Night 1 at home after release. (Night 14 after treatment)
All snuggled up under half a ton of duck feathers I slept so well, until now. It's still dark and all is quiet so it's the middle of the night as far as I'm concerned. I try to turn over and pain like I've never felt shoots down my legs; my knees hurt, my hips hurt and attempting to move in any direction is excruciating. Two words shoot straight to the front of my mind: serum sickness. Just my luck that it decides to rear it's ugly head the first night I'm away from hospital. I have no choice, I need to get up and go to the loo so I'm just going to have to grin and bear it. I manage to sit up and spend the next 5 minutes sitting on the edge of the bed, contemplating whether my legs will actually hold me when I try to stand up. They really do hurt. Reasoning with myself (which can be very tricky at the best of times) I decide that the worst that can happen is that I land in a heap on the floor so I take a big breath and go for it. I managed to stand, however walking was a different kettle of fish. I couldn't really say that I walked down the corridor, it was more of a bent over shuffle as I couldn't straighten my legs, and each step seemed to be accompanied with a groan as I bounced off the corridor wall. I made it to the bathroom without waking the rest of the house up which was the mission, hooray!
Now, anybody who knows me well and has had the misfortune of having any kind of mishap in my presence will tell you that if ever anything goes wrong, my reaction is to laugh even though I know the situation is usually never funny in the slightest. The more that goes wrong the more I get the giggles. For all those people I have laughed at, you can rest assured that you now have got you're own back. Wee completed, all I had to do was stand up and make the journey back to bed. I went to stand up and I couldn't. My legs had decided enough was enough and were just not going to co-operate. I tried to see the funny side and in typical me style started to giggle, here I was in the middle of the night stuck on the loo, unable to stand, oh man, what a site. My giggles got louder but very quickly turned from a small giggle to hysterical laughter to hysterical crying as I realised this wasn't funny, it really really hurt and I quite literally couldn't move, the pain searing down my legs was unlike anything I'd ever felt before. Andy heard my hysterics (and they must have been loud to wake him up) and came rushing to find a blubbering me sitting on the loo unable to move and now totally panicking. He was such a star, he completely calmed me down and we decided that the only thing I could think of that might ease the pain a bit was to soak in a big hot bath. Andy ran the bath and practically lifted me off the dunny and helped to plonk me in the bath. It did offer some kind of relief and after all the crying I was exhausted. "I'll come back in 20 mins" Andy said. I lay there in the hot water trying to remember everything I'd read about serum sickness. Next thing I new I was waking up like a shrivelled prune and the nice hot water that I'd been wallowing in was now cold water and not so nice. I'd fallen asleep and so too had Andy, 20 mins had turned into 2 hrs. I looked at my hands and they were wrinklier than a wrinkly thing. I still couldn't move and there was no way I could get out the bath myself , I had a momentary panic as firemen and a big winch flashed across my mind along with a headline in the local paper, shit, how embarrassing would that be, so I shouted for Andy and he came rushing through, eyes still half shut. My legs were most definitely still not working and hurting a lot again so that heavy lifting training Andy did at work all those years ago came in very handy, quite how he got me out the bath I don't know but he did and the assistance of the local fire brigade I'm glad to report was not required. I think it must have been a bit like one of those miracle stories you hear on telly, you know when people suddenly become able to lift cars that have squished someone or something, well whatever super power they suddenly possess got a hold of Andy at this particular moment in time because I'm a big lump and I'm telling you, getting me out of the bath that night was nothing short of a miracle!
By this time it was 7a.m. so I phoned the hospital and told them about the serum sickness. I was going in later anyway as my platelet count was rubbish and I needed to have daily platelet transfusions still. Moo phoned to see how I was doing and found the whole loo story rather amusing and the two hour bath even funnier.
I endured the trip to hospital, making sure we most definitely did not take the scenic route this time, but stuck to the straight roads instead. It was dishy Dr Bevan on duty when we got to hospital and after much humming and hawing he prescribed me something to take at home for the serum sickness. I didn't bother to look in the bag until I was in the car, blow me down it was morphine, and not just one bottle of it.......3 bottles of the stuff. By the time we got home it was evening again so after a large swig , erm no, sorry, a carefully measured 10ml cup full I plonked into bed and had my second attempt at a good nights sleep.
Monday, 5 November 2012
Sunday, 4 November 2012
24. Speed dating and sparkly lights
November 4th
Surprise, I'm still here and in the land of the living :-). I thought I'd better update my blog as people were beginning to think I'd popped my clogs (and my mum was giving me jip!). Truth be told it all got a bit grim and I couldn't bring myself to write about it at the time, but looking back at it all now is easier, in fact, I can even see the funny side of things and I never thought I'd say that. Anyway, even if I had written about it all at the time it would have been complete gobbildy gook as the steroids sent me doo-lally (good old scottish saying for bonkers).
