Gah!

I think my allergist -- the person who has done more than anyone to keep my symptoms at bay and me in relative comfort -- has left Northwestern. I have my semi-annual checkup next week and his name has disappeared from their website.

I'm not sure what I'll do. I've been seeing the guy ever since I moved to Chicago -- 16 years -- when my worsening allergies suddenly turned near-debilitating. We've been through so much. With him I have probably tried nearly 100 medications -- drops, inhalers, pills, creams and ointments -- and treatments, including shots.

It's been a long haul and we've finally gotten things fairly stabilized, achieving a balance where I put up with moderate-to-serious discomfort (as opposed to agony) in exchange for a fairly complex regimen. Now all of that may be out the window.

I probably can't follow him to his private practice -- I doubt that would be covered by my insurance. Will I have to go through all this again with the other doctors there? Or will they defer to what he's done? That doesn't sound like something most physicians would do, even if he was one of the top doctors in his field nationally.

Not happy!