Thursday's emo child
~*~
I went to the dentist last Thursday, just for a cleaning/check-up, and fell asleep in the dental chair. What does it say about my life when my most relaxed moment in quite a while is when a stranger is poking me with a sharp instrument? Oh, I've since paid for that little nap because there was more fun to be had after that.
Now, what’s a post from me without medical woe? The latest round: stomach virus, vomiting blood, swollen ankles/legs, pulled shoulder muscle, elevated blood pressure, allergic reaction, sun poisoning, sinusitis, and pharyngitis. That list of ailments? Not my family this time. All that was mine - from last Thursday evening to this Tuesday. I was dreading what yesterday would bring but nothing new flared up, thankfully.
The stomach virus hit me Thursday night and was the kind where you roll in the floor moaning, cursing, and praying. The stomach pain lasted several days. It also took days to clean/eliminate all odorous, vile traces from my bedroom because I had to clean/air the memory foam mattress topper three times. Such fun. Not. Maybe it was a virus, or maybe it wasn't since no one else got it.
The vomiting blood thing is something I’ll deal with if it happens again. I had just discounted internal bleeding earlier this month as I explained in this excerpt from a family medical email I sent two weeks ago:
We celebrated three birthdays the first week of May (mine, Mom’s, and my nephew’s), plus Mother’s Day. Week of Cake, we like to call it. There’s no polite way to segue into rectal bleeding from the topic of cake, but bear with me. Last week I stopped taking Motrin because I thought it was causing signs of stomach bleeding. If it stopped, I would know I had been taking too many Motrin for my headaches. If it didn’t stop, I knew a rendezvous with a rectal scope was in my future. It did seem to stop; however, it happened again this past weekend after using no Motrin all week. Fortunately, I saved a huge a$$ co-pay by diagnosing myself. I realized the two occurrences just happened to coincide with the consumption of massive quantities of red velvet cake on my birthday and Levi’s. I’m so glad I didn’t pay for a colonoscopy which would have determined I was just full of cake.
I may have spoken too soon. Whatever.
The pulled muscle was in the center of my right shoulder blade and the pain ran down my right arm to my elbow. I even considered using an ace bandage to anchor my upper arm to my torso to prevent any painful movements. It’s feeling better now and I think I avoided a full-on back issue by babying it for a few days.
The sinus/throat infection is the same old reoccurring problem. I’ve rescheduled my allergy testing for June 19. The allergic reaction occurred after visiting family cemeteries this weekend. I think I breathed in some freshly cut clippings from poison ivy/oak or something. No physical contact but I had an allergic reaction similar to ingesting something which would cause such a reaction. The doctor also diagnosed sun poisoning on top of that. A shot in the ass was deemed a cure for all that ailed me.
In a five day span, I used Phenergan (for nausea), Lasix (for swelling), Potassium (to replenish), Flexeril (muscle relaxant), Benadryl (effing itching), corticosteroid shot (for the allergy/sun poisoning issues), hydrocortisone cream (for the rash on my neck/face), and Augmentin (for the sinus/throat infection), and Exedrin (for pain relief). F---! That’s a lot of medicine. Oh yeah, as if I needed even more discomfort, let's not forget the joys of a menstrual cycle during this time as well. No mercy, no surrender, and it was a helluva impasse.
But enough about me. I swear my mindset is in a good place despite all that but I really don’t know how or why.
My brother’s situation is somewhat stabilized. His neurologist has increased his seizure meds back up to 5 tablets of Tegretol daily instead of the 6 tablets he was originally taking before she tried to take him off this medicine. She won’t make any more changes until he’s admitted into the hospital for his epilepsy monitoring/testing in July. However, he is once again having trouble with his sodium levels. A normal level is 135 to 145 and his has dropped to 125 to 127. He’s still on a daily 50-oz. fluid intake restriction and having weekly lab work to check his levels. Of course, all the salt the doctor urged for building up his sodium levels has also elevated his blood pressure so they've now doubled his BP medicine. I think this made eleven changes in his meds in the last seven weeks. He’s now taking 21 pills a day. o.O At least his seizures are under control again for now.