So where did I leave off? Last time I wrote I was still in hospital but nearing the end of my stay and heading down a big black hole as I seem to remember. The steroids sent me a bit,....... no, not just a bit, a lot doo lally. I had the memory span of a gnat and was starting to be known as Dory (the fish in Finding Nemo who doesn't remember a sentence from beginning to end, let alone anything else!). Days 11,12 & 13 which were a Friday, Sat & Sunday were ridiculously quiet but I was thankful and after being so sick the previous few days I really didn't feel like leaving my room, hmmmm, perhaps not so much that I didn't feel like leaving it - more that I daren't in case there wasn't a loo to bolt into should I need to speak to huey and ralf at short notice if you get my drift. I hibernated and watched Tom diving, Bradley cycling, Victoria sprinting, Becky swimming and Phelps decide at last to retire and give some others a chance to win some medals, (did his mum never tell him it's nice to share?!). It was the quietest weekend ever, the hospital was like a ghost town and I seemed to spend most of it on my tod. Dougal and Andy popped in of course but they had a house full of guests to look after so were busy entertaining. They did bring dad to visit but that was a visit that was on a par with a speed dating session, no sooner did they arrive and sit down when the nurse appeared with my special platelets and stan the stand. The nurse hadn't even finished wheeling stan all the way into the room before Dad turned a funny colour and announced he was off, so that as they say, was that. Dad, you win the prize for the shortest visit ever!
By Monday my consultant had come back and I was feeling much better, this was now day 14 which was a big milestone. If you're going to get serum sickness it generally happens between days 7-14 and seeing as I'd got this far with no serum sickness, they decided I was going to be discharged and allowed to go home. (I should just say at this point that serum sickness does not actually involve you being sick as the name would lead you to believe, in actual fact it's like arthritis and causes your joints to become very painful). I was so looking forward to falling into my own big marshmallow bed. At 9a.m. they said I'd be going home, by 9.30am I was packed and at 5.45pm I eventually got to leave after a platelet transfusion. Although I was REALLY looking forward to coming home again, I was most definitely not looking forward to the journey home. The problem was that the steroids just made my head spin so even a simple car journey turned into what felt like a ride from hell on the waltzers. The trip from St Richards to home is half dual carriage way and an ok road so it should have been fine....I say should have.....it was just that for some reason unbeknown to me Andy decided on this occasion that we'd take the scenic route home which was entirely made up of 20 miles of twisty windey roads (it should have only been 15 miles but we took a detour as we got stuck behind someone towing a boat on a single track road!!!). I concentrated on not hurling and listened to the radio as they commentated on the Olympic mens gymnastics - Britain won the bronze, then got promoted to silver, then demoted back to bonze again. On the plus side for Andy, I wasn't sick in his nice car!
Being home was amazing and there was the best surprise in the world waiting for me. All the time I'd been in hospital Andy had been working away like a trooper and created me the most amazing present ....my dream craft room with sparkly light. It took my breath away and I was quite simply speechless. For a few moments I just stood and looked and forgot about everything I'd gone through in the last couple of weeks.
(When you see the photo, bare in mind that this room had been covered in 70's pine panelling on 3 walls and lumpy wallpaper with about 10 layers of pink paint, none of the brickwork was exposed and the fireplace was covered in concrete).
It was so good to be home, I knew I still had to go to hospital each day for a while - that's ok though since I knew I'd be coming home afterwards. I went to bed in what felt like the comfiest bed in the world and with a real downy, wowzers - sheer luxury after a fortnight of sleeping under a sheet. This was going to be the best nights sleep ever.......or so I thought..............
Friday, 27 July 2012
23. The black hole
Days 8,9&10
The driver of the roller coaster needs the sack, after lulling me into a false sense of security of feeling a little better, I've spent three days going down the other side of the ride and into a big black hole of feeling utterly pants. I couldn't even bring myself to write a sentence. The days have consisted of nausia, sleep, only really being able to lay down, weepiness, dizziness and being a little confused, wonky hearing and becoming acquainted with hugging the loo - all a bit grim, sorry. This has resulted in today me being put back on a drip over night; reducing several of the drugs I'm on and anitsickness medicine.
On the upside:
1.Dougal is home and gives the best huggles. He cured my teariness.
2. Dad is visiting and has a jolly good suntan.
3.The man with one leg and the caravan has left the main building
3.My jeans most definitely still fit :-) double yay!!
Hopefully I'll be on the mend again soon. x
The driver of the roller coaster needs the sack, after lulling me into a false sense of security of feeling a little better, I've spent three days going down the other side of the ride and into a big black hole of feeling utterly pants. I couldn't even bring myself to write a sentence. The days have consisted of nausia, sleep, only really being able to lay down, weepiness, dizziness and being a little confused, wonky hearing and becoming acquainted with hugging the loo - all a bit grim, sorry. This has resulted in today me being put back on a drip over night; reducing several of the drugs I'm on and anitsickness medicine.
