School is back in session as of last week, so craziness has ensued with chasing numbers, as always! It never fails to amaze me how Maddison's insulin requirements SOAR when summer ends and school is back in session! The first 2 days of school brought Maddison consistent numbers in the 300's and high 200's, so I aggressively flipped basal dosing back to our old school pattern from last year...AND......
Day 3 was MUCH better!! Almost there! A few more changes and by day 4 of school this week numbers were in range all day! HOORAY! By day 5 of school (Friday) Maddi's numbers were a bit higher, likely due to a 3 day pump site after recess in the 110 degree heat before lunch every day! So now we start again tomorrow. MONDAY! Who knows what this week of numbers will bring?
I know BOTH our A1c's this month will be the highest ever! But ya know what? Its been a hell of a month and we still have a couple weeks left......its never too late to get back on track!
On Tuesday the 23rd my Maddison will be 11!!!!! I cant believe my Maddison is going to be 11!!!! I can see it in her blood sugar numbers, she always grows crazy inches every year right around her birthday. I think this might be the year I start chasing pre-pubescent blood sugars!!! -GASP!!-I do think my Maddi is now considered a TWEEN?!
Did I mention my Hannah made the VARSITY Volleyball team at her new school?! She sure did :) Our first game of the school season is Wednesday! I cant wait to see our new team play! Hannah has been training SO hard since the start of August for this team....its gonna be AWESOME to see my Hannah play this year as a Sophomore for the Varsity team!!!
In case anyone hasn't heard the scoop....
Rewind to August 7th, 5 days after my Hysterectomy I still continued with fevers so I was urged to go back the the ER AGAIN!! (3rd time) by my Doc. I had already been placed on antibiotics for a UTI post surgically and STILL ran a fever. I otherwise felt fine. No pain. Incisions good, recovering well. Blood sugars great, even without having any appetite. After much arguing with my Doctor, I went to the urgent care instead of the ER. I DID NOT want to end up Inpatient again! I really felt fine, even though the fevers were draining! I figured at the urgent care I could just get a new script for a different antibiotic. Wishful thinking. NOPE. The Urgent care showed no infection in my urine.... WHAT? I dont understand? So, the urgent care Doc insisted I go to the ER.....
UGH. I knew then that I'd be staying in the hospital again. Damn it. School was coming too fast! I dont have time for this!!!! We can't afford to take FMLA for this!!!
So I had my Mom drive me to the ER. (Hubby was working out of town) I figured I most likely had a pelvic infection from surgery. Maybe some IV antibiotics a day or two and I'd be good to go? UM.....NOPE.
In the ER my labwork showed nothing unusual indicating infection. Why the fevers then?
Apparently my D Dimer result was extremely high. A high D Dimer result indicates that there may be significant blood clot (thrombus) formation and breakdown in the body. WHAT? A chest CT scan was done, and there it was.....my CAT scan showed a Pulmonary Embolism.
By the time I made it upstairs to my hospital room it was 3am. I couldnt sleep. I wasnt even tired. (or so I thought) I couldnt believe the ER just caught a potentially FATAL embolism....in my lung! There aren't really any words to explain how I felt at that moment. I wasn't scared...I was mostly shocked. In denial. I must have asked the ER doc 10 times if he was SURE I had an Emboli!
All by chance this was caught early. So naturally, all the what if's began to play through my mind....
I never knew your mind could be SO wound up and unable to sleep. I mean, as parents with "D" kids we all get wound up from time to time and cant sleep from the stress and worry of it all.....but this was different. I think I ended up going 32 hours before asking for something to knock me out so I could sleep. This level of anxiety was CRAZY!!!
A few times during my 7 day stay I had random chest pains which called for EKG's, Oxygen and Morphine. Each time I was sure I was gonna die, Im not even being dramatic!! I really thought my life was played out, ending in death by complication of surgery. I really did. It was horrible. You try to always think the best, but when someone else is in control of your life you can't help but feel worried, scared and unsure. Each day isnt a promise for tomorrow.....
My heart rate during my hospital stay eventually became elevated because of the emboli, which made me feel like my blood sugar was low. My blood pressure ran continually low (90/55) so it was a struggle to walk around more than a few minutes at a time. Otherwise, I felt pretty good considering! I was in GREAT shape considering all the illness in the rooms around me! The heart/lung floor is NOT where I EVER thought I would be! Hacking and coughing in all the rooms around me. A CODE ALERT here, a CODE there......for my health I was never so grateful!!!
So, 4 days after being re-admitted I STILL had fevers. The Infectious Disease Doc was called in. I ended up having a CT scan of my abdomen and pelvis done (FINALLY after I asked 3 times) which revealed several "cyst like abscesses." More IV antibiotics. A few more days in the hospital, and by day 7 I FINALLY went home! Unfortunately I missed the first day of school for the kids, but I made it home in time that day to surprise them!
7 days is a horribly long time to be away from your kids and husband! 7 days is a horribly long time to sleep in a hospital bed with pokes every 4 hours around the clock! 7 days gave me the opportunity to lay around thinking about LIFE.... How lucky I am, how horrible this complication could have been, how saddened I was for the illness surrounding me, how thankful I am for each and every day I have on this earth!
7 days is a horribly long time to eat hospital food, especially the "Diabetic Diet." 7 days caused me to loose about 7lbs, and now I look sickly!! ICK. Drained. Pale. Tired. I have a long way to go. Im so totally out of shape, turned to mush and feeling it! Ive been home from the hospital for 6 days now, and as of today (3 weeks after surgery and complications) Im finally feeling near normal for the first time! Im having labs drawn every 3 days until we find the right dose of Coumadin to maintain my levels (normal is 1 but they want me at 2-3) and I'll be on the Coumadin therapy for at least 4 months. We re-check the Chest CT scan in two weeks to make sure the Clot is decreasing in size, and I get a repeat Abd/Pelvic CT scan in 3 weeks to make sure the 2 antibiotics Im taking is helping the abscesses.
Its been a VERY long 3 weeks!! Im ready for my "normal" life now, no matter how crazy that might be :)
Moving my blog again
15 years ago
2 comments:
First of all....
(((HUGS)))
That was an ordeal. You'd think a hysterectomy and allergic reaction to meds would be enough.
But no.
Not enough...and right before school to boot.
You're amazing, Kelly.
Just so you know....I think you're amazing.
You sound like you have been through hell but I am glad to read you are doing well. Yes you can take FMLA for yourself; you need to recouperate. You probably don't have to take all three months of it and will have plenty left. You do know FMLA is renewed every year? Good luck, take care of yourself and feel better.
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