I've been sitting (mostly sleeping) on the sidelines for a LONG time. I'm so far behind on everything, I've quit thinking about it. But I think I"m finally on the road to getting better, and I'll just start over again wherever I am.
I came home from Florida at the end of February with a stomach virus that was going around down there. Spent a week in bed, but when the virus left, my stomach just kept getting worse and worse. I had stool samples, blood tests, and C Scans, went to the ER, but no solid answers. We had to change doctors because of networks, and our new family doctor had more blood tests run and said that my pancreas was making NO enzymes of any kind, so we focused on that. But by my next visit in June, all of my numbers were worse, so he admitted me to the hospital right after I left his office.
The best thing that could have happened to me. I had a bulging stomach (full of something), bulging abs, and swollen legs and feet. I was a mess. The hospitalist ordered another CT Scan, and they sent me to the third floor. It seems that a "sack" surrounds our blood vessels and organs to protect them, and every time I ate or drank, the contents went into the "sack" and not into my organs. That put the doctors in a tough position. They couldn't give me an IV, because it would just join the gunk floating around inside me, but my kidneys were in distress because they were dehydrated. My blood vessels weren't sending them any fluids.
Nurses came and drained my too full bladder, and that relieved a LOT of pressure. Then I went downstairs to have my stomach "tapped." A; specialist put a needle inside the sack with a drainage tube and told me to take a nap. Half an hour later, 5.8 liters of fluid had drained into 3 medium sized buckets. More relief.
Then it was back to my room to find the right combination of meds to keep the fluids draining but also get enough liquids to save my kidneys. EVERY nurse and doctor were wonderful--kind and compassionate. I'm not a fan of hospitals, but I'm a huge of the people who work there. Sure, in the hospital, someone takes your vitals 3 times a day, draws blood once a day at least, and pushes pills and shots at a steady pace. But, they also can decide what's really going on. My pancreas was lazy, but it wasn't hurting anything. The culprit is an enlarged fatty liver. (I'll miss my wine, but I like my liver more). And after 7 days, they sent me home with a game plan to get healthy again. I might be on the road to recovery. I might even be able to write again. Fingers crossed.
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