On the upside:
1.Dougal is home and gives the best huggles. He cured my teariness.
2. Dad is visiting and has a jolly good suntan.
3.The man with one leg and the caravan has left the main building
3.My jeans most definitely still fit :-) double yay!!
Hopefully I'll be on the mend again soon. x
Tuesday, 24 July 2012
22. On the up
Day 8
By jove, would you believe it, dare I say it, I think I may just be starting to feel a little better. This may be entirely due to having a good nights sleep of course, who knows. The head is still grumbling away but today was the last day of IV steroids (that alone deserves a round of applause and a big glass of wine!) and as from tomorrow the steroids dose gets halved again, which means I can take them in pill form which has to be better, surely? (hope I don't have to eat my words, mind you the munchies have struck today so I may well be eating anything I can get my hands on!). The docs have warned me that when they reduce the dose I'll probably have another "slump", but I can live with that knowing that it's going to pass.
Other breaking news: no platelets required again, count is still up around the 47 mark, woopee.
I still have a face like that of a 5 year old who's sneaked into her mum's makeup bag and experimented with the blusher in the way only a 5 year old can, it's quite a unique look don't you know. Added to this, I found out this evening that whilst I had visitors (including Moo, you're in trouble boy) I sat there with a bogey hanging out my nose for a whole hour before anyone told me. Bright red cheeks, red face and bogey toboot, hmph, Moo started laughing and said he'd noticed it the whole time, you're a horror and I'll get you back matey! Just as well it was very lovely relatives visiting and not a dishy doc, that's all I can say.
I think today has been the hottest day of the year so far. Moo parked his car in the shade this morning, but it had remained in the shade for all of about half an hour I think, so when he set off on his 2 hour drive to visit me this evening, it's black leather seats had been cooking all day long and were registering a temp of 35degrees. No wonder he walked in looking liked he'd burnt his bum and slightly uncomfortable, that's what you get for not telling you sis she's a bogey nose!
I went for a triple stroll round the grounds tonight, there were a few dodgy characters around it has to be said. There were 6 ambulances unloading people, that's the most yet and another ambulance unloading a lady over at the maternity unit. (Still no children with pots on heads to report).
Most peculiar of all though was a mobile home parked in the "20min" short stay drop off point outside the main doors of the hospital. Bearing in mind I walked past this 3 times over about 45 mins, it was very odd. The first time I went past there was a man with one leg in a wheel chair wearing a hospital goonie sitting at the side of the van. Second time past, a lady had appeared out of the van wearing pj's and big fluffy dressing gown. Third time past they were both still there by the van, and another man had appeared. I thought I'd better stop walking past at that point and came back to my little safe haven. I shall have to investigate further in the morning.
During my little jaunts round the hospital grounds it's amazing how bare mens bums I've seen, and all on show right outside the main hospital doors. No need to go and see the Chippendale's, just walk past the entrance to your local hospital! They get wheeled out in their gowns (which open at the back, ofcourse) for a fag and seem to just let it all hang out. Note to self, if I ever have to sit in hospital wheel chair, give it a wipe with a wet one first.
The docs did warn me that the steroids can give you the munchies but so far I haven't really had much of an appetite, until today. I've been so hungry today I could have eaten a horse (haha, do you get it!). I've promised Dougal that there is a box of maltesers here for him so I can't eat them, instead I 've been grazing my way through various things people have brought me in, yum! I sent my bag of washing home with Andy which contains my jeans, the very fact that these I fear will not fit me by the time they come back freshly laundered in a few days will of course have absolutely nothing to do with the fact that I've eaten like a horse. I fear Andy may get the blame for shrinking them, what other reason could there possibly be?!
Time for bed, I'm going to employ last nights tactics again and try and outwit Morrocco by getting to sleep before the party starts, fingers crossed.
By jove, would you believe it, dare I say it, I think I may just be starting to feel a little better. This may be entirely due to having a good nights sleep of course, who knows. The head is still grumbling away but today was the last day of IV steroids (that alone deserves a round of applause and a big glass of wine!) and as from tomorrow the steroids dose gets halved again, which means I can take them in pill form which has to be better, surely? (hope I don't have to eat my words, mind you the munchies have struck today so I may well be eating anything I can get my hands on!). The docs have warned me that when they reduce the dose I'll probably have another "slump", but I can live with that knowing that it's going to pass.
Other breaking news: no platelets required again, count is still up around the 47 mark, woopee.
I still have a face like that of a 5 year old who's sneaked into her mum's makeup bag and experimented with the blusher in the way only a 5 year old can, it's quite a unique look don't you know. Added to this, I found out this evening that whilst I had visitors (including Moo, you're in trouble boy) I sat there with a bogey hanging out my nose for a whole hour before anyone told me. Bright red cheeks, red face and bogey toboot, hmph, Moo started laughing and said he'd noticed it the whole time, you're a horror and I'll get you back matey! Just as well it was very lovely relatives visiting and not a dishy doc, that's all I can say.