Mom’s knee replacement surgery is tomorrow. My sister took her this morning to Lexington for pre-registration and pre-op tests. I’ll drive down after work and we’ll stay tonight at a hotel close to the hospital. After the surgery, my sister will come home Friday but I’ll be staying at the hospital with her for the first few nights. Before her first knee surgery, everyone warned my mom it was hell. They weren’t lying. I hated seeing her in that kind of condition and pain. I dread this for her but I know it will make a world of difference in her mobility for years to come. She’s really in pretty good health except for her arthritic knees slowing her down these past few years. She’s 76 and no one believes her when she tells them her age. She definitely doesn’t look or act her age. I love my momma. Please be sending good thoughts/prayers/vibes for her surgery on Friday.
Mom’s brother from SC is going to be staying a few months this summer here in KY. We had planned to move my son into my grandmother’s house, the one my Uncle Clayton lived in but my mother owned. However, my uncle from SC is in failing health and he has been very homesick wanting to spend time with his remaining sisters and brother. There are only four of them left now. We decided Matt could wait and move in this fall so my uncle and aunt could instead stay this summer in the house. My uncle has only been here a week and he’s already gave us a few health scares. Honestly, I’m surprised he has outlived my other uncle and I’m afraid of losing him this summer. He’s got emphysema and COPD, takes oxygen and breathing treatments, and has cancer for the 5th time. His doctors are finally attributing Agent Orange for many of his health problems to which the military is saying, ‘What’s that?’
So, my aunt and uncle are here in the neighborhood which may be some help in checking on my brother while my mom is in the hospital/PT rehab for the next two weeks. Or not, if we have to end up taking care of them as well. But let's stay positive here. Right? Oddly enough, I am still in a positive frame of mind. I really don't know how I ended up with extra happy genes and/or freakishly high serotonin levels but I thank The Powers That Be that I did. If not, recent events would surely have made me all pissy and bitter by now.
I've always been blessed with a mellow nature which has been a valuable survival skill in my family. Here's an example, if you will. Years ago (my sister and I were teenagers) while on a family road trip to the beach, our car's tire had a blow-out on the interstate. We took the first exit and rolled into a sleepy little town called Newberry, SC. It was 11:59 am and the one service station we found was closing at noon. The owner was a nice guy and stayed open to put a new tire on the car. They had to unpack our luggage-laden trunk to put the car up on the rack. So there my family sat all distraught on a pile of suitcases. My dad was grumbling about losing time on traveling. My mom was freaking about us not being at the hotel at the precise time check-in began. My sister was distraught that the rest of the family members we were meeting and vacationing with would think we were lost (we didn't have cell phones back then) and we were lost in her opinion since we were off the beaten path. I had a brief respite because it took them a while to notice me sitting by the corner on the sidewalk, sunning my legs with my shorts rolled up, and reading a book. Finally my sister came over waving her hands in the air and yelled, "What's wrong with you? We're having an emergency!" My reply was, "Only if you perceive it as such." I got up, went inside, and asked for directions to a restaurant within walking distance. You see, unlike Gremlins, Griswolds must be kept fed at all times. The mechanic told me about a diner down the street with the best pie ever. I herded the family down the street where we enjoyed a nice lunch and sampled some of Mabel's homemade pies. It was also air conditioned which worked wonders on cooling everyone down. Then the mechanic walked down the street, came inside to pull a chair up to our table, and asked how we liked his wife's pies. You've got to appreciate small town America at times like that. Long story short - by multi-tasking making good use of our down time, we got a new tire, filled the car with gas, had lunch/dessert, bathroom breaks, stretched our legs, and met some nice people. Less than four hours later we were at the beach, after a nice little break during our unexpected detour. I guess the moral of my story is you can either sweat the small stuff or instead, appreciate the little things life has to offer when you least expect it. *g*
I'll be AFK for the next few days. Take care!
