*DISCLAIMER* I was without internet access for a week (horrid, I know), so I wrote during the week.
I have been up for 22 hours. Not a record, I know, but I can't sleep! My breakfast will arrive in less than 3 hours. I think I'll have more visitors after that. Hospitals are no place for resting. Sunday morning I went in to the ER where I thought that they'd just give me some back-to-back nebulizer treatments and steroids and then send me home like most of my asthma attack episodes. Not so this time. It was back enough (even with clear chest x-rays) that they still wanted me to be admitted. It's now almost 5:15 am Tuesday morning. There may be a chance for me to be discharged later on today, but the doctor was not definitive on that.
I've dealt with acid reflux last night from all the breathing treatments and now I'm nauseous. The nurse was able to get a hold of the doctor rather quickly to get me something for it. I'm attempting to type without my left index finger due to the pulse-oxymeter I've been hooked to. It's been interesting to see how my O2 level and pulse react to various movements. My pulse has been rather high (100-120) during the day and right now it's about 80. My O2 level could be higher. It's been sitting at 93-96% throughout the day. It needs to be 99-100%. They've had me on oxygen since they decided to admit me.
This really wasn't what I expected to be doing this summer at all. I had blood drawn twice in the ER and an IV put in. That IV did not work for the second dose of steroids, so they had an IV tech person come in to restart one. That took 3 more pokes yesterday. OUCH! Then, the area around that IV started to swell. Had to have another one restarted. That hurt too. I'm not afraid of needles, though. I've watched every poke they've made. Kind of interesting. I know I've asked them a lot of questions, but I haven't bugged them too much, I think.
I'm thankful for the friends that have called and visited. And for the prayers. I did have a funny call, though. I've been living with a 73 year old woman for about a month now. Her son, who set up this living arrangement, called me and said that admitting my self to the ER was a quite extreme way to get away from his mother. He never thought of that! We had a good laugh over that (and she's not THAT bad to live with). Well, it's time to get off and try so get to sleep now. *Yawn*
Haha! No joke, as soon as I put the bed down and shut off the light, a nurse comes in to give me some meds. Then, a short while later, another nurse comes in to hook up the antibiotics to the IV and take my vitals. 7:50 am and I am up. I guess all I needed was short nap. Such as life.
Two more IV pokes today. Ouch. No naps though. Maybe I'll be able to sleep tonight.
I was told by the allergy and asthma doctor that a case of unmanaged asthma like mine usually results in a 3-5 day hospital stay. This is going on night number 3. *sigh* The respiratory therapist is changing up my neb treatments a bit by adding an inhaled steroid morning and evening and the albuterol treatments every 4 hours as needed.
I do have to say that some strange shows come on at night. I had the tv in the animal channel and I learned a bit about a very small but poisonous relative of the Portuguese-Man-of-War. Interesting. I think I've seen it before.
China and India get to see a 7 minute long lunar eclipse tonight. I'd like to see that. We just get rain. (Yeah, watching the negatively-biased news. Can't take too much of it.)
Wednesday was a first for me. Apparently the steroids they have me on may have a side effect of raising my blood sugar. When the nurse pricked my finger, my sugar was 320. They gave me insulin. The next time they came in to check, it was 317, so I had to have more insulin. "Normal" is 120 or so. The first was taking the insulin. I used to check my sugar level at grandparents' house (both were diabetic and I was a little paranoid).
Now it's Thursday morning. Still don't know if I've leaving yet. Every time I get up, my oxygen level dips to 88-89% without the oxygen in my nose and that's to do minimal movements. I'd like to get some walking in but I feel like I'm on a leash since they have the pulse-ox on me 24/7. I can only get as far as the bathroom. Getting a little stir crazy being stuck in this room. I guess I saw a doctor yesterday, but I don't remember. They are all meshing together. It doesn’t help that the name of the doctor that has been on the info board in my room hasn't changed in three days and I never even met that doctor.
5:40 am Friday. Awake with pain. The nurse came in to start the antibiotic IV drip. No real problem there, but when she left, I felt a burning sensation. I thought it was the initial entering the vein burning, but it persisted after the nurse left. Then, I felt an odd wetness. I lifted my arm and some the antibiotic dripped onto my face. Yeah, another IV issue. The nurse was quick to come back in and take the IV out. She said she'd have another nurse that's good with IVs come in and check me out to see if she could get another one in me. If not, I'd have to wait for IV therapy to come in (mind you, IV therapy has done six pokes for 3 IV sites on me already). The other nurse did a great job. She found another vein quickly and only poked me once. It bled a bit, but it's not burning or anything. So now, the grand total is 8 pokes for 4 IVs.
I had my sugar checked this morning already. The last 4-5 checks have resulted in high sugar levels followed by a dose of insulin. I've done what I could (not eating or drinking anything knowingly high in sugar) to try to get it down. It was 115 this morning! Much better than 340 yesterday. No insulin this morning.
Completely off topic, but it seems that the government is against people owning things that are old. The whole HD TV thing and now cars. They are not happy unless people are spending money out the wazoo. Just leave us be! Oh, and another thing that's bugging me (and I wouldn't know it, but I've been watching TV and can't fast forward through the commercials) is a ridiculous and offensive commercial put on by some gay group. It's the "Emma and Julia" one. It starts with two teenage girls that are talking about what to do after work. One asks if the other is going to a party or something and the other replies that she parents said she had be go home right after work. The other answers with "that is go gay" and the other one says the same thing. That's when a customer walks up and says that "that is so Emma and Julia" and that everyone is saying it. The commercial ends with telling people (rather rudely) that they need to think before they speak and knock it off. Excuse you? I have to listen to the world say all sorts of offensive things about Christianity and the world gets in a tizzy when Christians speak up about but now I have listen to that crap? No way.
Today is going pretty well, I guess. My O2 stats still aren't the best though.
I think all these meds have had a strange affect on me. I tear up so easily! I find it amusing. From reading a great book (which would lead to some tears anyway) to the results of What Not to Wear to even the astounded reactions in a car restoration show (of which the title completely left me). Yeah, odd, I know. I think I even teared up watching a dog show. I know I'm female, but even that is a little much for me.
OverHauled. It came back to me.
Just found out that they need to do another IV for the CAT scan. Lager gauge. A nurse just tried and it must have been on a nerve because I felt pain all the way up in my shoulder from the poke in my elbow. Up to 9 IV pokes now and heading to 10.
The CAT scan IV took 3 pokes to take. That scan was quite a bit different. It really made me feel warm as the fluid was pushed through me. I had to ask for the results since no one bothered to tell me anything after a couple hours. No blood clots (very good news) but the lower sections of my lungs aren't expanding as they ought to be. The nurse basically told me to exercise my lungs by taking deeps breaths throughout every hour (in addition to my regular breathing, of course!) to try to make those pockets expand.
I get to go home today! Woo-hoo! It's about time! Lol
A full week in the hospital is not what I planned a all, but I am finally feeling much better.