I think today has been the hottest day of the year so far. Moo parked his car in the shade this morning, but it had remained in the shade for all of about half an hour I think, so when he set off on his 2 hour drive to visit me this evening, it's black leather seats had been cooking all day long and were registering a temp of 35degrees. No wonder he walked in looking liked he'd burnt his bum and slightly uncomfortable, that's what you get for not telling you sis she's a bogey nose!
I went for a triple stroll round the grounds tonight, there were a few dodgy characters around it has to be said. There were 6 ambulances unloading people, that's the most yet and another ambulance unloading a lady over at the maternity unit. (Still no children with pots on heads to report).
Most peculiar of all though was a mobile home parked in the "20min" short stay drop off point outside the main doors of the hospital. Bearing in mind I walked past this 3 times over about 45 mins, it was very odd. The first time I went past there was a man with one leg in a wheel chair wearing a hospital goonie sitting at the side of the van. Second time past, a lady had appeared out of the van wearing pj's and big fluffy dressing gown. Third time past they were both still there by the van, and another man had appeared. I thought I'd better stop walking past at that point and came back to my little safe haven. I shall have to investigate further in the morning.
During my little jaunts round the hospital grounds it's amazing how bare mens bums I've seen, and all on show right outside the main hospital doors. No need to go and see the Chippendale's, just walk past the entrance to your local hospital! They get wheeled out in their gowns (which open at the back, ofcourse) for a fag and seem to just let it all hang out. Note to self, if I ever have to sit in hospital wheel chair, give it a wipe with a wet one first.
The docs did warn me that the steroids can give you the munchies but so far I haven't really had much of an appetite, until today. I've been so hungry today I could have eaten a horse (haha, do you get it!). I've promised Dougal that there is a box of maltesers here for him so I can't eat them, instead I 've been grazing my way through various things people have brought me in, yum! I sent my bag of washing home with Andy which contains my jeans, the very fact that these I fear will not fit me by the time they come back freshly laundered in a few days will of course have absolutely nothing to do with the fact that I've eaten like a horse. I fear Andy may get the blame for shrinking them, what other reason could there possibly be?!
Time for bed, I'm going to employ last nights tactics again and try and outwit Morrocco by getting to sleep before the party starts, fingers crossed.
Monday, 23 July 2012
21. Quick off the blocks
Day 7
Woohoo, hold on to your hats, I've been wheeched, whirled, twirled and spun round and round, I feel like I'm at the funfair and just stepping off a particularly vicious go on the waltzers. In actual fact, Andy has taken me for a very sedate 10 mph drive round the hospital grounds with the roof down, I think it's safe to say I wont be driving myself for a wee while! Bummer, I love driving but I shall have to settle for being Lady Panelope until brain function returns to normal.
It's been a very quiet day today, it felt like Morrocco Mole was having a rave in my head last night and invited all his friends round resulting in my head thumping all night long and the upright dozing position had to be resumed which was slightly tedious, (he could have been a bit more considerate and waited until after midnight when I was at least asleep to start the thumping!) but never mind that, I watched the sun come up out the window which brightened everything up.
I've spent most of the day dozing and quietly chilling out. More steroids got pumped in early afternoon again and they really seem to knock me out. Initially the steroids made me feel like the ball in the pin ball machine, zipping and dinging off everything, now it's quite the opposite, more of the slow ball that a toddler rolls down the bowling alley at 0.5mph in a wonky line which bounces off the side stoppers and that you will to make it to the end of the alley. Needless to say my afternoon of snoozing was wonderful, even managed to lie down for it, luxury!
I thought I'd better make the effort to get some fresh air and as usual wondered past casualty (lots happening in there today, no pots on children's heads to report yet though), there were a couple of ambulances emptying people out but I just meandered past and kept my head down concentrating because I wasn't walking in a particularly straight line (it was after the waltzer incident) and I thought they might come and get me, I may have looked slightly drunken and did trip over my foot, doh!
Something unheard of happened the other day and I forgot to tell you. It's a fact, known to all mankind, plain and simple: Moo doesn't walk anywhere quickly. He has one speed, no I stand corrected, two speeds; amble, (and for special occasions such as pipe band competitions) march but that really is only brought out for the pipe band. Well, on Saturday, Moo would have beaten Bolt off the blocks. I have never ever seen anyone remove themselves from a hospital room so quickly in all my life, it really was quite astonishing. I also watched the colour drain from his face like someone drinking a strawberry milkshake through a straw, you know when you see the drink empty down the glass rapidly. What on earth brought this on - blood, guts, human entrails?.........no, the mere sight of two nurses carrying a small blue tray escorted by Stan (the stand). As soon as he clocked the nurses and Stan (who didn't even make it through the second door may I add) he had scooped up is keys, phones and near enough leaped over the bed to get out the room before the platelets appeared, shouting a very quick "see you on Tuesday maybe" as he whizzed past. The nurses did shout after him that he didn't need to go but he was long gone. Lucky they didn't come at the beginning of the visit or it would have been a very quick one Moo :-) x It has now been noted though, I know you can hurry if you have to!
