Mood:
downNow Playing: Day 644-The Final Road To Survival
WOW! Talking about some wicked scary dreams I had last night! More like the worst and craziest nightmares ever! YIKES!
A few dear friends of mine who work in the medical field told me via text today that head injuries can cause one to have 'not so normal' dreams as the brain begins the recovery process. Just one of the many not so fun things added to my full plate. I have also been experiencing panic attacks when my head pressure gets to be overwhelming. At least I know to talk myself down from them as I tell myself, "This is normal. Breathe in and breathe out. Breathe in and breathe out...You will soon you feel better again." I came super close last night to making a phone call for someone to come over and stay till morning but being the independent gal I am I just sucked it up and worked through them. All in all let's just say I can't WAIT for my brain to fully recover. AMEN!
I had made a prior appointment a few weeks ago for Littleblue to be groomed today. My friend volunteered to take her since I can't drive nor go out right now. The new place I take her is right down the street from my house so its very close and the couple who owns it also does an amazing job! They are very good with Littleblue and Oreo. With Oreo still having seizure problems I decided to hold off a bit until later next month before he gets groomed. My friend took a photo of all the hair Littleblue left behind. This was just a touch of the undercoat she is starting to shed. The odd part is this is way too early for her to start shedding her winter coat. With all of the strange weather we are having it even has the fur gangs fur confused. She now officially looks like a huge, soft powder puff! Hahahaha!
I have now moved up to heat going along with my ice and head packs. WHOAHOA! I am determined as ever to cut the recovery time in half! I had enough of television already as well channel surfing for the rest of the year. It does help a bit more alternating between heat and ice. I can also use the heat on my shoulders and neck then the wraps with ice on my head and face. The fur kids have been enjoying time with me on my couchbed although they still need to release some of their energy so my friend takes them out for at least two walks a day.
I do my best finding things around the house to help keep me occupied. Once I get up I think, "OK. This isn't that bad now. I don't feel the pressure." This is of course within the first five minutes standing up and moving around. Ask my friend how many times I misplaced things today and he would laugh. Its the little things such as plugging in my cell phone on the charger then a few minutes later I am frantically looking around for it. I also put an open bottle of Slimfast in the cabinet then took a shower and forgot to wash out the conditioner. Hahahaha! I am hoping we can both continue laughing about things later down the road. With my brain trying to recover things will be touch and go. I have a doctors appointment next week and a dental check up the following week. I don't want to rock the boat or more like rock the head just yet so they will both most likely need to be rescheduled. For now I just take things day by day and hour by hour. I just wish someone else could win this medical lottery of mine. I tend to agree with my friend who keeps saying, "If you are this lucky winning the medical lottery wouldn't that be great if you were just as lucky winning the real lottery?!"
Wishful thinking!
Back to channel surfing and crossing my fingers for no more nightmare dreams that involve angry trees and dragons. YIKES! Hahahaha!
OK. So I finally got a bit of rest. I will take anything I can get however it doesn't mean that I still won't have to deal with these darn head sensations. 
The fur kids are growing just as bored as I am. I lost track of how many times I said I was bored today. Funny enough my friend who always says he just wishes he had a few days to sit around and do nothing has also grown bored. Hahahaha! That makes how many of us now? Four. I better just get used to it and listen to the doctors and keep the not so brilliant ideas to myself. Like over doing it even if around the house. If I stay laying in one position with the head wraps and ice I feel a bit better but once I get up and start moving around the head pressure starts hitting me again. I can't play the Wii system or Atari with my head recovering. I can't take walks outside due to my head recovering. I can't walk on the treadmill due to my head recovery. What I can do and becoming an expect at is channel surfing! There are just way too many infomercials at night. Same with all this filler channels. At least with the living arrangements changing I got a great new package deal from Dish network this week. Now I have all three movie channels over the next three months but try watching them with subtitles and a pounding, pulsating headache. Good luck!
