Mar 26, 2010

A Not-So-Good Day

Not-so-good is an understatement I suppose. More like IT SUCKED. I was rudely awoken from my sleep at 1:15am with a throbbing headache very similar to the one I had on Sunday. Only this time it was accompanied with horrendous nausea and for the life of me I couldn't fall back asleep. After tossing and turning for two hours I finally got up to use the restroom and that only seemed to intensify the throb. So two more hours in and I was still awake so I begged Brent to get me an icepack from the freezer. Normally that would help at least a little bit but no such luck. Finally just before 6:30am I woke him up and told him that I thought I needed to go to the emergency room - I was beyond desperate at this point. We got ready and I sat in my closet on the floor crying trying to put on my boots because I felt so ridiculous.

It was decided that we'd go to Baylor Dallas instead of a hospital in Fort Worth because I knew that my neurologist was on the board of directors there and I really hoped that would get me the help I needed. I didn't think I was going to make it there, I was soooo nauseated. When we finally arrived about 8am they checked me right in and as I'd been warned I got a "you have what?" when they asked why I was there. After explaining it to no less than six people they sent in a nursing student to give me my IV.

Now I know they have to learn somehow but let me tell you this poor girl was all nerves, couldn't find a vein in my right arm (even I can do that) and when she got to my left arm she butchered me. Poor Brent, he couldn't even watch. At any rate they gave me 2mg of Dilaudid and that really seemed to help - I'd never had it before but heard a lot about it on the DailyStrength board I've come to love. Only downside was that it seemed to make my nausea worse so they brought me something for it and couldn't get it in fast enough, I'd had nothing to eat so dry-heaving into the little blue bag was almost worse than actually throwing up. Whatever they gave me didn't work and so I really got sick, all over my bed. This frustrated me because we had to call three times to get a clean sheet but it turned out no one was ever contacting my nurse.

As soon as I got sick the Dilaudid wore off and so they gave me 2mg more and the cycle repeated itself, this time with Zofran for the nausea which still didn't work. My pain level was down to about a 7 so I felt okay to go home if they'd just keep me from throwing up a fifth time, so they said it was okay to take more Zofran and Darovcet and I got to leave about 3pm. Riding home was horrible but we made it and of course, when I got home I couldn't sleep so here I am. :-)

In the midst of all this I did manage to call both my neurologist and my LP doctor. Thankfully I'll be getting another lumbar puncture at 8am on Thursday and I am so ready, even if it only helps for a few days. The hope is that this one will reboot my system into recognizing what a normal CSF pressure is, otherwise I'll meet with a neurosurgeon to discuss the shunt surgery option. I have to say that the pain that I had Sunday and today seemed to be the worst yet so I hope it wasn't caused by the LP.

Sorry if this rambled but I am drugged and tired and hungry at this point. Let's just pray that tomorrow is a better day.

Love, KC

1 comment:

  1. I really feel for you, honey!! Wow, dilaudid! That's hard core! I hope there is something that will help make your life easier.

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