I also found out something quite interesting about my room today. There are 6 side rooms, all very nice, en suite and all that malarkey however the other rooms have one door in and out, my room has two doors in and out which makes it a bit smaller but it doesn't bother me. I had been thinking that maybe they thought I was going to be noisy (couldn't be further from the truth, spend most of the time unconscious!) but I found out today why I have two doors, it's not that I need them, just that this was the empty room when I came. This room has an airlock. It has the ability to be sealed in and create negative pressure so if you have something like swine flu the bugs don't escape. It also has the ability to have special gases pumped into it which you absorbs through breathing, very fancy. Note to self, best behave or they'll gas me, make it the laughing kind please.
Right, I'm going to sleep before Morrocco makes an appearance. Toodlepip.
Woohoo, hold on to your hats, I've been wheeched, whirled, twirled and spun round and round, I feel like I'm at the funfair and just stepping off a particularly vicious go on the waltzers. In actual fact, Andy has taken me for a very sedate 10 mph drive round the hospital grounds with the roof down, I think it's safe to say I wont be driving myself for a wee while! Bummer, I love driving but I shall have to settle for being Lady Panelope until brain function returns to normal.
It's been a very quiet day today, it felt like Morrocco Mole was having a rave in my head last night and invited all his friends round resulting in my head thumping all night long and the upright dozing position had to be resumed which was slightly tedious, (he could have been a bit more considerate and waited until after midnight when I was at least asleep to start the thumping!) but never mind that, I watched the sun come up out the window which brightened everything up.
I've spent most of the day dozing and quietly chilling out. More steroids got pumped in early afternoon again and they really seem to knock me out. Initially the steroids made me feel like the ball in the pin ball machine, zipping and dinging off everything, now it's quite the opposite, more of the slow ball that a toddler rolls down the bowling alley at 0.5mph in a wonky line which bounces off the side stoppers and that you will to make it to the end of the alley. Needless to say my afternoon of snoozing was wonderful, even managed to lie down for it, luxury!
I thought I'd better make the effort to get some fresh air and as usual wondered past casualty (lots happening in there today, no pots on children's heads to report yet though), there were a couple of ambulances emptying people out but I just meandered past and kept my head down concentrating because I wasn't walking in a particularly straight line (it was after the waltzer incident) and I thought they might come and get me, I may have looked slightly drunken and did trip over my foot, doh!
Something unheard of happened the other day and I forgot to tell you. It's a fact, known to all mankind, plain and simple: Moo doesn't walk anywhere quickly. He has one speed, no I stand corrected, two speeds; amble, (and for special occasions such as pipe band competitions) march but that really is only brought out for the pipe band. Well, on Saturday, Moo would have beaten Bolt off the blocks. I have never ever seen anyone remove themselves from a hospital room so quickly in all my life, it really was quite astonishing. I also watched the colour drain from his face like someone drinking a strawberry milkshake through a straw, you know when you see the drink empty down the glass rapidly. What on earth brought this on - blood, guts, human entrails?.........no, the mere sight of two nurses carrying a small blue tray escorted by Stan (the stand). As soon as he clocked the nurses and Stan (who didn't even make it through the second door may I add) he had scooped up is keys, phones and near enough leaped over the bed to get out the room before the platelets appeared, shouting a very quick "see you on Tuesday maybe" as he whizzed past. The nurses did shout after him that he didn't need to go but he was long gone. Lucky they didn't come at the beginning of the visit or it would have been a very quick one Moo :-) x It has now been noted though, I know you can hurry if you have to!
I also found out something quite interesting about my room today. There are 6 side rooms, all very nice, en suite and all that malarkey however the other rooms have one door in and out, my room has two doors in and out which makes it a bit smaller but it doesn't bother me. I had been thinking that maybe they thought I was going to be noisy (couldn't be further from the truth, spend most of the time unconscious!) but I found out today why I have two doors, it's not that I need them, just that this was the empty room when I came. This room has an airlock. It has the ability to be sealed in and create negative pressure so if you have something like swine flu the bugs don't escape. It also has the ability to have special gases pumped into it which you absorbs through breathing, very fancy. Note to self, best behave or they'll gas me, make it the laughing kind please.
Right, I'm going to sleep before Morrocco makes an appearance. Toodlepip.
