When the gallbladder attacks....
This morning I made yet another trip to the ER because of my gallbladder. I was at work, driving along and all of a sudden I was hit with the urge to go #2. I found a place to pull over my bus and use facilities for that sort of thing. It was unpleasant. I'll spare you the details.
Shortly after returning to my bus and getting back on the road the pain started to grow in my abdomen. It hits in the same spot each time, initially pinpointed at a place just below my ribs on the right side. Stabbing sort of pain that flows into a a constant achy pain. That achy pain seems to radiate to my shoulder, back and side in a kind of burning sensation.
The pain settled in for the rest of my trip. I also had to stop and make a mad dash for the restroom at our downtown transit mall before heading to the other end of the valley for the rest of my run. I felt bad for my passengers as I left them gawking at my awkward form as it ran for the restroom. When I returned to the bus, sweating and shaking, I simply felt embarrassed.
I managed to get to the end of the line turn around without having to stop again, but I was aching and suffering the whole way there. When I set the brake at the station there I had to run for the bathroom again. This time, to throw up the 16 oz. of coffee I'd consumed that morning on my way to work.
I haven't had vomiting with this condition until today and it scared me. So I called my dispatcher and explained the situation. I told her I wasn't going to be working after this shift but was instead going to the emergency room again.
I was consumed with waves of nausea for about another 20 minutes or so but then finally pulled up to the garage where I was relived by another driver. I went inside to use the facilities once more and then I went to my car and sat while a dizzy spell passed. I was seriously not in any condition to drive but damned if I was going to call for an ambulance.
I managed to get myself home, slowly and as safely as possible. I woke my sleeping husband and informed him of my situation. He got dressed and rushed me off to the ER.
Once there I was taken right back to a bed and had an IV line started within 15 minutes of my arrival. They pushed a bag of saline just in case my vomiting and deuces had started any dehydration. They also gave me a 4mg dose of morphine, which after the initial system shock, did little to ease my pain.
The initial system shock was kind of bizarre. As the nurse pushed the liquid morphine through the IV I felt a heaviness in my chest and then a burning sensation in my neck. I was concerned since I hadn't ever had morphine before that I might have an allergic reaction. I didn't, and that was good.
I felt woozy for a few moments but then that was it. After an hour or so I was still wide awake and feeling the pains in my belly still. They had dulled a bit, but were still there.
I was taken for x-ray's and then had the most unusual attending doctor step in for a minute. He looked like Grizzly Adams. Curly locks and a bushy beard... both grey with age. He never looked me in the eyes and just pushed around on my belly a bit while grumbling about how none of my tests were 100% conclusive that my gallbladder was bad and that it couldn't possibly be the problem.
Of course he just left as awkwardly as he'd entered and that was that. The resident doc came back in, pleasantly and politely checking on me and asking me questions. My husband brought up the roughness and gruffness of the attending. She kinda laughed and said he was an odd one. I think that might be an understatement.
She told me that my blood tests and x-rays were ok, no infections or anything to be worried about. She said I was probably just having another attack and that the best thing I could do was to take pain meds as needed, rest, watch my diet and see my surgeon this week as scheduled.
She ordered my discharge and another round of morphine this time mixed with toradol for pain before I went home. The nurse obliged and injected me with the drugs before removing my IV. She injected the morphine first and once again I got that heavy chest sensation and the burning neck thing. Then when she injected the toradol I got the weirdest feeling... and as she noticed the expression that was on my face as she pushed the drugs into my veins she asked what was wrong.
"I feel like my shoulder just peed."
The sensation was like a warm wetness had flushed from the top of my shoulder down to my wrist. The only way I could describe it was as such. She laughed and said that was a first. She finished pushing the fluid in, made a saline push through to flush the IV and then proceeded to remove the IV from my vein.
It wasn't long after that that I passed out cold. Apparently I was speaking with hubby when I just kinda conked out. I was startled awake by the nurse returning with papers to sign and such.
For the first time I let the orderlies (do they still call them that, by the way?) wheel me out of the hospital. I couldn't walk very well and even the few steps from the wheelchair to the car were rough. I dozed in the car at the pharmacy as the husband had my prescriptions filled and then when we got home I creeped up the stairs and fell into bed.
I slept some 3+ hours and woke up needing the bathroom. I consumed some cantaloupe and water and have managed to sit on the couch since I woke up. I've done some research on the net and managed to push out this blog. I think this is the longest it's ever taken me to type a post. I started over an hour and a half ago.
The morphine/toradol haze is still strong. My eyes keep losing focus and feel like they are full of sand. And my mind is pretty slow. I think I'll go back to bed. At least I have tomorrow off to recuperate. I hope I can get past the pain of this latest attack and be good for work on Monday.
