Bummer part 2

Well, I'm still on medical leave of absence. There is little change in my lung x-rays. I also didn't wear my oxygen for an hour this morning and my blood oxygen level as 83 at the doctors. At that point I put the oxygen back on and it popped right back up to 92.

Since I still have little stamina, we decided that I would wait another 2 weeks to go back to work. I probably will have to go back with oxygen. The silver lining is maybe I can get one of the cute portable oxygen concentrators. The doctor even said the bad word "permanent", which did NOT make me happy.

I lost 3 more pounds. Woo hoo! Now I need to increase my walking to a daily event.

I am going to stitching group tonight. My brother will drop me off in Draper and Pat B will pick me up. Dinner is at Paradise Cafe (yum and nutritious). Don will bring me home.

Now I have to decide what project to take. I have a Jim Shore Santa on perforated paper that I may take. It is a Mill Hill and is way cute. And very portable. And small.

I could take some tatting too. Or knitting. Decisions, decisions. Here is a picture of the Santa.


I called my boss to inform him that it would be at least 2 more weeks before I would be able to come back to work. He then said he had something to tell me. I thought "oh crap". There has been a reorganization at work. The product I have been working on has been dropped. Uh oh. There is still the legacy product to work on, and other projects that need more bodies. So my job is safe. I will have a new boss. However I have worked with her before, so that will be great.

Adventures with a CPAP machine

Last Tuesday, the guy from the home medical supply place brought me my very own CPAP machine and humidifier. It is a ResMed and much smaller than I expected. The guy went through the whole spiel about hooking up the CPAP, the humidifier, etc. It took about an hour. He fitted the mask to my face and told me how to quick release the mask if I needed to get up during the night.




Of course, the first night was an adventure. My brother even took a picture and my mom giggled.

So my routine at night is fill the humidifier water reservoir with distilled water and click it into the CPAP, being very careful not to spill anywhere. Shut the lid firmly so the CPAP starts properly.

Attach the hose to the humidifier. Attach the other end of the hose to the mask. Plug the CPAP machine in. I hit the Warm Humidifier while I am going through the rest of the process.

I also need oxygen at night. So the tube from the oxygen concentrator is attached to the hose end that is attached to the humidifier. I turn the oxygen concentrator on.

Then I brush my teeth, get my jammies on, take my meds, and turn down the covers. And turn out the light (I usually have the TV on.) I put the mask on. It's pretty cool because the CPAP machine is automatically programmed to start as soon as I put the mask on. And it will stop when I take the mask off.

There is also a ramping feature. It starts the air pressure at 4 and ramps up to 10 (which is my air pressure setting. It can go up to 20.) The air pressure is what keeps my airways open so I can breathe properly when I sleep. The technician set the ramping feature for 20 minutes initially, I have it at 5 minutes now.

I'm sleeping better now, I think and resting. I'm still sleep during the day at times, but I can't tell if that is my lungs or if the CPAP isn't working as it should. I have a doctor's appointment on Tuesday, so I'll wear the mask until then. and beyond. I haven't had many problems with the mask.

A sleep study and a new toy

I had the sleep study done on Wednesday, Jan 6. On Monday, Jan 11 the home medical supply place called me and said that the neurologist at the sleep clinic had ordered a CPAP machine for me. Oh goody, a new toy.

The sleep study wasn't bad. I had to be at the clinic at 9:15 pm and we were about 5 minutes early. There are 3 rooms at this clinic, and the other two patients were already there. They showed me the room, it was very nice. It had a double bed with a very nice warm comforter.

My niece Amy had a sleep study done a couple of months ago. She told me to take an extra throw or blanket since the room was cold. So I took a down throw along with me. And a sweater. The ironic thing is that I don't get cold at night. In fact I am like a furnace and usually throw the covers off during the night. Anyway...

George and Kim, the two sleep technicians came in to put all the leads on me. There are about 20 leads. 2 go on each leg, 1 goes on each side of the collarbone, 1 behind each ear, 2 on the neck, a few in your hair and on the forehead. The wires go back to this little box for monitoring of the patient. A very soft belt goes around the chest and waist. Here is a picture of someone all hooked up. It took about 30 minutes to attach everything.



I then climbed into bed and George attached a lead to the chest belt and the waist belt. He then checked all of the leads to make sure they were still stuck on me, then put a probe in my nose. The probe is just like a nasal canula, except much smaller. This probe lets the technicians know if the patient breathes through their mouth or nose. I then had the pulse oximeter put on my finger.