Sunday, 22 July 2012
20. The bees knees
Day 6
It's the bees knees, the dogs danglies, the mutts nuts and the horses hooves (I made that one up!). I've just tucked into the scrummiest cupcake ever and my goodness it was delicious, just what the doctor ordered. I was delivered a box of cupcakes yesterday in a whole variety of flavours, with glittery sparkly icing on the top and little curly wurly curls, but can you guess which one it was that jumped out at me........the carrot cake one with a nice big orange carrot on the top (I'm not telling you porkies!). It was marvellous, the winner by a nose. The strawberry one was pipped at the post and came a very close second and Andy polished of the scrummy chocolate cake in one fell swoop (well maybe two) whilst visiting me in preparation for his very well deserved night out with his friends in Guildford. The remaining two I have shared with the nurses who have just had to deal with an "aggressive relative". I really felt for them and once security had come down to check all was ok I crept out of my room with what I could offer to console them. They were eternally gratefull and did mention something about a gin or vodka being required. I didn't dare mention that the cake fairy had actually brought in a bottle of beer too, I thought they might evict me! The beer is safefully packed for when I get home and I shall enjoy when I'm back in my own paddock so to speak;-)
It's been a whirlwind two days of visitors, increasing fuzzy headiness and sleepiness. To sum it up, Morrocco Mole has down graded his jack hammer but is still making occassional escape attempts so the thumping headaches have lessened. I have to say they did bring me to tears on nights 3 & 4 but I think that was due to tiredness too.
I can also report that the river Thames is off flood alert and has resumed normal levels. Even better than that, no more weeing into cardboard cowboy hats for me yeehaa! Perhaps I should suggest breeding Dobbin with a Camel next time, that might solve the wee problem.
I've managed to get some fresh air and can go for a meander outside now I'm not hooked up to Stan much, infact I only got hooked up for 30mins today whilst they shoved me full of steroids (methylprednisilone to be precise). I didn't need platelets today which was a total result, platelet count was 54 (normal is 150-400) but for me that's super duper, the highest mine has been since this whole milarky started is 24.
I sat on the bench outside in the sun for a little bit earlier and it was very surreal. Usually the hospital is buzzing with loads of people passing, limping, hobbling etc etc (I have come to the conclusion gammy legs seem to be the biggest inury round here just now!) but come the weekend it turns into a ghost town. It was so quiet and peacefull. I decided that I might see something a bit more exciting over the other side of the hospital at A&E (nothing too terrible, just a child with a saucepan stuck on it's head or something like that), but even that was quiet so I checked out the bikes which conveniently park opposite that entrance, but even that was a bit dull today, just a Suzuki Bandit 1250s.
My fuzzi headiness and memory (or lack of) is definately worse today, yikes! I shall shortly be on a par with Dory the forgetfull (but loveable!) fish in Finding Nemo. Everything feels a bit surreal, it's like i've been freeze framed in a film and everything else continues on round about me while I'm on pause.
In my room there is a very comfy chair, it's not any old chair, it's so special it's even got it's own remote control so you can go from fully lying down to fully standing up with putting in precisely zero effort (well, push your thumb on a button effort). It's great fun and uber comfy. The problem with my chair though, is that occassionally it seems to have a mind of it's own. At the most inopportune moments I suddenly find myself being whizzed up or down, foot rest whizzing out or in unexpectedly. The first time was slightly alarming, I found myself sitting quite happily one minute then being completely horizontal the next and stuck. I thought there was a poltergeist at work but now I'm used to it and as usual it's got nothing to do with a poltergeist or the chair being wonky, it's me! I had put the laptop down on the control, the control is supersensitive and the slightest touch sends it into operation so every time something inadvertantly touches it away it goes, and you never know quite which was it's going to go! Never a dull moment.
Well, can you believe it's taken me nearly 4 hours just to write this and now it's time for bed. I know this blog is a bit disjointed today, no doubt tomorrow's will be even worse but hey ho. I think they said maybe just 5 more days of IV steroids which is what's befuddling my brain. Goodness knows what gobbildygook I'll be writing by then!
ps whilst I remember!!! Huge thankyou for everyones messages, texts, emails, cards, magazines, smelly things (in a nice way ), chocolates, cakes, polos, milkshakes, hot choccies, i tune thingies, grapes, biscuits, stickers, remote controls, flowers and balloons, but most of all for thinking of me. It means the world. x
It's the bees knees, the dogs danglies, the mutts nuts and the horses hooves (I made that one up!). I've just tucked into the scrummiest cupcake ever and my goodness it was delicious, just what the doctor ordered. I was delivered a box of cupcakes yesterday in a whole variety of flavours, with glittery sparkly icing on the top and little curly wurly curls, but can you guess which one it was that jumped out at me........the carrot cake one with a nice big orange carrot on the top (I'm not telling you porkies!). It was marvellous, the winner by a nose. The strawberry one was pipped at the post and came a very close second and Andy polished of the scrummy chocolate cake in one fell swoop (well maybe two) whilst visiting me in preparation for his very well deserved night out with his friends in Guildford. The remaining two I have shared with the nurses who have just had to deal with an "aggressive relative". I really felt for them and once security had come down to check all was ok I crept out of my room with what I could offer to console them. They were eternally gratefull and did mention something about a gin or vodka being required. I didn't dare mention that the cake fairy had actually brought in a bottle of beer too, I thought they might evict me! The beer is safefully packed for when I get home and I shall enjoy when I'm back in my own paddock so to speak;-)
It's been a whirlwind two days of visitors, increasing fuzzy headiness and sleepiness. To sum it up, Morrocco Mole has down graded his jack hammer but is still making occassional escape attempts so the thumping headaches have lessened. I have to say they did bring me to tears on nights 3 & 4 but I think that was due to tiredness too.
