increase.

As for the British Embassy, a friend of ours got stuck in Spain. He lived there, but got ill, lost job etc. He got a loan to get back. He did have to repay it, but I don’t know the circumstances/ terms.

[Hidden in reply to Troilus]

The medical cover here is basic to say the least but they do the best they can without sending me to mainland which would obviously cost money. Everything has its cost and meds aren't cheap , I'm spending around 150 euros just for a month's supply of one of the inhalers .

Well there was only four cases here on Rhodes and the Greeks dealt with the whole situation very quickly . I'm aware how it's on the increase in the UK which can be expected when people don't stick to the simple rules and pile in on beaches have street parties and raves and then pile in on these protests not distancing or wearing masks .

The UK government hasn't really dealt with the situation well and left a lot of vulnerable people who have underlying health problems at a greater risk .

They treat us like we're invicible or they're trying to cull us as were an expense. 😂😂

[Ergendl]

So sorry to hear your difficult situation. I used to love visiting Rhodes, but it must be awful to be trapped there on a low income by someone's deliberate planning. Hope you will feel a little less isolated dropping in here to chat with our great gang of lungies.

[Hidden in reply to Ergendl]

Hi , must admit the locals are brilliant and as helpful as possible the main problem is the language barrier lol but fortunately there's always someone willing to translate . The dwp really dragged their heels on sorting out everything especially my S1 certificate which gives me better medical support which I finally have problem is being without my pescribed medication has took its toll .

For the past year and half if been coughing up rusty coloured blood and the meds I'm now on which is Brimca and Milfinide inhalers only work for about a couple of hours .

In the past year I've had over 97 hypoxia attacks which scare the hell out of me what with the confusion and blacking out its all been a bit much at times. It proves one thing though we are just numbers to the dwp and government .

[Ergendl in reply to Hidden]

Have you been able to see a GP doctor, or are you having to be treated by pharmacists?

[Hidden in reply to Ergendl]

Hi , to begin with I was only treated by paramedics as the first time I blacked out my stepfather found me on the living room floor at 3am in the morning unconscious he called the paramedics . They got called out quite frequently until I collapsed in the street when I was taken to the hospital who did the usual blood tests BP spirometry alongside x-ray and CT scans after that I was advised to see the ika doctor which is the Greek tourism doctor when I had flare ups .

It was a serious struggle made worse when the virus hit ! We only had four cases here on the island because the Greek government acted really quick , the problem was that the ika doctor went back to his own island as they are only usually here during the holiday seasons . The perminant ika doctors usually only see the Greeks in Rhodes town and not the villages so you have to go to them which in lockdown was impossible . So all in all a very confusing system .

[Ergendl in reply to Hidden]

Difficult. I used to stay a lot in a village called Lachania, to the south of the island, so I know how challenging it can be living in the sticks away from Rhodes Town. Hopefully the ika doctor will be coming back now that Greece is opening up to visitors as long as they don't fly in directly from the UK.

[Hidden in reply to Ergendl]

Hi , I live in kremasti next village on from the airport . Well the ika doctor as just opened up the practice in the village now that we have tourists back on the island .

I'll be paying him a visit as soon as I find out what days he's in our village . It's nice to be able to chat with someone who knows what things are like here .

It's a beautiful island and the people are as fantastic as the food but the health system could do with some work , don't get me wrong the doctors and nurses and even the pharmacists are brilliant it's all the red tape , all paperwork has to be stamped it drives you crazy you walk into ika you move from one dept to another and so on but each one you need paperwork stamped total paper crazy 😂😂😂

[Ergendl in reply to Hidden]

Yes, I remember all the paperwork: tax office, police station, tax office, police station when I was in the process of trying to buy a house... I once spent a lovely fiesta day in Kremasti, when the church brought out its statue of the Virgin Mary and paraded it all about town, halting all the traffic between Rhodes Town and the airport. Hopefully you don't live on the main road - the exhaust pollution there was appalling.

Good luck with the ika doctor. Hope he helps you get your lung problems sorted out.

[Hidden in reply to Ergendl]

Hi , I'm lucky enough to live off the main high street and as a surprise traffic through the village isn't so bad these days apart from the damn scooters . When I was diagnosed with c.o.p.d back in 2003 and pescribed medication in all honesty because the meds worked I thought I could actually cope and deal with it , but being without medication for as long as I have shows you should never feel secure.

But as the pulmonologist said after looking at my last spirometry readings this as become a serious worry . It's ok saying things like that when they are helping you but when you aren't getting the help it's not comforting at all .

. I hope you all keep safe and sound back in the UK .

[Ergendl in reply to Hidden]

Thanks. Yes, we're still social distancing in my household, so although we get out and about a bit, we're still at home most of the time and don't get close to people outside our home.

Have you thought of trying some singing exercises to improve your breath control? Go for ones to improve diaphragm breathing. There are plenty on You Tube. It may not stop you blacking out, but could improve your spirometry a bit. Since I ran a singing for lung health group, my own spirometry showed an improvement from the top end of moderate to the bottom end of normal.

All the best. Keep safe. Hope things improve for you very soon.

[Hidden in reply to Ergendl]

Hi , and thanks for the update I will look into the singing I would try anything to improve the quality of life . When your young you feel pretty invincible and no matter how many people tell you not to smoke you still go your own way as I did and regret it fortunately I managed to stop four years ago which as helped a fair bit but I wish I hadn't started all those years ago .

I've also changed my diet so I'm already trying alot of things to help but I will definitely try your suggestion and appreciate your advice . Kindest regards and thanks David

[Ergendl in reply to Hidden]

Well done for managing to stop smoking. Good luck with all the rest.