I got comfortable, George turned out the light, and I tried to fall asleep. I have no idea how long it took for me to fall asleep, but it seemed just a few minutes later that Kim came in with a nasal canula. Apparently my oxygen was too low, and so she put the nasal canula in my nose, along with the probe. There was actually room in my nostrils for both. And it didn't hurt. I fell asleep.

I tried to turn over, but the oxygen tubing was too short. Kim was watching me and came in the room and held the tubing so I could turn on my right side. I fell asleep.

In a few minutes, Kim came in with a CPAP mask had hooked it up. I didn't realize that the study was a Split Night PSG with CPAP Titration.

Split Night PSG is conducted when moderate or severe Sleep Apnea has been discovered or strongly suspected during the first part of the nights study. The second half of the night is used for CPAP Titration.

The mask went on. It was a different kind of mask than the one I wore in the hospital. It just covered my nose, not my nose and mouth. I fell asleep.

In a few minutes, George came in and asked me if I was hot. No, I was sleeping under the sheet and had thrown the comforter off. Apparently I was sweating and a few of the leads had fallen off. So George cleaned the spots and reattached the leads behind my ears, neck, and forehead. I got comfortable again and he turned the fan on over my head so I wouldn't sweat. I fell sleep and had a weird dream.

I dreamed the test was over and we were having a party to celebrate. There were even celebrities and famous people there. They all congratulated us and then we had breakfast together. I woke up rather disoriented because I thought the study was over and I was still in bed. I fell asleep again, and a few minutes later George woke me up and said the study was over.

I did sleep because I can sleep anywhere. It just seemed like a short time every time they woke me up. I got dressed, went home, had breakfast, and slept most of the day.

I tried to get information on how I did, but George and Kim weren't too talkative. I guess I will get the results when I see my doctor on Tuesday.

The overall experience was really good. I'm glad I had the study done, maybe now I can get some good rest.

Bummer

I went to the pulmonologist today. Actually I saw the nurse practitioner because the office is booked solid. She did consult with my pulmonologist.

They want to wait 2 weeks and take another x-ray and perform some other breathing tests. I'm not released to go to work. I called my boss and he said the work would always be there. I told him I would much rather be there working.

I can drive, but probably won't do much of it.

So I am going to wallow in pity tonight, and then wake up with a new attitude. Tomorrow is the dentist and a sleep study.

And it is my parents 54th wedding anniversary. And they still like each other, love each other lots. Thanks for being my parents Mom & Dad!

Today

I changed the background. It makes me smile and is seasonal.

Let's see, good news first. I went to the doctor today and I have lost 13 more pounds. That is 23 pounds since Thanksgiving. Woo hoo! I wouldn't recommend the hospital to get started, but it was a good kick starter.

Bad news is that my lungs aren't much better. Boo, hiss. I had a chest x-ray today and the lungs are a little clearer, but not much since the first x-ray on Dec 3. I'm a bit discouraged. The doctor also ran a spirometry test. That is where the patient blows into a tube. Take a deep breath and exhale as hard and fast as you can, then hold that breath. For as long as you can. I'm not very good at it. The results are that something is at 44%, and I didn't reach a level for long enough on a graph. (I'm not technical.) Bottom line is I am seeing a pulmonologist tomorrow.

So I am rather discouraged. I'm not cleared for work and I still can't drive.

My nice brother Scott took me on a field trip today because I have cabin fever. I went to the dentist to have a suture removed. I also made an appointment for Wednesday to replace a crown. Ka-ching. We picked up my x-rays and filled some prescriptions. I found a red pajama top to match my pink/white/red pajama bottoms. I also bought some new pink fluffy booties. I have a sleep study Wednesday night, so needed something to wear during the sleep study.

And hopefully that means my c-pap will be on the way soon.

The other good news is that I finally feel like being crafty. Here are the booties I am knitting. I'm going to try and tat the edging. Actually I'm still trying to decide.


Then I am going to finish this stocking. I finally found some good directions on how to turn the heel with a different color of yarn. I'm not happy with the stocking the way it is, so I am going to knit it again, with a different yarn and smaller needles. But not for awhile. This picture is a picture of the stocking that someone else knitted. I'll post a picture as soon as I finish it.