I went to the dentist last Thursday, just for a cleaning/check-up, and fell asleep in the dental chair. What does it say about my life when my most relaxed moment in quite a while is when a stranger is poking me with a sharp instrument? Oh, I've since paid for that little nap because there was more fun to be had after that.
Now, what’s a post from me without medical woe? The latest round: stomach virus, vomiting blood, swollen ankles/legs, pulled shoulder muscle, elevated blood pressure, allergic reaction, sun poisoning, sinusitis, and pharyngitis. That list of ailments? Not my family this time. All that was mine - from last Thursday evening to this Tuesday. I was dreading what yesterday would bring but nothing new flared up, thankfully.
The stomach virus hit me Thursday night and was the kind where you roll in the floor moaning, cursing, and praying. The stomach pain lasted several days. It also took days to clean/eliminate all odorous, vile traces from my bedroom because I had to clean/air the memory foam mattress topper three times. Such fun. Not. Maybe it was a virus, or maybe it wasn't since no one else got it.
The vomiting blood thing is something I’ll deal with if it happens again. I had just discounted internal bleeding earlier this month as I explained in this excerpt from a family medical email I sent two weeks ago:
We celebrated three birthdays the first week of May (mine, Mom’s, and my nephew’s), plus Mother’s Day. Week of Cake, we like to call it. There’s no polite way to segue into rectal bleeding from the topic of cake, but bear with me. Last week I stopped taking Motrin because I thought it was causing signs of stomach bleeding. If it stopped, I would know I had been taking too many Motrin for my headaches. If it didn’t stop, I knew a rendezvous with a rectal scope was in my future. It did seem to stop; however, it happened again this past weekend after using no Motrin all week. Fortunately, I saved a huge a$$ co-pay by diagnosing myself. I realized the two occurrences just happened to coincide with the consumption of massive quantities of red velvet cake on my birthday and Levi’s. I’m so glad I didn’t pay for a colonoscopy which would have determined I was just full of cake.
I may have spoken too soon. Whatever.
The pulled muscle was in the center of my right shoulder blade and the pain ran down my right arm to my elbow. I even considered using an ace bandage to anchor my upper arm to my torso to prevent any painful movements. It’s feeling better now and I think I avoided a full-on back issue by babying it for a few days.
The sinus/throat infection is the same old reoccurring problem. I’ve rescheduled my allergy testing for June 19. The allergic reaction occurred after visiting family cemeteries this weekend. I think I breathed in some freshly cut clippings from poison ivy/oak or something. No physical contact but I had an allergic reaction similar to ingesting something which would cause such a reaction. The doctor also diagnosed sun poisoning on top of that. A shot in the ass was deemed a cure for all that ailed me.
In a five day span, I used Phenergan (for nausea), Lasix (for swelling), Potassium (to replenish), Flexeril (muscle relaxant), Benadryl (effing itching), corticosteroid shot (for the allergy/sun poisoning issues), hydrocortisone cream (for the rash on my neck/face), and Augmentin (for the sinus/throat infection), and Exedrin (for pain relief). F---! That’s a lot of medicine. Oh yeah, as if I needed even more discomfort, let's not forget the joys of a menstrual cycle during this time as well. No mercy, no surrender, and it was a helluva impasse.
But enough about me. I swear my mindset is in a good place despite all that but I really don’t know how or why.
My brother’s situation is somewhat stabilized. His neurologist has increased his seizure meds back up to 5 tablets of Tegretol daily instead of the 6 tablets he was originally taking before she tried to take him off this medicine. She won’t make any more changes until he’s admitted into the hospital for his epilepsy monitoring/testing in July. However, he is once again having trouble with his sodium levels. A normal level is 135 to 145 and his has dropped to 125 to 127. He’s still on a daily 50-oz. fluid intake restriction and having weekly lab work to check his levels. Of course, all the salt the doctor urged for building up his sodium levels has also elevated his blood pressure so they've now doubled his BP medicine. I think this made eleven changes in his meds in the last seven weeks. He’s now taking 21 pills a day. o.O At least his seizures are under control again for now.