I can also report that the river Thames is off flood alert and has resumed normal levels. Even better than that, no more weeing into cardboard cowboy hats for me yeehaa! Perhaps I should suggest breeding Dobbin with a Camel next time, that might solve the wee problem.
I've managed to get some fresh air and can go for a meander outside now I'm not hooked up to Stan much, infact I only got hooked up for 30mins today whilst they shoved me full of steroids (methylprednisilone to be precise). I didn't need platelets today which was a total result, platelet count was 54 (normal is 150-400) but for me that's super duper, the highest mine has been since this whole milarky started is 24.
I sat on the bench outside in the sun for a little bit earlier and it was very surreal. Usually the hospital is buzzing with loads of people passing, limping, hobbling etc etc (I have come to the conclusion gammy legs seem to be the biggest inury round here just now!) but come the weekend it turns into a ghost town. It was so quiet and peacefull. I decided that I might see something a bit more exciting over the other side of the hospital at A&E (nothing too terrible, just a child with a saucepan stuck on it's head or something like that), but even that was quiet so I checked out the bikes which conveniently park opposite that entrance, but even that was a bit dull today, just a Suzuki Bandit 1250s.
My fuzzi headiness and memory (or lack of) is definately worse today, yikes! I shall shortly be on a par with Dory the forgetfull (but loveable!) fish in Finding Nemo. Everything feels a bit surreal, it's like i've been freeze framed in a film and everything else continues on round about me while I'm on pause.
In my room there is a very comfy chair, it's not any old chair, it's so special it's even got it's own remote control so you can go from fully lying down to fully standing up with putting in precisely zero effort (well, push your thumb on a button effort). It's great fun and uber comfy. The problem with my chair though, is that occassionally it seems to have a mind of it's own. At the most inopportune moments I suddenly find myself being whizzed up or down, foot rest whizzing out or in unexpectedly. The first time was slightly alarming, I found myself sitting quite happily one minute then being completely horizontal the next and stuck. I thought there was a poltergeist at work but now I'm used to it and as usual it's got nothing to do with a poltergeist or the chair being wonky, it's me! I had put the laptop down on the control, the control is supersensitive and the slightest touch sends it into operation so every time something inadvertantly touches it away it goes, and you never know quite which was it's going to go! Never a dull moment.
Well, can you believe it's taken me nearly 4 hours just to write this and now it's time for bed. I know this blog is a bit disjointed today, no doubt tomorrow's will be even worse but hey ho. I think they said maybe just 5 more days of IV steroids which is what's befuddling my brain. Goodness knows what gobbildygook I'll be writing by then!
ps whilst I remember!!! Huge thankyou for everyones messages, texts, emails, cards, magazines, smelly things (in a nice way ), chocolates, cakes, polos, milkshakes, hot choccies, i tune thingies, grapes, biscuits, stickers, remote controls, flowers and balloons, but most of all for thinking of me. It means the world. x
Friday, 20 July 2012
19. I'm turning into Dobbin
I think it's fair to say I've been feeling a bit ropey over the past 24 hours. To tell the truth I felt blooming awful but there's light at the end of the tunnel now.
The effects of the steroids wore off quickly and my wide awake phase lasted one night, since then I've been pooped. It's Stan's fault again, well it's good to blame someone (or thing isn't it!). I get hooked up to the ATG (horse serum) around 4pm each day and it's then on a constant drip for 12 hours. That bit's ok, it's the fact that they have to monitor you for those 12 hours constantly doing blood pressure checks, temp checks and pulse checks every hour. It basically means you have very little sleep for the 4 days you're on the ATG. Since today (or rather tonight) is the last night, the sleeplessness has caught up with me. I can't wait to kick Stan out of my room at 5am, you're out of here my friend and hello to some sleep!
Good news, the hives have bogged off and not bothered to come back again, nasty little itchy blighters that they are. Instead I seem to have developed big red cheeks rather like Big Ears had in the Noddy stories. They come up as soon as the ATG starts and last most of the next day. Unique!
