I had been struggling with chronic pain in my feet and had seen multiple doctors who ordered multiple tests and they all came back normal. One doctor recommended that I see a foot nerve pain specialist. There were two that took my insurance. The first one, Dr. Chapman, didn't have any new patient appointments for three months. The second one, Dr. Camp, I only had to wait one month, so I made an appointment.
The day of the appointment I arrived early, filled out all the new patient paperwork, and patiently waited for my name to be called. When I was called into an exam room I took my shoes and socks off so the doctor could exam my feet. A few minutes passed and the doctor walked into the room. Immediately we recognized each other after attending the same high school over 30 years ago.
"Joe?"
"Emma?"
"I had no idea I made an appointment with someone I went to high school with. No one in our class knows what happened to you. You aren't on social media and you've never attended any reunions."
"Yeah, that stuff just never interested me. I don't know if it's appropriate for me to treat you. Tell me what's going on and I'll refer you to another doctor."
"I have pain in both across the soles of both feet. I've already seen neurologists, neuromuscular specialists, and rheumatologists who can't figure it out. I've had MRI's, x-rays, tons of bloodwork, and a nerve conduction test. Everything is normal."
"Hmm...okay," he examined my feet looking for where my pain was the worst. "I think we should start from scratch." I rolled my eyes. "I know that's not what you want to hear but we need to make sure nothing was missing. I'm ordering more blood tests and x-rays. I want you to make an appointment with Dr. Chapman, I'll write down his info for you and send the test results to his office. He'll probably want to do another nerve conduction test."
"No, not that test again. It's torture."
"I know it's painful but do you want to know what's going on or not?"
"Well, yes, of course. By the way, I called Dr. Chapman's office and he has a three-month wait for new patients."
"I know him, we did our residency together. I'll contact him and get you in earlier."
"Thank you. Although I wish you didn't mention the torture test." We both laughed. "So, how have you been? You've obviously done well for yourself."
"Yeah, I've been good. What about you? Besides your chronic pain?"
"Meh, I just finished with a messy divorce."
"Sorry to hear about your divorce." He looked at his watch, "I hate to rush and it's great seeing you, but I have other patients to see. Is the number in your chart your cell number?"
"Yes."
"Get the paperwork for the blood tests and x-rays at the front desk. I'm contacting Dr. Chapman for you. Would you mind catching up sometime soon? Like, go out for coffee or lunch or something like that?"
"Yeah, that'd be nice." I thought he grew into his body very well, he was handsome and fit. On my way home I got a text from him giving me his personal cell phone number. He was able to get me an appointment with Dr. Chapman two weeks away.
About a week passed and he texted me asking if we could meet up for lunch on Saturday. I replied that worked for me. We finalized the details of where to eat and what time to meet.
I was very excited to see him and it took about an hour to get dressed and do my hair. I arrived a little earlier than I planned but I noticed he was already there and standing by the entrance to the restaurant. I walked up to him, "Wow, I thought I was early."
"Yeah, traffic wasn't too bad. I also don't like being late."
"I don't like being late either." We walked inside, I thought he looked really good in jeans and a polo shirt that accentuated his muscular arms.
We sat down at a table and read the menu. A turkey BLT with fries looked good to me. I put my menu down and asked, "So what are you going to have?"
"I think a nice juicy cheeseburger looks good. What about you?"
"I'm going to get a turkey BLT."
He flagged down a waitress and we ordered.
"So what made you decide to become a foot nerve pain specialist?"
"My grandmother had a lot of problems with her feet so that made me want to be a podiatrist. Then in medical school, I took an interest in nerve pain."
"That's cool."
"What about you? What kind of job do you have?"
"Until recently I was co-owner of a sign business, but he took that in the divorce."
"Oh, wow, what a jerk."
"One reason the divorce dragged on for three years was because he didn't want to give me anything. He didn't want to buy out my half of the house and business. He just wanted everything outright. I, of course, wouldn't let him do that. Finally, the judge ordered him to pay me for half of the house and business. The divorce took a huge toll on me mentally and physically. So right now I'm not working. I'm working on healing myself mentally and physically."
"Wow, that's horrible. I'm sorry."
"Thank you. So what brought you to New York City?"
"Medical school. Then I stayed and settled down. My wife passed away from cancer five years ago. We never had children, so I'm alone. What brought you to the city?"
"My dad lived here, my sister lives here."