Mom’s knee replacement surgery is tomorrow. My sister took her this morning to Lexington for pre-registration and pre-op tests. I’ll drive down after work and we’ll stay tonight at a hotel close to the hospital. After the surgery, my sister will come home Friday but I’ll be staying at the hospital with her for the first few nights. Before her first knee surgery, everyone warned my mom it was hell. They weren’t lying. I hated seeing her in that kind of condition and pain. I dread this for her but I know it will make a world of difference in her mobility for years to come. She’s really in pretty good health except for her arthritic knees slowing her down these past few years. She’s 76 and no one believes her when she tells them her age. She definitely doesn’t look or act her age. I love my momma. Please be sending good thoughts/prayers/vibes for her surgery on Friday.
Mom’s brother from SC is going to be staying a few months this summer here in KY. We had planned to move my son into my grandmother’s house, the one my Uncle Clayton lived in but my mother owned. However, my uncle from SC is in failing health and he has been very homesick wanting to spend time with his remaining sisters and brother. There are only four of them left now. We decided Matt could wait and move in this fall so my uncle and aunt could instead stay this summer in the house. My uncle has only been here a week and he’s already gave us a few health scares. Honestly, I’m surprised he has outlived my other uncle and I’m afraid of losing him this summer. He’s got emphysema and COPD, takes oxygen and breathing treatments, and has cancer for the 5th time. His doctors are finally attributing Agent Orange for many of his health problems to which the military is saying, ‘What’s that?’
So, my aunt and uncle are here in the neighborhood which may be some help in checking on my brother while my mom is in the hospital/PT rehab for the next two weeks. Or not, if we have to end up taking care of them as well. But let's stay positive here. Right? Oddly enough, I am still in a positive frame of mind. I really don't know how I ended up with extra happy genes and/or freakishly high serotonin levels but I thank The Powers That Be that I did. If not, recent events would surely have made me all pissy and bitter by now.
I've always been blessed with a mellow nature which has been a valuable survival skill in my family. Here's an example, if you will. Years ago (my sister and I were teenagers) while on a family road trip to the beach, our car's tire had a blow-out on the interstate. We took the first exit and rolled into a sleepy little town called Newberry, SC. It was 11:59 am and the one service station we found was closing at noon. The owner was a nice guy and stayed open to put a new tire on the car. They had to unpack our luggage-laden trunk to put the car up on the rack. So there my family sat all distraught on a pile of suitcases. My dad was grumbling about losing time on traveling. My mom was freaking about us not being at the hotel at the precise time check-in began. My sister was distraught that the rest of the family members we were meeting and vacationing with would think we were lost (we didn't have cell phones back then) and we were lost in her opinion since we were off the beaten path. I had a brief respite because it took them a while to notice me sitting by the corner on the sidewalk, sunning my legs with my shorts rolled up, and reading a book. Finally my sister came over waving her hands in the air and yelled, "What's wrong with you? We're having an emergency!" My reply was, "Only if you perceive it as such." I got up, went inside, and asked for directions to a restaurant within walking distance. You see, unlike Gremlins, Griswolds must be kept fed at all times. The mechanic told me about a diner down the street with the best pie ever. I herded the family down the street where we enjoyed a nice lunch and sampled some of Mabel's homemade pies. It was also air conditioned which worked wonders on cooling everyone down. Then the mechanic walked down the street, came inside to pull a chair up to our table, and asked how we liked his wife's pies. You've got to appreciate small town America at times like that. Long story short - by multi-tasking making good use of our down time, we got a new tire, filled the car with gas, had lunch/dessert, bathroom breaks, stretched our legs, and met some nice people. Less than four hours later we were at the beach, after a nice little break during our unexpected detour. I guess the moral of my story is you can either sweat the small stuff or instead, appreciate the little things life has to offer when you least expect it. *g*
I'll be AFK for the next few days. Take care!