don't ask
My friend said I look like a Zombie wrapped in head dressing and ice packs. There aren't enough ice packs to keep on this head. I have tried the anti inflammatory medication but haven't gotten any relief. Remember I have Gastroparesis and a paralyzed digestive system so any medication in the form of tablets or capsules doesn't work. At least I tried but for now the only bit of relief I seem to get is using over the counter Activon for the back of my neck and shoulders then ice packs for the front and back of my head. I still have bone shifted on the right side of my nose but find a bit of relief using breath right strips to help at night since its hard to breathe. Am I complaining? Oh yes! Like I said, I am beyond irritable. This reminds me of when I had viral Meningitis however my brain wasn't bruised and at least I could sleep. The head sensations are quite different too but I was also the same as now, stuck at home channel surfing for a very long time. Its a catch 22 because with my Idiopathic Gastroparesis gravity is my best friend that works for me, not against me. Laying around too much can eventually backfire so I do have to be careful.
They gave me a shot filled with what they call, "The good stuff!" It was a three in one for the head pressure and crazy sensations I was feeling, severe inflammation and hopefully to get some much needed sleep. After the doctors thoroughly examined me they came back in to go over what the heck was making me feel rapidly worse this evening. They call it "Post Concussion Syndrome." I thought I heard it all but I guess you never really hear it all. Seems since I had two hits at once my brain couldn't handle that kind of impact so my brain is bruised and trying to start the recovery process. He explained it will take months and sometimes can even take up to a year before I make a complete recovery. I tend to think maybe a few months but once I learned since I already suffer neurological problems such as the seizures and vagus nerve issues it will most likely take a bit longer. GO FIGURE! Not the news I wanted to hear and I am so sick of being sick. I was extremely disappointed. The doctor said, "Instead of taking two steps forward you just took two steps back." With your past history of Meningitis and having a current seizure disorder it will take you longer than the average person to fully recover from the concussion." He did understand the reason I drove myself to the hospital was because of the overwhelming head pressure. At the same time he didn't agree with me making such a quick decision and instead I should had called for an ambulance or someone to drive me to the hospital. 
At least the hospital doctors understood the irritability and said it was perfectly normal because its like having a huge bruise. Instead of having it on the outside its on the inside. They said, "Your brain isn't made to be hit with that type of force against your skull." I was warned I might experience other neurological changes and that its to be expected while my brain is in the healing process. I just need to try and not let it freak me out. Same with wanting to cry out of nowhere over nothing. Its also normal. 
This would be a very, very bad day and if I woke up irritable just add ten times that when I learned I still have to do treatment. Of course things had to go through my specialists but was told this afternoon that they don't need any additional problems and take the concussion very seriously. I told them I honestly just want to rest in a nice quiet and dark room. Although I don't need a bowel obstruction going on either they felt it was safe for me to do half of the treatment today then finish the rest tomorrow. GEES! So after a horrible night of rest and waking up feeling worse than yesterday I had to motivate myself enough to get the hellish jug of liquid dynamite together. I figured the sooner I finish treatment the better off I will be!
OK. I did want to laugh but I am in too much pain so instead I just shot him a look. Hahahaha! I am used to keeping busy even during the ole Hell-In-A-Jug treatments so this time around was a bit trying. I also have to cancel and once again reschedule my Gastroenterologist appointment because I am not to be out driving. The hospital doctor said, "If you endure another concussion while healing from the first one it can cause brain swelling and even death." OK. Need not say more. I will stay home and find things to do occupying my time. For now the only thing I am occupying tonight is the bathroom from the darn Drano, my couchbed in between the bathroom trips and the ice packs placed over my face and head. 
Instead it was time to do my Drano aka Hell-In-A-Jug treatment. I got up and started putting away my couchbed blankets and pillows. Everything 'seemed' A-OK until I felt myself getting dizzy then the last thing I remembered was losing my balance hitting the right side of my face and head on a wooden side table then seeing white. It felt like I broke my teeth then I heard a glass shattering noise in my head. What I realize now after almost blacking out was my blood pressure and blood sugar were low and with the table being within my reach I held onto something that wasn't stable. At the same time poor Oreo was jumping mid air onto the couch next to the table. I made a collision between a hard 50 pound fur pup's skull and a wooden table. I saw stars and went down. Within I felt was a few seconds I looked around the room and felt blood coming out of my nose. I reached back for the couch as Oreo sat next to me. I remember hearing my friend in the kitchen but I was still dazed and confused so it took me five minutes to just say their name. Once they came into the living room my friend panicked asking what the heck happened then ran to get some tissues for my nose. It was a funny story 'I thought' at the time but I was the only one laughing. 