In my humble opinion I also seem to have taken on some rather equine like characteristics. I'm not sure if I should share them with you or not, but I think I will, I'm that kind of fillie. They are as follows:
1. I have developed the need to sleep in an upright position. My head hurts so much lying down, (it feels like Morocco Mole is in there with a Jack hammer trying to get out), I quite simply have to sit up and sleep (I use the term "sleep" loosely, far more of the odd 20 min doze). I think this is just due to sheer tiredness.
2. I am producing wee in seemingly horse like quantities (probably too much info there, sorry!). I'm sure the level of the Thames must have risen by at least a foot in the past 24 hours.
3. My tongue looks nowhere near normal, definitely a horse like thing going on there, it's a very odd colour & doesn't look human to me, that's for sure.
Moo has been texting frequently wanting to know how the hair growth is going. In fact, that's the first question all males seem to ask me. I'm thrilled to say there is nothing to report on that front yet (give me a chance, it's only been 3 days). It's a drug called cyclosporine that causes the hair to sprout and I'm only on a half does of that just now, wait til I'm on the full dose! Moo has offered to buy me a hedge trimmer to keep myself neet and tidy, very thoughtful. I said I was sure a bic razor would suffice but he doesn't think it will be up to the job. Thankyou Moo but you know what you can do with your hedge trimmer!! Thankyou also for the offer of bringing me a big juicy apple, naaaay thankyou (some polos wouldn't go amiss though!).
I did manage to learn a few card tricks yesterday, I was very impressed with myself, the only problem is that my goldfish sized memory doesn't seem capable of remembering how to do them for more than a few minutes so unless you walk in the room as I'm practising it's a bit of a let down folks. I will soldier on with them nonetheless. There is an upside to this - when I do get them right it's as much a surprise to me as it is to you:-D
Other things to report:
ps HUGE thankyou to everyone reading my blog. It's a treat to write and I hope you're enjoying it :-) xx
The effects of the steroids wore off quickly and my wide awake phase lasted one night, since then I've been pooped. It's Stan's fault again, well it's good to blame someone (or thing isn't it!). I get hooked up to the ATG (horse serum) around 4pm each day and it's then on a constant drip for 12 hours. That bit's ok, it's the fact that they have to monitor you for those 12 hours constantly doing blood pressure checks, temp checks and pulse checks every hour. It basically means you have very little sleep for the 4 days you're on the ATG. Since today (or rather tonight) is the last night, the sleeplessness has caught up with me. I can't wait to kick Stan out of my room at 5am, you're out of here my friend and hello to some sleep!
Good news, the hives have bogged off and not bothered to come back again, nasty little itchy blighters that they are. Instead I seem to have developed big red cheeks rather like Big Ears had in the Noddy stories. They come up as soon as the ATG starts and last most of the next day. Unique!
In my humble opinion I also seem to have taken on some rather equine like characteristics. I'm not sure if I should share them with you or not, but I think I will, I'm that kind of fillie. They are as follows:
1. I have developed the need to sleep in an upright position. My head hurts so much lying down, (it feels like Morocco Mole is in there with a Jack hammer trying to get out), I quite simply have to sit up and sleep (I use the term "sleep" loosely, far more of the odd 20 min doze). I think this is just due to sheer tiredness.
2. I am producing wee in seemingly horse like quantities (probably too much info there, sorry!). I'm sure the level of the Thames must have risen by at least a foot in the past 24 hours.
3. My tongue looks nowhere near normal, definitely a horse like thing going on there, it's a very odd colour & doesn't look human to me, that's for sure.
Moo has been texting frequently wanting to know how the hair growth is going. In fact, that's the first question all males seem to ask me. I'm thrilled to say there is nothing to report on that front yet (give me a chance, it's only been 3 days). It's a drug called cyclosporine that causes the hair to sprout and I'm only on a half does of that just now, wait til I'm on the full dose! Moo has offered to buy me a hedge trimmer to keep myself neet and tidy, very thoughtful. I said I was sure a bic razor would suffice but he doesn't think it will be up to the job. Thankyou Moo but you know what you can do with your hedge trimmer!! Thankyou also for the offer of bringing me a big juicy apple, naaaay thankyou (some polos wouldn't go amiss though!).
I did manage to learn a few card tricks yesterday, I was very impressed with myself, the only problem is that my goldfish sized memory doesn't seem capable of remembering how to do them for more than a few minutes so unless you walk in the room as I'm practising it's a bit of a let down folks. I will soldier on with them nonetheless. There is an upside to this - when I do get them right it's as much a surprise to me as it is to you:-D
Other things to report:
- Flower production is extensive in between snoozes
- Still no telly, remote controls are still on the blink. Tried batteries and that didn't work. Hope it's fixed in time for the olympics, I'll no doubt want to watch the equestrian events!
ps HUGE thankyou to everyone reading my blog. It's a treat to write and I hope you're enjoying it :-) xx
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