And the medical bills are pouring in. Thank goodness I have great insurance. And a medical savings account. I have a $2500 maximum out of pocket, and will easily meet that. The amount for the bills so far is about $53,000.00. Gulp. And I still haven't received many of the doctors bills.

OK, I'm done for the day. Wish me luck tomorrow at the pulmonologist. I feel pretty good. Good night.

Changed the background for the blog

I'm not a black and white person, but I do like this background. I still might change it though. :)

As for me, I am slowly getting better. I'm at 1 liter of oxygen per hour and I can take the oxygen off for 20-30 minutes at a time. I still can't drive, but that is moot, since we've had 6 or 7 inches of snow in the past 2 days. Icky roads.

Back to the doctor on Monday, Jan 4, 2010. He will hopefully release me from oxygen, clear me to drive and go back to work. I also need to go to the dentist on that day and have a stitch taken out. I hope it hasn't grown into my gums. :(

The holidays and hospitals

I'm back. :)

I've had an eventful two weeks. Since Thanksgiving I have been ill. And for the last two weeks, I've been in the hospital with influenza type A, viral pneumonia, and bacterial pneumonia. Yuck.

Can you say thoracentesis? How about infiltrated IV? I'm going to be self indulgent and put down my thoughts about my stay and illness.

Prologue

I'd been coughing since Saturday, Nov 28. Nothing serious, just a cough. By Sunday, I had a fever of 102 degrees and felt generally wretched. So I stayed home from work on Monday and Tuesday. On Wednesday the fever was almost gone and I felt better so I went to work. BIG mistake. I commute 40 minutes one way. That was one of the worst days of my life. I managed to work eight hours and drive home.

So on Thursday I called in sick and went to the doctor.


Dec 3, 2009:

At the doctor's office, they did a chest x-ray. While we were waiting for the results, my mom leaned over and asked me if I have good health insurance. I asked why. She knew how sick I was and that I was probably going to the hospital. I was clueless.

The results came back, kind of. My left lung had white cloudy stuff, but the doctor wasn't sure because it really didn't resemble pneumonia. So he consulted with his partner and came back and asked me if I had been exposed to TB. At that point, I start to get nervous.

My white blood cell count was elevated, as was my red blood cell count. So they decided to put me in the hospital so further tests could be done and they could administer IV antibiotics. I thought just a few days would get me all better.

We arrived at the hospital and by 3:00 pm I was in a hospital gown and being poked and prodded. I was a bit dehydrated, so they had a very hard time getting an IV in. They actually poked and dug six times. Ouch. They drew blood for general tests, then we had a break for 20 minutes or so.

Then the swarm descended. Everyone gets tested for H1N1 now (the swine flu.) I had a phlebotomist come in with at least six containers for blood. She had to draw the blood from 2 different sites. First site, not so bad. Second site, excruciating pain. Well, second and third sites. Right between my knuckles on my right hand.

Right after she got started 2 guys came in with an EKG machine to take an EKG. Then the pharmacist walked in to ask me about my daily medication. And then the H1N1 team swooped in.

And there was a nurse in the room too. The pharmacist was smart and said he would come back later. The two guys kept trying to reposition me, thus frustrating the phlebotomist. The H1N1 team was busy trying to stick a tube up my nose. The nurse finally restored order and had the phlebotomist finish getting the blood.

Then the EKG guys did their thing. (No heart problems.)

And then the H1N1 team stuck a tube up my nose and flushed it on the way out. Both nostrils. "This will be uncomfortable but it won't be painful." Right. The first time, their gizmo didn't work. So the second time wasn't too bad. The third time hurt. I could feel the saline flush at the back of my skull. They got their samples and left.

I had dinner. Then my parents came with my brother and my dad and brother gave me a blessing, which was very comforting. It really calmed me down and I knew that Heavenly Father was watching over me.

I thought I was coherent, but apparently by this point I was just mumbling. It's weird because in my head I was all there and talking and thinking just fine. Nope. More like hallucinating and out of it.

They came back and stuck a sign on my door. I was contagious. Everyone who came in had to gown up, use gloves, and a mask. I officially had influenza type A, viral pneumonia, and bacterial pneumonia. Offically very sick.

Dec 4,5,6:
General stuff in the hospital. Changing of IVs, doctors visits, etc.