Later on as the day progressed I felt burning in my face and head. I also couldn't keep my balance. I couldn't breathe out of the right side of my nose either. The headache was horrible but dumb me kept moving around pretending like everything was OK. I did fine until around 6pm. Almost four hours after the fall my friend thought it was a good idea I get checked out. I refused to go to the hospital seeing I am so tired of emergency rooms and even with insurance its just too darn expensive. I agreed to be seen by the Urgent Care center down the street by my house. My friend was concerned because the right side of my face was becoming more swollen. I was also getting very tired which is unusual for me seeing it was only 6:30pm. Once we arrived at Urgent Care there were only two people ahead of us so we got back into a room within 15 minutes. The doctor was very concerned although he didn't want to push on my nose, face or head. He had me do some tests on my balance as well questions to see neurologically where I was at since hitting the table and Oreo's skull. Instead of just finding out if I had a broken nose I was told I needed to go to the nearest emergency room because he said, "There is something clearly going on neurologically with your brain." 
After a few hours the doctor came back in to go over the treatment plan. She made sure that I understood things will get worse before they start getting better and not to be alarmed if I continue feeling dizzy, off balance and over all just not feeling well. Its normal she said to be very tired and its ok to sleep because it will help my brain to recover. The doctor explained that the first 24 hours are the most serious and when complications can occur so she went over with my friend the symptoms and signs to look for and when to head back to the hospital. They wanted to start a good pain management treatment however my Idiopathic Gastroparesis doesn't leave much room for medication that can cause further GI problems so instead the doctor ordered anti inflammatory drugs. Before being released they made sure my blood pressure and blood sugar levels were in a safer range than we could head home.
I hope this month isn't a warning of a bad year to come. Amen.
celebratory
I'm feeling a bit Jersitaly this week! 
What I ended up doing instead is going back and forth with the seller on how to return the defective product. I even suggested they contact the company where it was purchased from seeing that is information that any company would want to know. If there is one surely at least a few other defects are also roaming around the great USA. I even tried the discs on three different video players but they came up blank and wouldn't even read. After four days I am still waiting on information to send back the return to the seller but so far no luck. I might just end up eating this purchase. Go figure! Although sellers just like Ebay have buyer feedback I am hoping to hear back from the seller on my return by early next week so I can buy a replacement. Maybe I need to just contact the 'Mob Wives' so I get this quickly resolved instead of Amazon. Hahahahaha! OK. That was FUNNY! 
First it was Jingles puppy who I found out was born one sick little guy so I made sure he got the care he needed in order to get better. Next Oreo and then Littleblue ended up catching the same viruses from Jingles puppy so they had to be checked by my veterinarian and then placed on medication. Now it seems the poor kittygang all caught the exact same respiratory/head virus. GEES! It started first with Precious kitty then it went to Pumpkin and now Cuddles. Bear kitty seems so far to only have the head part with his eyes watering so I have to clean them with warm water twice a day. I figured it might be a very good idea to have one of them checked out by my veterinarian because the virus can be passed around the fur kids over and over again.
Pumpkin is the easiest and most laid back when it comes to car rides and doctor visits. He doesn't enjoy them but tolerates them! Hahahaha! Sure, he talks to you while your driving until you reach the clinic door. Once the veterinarian places a hand near him he turns into a SCARY Halloween kitty! YIKES! He was actually pretty good today but did give a few warning meows and hisses to the veterinarian. Seems the same viruses are still lurking around the house. Now the kittygang are passing things around so instead of bringing them all up my veterinarian are treating them all at once with two rounds of medication. No need she said to have them checked because the virus is airborne. Its inevitable and they will all sooner or later catch it. So after we drove back home and dropped Pumpkin off we headed to Walmart to get their prescriptions filled. At the same time Walgreen's called to give a heads up that my insurance and the company who makes my Drano treatments are flagging their concerns with me drinking the jug on a weekly basis due to unforeseen side effects as well long term. I can't tell you how many times this has happened and my GI doctor has sent them numerous letters and reports on the necessity of the medication but once again we have problems. Now instead of my medication being a $20.00 copay it is now $100.00!
amorous
What a week! What a day, but another productive one at that! Unfortunately all good things must come to an end as I am closing in on another Drano treatment weekend. UGGG!