I see the surgeon on Wednesday and will be begging her for mercy. "Get this damn thing out of me, please!" I'll say to her. And hopefully she says yes.
Shortly after returning to my bus and getting back on the road the pain started to grow in my abdomen. It hits in the same spot each time, initially pinpointed at a place just below my ribs on the right side. Stabbing sort of pain that flows into a a constant achy pain. That achy pain seems to radiate to my shoulder, back and side in a kind of burning sensation.
The pain settled in for the rest of my trip. I also had to stop and make a mad dash for the restroom at our downtown transit mall before heading to the other end of the valley for the rest of my run. I felt bad for my passengers as I left them gawking at my awkward form as it ran for the restroom. When I returned to the bus, sweating and shaking, I simply felt embarrassed.
I managed to get to the end of the line turn around without having to stop again, but I was aching and suffering the whole way there. When I set the brake at the station there I had to run for the bathroom again. This time, to throw up the 16 oz. of coffee I'd consumed that morning on my way to work.
I haven't had vomiting with this condition until today and it scared me. So I called my dispatcher and explained the situation. I told her I wasn't going to be working after this shift but was instead going to the emergency room again.
I was consumed with waves of nausea for about another 20 minutes or so but then finally pulled up to the garage where I was relived by another driver. I went inside to use the facilities once more and then I went to my car and sat while a dizzy spell passed. I was seriously not in any condition to drive but damned if I was going to call for an ambulance.
I managed to get myself home, slowly and as safely as possible. I woke my sleeping husband and informed him of my situation. He got dressed and rushed me off to the ER.
Once there I was taken right back to a bed and had an IV line started within 15 minutes of my arrival. They pushed a bag of saline just in case my vomiting and deuces had started any dehydration. They also gave me a 4mg dose of morphine, which after the initial system shock, did little to ease my pain.
The initial system shock was kind of bizarre. As the nurse pushed the liquid morphine through the IV I felt a heaviness in my chest and then a burning sensation in my neck. I was concerned since I hadn't ever had morphine before that I might have an allergic reaction. I didn't, and that was good.
I felt woozy for a few moments but then that was it. After an hour or so I was still wide awake and feeling the pains in my belly still. They had dulled a bit, but were still there.
I was taken for x-ray's and then had the most unusual attending doctor step in for a minute. He looked like Grizzly Adams. Curly locks and a bushy beard... both grey with age. He never looked me in the eyes and just pushed around on my belly a bit while grumbling about how none of my tests were 100% conclusive that my gallbladder was bad and that it couldn't possibly be the problem.
Of course he just left as awkwardly as he'd entered and that was that. The resident doc came back in, pleasantly and politely checking on me and asking me questions. My husband brought up the roughness and gruffness of the attending. She kinda laughed and said he was an odd one. I think that might be an understatement.
She told me that my blood tests and x-rays were ok, no infections or anything to be worried about. She said I was probably just having another attack and that the best thing I could do was to take pain meds as needed, rest, watch my diet and see my surgeon this week as scheduled.
She ordered my discharge and another round of morphine this time mixed with toradol for pain before I went home. The nurse obliged and injected me with the drugs before removing my IV. She injected the morphine first and once again I got that heavy chest sensation and the burning neck thing. Then when she injected the toradol I got the weirdest feeling... and as she noticed the expression that was on my face as she pushed the drugs into my veins she asked what was wrong.
"I feel like my shoulder just peed."
The sensation was like a warm wetness had flushed from the top of my shoulder down to my wrist. The only way I could describe it was as such. She laughed and said that was a first. She finished pushing the fluid in, made a saline push through to flush the IV and then proceeded to remove the IV from my vein.
It wasn't long after that that I passed out cold. Apparently I was speaking with hubby when I just kinda conked out. I was startled awake by the nurse returning with papers to sign and such.
For the first time I let the orderlies (do they still call them that, by the way?) wheel me out of the hospital. I couldn't walk very well and even the few steps from the wheelchair to the car were rough. I dozed in the car at the pharmacy as the husband had my prescriptions filled and then when we got home I creeped up the stairs and fell into bed.
I slept some 3+ hours and woke up needing the bathroom. I consumed some cantaloupe and water and have managed to sit on the couch since I woke up. I've done some research on the net and managed to push out this blog. I think this is the longest it's ever taken me to type a post. I started over an hour and a half ago.
The morphine/toradol haze is still strong. My eyes keep losing focus and feel like they are full of sand. And my mind is pretty slow. I think I'll go back to bed. At least I have tomorrow off to recuperate. I hope I can get past the pain of this latest attack and be good for work on Monday.
I see the surgeon on Wednesday and will be begging her for mercy. "Get this damn thing out of me, please!" I'll say to her. And hopefully she says yes.
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