Nights were my favorite though. I'd fall asleep about 10 pm. At midnight they would change an antibiotic. At 2 am, they would take my vital signs and a blood sugar. At 4 they would take blood (the vampires would descend.) And breakfast was at 7:30 am. I hear about those celebrities who check into the hospital for exhaustion. How can they sleep?

However, I was so sick that I would fall back asleep almost immediately. And sleep most of the day.

Monday, Dec 7:

Thoracentesis day. I'd had daily chest x-rays, so the pulmonologist came to visit me. He talked to me, listened to my lungs and heart and then said he was going to perform a thoracentesis on me. Goody.

I signed the papers, then he numbed me. And stuck the needle in. Which didn't hurt until it started drawing the fluid out between my chest wall and lungs. They use a big syringe, then a big jar to collect the stuff. Avert your eyes as I describe it. It looked like gravy or caramel topping. Yikes. He drew almost two liters out, then withdrew the catheter. That hurt worse than anything.

The pain was like a giant L that started at my left shoulder, traveled down to my waist and made a turn over to my right side. Pain meds on the way, which did help. Actually, 1 pill, then no more because narcotics can suppress breathing, and I was having a hard time anyway. But the pain was gone.

I did start breathing easier, a little bit. More mumbling and gibberish from me.

The pulmonologist also ordered a bipap machine for me. I'd heard of CPAP machines, but not BiPAP machines. Here is the description:

i-Level Positive Airway Pressure (BiPAP) machines are non-invasive machines that provide positive pressure while a person breathes in and lowers the air pressure when a person breathes out. Thus, the BiPAP has preset pressures: EPAP (exhalation pressure) and IPAP (inhalation pressure). The machine may also have a timing feature for breaths per minute (BPM). If the sleeping person doesn't take a breath, the BiPAP machine increases pressure, forcing the sleeping person to take a breath. The air pressure then decreases, allowing the person to work less against the airflow pressure to exhale. Because the sleeper's breathing varies, so does the BiPAP's pressure, allowing the pressure drop to vary according to the needs of the sleeping individual. This ability to vary air pressure allows the sleeper to exert less energy to exhale and sleep deeper.

The nurse had come in earlier in the day and found that my oxygen level in my blood was at 37. It should be over 90. Carbon dioxide was at a dangerous level in my blood too. So a couple of hours after the thoracentisis procedure, here came the BiPAP machine.

Oh my. I am claustrophobic, so the mask scared me. But they fitted the mask on and fiddled with the dials and pressure. And I could breathe better. A little bit. It was noisy, but I was fine, no closed in feeling.

I fell asleep. My parents came to visit and I woke up. My mom said I was curled up, and looked up at her. My hair was wild and I had that mask on. Now she says she wishes she'd had a camera, but at the time, they were very concerned. Not me, I waved and tried to smile. (I'm still in the "I'm coherent" mode.) They left and I went back to sleep.

Dec 8 and 9:

I start to feel a little bit better. I'm still contagious, so everyone is in their lovely yellow gowns, gloves, and masks. Each morning I had an xray. A strong young man would come and get me and wheel me down for the x-ray. We'd go down seven floors in the elevator, then they would literally swoosh me down the hall. The wind would ruffle my hair. Seriously. Really nice guys, but I wonder if they timed themselves on the speed of getting a patient to x-ray.

I also had the hospitalist daily visit. A hospitalist is a dr who works exclusively in the hospital for doctors who have private practices. The hospitalist visits the doctor's patients and they work together. This frees the doctor for his practice. I had three during my stay. Not impressed with two of them. One was kind of passive, the other one had no bedside manner. I thought my mom was going to leap out of her chair and punch her lights out. I'm still in the mode where I think I am functioning, so everything missed me.

A hospitalist is a good idea in concept. In practice, in my experience, not so good.

Thursday, Dec 11:

I start to feel like I might live and get over this stuff. My favorite nurse stopped by and asked if I had heard of LTAC. Um, no. LTAC is a long term care facility. I had visions of being sent there for a few months. LOL.

A representative stopped by and talked to us. I was very interested and she left a brochure with me. In the afternoon, she stopped by and said that they had a spot open and they could get me in the next day if my doctor would release me and I wanted to.

At this point, I was moving around much better. They were able to stop a couple of the antibiotics (I was on five.) I wasn't contagious any more. I was feeling a bit better each day. And the level of care wasn't as intense.