My daughter Brittney is 12 years old and suffers from Gastroparesis. Brittney has been through a great deal in the past 15 months. She has suffered greatly with this illness. At first, we thought she was making it up or was just a worrier suffering from anxiety. But after losing 17lbs and not being able to eat anything at all, we started to get very concerned. She was looking very ill and seemed to be getting depressed. Then when she completely stopped gaining weight, she also stopped growing. She was suffering daily with nausea, abdominal pain, vomiting and insomnia. She was eating very few foods because there are so many foods that upset her system.
Nothing quite like the magical feeling waking up to see SNOW! B E A U T I F U L SNOW! GLORIOUS SNOW! Wonderful S N O W! I just knew it was going to be an amazing day!
This evening I had a not so wonderful migraine come on with the darn tremors and vertigo. With the weather doing such a rapid change I am sure its not helping as my immune system struggles to adapt. Luckily I still have my horse blinder glasses so I put them on and grabbed my ice pack then took a short one hour nap. I try my best not to take medication unless I am screaming mercy! So far so good and I will just have to take things one step at a time. I have yet to find any permanent relief for my intestinal ulcers. Seems the darn Drano just makes the burning ten times worse so for now I am breaking up my treatments through out the week to see if that might help a bit. If not I won't have a choice but to chug the jug straight up! YIKES! I see my Gastroenterologist next week so not too far away. I am also due to have my dentist check my teeth seeing between Idiopathic Gastroparesis and the darn Hell-In-A-Jug treatments I am lucky to still have teeth. Same with the hair today, gone tomorrow but such as life and I will be just fine. Although somewhere later on down the road I might just have to gum my way through Slimfast. Hahahaha!
With all the non-stop stress I am happy to say sorry folks who like to bring me down but guess what? I'm still ALIVE! WHOAHOA! 
It's called the act of "Self Defense."
I like to call my little friends M O P. I won't tell you what the initials stand for, I rather you guess but certain you can figure it out. When you are sick and in no position to be lunged at nor threatened with violence you have to get some type of support and back up. Have a game plan. Sure wish I had both prior to last weekends ridiculous act of someone being way out of control and NUTS! Being told by the law and the court system that regardless the scenario and you are sick as well injured you need to do what you need to do to protect yourself. Period. I couldn't agree with them more and honestly I have had just about enough, no wait! I HAVE HAD ENOUGH of walking on egg shells. No one should have to live a life of fear due to some nut job extended family member nor an addict who mind you will never be clean or sober. They just lead everyone to believe they are for the sake of once again manipulating. Those who fall for the stories are just as if not more foolish looking than the addict.
Now I have my own personal stash of M O P S because one can never be too prepared to protect themselves. Amen. Miss pink M O P stays by my side indoors while her cousin blue M O P stays in another location and their cousin dark blue M O P in a special secret hiding spot. A dear friend of mine was very, very proud of me today for taking action and finally saying NO to being a door mat for violent and aggressive behavior. They have recently taught their own son about sticking up for themselves after being picked on by a bully at school. He said, "You can just never be too certain with people in this world. There are a lot of nuts out there and you always have the right to protect yourself when you are being threatened. This also goes for children because as parents we can't always be there for them." As a very concerned Father he has no problems confronting the school nor the bully's parents but at the same time let's just say his son finally stuck up for himself and justice was served!
So for now I told the judge's office I will hold onto the paperwork but at the same time I will do what needs to be done in the name of self defense. They agreed as well the local and county Sheriff's department. 'If' and that's a huge 'if' this happens again the individual or individuals will be arrested on the spot. It will be the last and final incident report that will be taken. Guess we all run out of the 'Get Out Of Jail Free' passes sooner or later. Back fractures or not I refuse to ever again live in fear. 