So on Friday, I was off to the LTAC facility.

Friday, Dec 11:

My first ambulance ride. Woo hoo! The two guys came up with the gurney and strapped me in, sitting up. Then they swooshed me down seven floors and outside. I had a hospital gown on and a blanket over me. Brrrr. A few moments later I was in the back of the ambulance. Pretty cool, but I don't want to do it again. Ever. :)

The LTAC facility is lovely. My room was twice the size and the bathroom was huge. It was probably almost the same size as the room itself.

I got settled in and they checked me over. At that point, they notice my IV had infiltrated. It was hot and hard above the site. It hurt. So they took that one out and stuck me again. Three times.

My case manager visited me and oriented me. They were going to administer the antibiotics, do respiratory and physical therapy to regain my strength. It was a step down from the hospital care.

I picked out my own meals. They took my vital signs, blood sugar, gave me my meds, and IV antibiotics. And helped me shower. And untangle myself from the tubes.

I was on oxygen 24/7. I had antibiotics five times a day via an IV. At night I had a BiPAP and pulse oximeter on my finger. If I had to go to the bathroom, I had to push the button and shout through the mask that I needed help. LOL.

They'd come down put the machine on stand-by, take the finger probe off, unplug the IV, and I'd do my thing. Put all the stuff back on and fall asleep.

And of course, the nightly routine continued. Midnight IV start, 2 am blood sugar, etc. I finally go to the point where I'd just flop my arm out for them.

Friday, Dec 18:

Home! My doctor released me. My lung x-rays are still a bit cloudy. He said that it can take up to two months for the x-rays to clear up. I'd been on antibiotics for two weeks, and hadn't had a fever at the facility. I'd done physical therapy (riding a stationary bicycle for 10 minutes a day), and even showered by myself. I was ready to go home.

Thursday night was like Christmas Eve. I was so excited. I did sleep pretty well. They gave me one last course of the antibiotic. It finished and I did something. The IV fell out. Just in time. I called my mom so my parents could pick me up and my ID bracelet fell off. Must have been a sign.

They sent me home on two liters of oxygen. 24/7. I can't drive until my doctor releases me. But I am home. And free of all the tubes and poking and probing.

I am grateful to the doctors and nurses at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center for the great care and kindness they showed me. I am also very grateful to the staff at the Utah Valley Specialty Hospital for the care they gave me.

And I am grateful to my Heavenly Father for watching over me and helping me get better.

Part Two to follow. Stories about the patients during my stay.

Nothing about the holidays though. I've pretty well missed the leadup to them. It will be very laid back this year for me. I still need to get in the Christmas spirit of things.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Just wanted to wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving. I think we will have 34 people for dinner. Lots of people, good company, food, and especially love.

I leave you with my favorite roasted root vegetable recipe.

2 potatoes
2 pounds baby carrots
2 lbs brussel sprouts
4 parsnips
2 onions
olive oil
salt
pepper
fresh rosemary
fresh thyme

Heat your oven to 400 degrees F. The key is to make the vegetables about the same size. Cut the potatoes in a rough chop. Peel and cut the parsnips. Peel and rough chop the onions.

Put all vegetables in a large bowl. Toss with olive oil, salt, pepper to taste. You want all of the vegetables to be oiled, but not dripping in it. Use the leaves from a fresh sprig of thyme and a fresh sprig of rosemary.

Put the vegetables on a greased large cookie sheet. (I use PAM to oil the cookie sheet.)

I roast the vegetables at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes. Toss the vegetables on the cookie sheet. Roast until done. (Note: I turn down the heat to 375, I like my veggies soft. You may finish cooking them to our preference.)

Feel free to use your favorite root vegetables. For Christmas I add beets, turnips, sweet potatoes, acorn squash, and butternut squash. It's all good.

Enjoy!

New background

Not so sure I like it, but that is OK. I will change it next week after Thanksgiving!

Scam alert!

I just wanted to let everyone know there is a new sneaky way of companies getting more money out of you.

I paid a bill online today. The due date is today. They had already tacked on the late fee. I was a bit steamed about the whole thing so I called them. "We will take off the late fee if the payment isn't late. If you pay today, don't worry." Grrrr.

The moral of the story is make the payment earlier (on this occasion that wasn't possible.) Lesson learned: watch account like a hawk and make sure the $29 late fee doesn't 'accidentally' stay on your account.